It was so bad that there was no point to sewing him up. Had we looked a month ago it most likely would have been the same case. It was soft and did not show up on the X-rays. Thinking back over his problems they likely began back in August and then he had a slight bout with problems over labor day. The cancer was at the junction of the large and small intestines so it would have impossible to cut it out.
Now he is buried in one of favorite resting spots. He was such a good dog he even dug part of his own grave.
Stoic to the end. The medication would help his intestines while he was on it but after it ran out he would again go downhill. When he stopped walking any distances on his evening walks he would walk to the car wanting to go for a ride, we took several in place of his regular route. He wanted nothing more than to continue our routine, always eager to get up and go - just once he got going he could no longer keep going. He didn't want to be left behind on Sunday so we got about 1/2 mile walk in, a 1/10 of a mile per stretch. The poor guy had to be awful uncomfortable at this point but still got up after resting a few minutes of rest.
He enjoyed his last long road tip with me not aware it would be his last. Too bad the car died and he lost his easy window views with the the rental. After the trip most of all he was very happy to get home to his yard. We had one more night with him sleeping under my bed, still able drag himself out from under the bed rails in the morning - just a little weak in the rear legs on the hardwood stairs.
The poor dog managed to survive a month or more with intestinal distress from the disease yet without any indication of pain. He wasn't eating well, he had some uncomfortable diarrhea but outside of that he was ready to go. Such a good dog was Grizzy that all he wanted was his daily walks around town and a bit of attention. He had a will to live just to be the very good dog he always was.
He will be remembered as an exceptionally good dog.
