Happy 11th Birthday Merlin!

It's my 11th Birthday today! Back in February 2016 we never imagined I would make it to 11!

The veterinary specialists now think I might have been misdiagnosed - I might have small cell lymphoma instead of large cell (which is a possibility since I was diagnosed via several small needle aspirates). Small cell has a much better prognosis and would be more likely to go into remission, which is likely where I am!

My stools are soft all the time, and there is the occasional bit of blood or mucus in them, but otherwise I act perfectly normal. There are some days where I can't jump up from the floor to the bathroom sink, but other days when I can.

I'm just happy to be here, with my dad, my mom, and my siblings. Thank you all for your purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts!

- Merlin

26 Months!

We are celebrating today! Here is what my mom said on the layout (click it to view it larger): "Back in February 2016, Merlin was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma and given 1-3 months to live. April 4, 2018, marks 26 months since then. The specialist vets now think he was either misdiagnosed, so he actually has small cell lymphoma, which has a better prognosis, or else he is in remission. Either way, he is our magical, miracle Merlin!" I can tell you that I pretty much always have soft stools these days, and frequently I end up with poo on my butt, my tail, and other parts of me. I often wipe my bum on the floor by scooching my butt across it, leave poo smear art! My dad is not terribly impressed with that, for some reason. Otherwise, I'm doing well. Still playing and chasing my little sister Chloe when I feel like it. I have some loose skin on my belly, but who cares about that! Thank you all for your purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts!

Sorry we've been away

13 Months with Cancer!

Hello everyone!  Merlin here!  It has now been 13 months since I was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma of the GI tract and spleen, and giving 1 to 3 months to live.  It has now been 13 months, and while I'm starting to slow down, I'm still doing well!

Of course, we are celebrating with a digital scrapbook page, and joining Athena's Caturday Art Blog Hop.

Made with The Bright Side of Life by Little Feet Digital Designs and Dagi's Temp-tations

It was on February 4th, 2016, that we received the news that I had large cell lymphoma, the more aggressive form of lymphoma.  At the time, we never imagined that I would still be here, 13 months later, enjoying life and meeting my new baby sister.

I'm still doing well.  I'm starting to slow down a bit, whether from the cancer, the steroids, or the weight gain due to the steroids, but the steroids are keeping me alive, so we aren't about to stop them at this point.  I'm back to having some mucus or blood in my stool a couple of times a week, but that's all. It doesn't seem to bug me, although my dad gets a bit annoyed when I wipe my bum on the floor.

Thank you all for your purrs, prayers, positive thoughts, and kindness.  Your support means so much to me.  However much longer I have, I am just treasuring every moment with my family.

Thank you.

We are still here!

Hello everyone!  Merlin here!  Sorry that we haven't been posting or visiting our friends, but things have been incredibly busy around here, and there has been lots of chaos.

First of all, there is our new baby sister, Chloe.  We haven't had the opportunity to spend any time with her, for the reasons that follow:

Poor Dragonheart is still experiencing some congestion.  The vet recently started him on steroids, and that, along with a new antibiotic, and a continued antiviral, seems to be helping.  That said, he is making the trip to Guelph to visit the Health Science Centre Companion Animal Clinic at the Ontario Veterinary College on Tuesday, with our dad, to have a CT scan and an echocardiogram.  The x-rays that the vet took to rule out pneumonia or other problems showed that his heart is enlarged, so he needs the echocardiogram to see if his equivocal hypertrophic cardiomyopathy has progressed.  The CT scan will be to see if his congestion is caused by polyps (hopefully, as they would be benign), or cancer (hopefully not, and not usual in a cat his age of ten).  It will also rule out any underlying reasons for the gum hyperplasia he kept having in the summer and fall of 2016.  So that's Dragonheart.

Devi had her eosinophilic granuloma skin lesions return.  We think she managed to snag some of Chloe's kitten food that got knocked out of the master bedroom, which has become the kitten nursery.  Chloe is a typical kitten, going crazy and knocking her dry food everywhere.  We are pretty sure some of it flew out to where Devi ate some of it.  So poor Devi is back on steroids and antihistamines to clear up her skin.  Fortunately those are working, and her skin is looking much better.

As for me, I'm, ironically, the healthiest of the older Sphynx.  I'm starting to slow down a bit, either for the steroids, the cancer, or both, and I'm back to having some blood and/or mucus in my stool a couple of times a week.  But otherwise I'm doing great!

Chloe is the healthiest of us all, being a growing kitten, full of energy and spunk!  She loves bunnykicking the 'nip banana we received from our Secret Paws.

So that's the update on us.  Be sure to check in tomorrow for a special celebration!  We miss you guys and hope we'll have more time to post and visit soon!

One Year!

Merlin here!  Today is a very special day.  A day we never thought would happen.  One year ago today, on February 4, 2016, I was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma of the GI tract and spleen.  I was given one to three months to live.  Here I am a year later, defying all the odds and still going strong!

Just over a year ago (February 3rd), I was at the vet, being evaluated by the internal medicine service at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) Small Animal Clinic.  I had been having loose stools and some blood and mucus in my stool, and occasionally vomiting some bile, so our primary care vet thought I had inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).  I was at OVC in order to confirm this diagnosis so I could be properly treated.

Merlin in the waiting room at the OVC Small Animal Clinic

They started with an abdominal ultrasound.  It showed that there was something wrong with my spleen, and that my lymph nodes throughout my abdomen were enlarged.  They tested my coagulation (since the spleen is important in blood coagulation), and then I was booked in for biopsies of the spleen and lymph nodes, to (or so we thought at the time), rule out cancer.  We all expected that I would be back at OVC the next day to have an endoscopy to confirm IBD.  I was in great physical shape, and other than the problems with my stool, that seemed to flare up when I was under stress, I was in perfect health!

Merlin after the biopsy - his skin is scabbed from the rubbing of the anaesthesia mask

They were able to get very good biopsies of both my lymph nodes and my spleen.  They sent the samples out to pathology to be tested.  The samples were good, they were clear, they were easily tested, and the results were very clear.  The pathology report was unequivocal.

So later that day on February 4th, 2016, we received the devastating news that I had an aggressive form of cancer:  large cell lymphoma of the spleen and GI tract.  I was given 1-3 months to live.  Chemo would only extend that by maybe a month.  Needless to say, we were all incredibly devastated.   My dad, who is my human, was overseas at the time, and we were very glad that he was going to be coming home for a couple of weeks leave very soon, before heading back overseas.  We thought that we were going to be saying goodbye.

Now here I am a year later, and I am still doing great!  Even my stool issues have cleared right up.  I only vomit if I eat too much cat grass.  While we certainly don't want to jinx it, it looks like I am currently in remission, something that is very common with small cell lymphoma, but is quite rare with large cell lymphoma.  I am very glad to be uncommon!  I am currently on prednisolone, but no other chemo.  I am still a solid Sphynx, with lots of muscle.  I still love to eat, I love to play, and I am enjoying life to the fullest.  We don't know how much longer I have, but we are enjoying every day.

Thank you all for your support, for your purrs, prayers, positive thoughts, and friendship.  It means so much to all of us that we have so many people caring about me.  Thank you my friends.

I honour of this very special anniversary, we are holding a comment-a-thon.  Every comment this post receives between now and 6 am on Monday February 6th, will lead to a donation of 50 cents to the OVC Pet Trust, which is working to find better therapies for pets and people!

11 Months Since Merlin's Cancer Diagnosis!

Hello friends!  Merlin here!  Today marks another milestone in my cancer fight!  It is now 11 months since I was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma of the GI tract and spleen, and only given 1-3 months to live.  At the time of my diagnosis, they were able to get very good biopsies, and the pathology was sadly definitive, clearly showing large cell lymphoma.

Needless to say, 11 months later, I am absolutely delighted to still be here, and I am cherishing each and every day with my family.

Made with  Scrap Happy by Kathryn Estry and Keep Calm 1 by Miss Mel

At this point, it even appears I though I have gone into remission!  My stools have been completely normal (not soft at all, no blood or mucus in them), since I had my "bad day" back in November, when my mom and dad thought that they might finally be losing me.  Similarly, I haven't had any vomiting episodes.  No bile, no food, nothing at all.  While we don't want to get our hopes up too high, needless to say, we are very happy with how things are going right now.  We are still trying to just enjoy every day we have together, and take it one day at a time, but we have very much enjoyed spending our holiday time together.  My dad goes back to work next Monday, and my mom starts her new job the Monday after, so right now I am just enjoying having them home most of the day, and they are spending lots of time with me.  I am still on prednisolone, but not on any other chemotherapy at this point in time.

Thanks to all of you for your support, your purrs, prayers, positive thoughts, and putting your paws together for me.  They mean an awful lot to me and my family.

Frootbat Friday: Merlin

Thank you to everyone who helped me celebrate my 9th Gotcha Day yesterday!  I truly appreciate all the purrs, prayers, positive thoughts, and putting of paws together from all my friends.

Earlier this week, I had mentioned that due to chemotherapy, especially the prednisolone, I was gaining a bit more fur than usual in some spots.  I'm the most naked out of the three of us Sphynx - you see, Sphynx, although "hairless," do have fine down hairs.  My hairs are extremely short and fine, Dragonheart has pretty average "hair" for a Sphynx, and Devi is the fuzziest of us, although she's still relatively hairless compared to some Sphynx.

When I mentioned that, Seppo, one of the Sphynx at http://www.pikkupunapippuri.com asked me where I was gaining some hair.  The answer is my ears, so it seemed appropriate to share some ear photos for Frootbat Friday.  All photos can be enlarged for a closer look.

Here's one of my ears back in July.  The photo is a little blurry, but you can see there are some very fine, short hairs covering my ear.

Here's what one of my ears looks like now.  You can see there's a bit of fuzz on it:

Dragonheart has the fuzziest ears out of all of us.  Here's a photo of one of his ears:

Devi's ears are pretty fuzzy too, but not quite as fuzzy as Dragonheart's:

As for our skin and the differences, this collage illustrates them.  Again, if you click to view larger, you can see the differences, especially between me (Merlin) and the other two.  The difference between Dragonheart and Devi is much more noticeable in person.

We hope you've learned something about Sphynx today!

Happy Holidays to all those celebrating!  We will be having an adventure starting tomorrow, so we may be offline for a few days.

Merlin's 9th Gotcha Day!

Hello everyone!  Merlin here!  Today is my 9th Gotcha Day!  It's a very special day, because back in February when I was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma and given 1-3 months to live, we could have never imagined I would be here to celebrate my Gotcha Day with my family and all my friends!

I joined my family on December 22nd, 2007, at about 14 weeks old.  Here are a couple of photos of my first day with my new family:

I was in a nice, large room, and Dragonheart and I were kept separate for the first few days.  As you can see, there was a door with a window in it between us, and Dragonheart was quite interested in who I was!

Now I'm a fully grown man cat, and although I have lymphoma, I am continuing to do well!

I am so happy to have made it to my 9th Gotcha Day!  We have no idea how much longer I have, but we are enjoying all the days we have together.  I am very thankful for all my friends who are purring, praying, purring their paws together, and sending positive thoughts my way.  Your love and support means so much to me and to my mom and dad.

It has been a wonderful 9 years with my family so far.  I have had many adventures with my brother Dragonheart, and we have lived in many different places together.  We had my sister Arwen for far too short a time, but I loved her too.  Then when we rescued Devi, I grew to love her as well.

Despite the fact that it is the holiday season for many, we are holding a comment-a-thon for the OVC Pet Trust.  For every comment left on this post between now and Christmas morning at 6am EST, we will donate 50 cents to the OVC Pet Trust, which is a Canadian fund dedicated to the health and well-being of companion animals.  They fund a variety of studies, and you can read more about them here.  It was at OVC that my biopsies were done, my cancer diagnosis was made, and I started my chemotherapy.  They also have a primary care clinic, and that's where I received my veterinary care for many years.  We are hoping that through the research at the Ontario Veterinary College they can find better treatments for feline cancers, and making even a cure someday!  That would be wonderful!

Thank you for taking the time during this busy time of year to visit with me and celebrate my 9th Gotcha Day.

Toesday: Merlin

Hello all!  Merlin here again!  It's two days until my 9th Gotcha Day!

Here are some close-ups of my toes.  As you can see, when I was given a bath on Sunday, my mom and dad didn't clean my paws.  I'm not fond of being bathed, and they didn't want to stress me out too much, so they left my paws for another day.

We Sphynx need to have our paws cleaned regularly because we have no fur.  You see, our skin secretes oils, just like furred cats, but with us Sphynx, there is no fur for the oil to work itself through.  So the oil builds up on our skin, and with our paws, it combines with litter dust to create a waxy substance that can stick to our paws, and especially our claws.  You can't really see it in these photos, but we get quite a thick, waxy buildup on our claws that needs to be cleaned away.

If you click the photos to see them larger, you can see the tiny, fine little down hairs that I have on m feet.  Out of the three of us (Dragonheart, Devi, and myself) I have the least amount of these hairs.  However, since being on chemotherapy for cancer, I've started acquiring a bit more fuzz in certain places.  I'm still extremely bald compared to Devi though!

If you can, be sure to visit on Thursday for my big 9th Gotcha Day celebration!

Caturday Art: Merlin

This week for Caturday Art with Athena, we have a digital scrapbook page from earlier this month.

Kit - GingerBread Ladies MEGA Collab: Enchanted 

Template - The Bigger Picture 4 - Heartstrings Scrap Art

Right now we are very happy because it looks like Merlin will be here to celebrate his 9th Gotcha Day on December 22nd!  So be sure to visit us that day, as we have a huge party and celebration!

10 Months Since Merlin's Cancer Diagnosis!

Merlin here!  I know it has been a sad week, with many friends making their trip to the Rainbow Bridge, but I have some positive news!  I also have some Christmas selfies, for Sunday Selfies with The Cat On My Head.

It has now been 10 months since I was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma of the GI tract and spleen, and given 1 to 3 months to live.  I have now outlived my most optimistic prognosis by 7 months!  So we are celebrating another milestone and are very happy that I am still doing well!

We did have a scare, back in early November, where there was one day when I didn't eat, drink, or use the litterbox, and I just lay wherever I was put, whether my mom or dad's lap, or my bed, or in front of the fireplace.  Fortunately, after eating some yogourt that night, the next day I was eating and drinking when food or water was placed in front of me, and then using the litterbox, and I started getting stronger again each day.  A week later I was back to my normal self, eating and drinking normally, having nice, solid stools with no blood or mucus, chasing my sister around like a crazy cat, playing with my toys, and jumping back up on the counters!  I'm still acting completely normal!  You would never know that I have cancer, besides one or two times a week when there is blood or mucus in my stool.

I'm still on steroids (prednisolone), so I have a huge appetite, and continue to be a solid Sphynx with lots of muscle.  So I haven't lost any weight, which is really good!

Right now we are taking it one day at a time, and just enjoying every moment we have together.  We do hope that I make it to my 9th Gotcha Day, which will be coming up just before Christmas:  December 22nd!  It would be a wonderful Christmas present if I'm still here for my Gotcha Day and Christmas.  Right now it looks like I will be, but you never know.  Hopefully I won't have another bad day like I did at the beginning of November for a while yet!

I am so thankful for all the purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts that so many friends have sent my way.  We greatly appreciate them!  We are so thankful to have such wonderful support.

Love to all of you.

Merlin

Nine Months Since Merlin's Cancer Diagnosis

Hello all!  Today marks another milestone in my fight against large cell lymphoma of the gastrointestinal tract.  Today it has been nine months since I was diagnosed with cancer and given one to three months to live.  So I have now lived six months longer than the most optimistic prognosis!

Made with Wings of Hope by Connie Prince

It is only this week that I have started acting like I have cancer at all.  Tuesday I didn't have anything to eat or drink all day until my daddy came home and shared some yogourt with me.  After that I had some treats and some crunchies.  Since then, I've been eating and drinking when food or drink it put in front of me, I'm getting up to use the litterbox on my own (although my stool is very soft), and I'm purring for my mom and dad when they pet me or hold me.  I don't seem to be in any pain.

Made with All In A Year by Connie Prince

This morning I was actually acting pretty much normally!  I curled up under my dad's chin to sleep, and was purring away for him.  I woke him up for breakfast and followed him downstairs to have some crunchies.  I was rubbing my head into his cheeks and purring away.  I demanded some cat grass and had a bit of it (not too much so that I wouldn't bring it back up), and basically acting like nothing was wrong at all!

Even so, my mom and dad have decided that they will not attend my mom's convocation on Monday. They were going to leave Sunday, as it is in a city about four hours away by car, and they were going to stay until Tuesday.  Even though we would be boarded at our veterinarian practice, my mom and dad don't want to be away from me for that long at this point.  My mom still gets her diploma, even if she doesn't show up for convocation, so it would just be a ceremony and a chance for some cool photos.  She says I'm more important than that.  If it was something she really had to do, she would go.  But since it is optional, she's decided to stay home.

Thank you for all your purrs, prayers, positive thoughts, and support.  You are wonderful friends and we are very glad we started blogging again.  It means a lot knowing that there are so many people out there thinking of me and my family.

Worried Wednesday

Hello all.  Merlin here.  Thank you for your purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts.

I'm doing better today.  I've had some yogourt (I love yogourt!), some treats, and some crunchies.  I've had some water to drink and used the litterbox.  I'm still not looking for food or water on my own, but if my mom or dad put them in front of me, I'll eat or drink.  I did get up and use the litterbox on my own, but mostly I'm just lying wherever my mom or dad lie me down.

I mostly slept in my bed last night (which my mom and dad placed between them on the big bed), with Devi curled up next to me, but at one point I did go and curl up in my dad's armpit, before moving back to my bed with Devi.  I'm purring for my dad.

So it looks like the cancer is starting to affect me, but I'm not quite ready to leave yet.  Thank you again for your purrs and prayers.

Merlin

Hello everyone, it's the mom here.

I'm thinking Merlin's miracle might be coming to an end.

First of all, he normally wakes up my husband for breakfast every morning.  He didn't this morning, but we explained that away with the fact that we were up late last night, so maybe he wasn't hungry this morning.

All three cats always get treats every time any of them gets medication.  They all gobble them right up every time.

This morning, after giving Dragonheart his asthma inhaler, Merlin didn't touch the treats I gave him.  He had never not eaten those treats.

I picked him up.  He would normally purr like a motor boat.  He didn't purr.  I gave him head rubs.  He didn't purr.  Very unusual behaviour.

I picked him up and carried him downstairs to his favourite sun spot.  No purring.  I gave him his favourite treats.  They were sniffed and ignored.  I opened a can of his favourite Almo Nature food and put it right in front of him.  He ignored it.

I'm thinking maybe the cancer has finally spread enough that he is no longer hungry.  We knew this day would happen, but you are still never prepared when it actually does.

We'll see how things go the rest of the day, but if he has lost his appetite and is in pain, then I don't want to prolong his suffering, just for our sake.  I don't want to be selfish, but I also don't want to cut his life short either.

I should be happy and grateful.  We've had so many more months together than the specialists said we would.  But the reality of his condition is hitting home, and it's hard.

If we aren't able to visit our friends and comment, I know you'll understand.  I will definitely update this blog and/or Merlin's Facebook page to let you know how he is doing.

We love all of you and appreciate all the purrs, prayers, positive thoughts and support you've given us since we started blogging again.

Eight Months Since Merlin's Cancer Diagnosis

Hello friends!  Merlin here!  Today marks another milestone in my cancer fight.  It has now been eight months since I was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma of the GI tract and given one to three months to live.  So I have now outlived my prognosis by five months!

I'm still doing pretty well.  I still play a little bit, at least when Devi is not hogging the toys.  I'm eating and drinking normally, and continue to gain weight due to the steroid I'm on.  I still purr pretty much all the time and curl up under my dad's chin to sleep at night.

There is sometimes blood or mucus in my stool, but not all the time, which is good.

In ten days, I'll get to see our new house!  I'm very excited!  I'm told we'll have THREE levels to explore!

Thank you all for your purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts.  I know that they are all helping!

Thankful Thursday: The Kindness of Strangers

Merlin here!  Despite the fact that I have cancer, I am a very thankful Sphynx.  In addition to my wonderful family, I have a lot of people, many of whom I've never met, thinking about me, supporting me, purring for me, and praying for me.  Most of you, my blogging friends, I only know virtually, but you mean a lot to me and my family.

Here I am with a beautiful blanket that was made for me from one of those groups of people on the internet who care about me and are giving me all the purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts that they have.

 It's a fleece blanket, so of course I love it!

Dragonheart and Devi have also curled up under it, but it was made especially for me.  I like that it has a camouflage pattern on one side, so I can be like my dad!  The yellow on the other side is bright and cheery.

Thank you to the wonderful Fur Angel Blessing Blanketeers who provided me with this blanket.

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7 Months Since Merlin's Cancer Diagnosis

Caturday Art: Merlin

This week for Caturday Art with Athena, we have a digital scrapbook page in honour of Merlin's 9th birthday yesterday, and, as of tomorrow, 7 months since his cancer diagnosis.

Made with template by Heartstrings Scrap Art, kit It's Natural by Lindsay Jane

Thank you to everyone who came to Merlin's birthday party yesterday!  We raised $30 for SOAR.  Not as much as we raised with Dragonheart's birthday comment-a-thon, but this was right before a long weekend.

Thank you for all the birthday wishes, the purrs, prayers, and positive thoughts.  We greatly appreciate them!

Happy 9th Birthday Merlin!

Today is Merlin's 9th Birthday!  This is a very special birthday, because back in February, when he was diagnosed with large cell lymphoma, we never thought he would make it to his 9th birthday.  Not only has he made it, but in two more days, it will be 7 months since he diagnosis, and he will have outlived his prognosis by 4 months!

Although we are having a wonderful celebration today, it is still bittersweet.  The longest our vet has ever known any cat to live with large cell lymphoma was 2 years after diagnosis.  So while we cherish every day we have together, we know those days are numbered.

Despite that, we know that we are very fortunate to have a wonderful, loving, home, and devoted, caring, loving humans who take very good care of us.  Thus, we are once again holding a comment-a-thon to raise money for SOAR (Sphynx Open Arms Rescue).  For every comment we receive on this post between Friday September 2nd at 0500 EDT and Saturday September 3rd at 0800 EDT, we will donate 50 cents ($0.50) to SOAR.  Why SOAR and not a cancer charity?  Well, SOAR looks after Sphynx in need, and our local animal cancer centre has numerous canine cancer clinical trials, but only one trial for cats (mammary cancer).  As we haven't been able to find a good FELINE cancer research institute to make a donation to, we will donate to help Sphynx in need.

Thank you for visiting Merlin's 9th birthday party, and for all the prayers, purrs, and positive thoughts you have sent our way.  They mean more to us than we can say.