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!

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.

Sunday Selfie: Dragonheart

Dragonheart here!  In honour of my Tenth Gotcha Day, that was celebrated on Friday, here is my Sunday Selfie for this week.  I know I'm looking off to one side, but I don't like having the flashy box flash in my eyes!

Be sure to comment on Friday's post.  We are holding a comment-a-thon to raise money for the OVC Pet Trust!

Caturday Art: Dragonheart

In honour of Dragonheart's 10th Gotcha Day yesterday, this week for Caturday Art with Athena, we present a photo of Dragonheart that has been turned into a watercolour painting with the Waterlogue app for iOS.

Be sure to check out yetserday's post.  We are holding a comment-a-thon to raise money for the OVC Pet Trust!

Dragonheart's 10th Gotcha Day!

Made with Cornucopia Of Thanks by Little Feet Digital Designs

Dragonheart here!  Ten years ago today I joined my wonderful Forever Home, coming to live with my wonderful mom and dad.  I introduced them to the wonders of Sphynx!

Here are some photos of me on my first day in my new home, 10 years ago:

And here I am today, ten years later!

I started blogging all those years ago on my Gotcha Day.  You can read my very first blog post here.

In honour of my 10th Gotcha Day, we are holding a comment-a-thon for the OVC Pet Trust.  For every comment left on this post between now and Monday morning at 6am, 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.  We are keeping the comment-a-thon open all weekend, as we know it is a long holiday weekend in the United States, where many of our blogging friends reside!

I am so happy to have had ten wonderful years with my mom and dad.  I've lived in many different places, including Munich, Edmonton, and Guelph!  I flew across the Atlantic ocean (in business class no less!)   I've driven across most of Canada twice (from Montreal to Edmonton, and from Edmonton to Guelph).  I vacationed in Switzerland once for a week with my mom and dad.  I've had a wonderful home for the past ten years and hope to have many, many more years with them.

Thank you for celebrating my 10th Gotcha Day with me!

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.

Happy 10th Birthday Dragonheart!

Today Dragonheart celebrates his 10th birthday!  10 years!  A major milestone!

We are very happy that Dragonheart is celebrating his 10th birthday!  For a long time, we didn't know if he would make it to 10.  So we are very, very glad that he has!

When he was about a year and a half old, Dragonheart developed a really high fever of unknown origin, and was on IV fluids at the vet for a long time.  They never figured out what caused the fever, but Dragonheart fully recovered, which is what mattered.

Then a couple of years later, Dragonheart was diagnosed with a heart murmur, and after having an ultrasound of his heart completed, he was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).  Fortunately Dragonheart's HCM has not progressed since that time, and at his last heart scan, he was "equivocal" for HCM, which means there was some abnormalities in his heart muscle, but not enough to classify him as having HCM, and no need for medications.  We continue to just monitor his heart with periodic scans.

Dragonheart has had quite an exciting life so far!  He was born in Frankfurt, spent the first four years of his life in Munich, travelled to Switzerland for a week's vacation, flew across the ocean from Germany to Canada, drove across a good chunk of Canada from Quebec to Alberta, then back again a year later (although only to Southern Ontario).

In honour of Dragonheart's 10th birthday, we are having a comment-a-thon for SOAR - Sphynx Open Arms Rescue.  Sadly there are some Sphynx, like our sister Devi, who do end up in rescue.  Mainly because people don't realize that Sphynx can be a lot of work and require a lot of attention!  Devi was deemed "too affectionate" for example. Other people don't realize how much bathing and cleaning we need, or that we can leave our Sphynx oils on fabrics, leaving brown stains.  For every comment we receive on this post until midnight July 18, 2016, Eastern Daylight Time, we will make a $0.50 donation to SOAR.  Only one comment per blog or household.

Now on to the party!  We have toys, food, and treats for both our cat and dog friends, and have some greens to nibble on for any other friends who visit (rabbits and smaller animals).

On to the contest!   The contest is to correctly identify which of these photos are of Dragonheart.  A number of them are of Dragonheart, and a number are of Merlin and Devi.  You have to guess which ones belong to Dragonheart.  The person who guesses them all right will win a digital scrapbook page made by our mom.  If no one guesses them all correct, then it will be whomever guesses the greatest number correctly.  You have until Friday to make your guesses.  You can email them to us at dragonheart.sphynx@gmail.com with the subject line: Birthday Contest.  Good luck everyone!  At least one of them should be super-easy.  Another couple should be pretty obvious whose photo it is.  The rest might be tricky!  We will tell you that four of the photos belong to Dragonheart.

Click to view larger

We have some visitor cards (in two sizes) for you to take if you like.  Thank you for celebrating Dragonheart's 10th Birthday with us!