A Sad Farewell to Our Beloved Pickle
Some three weeks ago I was composing a blog post for an update on Pickle's health in my head. It would have been a cheerful post. At the onset of 2018 she was diagnosed with feline colorectal adenocarcinoma, a very aggressive, malignant cancer with the ability to rapidly progress. The average life expectancy following diagnosis lies between 8 weeks to 18 months. This January our beautiful Pickle was just about to turn a massive corner, completing her first year more or less without symptoms since the diagnosis. Things were looking good.
Apart from minor skin issues, which didn't appear to bother her too greatly, she was doing fine with a good appetite and no litter tray disasters. Her coat had improved (not that it was too bad to begin with), her claws were in good condition and, especially during the final three months of her life, she appeared to be more active and playful. She was in a stable state and, as we were unable to determine the stage of the cancer at the time of diagnosis last year, she was not on any medication.
She had her first follow-up examination in April 2018 and appeared to have recovered well from her dental surgery at the end of 2017, during which the cancerous polyp was removed from her anus. The polyp showed no sign of returning and her vet was not able to detect any obstructions when taking her temperature. Pickle would have been seeing her vet for her next check-up in early 2019 and we were keeping fingers and paws crossed for her.
She had her first follow-up examination in April 2018 and appeared to have recovered well from her dental surgery at the end of 2017, during which the cancerous polyp was removed from her anus. The polyp showed no sign of returning and her vet was not able to detect any obstructions when taking her temperature. Pickle would have been seeing her vet for her next check-up in early 2019 and we were keeping fingers and paws crossed for her.
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| RIP Pickle 2009 - 2019 |
Sadly, I never got round to writing my 12-month update on how well she was doing, as she started to rapidly decline around eight days ago. At this time we noticed the first significant change in her behaviour.
Instead of tucking into her dinner (a mix of home-cooked and raw food, which we introduced following her diagnosis) last Saturday, she walked away from her bowl after a few bites. Even though alarm bells started ringing loudly inside my head, I was only able to monitor and offer her a different variety of food, whilst hoping for the best throughout Sunday.
