I am busy taking a nap today, so I’m going to let the Mom person have access to MY keyboard just this once. If I’m not satisfied with what she writes, I’m taking it away from her.

Dear Maizie Fans:

Our family has learned some sad news. Maizie has cancer.

She has had several benign growths removed recently, but the last one was malignant and she has other lumps on various parts of her body. We have elected to let nature take its course.

While we could pursue treatment for her, it’s costly and doesn’t have a great success rate. Maizie has handled the multiple surgeries well, but since she’s been such a great dog, we can’t bear to subject her to the difficulties that normally ensue from cancer treatment.

She is still a happy girl and often gives us her “cute puppy looks” when it’s playtime. She still jumps up and down when one of her favorite people arrives. She can’t wait to jump into the “big water bowls” when she gets a chance. She is eating pretty normally and still fond of chewing on bones. Thus, until all of that behavior stops or another aggressive tumor causes her discomfort, we will continue to enjoy her presence in our lives.

But, when she no longer acts normally, we will put her down. This is a decision that has caused a great deal of sadness for not only our family, but for those who watch her when we’re away.

We are not sure how much longer she will be with us, but we are praying she can make it to her 11th birthday in late March. Our biggest challenge right now is to keep her from licking the lumps! She’s learning a new command, “Don’t lick!”

Have no fear–as long as she’s inhabiting the planet, she’ll be blogging. But, we wanted you to know what she is facing. Like Marley, in the movie, Marley and Me, our bargain puppy will be sorely missed by all of us.

In the meantime, she seems to be “milking” extra head scratches and belly rubs, not that she needed any help in that department! And we seem to hug her a bit more than we used to…she’ll probably have something to say about the latter in one of her posts.

And with that said, I’ll stop writing “her post.”

Next Post: What’s the WOW factor in your life?

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