Being there when it matters most

Last week my husband found a small tumor on Izzy's neck. Figuring it was probably an abscess from a bite wound from Kita, I scheduled an appointment hoping to come home with some antibiotics. The vet aspirated the tumor and looked at the cells under the microscope. What she saw was concerning, some cells were abnormal, indicating a mast cell tumor. Not necessarily a bad diagnosis, not exactly the news I wanted to hear either. Many dogs get these tumors, it's possible to have several through the years and still be healthy. However, some can be aggressive and can metastasize to other organs in the body. In any case, I knew the best and most aggressive action to take was to have the tumor removed. Which I scheduled for the first possible day to do so, today.

While this is a rather common and straightforward surgery, there is always the risk that something can go wrong. During the surgery, I kept thinking about how sweet Izzy is, how she's become such a good friend to me and how she is always there for me, for the good days and the bad. And how she is going to need me to care for her while she recovers. I came across this quote that somehow I've never read before...

They don't care what kind of car you drive.

They don't care who you know.

They don't care what you wear.

They don't care where you live.

They only care that you're there.

And it speaks the truth and really spoke to me today. Izzy is not just a dog, she is my best friend, my pal, my agility partner and so much more. Days like today make me really stop and appreciate having her in my life. And I hope I've been as good a friend to her as she has been to me.