Pixel Returns from a Blogging Leave of Absence - I Had Surgery!

Hi Friends, sorry I've been away from my blog. This big smile on my face has come after a long hard battle that I am still dealing with, but the worst seems over for now. I know many of you have followed my Mommy's updates on my Facebook page since we first found out on January 19th that I had a scary growth on my right ear. It all happened very fast. Within a week of finding the aggressively growing growth, I was having surgery to remove it, along with part of my right ear to make sure that in case it was cancer, none of it would be left over. The vet did an amazing job of putting my new ear back together in a different shape and now I have a perkier ear that will be just as pretty as can be when it all heals up. They even tried to leave as much of my signature pony tail hair as they could so I wouldn't be bald on one side!
Needless to say, I've been unable to blog for almost a month while we dealt with this scary medical situation, with the surgery and while I was recovering. I am still in recovery mode, but I just got my stitches out yesterday and am doing much better. Here's what happened...

On January 19th, Mommy was petting me and stroking my long hair on my ears, as she always does. She suddenly felt a lump. Sure enough, an odd lump was there. We went to the vet, she did a needle biopsy of it and said it appeared to be okay, but let's "watch it for a week" to see if it goes away or not. It was not a typical growth, like a little wart or a pimple or something, it was a small pea size and it got bigger fast. By the 6th day, Mommy was so worried and we went back to the vet. The vet was worried it was cancer, saw how much bigger it got, and said, "we've got to get it off right away to get it tested". You can see it poking out of my hair in this photo.

So Tuesday, January 26th, I had surgery on my right ear. Dr. Robinson took a wedge-shaped section of ear off along with the growth to ensure it was all gone. She creatively sewed by ear back together and recovery started right away. She left as much of my hair as she could so I could still have a pony tail on that ear.

I was out of it and loopy and stuff for a while. Mommy and my family took great care of me. Here's a photo of my sister Dixie Mae who came to visit me on mine and Mommy's bed. Yes, I was on pain meds at the time, but believe me, I needed it. See the look of concern on her face? She's such a good sister. My other sisters Peanut and Sassy were also so very sweet, coming to visit, nuzzling me and checking on me. It was a great comfort.

My good friend Patrick Purple Duckie was on special assignment when we found out about the growth and subsequent surgery, so he came back immediately and stayed by my side as I began the healing process.

In fact, some of my closest duckies came for a group visit a few days after the surgery. I lovingly sniffed hello to each one of them and though I couldn't play or anything, it was great to just have them come for a visit.

Mommy fed me my meals in bed for the first week or so because I was just not feeling so great. The blue neck pillow ensured that lots of air got to my ear, which was double stitched, but it prevented me from scratching at it in any way. It also made a great "on the spot" pillow for napping!

After a couple of weeks, I started feeling better and my smile returned! We still don't know for sure if it's cancer or not, but the preliminary finding was that it is not, however the pathologist wanted to verify for certain because the kind of growth that I have looks the same as cancer. So, she is doing a two week special test to verify if it is or not.
Mommy and I are not going to worry because we don't know. It will not benefit us to worry about what we don't know, right? However, this whole experience has taught me and Mommy a some important lessons.

Here are 5 Things We've Learned:
1. Always look for unusual lumps, bumps and changes on your pet's body. One little bump or skin change can be a serious medical issue. It might not be, but better be safe than sorry. Mine was serious and it got bad quickly...don't wait. Pick a day once week perhaps to check your dog, cat, rabbit, ferret or other pet's body over. Make it a fun, gentle, loving treat time so they enjoy it. Make sure to note any changes and talk to your vet if you see changes.
2. Make sure to build a good relationship with your veterinarian so you can "swing in" at a moment's notice for an appointment (if possible) to get things checked out.
3. Blow up neck pillow collars are GREAT for keeping little dogs from messing with head wounds, but they ensure that air gets to the incision site, a point that Dr. Robinson was very concerned about and thus refused to allow me to wear an "E-collar" (thank goodness!) because they trap moisture around the head area.
4. Things happen. Pet parents, don't beat yourselves up if you miss medical things on your pets. You can only do the best you can do.
5. Take each day as the gift that it is. Don't waste it being anxious, angry, resentful, living in past hurts, or doing any of the emotional things that weigh us down and keep us from enjoying the precious moments we have with our loved ones that day. We only have today. Things could be much worse, and many people DO have it worse off. We don't know what will happen tomorrow, so let's not waste it today.
Do you have a routine for checking your pet for changes in their body or an experience similar to this? It just might help others to know. If you wish to share, please feel free to tell us about it in the comment section or visit my Facebook page and post it there. 
Below, you'll find lots of my fellow pet bloggers with all kinds of stories, reports or just fun and interesting photos to share. Today is officially #WordlessWednesday, but I I had far too much to share to be silent. Visit some of my fellow bloggers to see what they have to say...