Paws crossed

A lot of things on the plate right now.  We are handling some challenges with SIL that I will elaborate on later.  SIL would come over to the house every 2-3 days to walk the dogs with me when I get home from work.  It has turned into a routine that the dogs seem to love even if it is still 95 degrees.  Even though she is getting tad older and a wee bit slower, Claire still loves to roll over and do some "grass twerking" when we get to our local pocket park.  Seems to be a routine for her and who am I to deny her inner puppy.  

When we were out last Thursday on our normal walk, I spotted something odd with one of her paws that I hadn't notice before.  I thought one of her pads was cut or inflamed but it turned out to be not the case.  Some odd growth on the side of her left paw.  It looked red and swollen and I initially thought it was some bug bite but it wasn't bothering her.  She wasn't limping or showing any signs of distress even with me poking at it.  Not something I wanted to see.  Goldens are susceptible to getting mast cell growths, some of which can be cancerous.  One of our club members just lost her dog of 12+ years yesterday due to a massive tumor under her neck and this kind of discovery frankly scares the shit out of me.  I booked an appointment with the vet on Saturday and had it checked out.  The vet said took a simple biopsy and said there were some suspect cells and growth that needed to be addressed soon.  Not willing to wait, I booked her into surgery in the morning to have the mass removed and sent off for analysis.  Right now, it is small enough to be removed without having major complications but I am still concerned.  Claire's a tough old girl but I still worry any time they put her under.  I am sure she ain't going to be happy but I'll post her progress tomorrow when she gets home.