The good news is- it's not cancer. WHEW. The type of cancer they thought it was had a very poor prognosis and we had embraced the fact that Champ may only be with us a short time longer, even with surgical removal. Mommie Neely is certain that is because of all of your prayers that what they thought was cancer turned out to be something so different. Once they opened Champ up and got a good look, they realized that what they thought was a mass on Champ's spleen was actually......more spleen. His spleen has enlarged to nearly 5 times its normal size. In fact, it has gotten SO large, that it ran out of room and had actually started folding over!! The "mass" we saw in the x-ray was actually part of his spleen that had doubled up and twisted into a "knot." Ouch. Maybe this is our laymen opinion but "knot" and "organ" shouldn't be in the same sentence. Sounds very painful; this is probably why he cried when pressure was put on his abdomen. They also found a significant amount of scar tissue on his spleen likely from past trauma. Not surprising considering they also found BB pellets inside him! This boy has been through his share of pain and suffering that's for sure. The scar tissue could be from previous physical abuse that caused damage to the spleen. They're not sure why it is so enlarged, but the size in and of itself is not life threatening. There could be a variety of reasons why it is so big. But the bottom line is, a big spleen is better than no spleen. So the doctors "unfolded" it, removed the scar tissue, and basically "cleaned it up." It appeared to be in relatively good condition once it was "cleaned up" even though it was still HUGE! So now Champ has a new and improved spleen!...ok not new, but it's definitely improved! This should help with his pain, but it doesn't explain all of his other symptoms, especially the anemia.

Which leads us to the bad news- we still don't know what's wrong!!

The doctors ruled pretty much out auto-immune disease. It's not completely off the table yet, but it's unlikely. A call was put in to an internist (Dr. of Internal Medicine) in Coral Springs. Hopefully she may be able to provide some answers. We also did a more complete blood test to rule out other tick diseases. His 4DX tests keep coming back negative, but they're not as sensitive as the one that is being done now. Results of that (and a urinalysis since one hasn't been done yet) will be in by Monday. Hopefully we will have some answers very soon, so this sweetheart can enjoy his senior bullie years in comfort. Perhaps it is a rare tick disease that is not normally tested for. Whatever it is, we just keep saying "at least it's not cancer." We can work with anything else, right??? We hope...

Thank you to everyone who has been so supportive. Your support, kind words, prayers, and offers for financial support is simply overwhelming. I cannot thank you enough for taking such an interest in this little man. He is truly an example of what rescue is all about. He was abused by humans for years, and he still suffering because of it. Yet his soul is still so gentle he makes people smile wherever he goes. Dr. Baumwell kept asking me "Is he always this sweet?" Yes, he is! Always! To go from his past life of abuse and suffering to his life now could not be done without the love and support from all of you. No dog deserves the treatment that Champ has had to endure. Unfortunately, there are countless other dogs out there, the victims of dog fighting, puppy mill breeding, and just pure abuse/neglect of irresponsible owners. Thank you to those who have shown support, not just for Champ, but for all of the bullies who find their way to us at Adopt-A-Bull.