I Heart Pets

To Whom it May Concern (namely this week's IHF judge),

I'm pretty sure I deserve extra credit on this week's challenge☺,

because pictured here we have what may be a cat --one nearing 9 lives-- in a dog's body:

Reilly was found wandering the streets when he was taken in by the Humane Society before his first birthday. We rescued him from a kill shelter.  We nursed him (and a horrendous kennel cough) back to health.  In the almost 6 years that have passed between then and now, he has escaped the yard on a couple occasions, but  he always returned unscathed.  We've wondered if the name "Lucky" would have suited him better.

But earlier this month, it appeared that our luck was running out after we received some heartbreaking news. After a slew of blood draws, inconclusive ultrasounds and x-rays, the vets narrowed down their diagnosis to an aggressive form of lymphoma.  He was given, worst case, a few days; best case, 2-3 weeks.  We were sent home with steroids to make his last days more comfortable.  I was inconsolable for a few days, until slowly we saw the wonders of Prednisone in action.  I made the decision to shelve my tears for the time being. 

And here we are, almost 3 weeks later.  He seems back to his old self -- full of appetite, bark, and love for the rugrats. We still believe it is the cancer, but perhaps not as aggressive as doctors first thought?  So we'll take it week by week, continue to thank God for our healthy *human* babies, and look forward to more trips to the park (above) as a family of 5. ♥