Dino

He rode still and quiet in the car for the 90-minute trip to the first stop on his road to rescue. He jumped willingly out of the car when asked, still listless and uninterested in anything around him, until he saw four dogs running and playing in the backyard. In a matter of minutes he became a different dog. His ears perked up, his eyes gleamed, his tail wagged and he politely gave a play bow and asked permission to join the fun. He played and played with a grin from ear to ear and a tail that never stopped wagging. He was christened Dino because he reminded the volunteers of the dinosaur from the Flintstones cartoon, sensitive, silly, and sweet. After all that this sensitive boy has been through, it seems unfair that there has been no happy ending yet.

While being examined for his neuter surgery, the vet noticed his lymph nodes were enlarged. Further testing showed that this sweet, lovable character has lymphoma. He has a rare, low-grade lymphoma that progresses slowly, and although it responds slowly to chemo, the effects usually last longer. The good news is that it is very slow growing cancer and overall survival is longer than other forms of lymphoma.

We took Dino to the oncologist to see how far advanced the cancer was and discuss the options for treatment. Dino was a big hit at the clinic, actually falling asleep on the table during his x-rays and enchanting staff and other clients alike with his constantly wagging tail and sweet demeanor. He behaved like a champ, its hard to imagine anyone throwing away such a sweet and easy going boy in his hour of need! More than one member of the staff said they would jump to adopt him if they didn’t already have too many dogs. He charms everyone he meets.

Additional diagnostic testing showed the cancer is only in his lymph nodes. Ultra sounds and x-rays showed his organs look good and his bloodwork showed normal organ function as well. The disease was caught early enough that with intervention now it is possible Dino could live a good life. Chemo therapy treatments at this point should halt the progression of the cancer and hopefully knock it down enough for him to achieve remission. Once in remission, the prognosis is good and it is possible Dino could stay in remission for a long time or best case scenario be considered "cured". Since the cancer is at such an early stage and Dino is in otherwise great health, with early intervention the outcome looks very positive!

Instead of allowing the cancer to grow and spread, we would like to give Dino the best possible chance so we are hoping to get him into remission with chemo treatments. The chemo treatments for dogs do not use as high doses as they do for people, so they experience less side effects. With chemo treatments, Dino could have a few if not more good years ahead of him.

Dino has become a crusade for us here at Coastal. When Dino’s condition and needs were announced to the volunteers, they stepped up to the plate, dug into their own much depleted pockets, contacted family and friends, and raised enough to start Dino’s monthly treatment. We gave him a new lease on life once and we plan to do it again but we need your help. His treatments are expensive and we do not have the funds to continue indefinitely. We’ve raised enough to begin but we’ll need to raise more to continue our battle for his life. To know Dino is to love him, his is a life worth saving over and over again. Every little bit helps, every little bit is needed. We’ll build his future brick by brick with your help and your donation. We’ll keep fighting, please help us win.

Dino needs a home, a special home for this special boy. Dino has a great capacity to love and the sensitivity to know all consuming heartache at his abandonment. He is very easy to live with. He is well manned, very social and walks nicely on a leash. His prognosis is good, but his monthly "CNNU" protocol treatments will need to be continued for a while and that means a commitment of both finances and time. We are looking for a special person with heart as large as Dino’s to take home this treasure and share his life. The lucky family that becomes his forever home will be rewarded with Dino’s endless capacity for love and devotion, a wonderful gift indeed.

If you are interested in meeting me, please contact Teresa via email at baltao@sbcglobal.net. Don't forget to fill out our online application.

The minimum adoption donation ranges from $350 to $500. This amount only partially covers the cost of veterinary care, boarding fees, and other miscellaneous expenses involved in the temporary care and adoption of our dogs and is 100% tax deductible.

Prior to placement, all dogs will be spayed or neutered, receive current vaccinations, and are usually microchipped. If not, arrangements will be made on an individual basis. Special consideration may be given to those willing to adopt older dogs or dogs with physical problems.