Annie was a private rescue who chose us in December 1997. After her original owners gave her up she ended up chained in a shed for months on end. Finally, at the age of 2½ years we brought her to her third home. Her coat was so filthy and matted we had to have her almost shaved clean.
She still had some behavioural problems, but we never gave up on her.
Annie's Dam was Nabeluka Miss Mirrin (sire unknown)
16th of July, 2017
Annie's dam—Nabeluka Miss Mirrin a blue roan born 1st of March 1992...
Ch. Cabal Ebony N Ivory
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Ch. Sulindar Arapaho
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Ch. Glenbriar Tabernique
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Ch. Lovlang The Shawnee
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Ch. Cabal The Luvmachine
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Ch. Cabal Kevina
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Ch. Cabal Stare N Whisper
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Ch. Belcroft Wild West
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Ch. Feddan Fly By Night
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Ch. Feddan Playboy Dean
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Feddan Golden Elly
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Ch. Camdach Paper Chase
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Ch. Brightleaf Bewinged
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Ch. Camdach Carmen Jones
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Ch. Cobrador Cavrelle
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Ch. Cabal Come Fly With Me
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Rossjoy Lefrost
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Davjo Blueskye
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Rossjoy Thebez
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Rossjoy Reform
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Rossjoy Odette
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Davjo Donaloah
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Nabeluka Butterfly
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Ch. Feenix Fly By Night
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Ch. Brightleaf Bewinged
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Ch. Brightleaf Be Gracious
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Ch. Marsden Shine On
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Ch. Maragown Marxedes
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Fairanchor April Star
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Marsden Miss Muffett
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Among the scraps of paper we have there was sufficient information, with a bit of added research, to glean a pedigree on Annie's mother's side. Annie has been gone 12 years now but I swear to doG I expect to see her walk through the door.
27th of March, 2010
In memory of a wonderful dog...
Our '71 Westfalia has been Christened "Annie".
5th of July, 2005
Annie is no longer with us...
She succumbed to a massive abdominal tumour (not lymphoma) which came on so fast it was too late by the time we realized there was a problem. Like her adopted sister Gem she left in her own time. She now rests for all time.
28th of October, 2002
As we are into her second cycle her treatments are less frequent...
Annie has received Chlorambucil (10/10) and Vincristine (24/10). Both treatments have proven uneventful. She is due for Doxorubicin on the 7th of November. Again this is usually the drug that has any real side affects.
20th January 2003
Annie has started her third cycle which means treatment every three weeks.
The clinic split her first treatment over a couple of days as it was this time last cycle that she got quite ill. However we have no ill affects to report. I will leave this log now and report back if anything goes wrong. Currently she is fit and healthy and taking the chemo in her stride.
5th August 2003
Last treatment (Vincristine). Prognosis is excellent. She will go in for quarterly check ups from now on but no further drugs unless she relapses. The clinic has a 10% cure rate and Annie fits the category well having had the "right" sort of lymphoma and having never slipped out of remission. Thank you Sydney University Vet Clinic
1st October 2003
First post-chemo check up. No problem.
2nd of August, 2002
Annie is extremely well...
She had been worrying her front leg somewhat due to irritation from the needles and canula, however a few days with an Elizabethan collar and some corticoid antibiotic cream solved the problem. The issue here was that we had to avoid any sort of infection.
She is now due for Vincristine on 14th.
30th of August
Annie's Vincristine treatment went exceptionally well. The follow up Doxorubicin (Adriamycin) treatment was done yesterday and so far she is fine. Her next treatment is an off day so she will not receive anything for the next month.
8th of September
Annie is as healthy as we have ever seen her. She has had no reaction to the Doxorubicin. Combined with a fortnightly regime and a week off she does not receive treatment again until late September.
26th of September
Thumbs up for her latest treatment of periwinkle extract.
23rd of July, 2002
On the 4th she was administered Vincristine...
Again she has come through with flying colours. The vet clinic is very impressed with her and everyone there has fallen for her. They are lucky. They don't have to live with her
Vincristine on the 11th of July was successful as usual. The 18th was the first day of the second cycle of treatment repeating the day one drugs (L-Asparaginase and Vincristine). On Friday the 19th Annie seemed a bit tired and we suspected that the L-Asparaginase may have caused this so we kept an eye on her.
Today, however, Annie is in Sydney University Vet clinic hospital. On Sunday last she took very ill. She could not hold down any food and suffered from excess diarrhoea. Her body temperature went down to below normal and her white count was low. She went in yesterday afternoon. After a visit to our local vet and discussion with the clinic I took her down to Sydney. She improved that evening after being on IV fluids and antibiotics. We are currently awaiting contact with the clinic to see how she is this morning. It is believed that she has contracted a stomach bug of some sort and her suppressed immunity has failed to fight it.
20th of June, 2002
On the 13th Vincristine was administered...
Of all the drugs involved this is the one that is supposed to cause problems. Yet, again, she has sailed trough this.
German Short haired Pointers! Two came to visit on the following Sunday and Annie was right into making them feel welcome (with a couple of growls just to make sure)
Today it is Doxorubicin. The last time this was administered Annie came down with her bad infection. She has sailed through the days treatment however we will keep a close eye on her and have the Clavulox on hand should she show symptoms of infection. Her next treatment is Chlorambucil tablets.
8th of June, 2002
On the 4th the girl seemed to have lost some of her spark but was eating and drinking ok...
At worst we feared she might have another infection. Made a call to the clinic as she is due for her Chlorambucil on Thursday.
After I arrived home from working in Sydney on the Thursday, Annie had improved markedly so we decided to administer the Chlorambucil (tablets in a gel capsule). She had no problem with this. By Today, Saturday, all was well. She has just been barking at the cattle being moved past our front gate. She is fine.
31st of May, 2002
On the 27th another blood test was done at the clinic...
Her white blood cell count had gone from 14 to 22, however these were all mature white cells, the banded neutraphils having considerably reduced. Treatment has been postponed until today as a result to give her a chance to get over the infection.
Today she came through her Vincristine therapy with flying colours. The blood test revealed that her infection had abated and she was on remission. She is very much her normal self albeit more prone to being tired (a well known side affect of chemotherapy). Her next treatment is due next week and this is Chlorambucil which is in tablet form and can be administered at home which will also give us a break from the 400km round trip.
23rd of May, 2002
Surprisingly the only outward manifestation shown to the Adriamycin treatment is increased energy...
Her tiredness of the last few weeks has dissipated and she is very much back to normal. Her Prednisilone dose has been reduced.
However…
Things may have caught up with her. Generally despondent and suffering nausea on the evening of the 22nd, she refused her bed time treat. We administered Maxalon. I have just given her her evening meal which we have brought back to boiled chicken and rice and she consumed that as usual. Hopefully this is only a slight hiccup.
25th of May
A visit to our local vet on the 24th. We had to carry her to the car, however she was quite happy to sit up and bark at the flag man supervising traffic at the road works outside the vet’s surgery. A blood sample was taken for a WBC and we are awaiting the results. Annie has currently crashed on her bean bag, however she is accepting titbits when offered. We have administered Clavulox as her temperature was a hair's breadth above the normal at 39.7º . On Monday she is due at the university clinic for a scheduled Vincristine treatment.
The blood test showed a good white cell count, except that band form neutrophils were extraordinarily high in concentration. All though a lot better than she was she is still not well and appears to be suffering pain in her joints. Her temperature is normal. She over extended herself today when a friend came to visit. Her appetite is holding up which is a very good sign. We will take her in to the clinic on Monday regardless of her condition. If she is not fit for her next treatment then we will get them to do a full examination of her.
6th of May, 2002
There have been no visible side affects from the cyclo...
A successful report of full remission from the clinic. A second round of Vincristine has been administered and she has been booked in for a Doxorubicin treatment on Monday 13th May. This will be an all day session.
13th of May
Doxorubicin day. This is an antibiotic by the name of Adriamycin. It is extremely potent and will cause destruction of skin and muscle tissue. As a result Annie was fully sedated for some hours as the drug was administered. Of all the drugs so far this is the most likely to cause side affects. She suffered a bout of diarrhoea at the clinic but has not shown any problems even during a 2 hour ride in the car home. We need to see if she is going to suffer any side affects over the next few days.
29th of April, 2002
WBC and differential. Awaiting results...
If results are ok then Cyclophosphamide will be given. Note that this is in tablet form and has to be administered wearing rubber gloves.
Results are in. WBC is higher than the initial reading last month so it looks like we are ok to administer the Cyclophosphamide however we will verify this with Sydney University clinic first.
22nd of April, 2002
First visit to oncology at Sydney University Veterinary Clinic...
Annie scores 100% for her attitude and good behaviour living up to the expectations set by our Lucy's visit a couple of years ago. Vincristine and L-Asparaginase were administered.
What Annie received
L-Asparaginase injection 10000 U/m2 i/m
Vincristine 0.7 mg/m2 i/v
Phenergen premed
She is currently receiving Prednisilone at the rate of 1.5 tablets per day at 20mg. To prevent vomiting and secondary infection she is receiving metoclopramide (20mg Maxalon) and Clav-Amoxycillin (250mg Clavulox)
Side affects so far are minimal being restricted to some extra water intake and some tiredness. Apart from that she shows no sign of ill health and the swelling in her lymph nodes has subsided back to normal. She is currently barking her head off at the quad belonging to the cattle farm up the street.
Some of these drugs have been known to trigger pancreatitis so it is important to put her on a low fat diet at this stage.
We have stopped giving her the herbal detoxification mixture at this point. This is purely pragmatic as, in order to monitor for side affects of the chemotherapy, it is imperative not to have another causal agent involved. Later on, when she has gone through all the drug phases successfully, we will continue this treatment.
On Monday 29th April she is scheduled for a white cell count and differential. If this is normal her next treatment is Cyclophosphamide (50mg).
17th of April, 2002
After a lot of input from a lot of people (and very much appreciated it was)...
We have decided to take a dual approach to the problem. Annie is now booked in for her first chemotherapy session on Monday 22nd April at the Sydney University Veterinarian Clinic. She has also visited a local holistic vet near our home in Maitland as a result of which she is now on a detoxification remedy. Our principal aim will be to give her the best diet and supplements possible as she goes through the chemo.
Our decision was based on her relative young age having only recently turned 7 years and her overall good health. We believe she will be able to cope with the chemotherapy. Our oncologist vet assured us that the principal aim is to keep the dog happy during treatment and dosages are reduced compared with those administered to humans (taking body weight into account). From our reading there is about a 5% chance of side affects so we will have to monitor this.
Keep in mind that the treatment does not guarantee any particular result. Although lengthy remissions have been achieved in some dogs there are no sureties.
25th of March, 2002
We have discovered that Annie has swollen glands about her neck...
The blood test results show a normal white cell count, however the red cells are polychromatic and some nucleated. On Thursday she will be having a hind leg lymph node removed for biopsy.
28th of March
Annie has had her operation to remove a lymph node. The nodes in her neck have been aspirated as well. The tissues are already at the pathology lab and we should have results mid next week.
3rd of April
Not much of a birthday present. Unfortunately the biopsy results have proved positive for lymphoma. We must make a decision now as what to do. She is well in herself so she still has a while to go.
“Cytology consistent with lymphoma- diffuse large cell type, intermediate grade type”
“The biopsy confirms the diagnosis of lymphoma”
3rd of March, 2002
We have discovered that Annie has swollen glands about her neck...
A visit to the vet confirmed swollen lymph nodes in her hind legs. Currently we are awaiting the results of a blood test which will be posted here as soon as they are available. The worst case scenario is Leukaemia.