Buster Visits the Vet Three Times!

I apologize for being silent lately but it has been a bit stressful in my world ever since I found a huge mass the size of a large apple behind Buster's front right leg and I was also disturbed by his near constant sneezing and wheezing so off to the vet we went! His new vet immediately prescribed that he have surgery but I was hesitant because Buster is 16 and has a heart murmur. The vet gave me an estimate to the tune of $1,200! Mind you that this was prescribed without a biopsy to discover the reason for this mass so I took him to his old vet 4 days later! 

He enjoyed the attention almost as much as he loved the car ride (he loves being a backseat driver)! She  suggested a cytology (a non-invasive test to find out what the mass was) and go from there. She said it was alarming that the other vet wanted to set up a surgery without a lot of questions answered. 

 Once Buster got in the exam room he was serious and a perfect gentleman as the vet prodded and poked him! The vet tech kept commenting on what a good boy he was! 

Buster looked as comfortable as he does at home but that didn't stop me from worrying over the vet's concern that he might have a tumor or cyst in his nostril which makes sense since that could be the cause of his lack of an appetite.

A few days later I scheduled the cytology test and waited all weekend for the results which was that he has a non-spreadable tumor but it might be causing him to not feel well in other areas. I'm thankful he doesn't have cancer! She also found out that he was retaining fluid in his mass so she drained a lot of it and now his lump isn't as scary to feel!

The vet and I are concerned about his upper respiratory infection because it affects his appetite. He throws up the medication and he ignores the probiotic which is sprinkled on his meals which is supposed to encourage him to eat. He is not a candidate for surgery due to the reasons I mentioned earlier. The vet wants to do more tests but I don't know if they will give answers to this issue. The vet seems to be leaning to just trying to keep him comfortable, to stop his medication, and see if he'll get his appetite back. So far it is a waiting game and, meanwhile, Buster is tired and just doing a lot of resting like you see here in the back of my car on our trip home from the vet after the testing was done! Thanks for your interest in my guy.