Well, on Thursday, May 14, my baby Tyler underwent a teeth cleaning as well as a surgical removal of a lump on the inside flap of his left ear that had been bothering him.  Given the need for anesthesia, we figured we'd catch the proverbial two birds with one stone. 

All had gone well, teeth cleaning had no extractions (which is good), though the ear flap is always a delicate place to do surgery because tissue there is thin. He came home at the end of the day wearing a cone, with meds he needed to take, and instructions that he should not shake his head/ear. How do you get a dog not to shake his head? By the time you say: "Don't!" he's already done it. 

He seemed to be doing well enough, until on Sunday things escalated rather quickly. Tyler is sweet, playful and gentle, but has no patience. He would not stop shaking his head or trying to rub his ear within the cone, to the point that there were moments that he seemed possessed. 
I was worried, and we ended up at the emergency vet, who - after reassuring me that there was no infection (my main concern), put some ointment on his ear and sent me home with more meds (one of them a sedative) and more ointment. Thank goodness for the sedative, because it helped keep him calm and not rub so much. But (as agreed through various e-mails and calls) next morning at 9am I took him back to our vet, the one who had done the surgery. There actually was an infection and the poor little guy had a fever. 

Tyler has now been hospitalized at the vet's since Monday, May 18, so just over a week. I was determined that he stay there under constant care and observation until he is completely healed and can come home without risking a repeat of this situation.
Once the fever and infection were calmed, the vet had to do surgery on him again to patch up the ear. She also had to shave off the side of the face where the constant rubbing had created a hot spot.

The first couple of days were rough, but with constant care, sedation to keep him from rubbing and shaking his head, antibiotics, vitamins etc he's coming out of that, and the risk of having to amputate his ear (yes, for a while that looked like a possibility) is fading.
I have been visiting him daily, bringing him food, taking him for little walks, and sitting with him on the grass under the trees. Last Saturday I also brought Cody for an extra familiar reference point. Well, Cody got growled at by Tyler for trying to get to the food bowl. 

In the meantime, the pathology results on the lump removed came back and it turned out that the growth was a cancerous mast cell tumor (grade 2). This is a lump that has been growing and dropping off in the same spot several times over the past 8-10 years, by the way. Good thing the x-rays showed that all organs are clear. When the vet told me this I felt this massive block of tension release from my body.
However, some antihistamine + some vitamin, ozone, sonic et such treatments are recommended, with another possible treatment (if needed) that involves a (chemo-type) medication that would have to come from Europe.

The first thing, of course, is to get the ear healed and bring him home, which will hopefully be by the end of this week. Yesterday, being a Holiday here, I was unable to visit, but was told by the tech that his ear is looking 10 times better. 

As you can imagine the bills have piled up. I had already paid around $1,600 for the teeth cleaning & lump removal + tests, and yesterday I advanced another $1,500, but the current open bill is already at more than $4,000, plus whatever is to come as hospitalization is not over yet. And I have yet to get a quote for the various treatments. This on top of all the recent vet costs I have dealt with since February to get the boys checked out and in better overall shape. 
Since we moved last fall, I had to find a new vet and I am very happy to have found one that, besides her allopathic training, is also a very thorough holistic practitioner, one I feel I can trust. 

But I am in financial overwhelm (or possibly underwhelm), and that is why I am asking for your help through this GoFundMe page. I am aware that these are challenging times for many of us, but whatever you can donate will be gratefully received and will help pay the recent and future vet bills.

When my financial situation improves, I can either refund you, or pay forward the donations received to other worthy causes of your choice. This is something we can decide by and by and one on one. 

Thank you for anything you can do to help. 
Love and blessings,
Monica, Tyler and Cody