"We Can Celebrate"

Those were Dr. B's words this morning, "We can celebrate".


He was talking about Samba. Today was her checkup, the first in two months. It was last November when she was first diagnosed with MMM and March when the facial paralysis began.


Today the paralysis is almost gone. She has a normal blink reflex in her left eye and almost normal in the right. She has feeling in her lips and and when he pulls them down, they spring back to their normal position. She no longer drools.


Her coat has grown back in, no more bald spots and though it's thin and the texture is abnormal, those should both improve with time.


Her muscle tone is good, reflexes perfect and she's very alert and active. She still has a bit of a pot belly from the Prednisone, but as we continue to decrease the dosage, that should go away. The areas where the jaw muscle were destroyed feel almost normal on top of her head. The surrounding muscles have filled in the area and are taking over the job of the damaged muscles. The muscles under the jaw are a bit slower to fill in, but they are also improved.

Samba can eat normally, yawn, carry a ball and catch a frisbee.


Dr B says he feels confidant we haven't sacrificed quality or quantity of life for Samba with the treatment we've chosen. Those words are like music to me.