Austin, a Labrador x Akita mix, was born 26 January 1999, and came into our lives a scant six weeks later. My Wife, Sharon, asked me one cold March evening if I would like to have a "lab puppy" join the family. Already having two dogs, both of which I am sorry to say were classic examples of untrainable "mutts", I was a bit reluctant. The next evening, Sharon came home with the head of an adorable Lab mix peeking out of her coat. Austin at this point was six weeks old. Sharon told us that during the entire trip to his new home, Austin sat on her lap, looking out the window. This was but a glimpse into the personality of a dog that would capture our hearts, and in a few short years, break them.
Austin quickly became part of our family. His Labrador loyalty, combined with his Akita willfulness, and topped with the intelligence displayed by both breeds made for a very interesting, often comical 'puppy-hood'. He was very easy to house break..... at first, he would wake up, stretch, then relieve himself in whatever spot he was standing in. When corrected with a firm "NO", he would answer back with a defiant "Barr-Wrrowr!", which I believed was the Akita shining through. He quickly learned though, that "going in the house" was the wrong thing to do, and within a few short weeks, knew enough to ask to be let out to "do his business". In fact, Austin seemed to take pride in not going inside, and made sure everybody knew when he had to be let out. As he grew, so did our amazement in what a smart dog he was. Arguments would ensue over his taking something he was not supposed to have, for example, Austin being told, "NO", and again the answering, Berr-ROOO!", getting his side of the argument in. By ten weeks, Austin could sit up, and he quickly learned that this was how to say, "Please!", along with a short bark. For example: "Austin, do you want to go for a ride?" would be followed by sitting up and a short bark. The same applied to going for walks, going outside, playing, or asking for a treat. Our whole family was simply amazed how smart and humorous Austin was.
The Akita side of Austin shined through in different ways. Never have I seen a dog so protective of his family. God help anybody that was seen as a threat, because Austin would have none of this. He would immediately impose himself between a stranger and a member of his family, and in doing so managed to terrify many of my children's friends...... we have had quite a few close calls with Austin and teenagers that came over, and learned quickly that there were rules concerning new faces (and a few "old" ones) and our Dog - the most important being not to reach down to touch him until you were accepted. I know that many of you are thinking that this is unacceptable behavior for a dog, and I agree - however, it is something we could never get Austin to come to terms with, and learned to accept on his terms because he was such a special dog and we did learn how to work around..... I blame it on him being a Lab / Akita mix.... and that mixture must be a very confusing thing to deal with. Labs are well known for their friendliness and devotion, and Akita's for their fearlessness and their fierce loyalty. Austin had a need to protect his family at all costs - we were able to temper this to some extent, but had to do so with a watchful eye.
For over four years, Austin was a welcome member of our family. As any pet owner can attest, there was a great number of anecdotes throughout our relationship (which will eventually be featured on a web page in Austin's honor - this testimonial would otherwise be way too long for it's intended purpose). Then, we started to notice little things that were not quite right.......
It seemed like a sudden thing, but the little pieces actually came together gradually....... during a walk, Austin would suddenly yelp and limp on one back leg, then in a while, be fine again.....he would quickly lose interest in playing catch with a tennis ball..... he didn't run as much......his appetite changed.......
Then, in late June, we noticed lumps on his throat. At first, I thought that they were from his tugging on his leash when a dog decided to pick a fight with him.....I was wrong.
In early July, I took Austin to his vet to ask what might be wrong. The lumps on his throat were growing, and he was eating less.
After two visits, the diagnosis was in....On 7 July, Austin was diagnosed with Lymphoma - cancer of the lymph nodes. Our options were limited......... biopsy and chemotherapy, with possible remission for a limited time; immediate (or by appointment) euthanasia; or alternative treatments. We learned, not through our vet, but from reading the vast amount of information on the web, that Austin was already in stage three lymphoma, and his prognosis was poor. Regardless, there was just no way we could take the life of our very special companion at this point...... We opted for Treatments from McDowells Herbal Treatments, which involve herbal medications to boost the immune system. We ordered the treatments on 11 July, and in the interim gave Austin the key herbs listed in those treatments, purchased at significant cost at a health food store. Within a few days of giving Austin these herbal treatments, we were shocked and amazed that they actually were working! The first, most noticeable effect was that Austin's temperature started going down. Soon after, the lumps began to diminish as well. By then, we received the treatments, and had Austin on a full herbal therapy.
The next month was a roller coaster of emotion..... Austin's appetite dwindled off to nothing, then picked up, then faded off once again. His spirits would be high one day, then low the next..... the only constant was that Sharon and I were doing our absolute best to spoil Austin rotten for the little time we would still have him for..... lots of rides in the car, walks, and trips to the ice cream stand (well, honestly, he was only up to one of these...). Steaks for dinner, whatever raw meat he wanted, etc...... if Austin wanted it, we gave it to him..... we were enjoying our last moments with him, and the feelings were definately mutual. We credit McDowells herbal treatments with buying us all more time to enjoy life....... and that in itself was priceless! Without a doubt, if we had given in to chemotherapy, or opted to give no treatment at all, the little precious time we had left with Austin would have been all that much shorter.
We were in a race against time..... time to allow the herbal treatments to work and achieve remission before the disease took too great a hold of Austin. By the first week in August, a new enemy entered the battlefield in Austin's body - anorexia. We tried absolutely everything to get Austin to eat, and the only success we had was a constant changing in our offerings.... it seemed as if Austin would not eat the same foods two days in a row. The week of 10 August saw some moderate success as he did eat a little bit here and there every day, but by the 14th, he ceased eating completely.
Austin lost his battle with lymphoma on 17August at 16:15. On the positive side, I can say that he was allowed to die with dignity, and in the presence of his family. We strongly feel that McDowells treatments were effective, and feel that Austin had achieved one degree or another of remission prior to his death, but by that time the disease, coupled with anorexia had taken its toll on Austin's vital organs..... when Austin died, his lymphatic swelling was down, as was his fever. If we only had a few more weeks...... but, as I stated earlier, we had caught the disease late.
For you concerned pet owners who are reading this: PLEASE - for the sake of your pet and your own peace of mind, DO NOT wait to find out about any strange lump on your dog, or abnormal behavior! Get it looked into right away and maybe you will be able to save your dog..... if so, then our loss of Austin would not be in vain!
Regardless, we remain grateful for the time we had with this very special dog, and any extra time that McDowells treatments and advice gave us together. My Family and I thank you and your staff, for giving us all some very special quality time together..... even though the outcome was not fairy-tale perfect, your treatments and your guidance through this very difficult time was indeed priceless to all of us. God Bless You.
Victor Albright
