The Course of Snoopy's Medical Journey

"No one can fully understand the meaning of love unless he's owned a dog" - Gene Hill 

For about a month, Snoopy presented to be stable with his medical health. Unfortunately, it did not last. At night, Snoopy began to have difficulties breathing, which interfered with his sleep. He was restless at night. My brother noticed when Snoopy would fall into a deep sleep he would wake up in a panic gasping for air. It was such a heart-breaking situation to witness, and writing about it triggers the same feelings I felt when I witnessed his struggles which was hopelessness. Most nights, Snoopy experienced what we called “breathing attacks” which led to him having accidents. When Snoopy was having those attacks, my brother would comfort him until he gained consciousness again. Once those attacks began to occur, my brother slept right next to Snoopy on the floor. You can tell Snoopy felt safe when my brother slept with him nightly because when Snoopy began to experience difficulties breathing, he would directly look at my brother for comfort. We addressed these medical concerns with his oncologist; however, we were not given any solution and was told there was nothing to be done to help improve his breathing and we were encouraged to complete another nasal exam for Snoopy, which we did. Throughout this transition we also noticed that Snoopy’ tone of bark became raspy. My brother began to pay attention to additional medical signs that was affecting Snoopy.