Rev picked Terri
Every time she would visit his litter, he would keep coming up to her. He had boundless energy, and in the end Terri chose him too. He goes at life with everything he has and loves to play any game.
As with any young dog, you have so many hopes and dreams for them. It was no different for Terri and Rev.
OFA results
Shortly after Rev's agility career began, Terri took him for his OFA testing and was shocked to hear that he had a bone spur on his elbow, probably from an injury. The OFA came back normal on one side and Grade 3 on the other. Rev was not lame and symptom free, so with vets and his chiropractor they came up with a plan that included 1TDC and Adequan, as well as other supplements.
Most folks don’t even know this and have often remarked how amazingly athletic he is.
Rev's biggest battle
It began around Christmas time in 2017 when Rev became very sick, and Terri had him at the University of Florida's ER in Ocala, where Terri was visiting, on Christmas night.
They told Terri that most likely Rev had Lymphoma. She was devastated.
It was confirmed by the University of Florida in Gainesville the next morning, B Cell Lymphoma. Rev was just 6 years old. Fortunately, Terri has insurance, and so they began treatment immediately and he was transferred up to Georgia Veterinary Specialists in Sandy Spring, GA.
The treatment was hard
Rev lost about 10lbs and most of his muscle mass. Terri included acupuncture as part of his treatment plan.
In the middle of his protocol, Lorie Jolly, who she purchases her 1TDC from suggested looking into IP6 Energy. Terri did some research and it looked like, at the very least, it would help promote a healthy immune system. So Rev went on IP6. It did help with some of his discomfort, as he seemed stronger.
Rev was unable to play during the first two rounds of treatment, but he and Terri would walk up to the field daily and walk around, maybe do a tunnel or work contact bottoms so he could feel normal. With his chiropractor, Terri decided to put Rev into the underwater treadmill to bring him back and to move him from 24 down to P20.
The relapse
Rev came back to competition in the early spring of 2018. He finished chemo and they got busy trying to qualify to go to Tulsa for AKC NAC. Everything was going well until October.
While warming him up, Terri felt a node on his neck. He had relapsed. And so they began treatment again. This time Terri had her full bag of tricks, and he has done very well, right back into remission and very little side effects from the chemo.
Round one was the worst, but he really didn’t have the number of problems he had the first time around.
Miracle recovery...on to AKC National Agitliy Championship!
Terri went to NAC with just the joy of being there with him. She had no expectations. She just decided to run with joy in their hearts and in honor of those who were not there. While she knows that sounds contrived, she had several friends lose dogs who were entered. She knew this could have been their fate as well.
Terri reminded herself to connect with Rev and enjoy this moment together before every run. It was a wonderful weekend and not just because they made the finals, but because they had so much fun together.
While they don’t know what the next year brings, they pray for a long second remission and that they have many years together.
Terri adores this boy. While Terri loves playing agility with him, she shares that her favorite times are when Rev is cuddled on her lap.
