Former Bachelorette Ali Fedotowsky is sharing why her family opted to give their dog, Owen, radiation treatments for cancer.
“Let’s start with this … Owen is a radiation treatment graduate!!!!!” Fedotowsky, 40, wrote via Instagram on Friday, March 21. “I mean…this picture could not be cuter. So proud of him! Now for the backstory for WHY we decided to radiation for our sweet senior pup!”
Fedotowsky shared that it was “not an easy decision” for “a lot of reasons,” but explained that the choice “would involve six back to back” vet visits where he would have to be put under anesthesia every time.
“And as you can see, he gets super nervous at the vet,” Fedotowsky captioned a video of Owen shaking as she hugged him.
Fedotowsky explained that Owen could not do treatments where they are based in Nashville, because the city “doesn’t have a radiation oncology unit for dogs yet.”
“We have heard they will as soon as next month, but unfortunately, Owen potentially wouldn’t last until next month if we waited,” Fedotowsky wrote, explaining that they went to Chattanooga and stayed at a pet friendly hotel. “I treated him like a king while there! He slept in a big comfy bed with me… and ate salmon and steak room service. He even checked out the hotel whiskey lounge with me. Everyone was so sweet to him!”
Fedotowsky noted that the trip “wasn’t easy,” noting that she was “up multiple times throughout the night to take him outside to go to the bathroom or just walk off his anxiousness.” One night, Fedotowsky slept on the floor with Owen because he “was really struggling and it broke [her] heart.”
“So why did we do it? Owen has a very large brain tumor and without treatment, his neurologist estimated that he had about a month left to live. I could not bear that thought. I vowed to do everything in my power to help him,” she wrote. “So after we confirmed the brain tumor with an MRI, our neurologist referred us to the radiation facility in Chattanooga. After doing a ton of research and talking with the radiologist, we learned that by doing one CT scan and then 5 stereotactic radiation treatments over 5 years, we could (on average) give Owen 1.5 years of GOOD life! Even upwards of 2+ years!”
Fedotowsky noted that dogs have to be under anesthesia to keep them “perfectly still” when undergoing an MRI, CT scan or radiation treatments — but the family thought that “this short time would be worth it if we got that much more good time with him. Not necessary for just us, but really for HIM!”
“So yes, this was hard on him, but we wouldn’t have made this decision, if we didn’t think his short amount of anxiety and discomfort would be worth it for him in the long run,” Fedotowsky captioned a slide of her feet featuring socks with Owen’s face on them. “He’s like a little puppy outside of this treatment and his seizures, so I know he has good life left to live! (and yes, I wore my socks with pictures of Owen on them for good luck during his treatments!).”
While Fedotowsky noted that Owen’s brain cancer “can’t be cured with radiation,” she explained that the hope is to “shrink the tumor or simply suppress its growth to give him that additional time.”
“And while he’s done with his treatments, the side effects can be felt weeks or even months later, so we will continue to watch him closely,” she wrote.
Fedotowsky returned home with Owen to Nashville on Friday, sharing that her pooch was “very sleepy” on the drive and is now “sleeping peacefully in his own home with the people he loves most.”
“We don’t know what exactly the future holds for him. He is almost 12 and the grand mal seizures are a part of his life now (just hopefully less frequent for the time being). We’re hopeful to have another GOOD year or two with him and plan to spoil him rotten during that time!” she added. “We will never take a single moment for granted.”
Fedotowsky concluded that the week was “a lot” for their family “logistically, financially and emotionally,” but noted “there’s nothing I won’t do for this sweet little guy.”
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“He did it! Cancer (soft tissue sarcoma) removal on his leg, a MRI, a CT scan, and 5 Stereotactic radiation treatments! I’m so proud of him and SO relieved to be done with the treatment,” Fedotowsky captioned her post. “Yes, he still has a brain tumor and always will. He’ll be on medication for the rest of his life to hopefully help manage his seizures. Sharing what the future looks like for our sweet bud and why we did what we did above. Thank you for all the love. So happy for us to be back home with our family where we belong❤️.”
Fedotowsky shared on March 14 that Owen had been diagnosed with a brain tumor, asking her Instagram followers to “please keep him in your heart this week.” Weeks before, Fedotowsky shared an update amid husband Kevin Manno’s battle with papillary thyroid cancer. (The pair, who tied the knot in 2017, share daughter Molly, 8, and son Riley, 6.)
“Happy to report that this guy’s thyroid pathology report came back negative! Meaning the cancer is totally gone,” Fedotowsky wrote via Instagram on February 28. “After his surgery, they took the thyroid to have it tested to make sure they got all the margins.”
