tests were inconclusive but it was recommended that the lump be removed. So while Rosie was under the anaesthetic for the MRI the tumour was removed. Further laboratory tests found that the lump was a carcinoma. Cancer at five years old and something else to worry about!

The good news, however, was that the post surgical MRI showed that the decompression surgery had been a success. Rosie's hindbrain was no longer compressed and the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pathways were clear. The small cervical syrinx remained but had not progressed.

Is this the end of Rosie's Syringmyelia story? I wish it was. In so many ways Rosie is a very normal little dog and has a good quality of life. She exercises a lot, chases leaves and butterflies, has chased, killed and eaten a rabbit or two(!!), assisted by our cat, Freddy. She loves life and of course is spoilt rotten. However, there are some signs which will not go away.

Rosie rubs her face and head probably a few times a day. Sometimes I think she 'hides' behind a chair or under the table and every evening and sometimes during the day as well, she goes to a chair and 'digs' frantically at it. I don't know why she does this but it is puzzling and at the back of my mind is the thought that these behaviours are a response to some pain or unpleasant sensations.