[Rotties_Rule]

I am so sorry to hear about Tucker and the other dogs going through this.

My dog was diagnosed with cancer of the spleen.
She is a 11 year old Rottie and weighs 118 lbs (big bones, not overweight).
The Vet does not recommend any treatment at this time due to the blood loss that can occur when removing the spleen, plus the age puts her at risk with the anesthesia.

I am not going to subject her to anything that will cause any more pain.
I rescued her 3 years ago and she had been severly abused for most of her life.

I agree with the Top Dogs that copious amounts of love and attention are the best thing I can do for her until I see that pain prohibits her from basic activities.

My heart goes out to all of you who are going through this. Best Wishes and Much Love.

[Tucker]

Originally Posted by Corky/Max

Have been cleaning out My Favorites and came across this---thought you would be interested--on that last med you are giving now for the diarrhea: Metronidazole (Flagyl) Toxicity in Dogs

Thank you for the link - it did make me a little less nervous about this drug. Thankfully today we did notice improvement - he is a little less hungry but that is listed as a side effect. We have been doing the yogurt and probiotics as part of his regular supplements - He is acting pretty peppy and did a not of swimming today.

[CorkyMax]

Still cleaning out some links in My Favorites and came across this site that had this article. I think Tucker (Kay) prob. knows about all of this but thought I'd put it here since Rotties_Rule is looking here for info on cancer also.

Pet Columns, Office of Public Engagement, College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

[Tucker]

Originally Posted by Rotties_Rule

I am so sorry to hear about Tucker and the other dogs going through this.

My dog was diagnosed with cancer of the spleen.
She is a 11 year old Rottie and weighs 118 lbs (big bones, not overweight).
The Vet does not recommend any treatment at this time due to the blood loss that can occur when removing the spleen, plus the age puts her at risk with the anesthesia.

I am not going to subject her to anything that will cause any more pain.
I rescued her 3 years ago and she had been severly abused for most of her life.

I agree with the Top Dogs that copious amounts of love and attention are the best thing I can do for her until I see that pain prohibits her from basic activities.

My heart goes out to all of you who are going through this. Best Wishes and Much Love.

Rotties Rule - I am so sorry to hear about your dog's diagnosis; it is so hard to think that they are suffering. Did your vet think he has hemangiosarcoma? I think that is commonly found to originate in the spleen - there are many supplements you can give to help strengthen their immune system; also, the oncologist we saw recommended yunnan baiyo which is a very smelly capsule (we give 2 twice a day but our dog is 84 lbs); it inhibits bleeding - we order online and disguise it in cream cheese or liverwurst. We also chose not to have surgery/chemo due to the small amount of additional time it usually allows in addition to the stress and pain involved. As you, we felt quality of life was the important thing not necessarily the quantity - Please know that I am thinking of you both and hope his life remaining is only filled with your love and not pain.

[huskertrading]

My dog was recently diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma. I'm looking for the best diet and this site has been very helpful.

[lady2011]

I don't know if I have posted here before but my Lady was diagnosed and operated on for hemangiosarcoma in January. I took her to a holistic vet who has been doing wonders with her. She has been well, peppy almost puppy-ish, and looks wonderful. Any time we have with her is a blessing but last night, I thought we were losing her. I thought she was trying to get on my bed and went to help her but she had collapsed. She just laid there for 1/2 hour, drank water, ate her favorite chicken. Then she got up and walked to the stairs but would not go down. I started to think that perhaps her back was bothering her so I have her Tramadol. Today she is lazing around. Her paws are not cold and her gums look okay.
I would just ask that someone tell me what to expect. I have read that they can have these bleeds and bounce back. I called the ER vet and they would not tell me if "it" could be happening, just wanted me to bring her in and I was afraid that they would put her to sleep. I guess I am asking if anyone can tell me if she will be in pain, if I will be able to recognize that it is the time. You can email me privately since this is a sad subject.

[Tucker]

Originally Posted by lady2011

I don't know if I have posted here before but my Lady was diagnosed and operated on for hemangiosarcoma in January. I took her to a holistic vet who has been doing wonders with her. She has been well, peppy almost puppy-ish, and looks wonderful. Any time we have with her is a blessing but last night, I thought we were losing her. I thought she was trying to get on my bed and went to help her but she had collapsed. She just laid there for 1/2 hour, drank water, ate her favorite chicken. Then she got up and walked to the stairs but would not go down. I started to think that perhaps her back was bothering her so I have her Tramadol. Today she is lazing around. Her paws are not cold and her gums look okay.
I would just ask that someone tell me what to expect. I have read that they can have these bleeds and bounce back. I called the ER vet and they would not tell me if "it" could be happening, just wanted me to bring her in and I was afraid that they would put her to sleep. I guess I am asking if anyone can tell me if she will be in pain, if I will be able to recognize that it is the time. You can email me privately since this is a sad subject.

So sorry you and your dog are going through this...it is a really devious disease and really hard to figure out what is going on sometimes. Tucker finally had to be put to sleep last month; he did very well, lasting 14 months after diagnosis and did enjoy most of that time. When he would have an occasional bleed his abdomen would be somewhat distended and he really didn't want to eat anything so not sure if that is what your dog experienced unless it was a very mild episode. By the way, you are the person deciding when/if your dog gets put to sleep - the vet can recommend if you ask for an opinion but you make the decision. The oncologist told us it is usually an easy death if they have a major bleed, kind of like going to sleep but less serious ones may cause some discomfort from pressure of the blood. A surgeon can aspirate the blood but we never had to have that done since it was reabsorbed within a day or 2. You just have to determine if your dog is under stress and get him to a vet if that is the case. At the end Tucker really lost interest in eating, lost a lot of weight and was no longer the joyful, playful labbie he used to be - once he lost the joy of life we decided it was time, difficult as that was. Good luck with your puppy and hopefully he does as well as Tucker did and has lots of happy days ahead!

[lady2011]

Lady had a second episode today- two in just 28 hours. Her gums were white and she just seemed to be in a trance. She was running around the backyard two hours before. I called my vet who is my cousin and she came over to see her.We ended up taking her and putting her to sleep. I wish I had read this earlier but she has not been eating much lately. We were handfeeding her occasionally. She really had no interest in food much of the time and I think she was losing weight. I also think that she has been having episodes at night that I did not recognize as bleeds. She gave us 14 wonderful years of pleasure as did her brother who crossed the rainbow bridge last Sept. I think we were very fortunate to have them so long. Thanks for getting back to me.

Originally Posted by Tucker

So sorry you and your dog are going through this...it is a really devious disease and really hard to figure out what is going on sometimes. Tucker finally had to be put to sleep last month; he did very well, lasting 14 months after diagnosis and did enjoy most of that time. When he would have an occasional bleed his abdomen would be somewhat distended and he really didn't want to eat anything so not sure if that is what your dog experienced unless it was a very mild episode. By the way, you are the person deciding when/if your dog gets put to sleep - the vet can recommend if you ask for an opinion but you make the decision. The oncologist told us it is usually an easy death if they have a major bleed, kind of like going to sleep but less serious ones may cause some discomfort from pressure of the blood. A surgeon can aspirate the blood but we never had to have that done since it was reabsorbed within a day or 2. You just have to determine if your dog is under stress and get him to a vet if that is the case. At the end Tucker really lost interest in eating, lost a lot of weight and was no longer the joyful, playful labbie he used to be - once he lost the joy of life we decided it was time, difficult as that was. Good luck with your puppy and hopefully he does as well as Tucker did and has lots of happy days ahead!

[Tucker]

Originally Posted by lady2011

Lady had a second episode today- two in just 28 hours. Her gums were white and she just seemed to be in a trance. She was running around the backyard two hours before. I called my vet who is my cousin and she came over to see her.We ended up taking her and putting her to sleep. I wish I had read this earlier but she has not been eating much lately. We were handfeeding her occasionally. She really had no interest in food much of the time and I think she was losing weight. I also think that she has been having episodes at night that I did not recognize as bleeds. She gave us 14 wonderful years of pleasure as did her brother who crossed the rainbow bridge last Sept. I think we were very fortunate to have them so long. Thanks for getting back to me.

I was so sorry to read your post about Lady; believe me, I know just what you are going through. We still miss Tucker every time we come home, go downstairs or anytime in between. We also ended up having to hand feed him, for about 2 weeks actually. So glad you have those 14 wonderful years to remember.

[lady2011]

It'll be a week tomorrow since we put Lady to sleep and I am having such a hard time. I have to visions, one of her lying on the floor in a trance and the other of her walking on a leash at the ER. Her gums were still white but she was walking. I feel that had we given her supplements at home, we might have been able to keep her alive. I know I am being silly but I just feel that we were rushed into it by primary vet. When I talked with the holistic vet after, I got the impression that we might have been able to save her. So now I am dealing with this guilt that I cut her life short. The holistic vet told me that they are not in pain with hemangiosarcoma and that she would not have had a painful death. I wish I knew that. She was walking before we put her to sleep! I know that we did it because she had two episodes in less than two days but I still don't know if I did the right thing. It's too late, I know, but maybe my posting will help someone else. Had it not been a Sunday, I think the holistic vet could have helped us. I think she thought too and is feeling very badly about it. I'm sorry. I just needed to put this into words.