Sorry to hear this dnoodles. You sure you want to go through chemo? Best results might only get him a few more months at best. Will those be chemo sick time for him? The choices are never easy!!!
we'll see. Supposedly dogs tolerate chemo fairly well. Oncologist appt. is 1:30 tomorrow, he may start treatment on the spot depending on what the oncologist says his charts indicate. Assuming the tumors respond, they typically do treatments until remission (up to 6 mos) then they cycle off until they return, rinse repeat. Other than the fact the tumors are starting to press into his windpipe, he doesn't have any other symptoms. He's otherwise healthy. He still moves good for a 90# 9 year old dog. Good blood work, no pain, just that (growing) discomfort from the tumors. I am sure that is why he's being clingy, think of how panicked you get when you get choked. It's instinctive. We'll know within 2-3 weeks if the tumors are responding/shrinking and also if he is tolerating the meds. It's worth a try, I can't watch him literally slowly choke to death in front of me.
Tough times Noodle. It breaks my heart. Some treat their dogs like dogs. Some treat them like family. Your dog IS family!
He got a center cut porkchop with trufflebutter tonight. Which means I also got a centercut porkchop with trufflebutter. Swear to god, after he passes I am going to tell my wife the other dog has cancer too, she's been cooking up a storm the past week.
first day of canine chemo down. No side effects yet. He's been his normal a*hole self all night. Doc says we should start seeing the tumors shrink within 48 hours; assuming they are going to respond at all. Some can be more stubborn and he's a big dog with a lot of muscle so we shall see. Doc also said that they see a huge difference in positive results with dogs that are behaving normally versus dogs that are already exhibiting behavioral or physical changes. Other than his clinginess which I attribute to his throat being pressured, he's doing fine. Assuming he responds well, he's going to get treated every week for 2 months, then every other week for another 4 months. After that, remission can last between 6-18 months. Once they fall out of remission, we can choose to resume treatment or at that point let the disease run its course after which he would likely have less than 3 months. So realistically we could have another 2 decent years with him if all goes well. So, looks like this a*hole is going to cost me another $10 grand, so I got that going for me. He's worth it, btw.
I am glad that you're given the option (and able to afford) it to get that extra time with your dog. I hope that the treatments work and he can get the longest remission. I am currently trying to get through to my vet to get the lab in. He has a spot on his testee. It's like a smooth spot but has grown over the course of time. If it's anything, I hope we can just get him neutered and have the problem fixed.
Good luck, Kristen. So far so good for mine. His tumors have shrank noticeably but not as much as I had hoped. Big difference between last night and tonight on those. Energy is maybe slightly lower than normal, but appetite is normal. Hard to tell if us thinking his energy is a little low is because we are paying more attention than normal or if it really is lower. Plus we were home all weekend so we saw how much he slept.
Lab may have skin cancer. But, the options were put him out to biopsy his testee or neuter him. We already wanted him neutered and that was going to be our decision regardless - so we obviously voted the latter. He will get that done next month. Good news is, if we neuter - no worries. It's a common kind if that is what he has that'll be taken care of once they're gone. How is your guy, dnoodle?
so far so good. He just had his second round of chemo yesterday. Doesn't appear to be in any pain or discomfort. Tumors shrank a lot, no longer pressing on his windpipe. Bloodwork is good, weight and appetite good. No noticeable side effects except mayyybe a little less energy than normal. But that's normal for his treatment regiment.
I get your point and it is kind of funny, but compared to humans most dogs have a much higher tolerance to pain, gut bacteria imbalances, and a lot of other ailments. Their livers and kidneys are awesome at detoxing their blood. Things that they shrug off would cause your average person to curl up and die. At least big dogs, anyway.
Had to put my 13 yo Chessie down today. Hell of a duck dog, just couldn't stand to see him in so much pain. Couldn't get off the floor last night, knew it was time. Hard day. Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk
