Pets and Cancer

[Dunit35]

We took our nine year old Siberian Husky to a vet back in August for a mass on his leg. They ran a test and said it wasn't cancer. They said it was a cyst. Three months later it grew and we had a different vet look at it today. She knocked him out and attempted to remove it before realizing it was just too big. She said it was too big to be a cyst and was without a doubt, cancer. She is sending off a sample to confirm it. She doesn't think he has six months left. She was also concerned that if he got a decent cut, he could bleed out.

I adopted him when he was one from a shelter. He is such a calm and relaxed dog. I feel so horrible for him. I feel bad for our female husky, they are inseparable.

Our family is devastated. I don't know how our four year old girl is going to handle it when it is time. She calls him "her boy" and he practically lets her do whatever she wants to him. It took effort to fight back my tears in front of the vet. I've always been afraid of this time in my dogs' lives.

[Rain Man]

The only thing worse than losing a pet is never having a pet in the first place. Sorry to hear.

[tooge]

man, sorry. Pets are family

[Chiefnj2]

Wait until the test results come back. If the first biopsy a few months ago said no cancer, maybe the vet is wrong this time.

PS: It's okay to cry in front of the vet.

[Fish]

My mom has a 3yr old lab boxer mix. Just found out last week that he has cancer. She's just ripped apart. They gave the dog 2 months. Weird though, as he's in the best shape a dog could possibly be in right now, and has super high energy.

Fuck cancer.

[cosmo20002]

We took our nine year old Siberian Husky to a vet back in August for a mass on his leg. They ran a test and said it wasn't cancer. They said it was a cyst. Three months later it grew and we had a different vet look at it today. She knocked him out and attempted to remove it before realizing it was just too big. She said it was too big to be a cyst and was without a doubt, cancer. She is sending off a sample to confirm it. She doesn't think he has six months left. She was also concerned that if he got a decent cut, he could bleed out.


It sounds pretty odd to run a test for cancer and have it come back as 'no cancer' if it is actually cancer. Was it a biopsy or a blood test?

The "too big for a cyst" comment is also weird, since a cyst can be plenty "big." And even if cancerous, it doesn't necessarily mean it has spread.

Obviously, you need to wait for the results, but what you described seems kind of odd.

[Lzen]

That sucks. We got 2 boxers ten years ago when they were just puppies. The male has all kinds of bumps and I know one of them will eventually end up being cancerous. He's at about the normal life expectancy anyway. But man, it's gonna be really hard when we have to put him down as he's always been my buddy. Not to mention that he's great with people and even kids. The female got sick and we had to put her down in February. Had all 3 of my kids in the room and we all cried. It was a real gut punch. I was in bad shape for a few days. You do get better and move on eventually. I still miss her, though. I like dogs better than some people.

[NUMBER7]

http://www.polymvaforpets.com

Sorry to hear about your dog.

We saw remarkable results with PolyMVA for our 14 year old cat who survived for 18 months after being diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma. Praying for you!

[The Franchise]

Noticed a small lump on our dog's neck a week ago. This thread is making me make an appt for him to get it checked out.

[Dunit35]

It sounds pretty odd to run a test for cancer and have it come back as 'no cancer' if it is actually cancer. Was it a biopsy or a blood test?

The "too big for a cyst" comment is also weird, since a cyst can be plenty "big." And even if cancerous, it doesn't necessarily mean it has spread.

Obviously, you need to wait for the results, but what you described seems kind of odd.

The first vet stuck a needle and removed liquid out of it. Ran it under the microscope and said it was just a cyst.

This vet just said it was too big to be a cyst and was a tumor. Tried removal but couldn't and she took a sample to take to a lab. She said it was definitely cancer due to its size and that it grew. I opted to pay the $120 to confirm it. It stayed the same size up until last month.

My husky seems to act normal and playful. Her comment about bleeding out if cut seemed kind of odd.

[Dayze]

our lab had a small knot that grew to about the size of a golf ball. had it removed, and biopsied and it was cancer. that was in 2009. came back agagin a few years back and grew to the size of a softball probably, had it cut out as well. so far so good. She has some little lumps here and there about the size of an almond etc, but nothing has grown like that huge one she got a few years back thankfully. But, she does have cancer in some shape or form.

she's 14, and we just had to put her brother we adopted when he was 6 weeks old down a few weeks back. We got her 6 months after him when she was 4 months old. He was put down due to arthritis in his legs/joints. couldn't move around much at all. Tough call to do it, and even tougher to be there with him when he got the shot.

hope your pup lives out the rest of his days pain free and gives you as much time as possible with him.

[Dartgod]

That sucks, hopefully the vet is wrong.

I'm a little worried about our schnauzer right now. My wife had to take him to the emergency vet a couple of weeks ago, he was coughing continuously. X-rays showed a large mass in his chest. They gave him antibiotics in case it was pneumonia, but he never really coughed after the visit. We were convinced it was cancer.

My wife took him to our regular vet the following week and new x-rays showed it was much smaller. So it may have been pneumonia. But his liver was much larger than it should have been and liver enzymes were off the charts. So again maybe cancer, maybe not. The vet has him on a regimen of pills for his liver and then he'll go back in a couple of weeks to see how things look.

My wife is a wreck over this, but I'm kind of waiting to see what the doc says in a couple of weeks.

[Lonewolf Ed]

We took our nine year old Siberian Husky to a vet back in August for a mass on his leg. They ran a test and said it wasn't cancer. They said it was a cyst. Three months later it grew and we had a different vet look at it today. She knocked him out and attempted to remove it before realizing it was just too big. She said it was too big to be a cyst and was without a doubt, cancer. She is sending off a sample to confirm it. She doesn't think he has six months left. She was also concerned that if he got a decent cut, he could bleed out.

I adopted him when he was one from a shelter. He is such a calm and relaxed dog. I feel so horrible for him. I feel bad for our female husky, they are inseparable.

Our family is devastated. I don't know how our four year old girl is going to handle it when it is time. She calls him "her boy" and he practically lets her do whatever she wants to him. It took effort to fight back my tears in front of the vet. I've always been afraid of this time in my dogs' lives.

I lost my beloved Rottweiler, Freya, in January of 2011. I have not gotten another pet in large part due to the pain of losing her. Ten and a half years was not long enough. My dog may have had cancer, too. She had a big lump on her side that at first was just called a fatty cyst, but it got to be large enough that the vet said it was about to pop. Anyhow, putting her down was the right choice, but it was anything but easy. I kept a hand on her while she died and it seemed to make it easier on her.

If your dog does have cancer, I would strongly suggest not letting it drag along. Having your dog live a bit longer in misery is not the thing to do. It's a quality of life versus quantity issue, much like I ponder often dealing with my own cancer. There is no easy, pain free way to deal with this. In a perfect world, this would never be an issue, but here we are having to deal with terrible things. I feel for you and your family.

[Dunit35]

The size is probably a tad bigger than a baseball on his leg. If the results confirm it, he's going to get whatever the hell he wants until he's ready.

I'm not going to make him suffer for us. When he's ready it's going to be an awful time. As I said, my four year girl is so close to him.

I'm not a veterinarian but is it not possible to drain the fluid out of it if it can't be removed? Shrink it down a bit. She said it was full of blood vessels and she said it bled a lot when she cut into it.

[Fish]

The size is probably a tad bigger than a baseball on his leg. If the results confirm it, he's going to get whatever the hell he wants until he's ready.

I'm not going to make him suffer for us. When he's ready it's going to be an awful time. As I said, my four year girl is so close to him.

I'm not a veterinarian but is it not possible to drain the fluid out of it if it can't be removed? Shrink it down a bit. She said it was full of blood vessels and she said it bled a lot when she cut into it.

If it is cancer, there isn't really anything to drain. Cancer is a hard solid lump of cell growth, it's not fluid filled.

[DaKCMan AP]

That sucks, sorry dude.

We lost ours earlier this year. He was 5. Internal medicine and the animal hospital was never able to confirm what it was (we think cancer) after all of the tests/medications we tried to rule things out. Never went the step of anything invasive (i.e. exploratory surgery).
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[KC_Lee]

So sorry for this. We lost our beagle to lymphoma a few years back. A couple rounds of chemo and we got another 14 months after treatment but the cancer spread to his brain. Once that happened things went downhill fast and we had to let him go.

Never an easy thing to deal with, especially for kids.

[Dunit35]

If it is cancer, there isn't really anything to drain. Cancer is a hard solid lump of cell growth, it's not fluid filled.

Ah, thanks.

I saw the cup of the sample. It looked more like fluid then anything else. Same fluid looking stuff the first vet removed.

[phisherman]

Just found out today that our 15.5 year old cat has squamous cell carcinoma, a thimble thumb sized tumor under his jaw/tongue. Its already messed up his jaw bone and it doesn't seem like it took more than 2 weeks. Poor kitty. My wife is a mess and I'm not in a much better place.

[cosmo20002]

The first vet stuck a needle and removed liquid out of it. Ran it under the microscope and said it was just a cyst.

This vet just said it was too big to be a cyst and was a tumor. Tried removal but couldn't and she took a sample to take to a lab. She said it was definitely cancer due to its size and that it grew. I opted to pay the $120 to confirm it. It stayed the same size up until last month.

My husky seems to act normal and playful. Her comment about bleeding out if cut seemed kind of odd.

Still seems odd to get such different diagnoses on what should be fairly straightforward.
A "tumor" doesn't necessarily mean cancer though. A benign tumor grows but doesn't spread and technically isn't "cancer." I don't want to raise false hope, and I'm sure it sucks waiting for the results. When I was a kid I had a dog that suddenly had a growth under his "lip." The vet called it a tumor. It kept growing to the point it interfered with chewing, and we had surgery to cut it away. It grew back. When it got big enough, had it removed again. Grew back. Dog lived a long life, though.

[gblowfish]

I lost my favorite kitty Mama Cat a year ago to cancer. Broke my heart.

[Swanman]

The size is probably a tad bigger than a baseball on his leg. If the results confirm it, he's going to get whatever the hell he wants until he's ready.

I'm not going to make him suffer for us. When he's ready it's going to be an awful time. As I said, my four year girl is so close to him.

I'm not a veterinarian but is it not possible to drain the fluid out of it if it can't be removed? Shrink it down a bit. She said it was full of blood vessels and she said it bled a lot when she cut into it.

First off, I would recommend another opinion if you can afford one. It seems weird that you have conflicting reports already on cancer/no cancer. See what the tests say.

I had a husky/shepherd mix that was diagnosed with liver cancer in May of 2016. It was a bunch of small tumors so it was inoperable, plus he was 13 years old. He made it until October when we had him put down. He could barely walk and couldn't control his bodily functions. You will know when it's time. It's heartbreaking but the right choice.

With that said, I will say a prayer that it's just a big-ass cyst.

[Eureka]

I had the same exact scenario happen to my 12 year old Doberman. My girl had been limping/favoring her leg for a bit. She had a growth/cyst that had been there for years and the vet said it was causing her to limp. I also noticed a sore on her paw but the vet thought it was probably a splinter healing. They removed the cyst and she still continued to limp.

I then noticed that sore was getting worse and took her back in. Turns out she was limping because she had cancer in her paw. Another surgery and it healed nicely. No more limp. They sent out the cancer to have it tested and it came back as a bad cancer that can spread. The wanted to go further with chemo. I told them no more. They had already done an unnecessary surgery and now wanted more $$$.

My girl has been running around happy going on a year now since the last surgery. Sometimes those vets will tell you the worst and milk your pocket book. My vet was nice but she milked it all the way. I would advise to do your own research and know that these vets don't know everything and aren't perfect. Hopefully your dog will have a good outcome.

[EPodolak]

Have you considered getting one more opinion? If it is cancer and it's localized would amputation be an option?

http://www.thatpetblog.com/2013/07/05/becoming-a-tripawd-the-truth-about-leg-amputation-in-dogs/#.WFHZKVPyt7M

['Hamas' Jenkins]

It is possible that the mass could be an angiolipoma, which is a benign growth that is highly vascular.

Hoping for the best.

[Dunit35]

Have you considered getting one more opinion? If it is cancer and it's localized would amputation be an option?

http://www.thatpetblog.com/2013/07/05/becoming-a-tripawd-the-truth-about-leg-amputation-in-dogs/#.WFHZKVPyt7M

I don't know what the cost is for that, if that were an option. It wouldn't be a bad idea at all if its affordable.

[Buehler445]

All the best D.

Pets are great. My cattle dog is getting up there in age. Hopefully he's got several years but it is going to crush me to lose him.

[bevischief]

Been there twice. Beef jerky and beer for all on a short extended car trip to the end. It always sucks. Sorry to hear.

[Dayze]

All the best D.

Pets are great. My cattle dog is getting up there in age. Hopefully he's got several years but it is going to crush me to lose him.

yeah, it was rough for me. I held it together for the entire week leading up to it, knowing we were doing right by him by ending his pain.
went to the vet Saturday morning and my wife had forgot to bring in his favorite blanket from the car, so I went out to get it . Then it all hit me.....started sobbing like a little girl on the way to the car, and all the way back into the vet.....and pretty much continued until it was over / when he officially passed over.

awful. but, he was a great dog and gave us 14 years of happiness. we owed it to him for being such a good dog all those years. But it's rough dude, i aint gonna lie.

[Rasputin]

Maybe NFL can replace October breast cancer awareness month with Doggy cancer month the Chiefs Cheerleaders would have better luck selling that as a promo.



Fuck Cancer fuck it straight to hell.



RIP Sammie, RIP Babe

:(

[Rams Fan]

Your story brings up memories of my dachshund beagle, Sausy.

For about 2 weeks, we(being my family) noticed she had been breathing differently but didn't think much about it. One day, I was taking a nap and woke up to what I thought was the sound of something collapsing. I went downstairs and saw Sausy on the ground, panting. I brought her water bowl to her but she didn't drink anything. At that point, I knew something was up. So, she struggled to make it into the car as I realized she needed to go to the vet ASAP. She was still panting in the car and didn't have the strength to walk, so I picked her up and carried her in to the vet. My parents later met me in the vet's office, to which she wagged her tail when she saw my mom. As they were running tests on her, she collapsed and then was out on a ventilator. I left the vet at that point knowing what the likely result would be and that my parents had to make that decision.

I was an emotional wreck for the next day or so. She died so suddenly from what the vet said was heart disease.She was an older dog, probably close to 15. We adopted her and we think the shelter lied about her age,saying she was 2 when she was closer to 5 according to the vet. The right decision was made to end her suffering, but it was so damn hard to see her health decline that quickly.

My thoughts are with you and your dog. There is no wrong decision and I hope you'll be able to value the time you have with your dog as I didn't get to properly say goodbye to mine.

[Don Corlemahomes]

It is possible that the mass could be an angiolipoma, which is a benign growth that is highly vascular.

Hoping for the best.

I would suspect not. Putting needles in vascular tumors tends to end poorly. Resection is the definitive management in humans. Because they are well-circumscribed, the surgical plane makes them easy to resect without positive margins.

I'm not a vet, but this story sounds odd. I agree on the second (third?) opinion. Or just wait until the pathology report from the second vet is back.

[chinaski]

My condolences.

We lost our Dixie dog to an incurable gastrointestinal disease a little over a year ago, it was devastating. That dog was my child. A few years before that, we lost our Buddy cat to Cancer.

I can relate, stay strong, and thoughts and prayers going out to you.

[Dunit35]

If Marley and Me comes on during this time period, I'm going to throw my TV out the window.

My four year old wanted him to sleep on the floor next to her last night. He was just leaving her room when I woke up this morning.

[Dunit35]

My boy does have cancer. Vet called me said it was soft cell sarcoma and it has not metastasized. She said if we remove it quickly he has a good chance of living out the rest of his life. She said she was wrong with her original prognosis. Hopefully it isn't too expensive as she said a rough estimate of $800-2k. Hopefully they can get it removed quickly and without issues.

[Shaid]

Great news.

[Dartgod]

That sucks, hopefully the vet is wrong.

I'm a little worried about our schnauzer right now. My wife had to take him to the emergency vet a couple of weeks ago, he was coughing continuously. X-rays showed a large mass in his chest. They gave him antibiotics in case it was pneumonia, but he never really coughed after the visit. We were convinced it was cancer.

My wife took him to our regular vet the following week and new x-rays showed it was much smaller. So it may have been pneumonia. But his liver was much larger than it should have been and liver enzymes were off the charts. So again maybe cancer, maybe not. The vet has him on a regimen of pills for his liver and then he'll go back in a couple of weeks to see how things look.

My wife is a wreck over this, but I'm kind of waiting to see what the doc says in a couple of weeks.
Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

[GloryDayz]

Sorry to hear it. Get another, soon.

We waited a little more than a year, and it was WAY too long. And I don't think people rescue pets and much as they go pick-up the pet that helps them. Not everything is a crisis, but pets add to one's life a hell of a lot more than they get credit for.

[GloryDayz]

Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

Hang tough friend. Love on that dog...

[Buehler445]

Good news.

[Buehler445]

Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

Goddamn it DG, the good news comment was for DUnit.

This is bad news. Spoil the hell out of that dog, bud. Hang tough.

[Chiefnj2]

Dunit, semi-good news I guess. Treatable cancer, but up to a 2k hit just in time for the Holidays.

Dartgod, sorry. Sounds like steak dinners for the next three weeks and lots of pets, sleeping on the couch, etc.

[Swanman]

Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

Is it a single large mass that can be removed? It also depends on the age of your dog. My dog had liver cancer but it was a ton of small tumors so nothing could be done.

[Swanman]

My boy does have cancer. Vet called me said it was soft cell sarcoma and it has not metastasized. She said if we remove it quickly he has a good chance of living out the rest of his life. She said she was wrong with her original prognosis. Hopefully it isn't too expensive as she said a rough estimate of $800-2k. Hopefully they can get it removed quickly and without issues.

The hit to the pocketbook sucks but to give your dog a full life, always worth it. I dropped 5k years ago on a knee reconstruction for my late Husky/Shepherd mix.

[Dartgod]

Is it a single large mass that can be removed? It also depends on the age of your dog. My dog had liver cancer but it was a ton of small tumors so nothing could be done.

Looks like a single large mass, but there has not been extensive testing to see if it has spread elsewhere. He's almost 12 and we've decided to let him live whatever time he has left as comfortably as possible. I think spending that much money, while at the same time putting him in pain to keep him around a year or so more is not in his best interest.

[Dunit35]

Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

Sorry to hear. Time to spoil him.

I'm waiting to hear back from my 3rd opinion vet we went to yesterday. I'll gladly throw down a couple grand if he will live 4-5 more years.

[Dayze]

Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

shit man....sorry to hear bud.
:(

[Dunit35]

My boy is going in for surgery in the morning. Hoping everything goes well and doesn't cost me a ridiculous amount of cash.

[Lonewolf Ed]

My boy is going in for surgery in the morning. Hoping everything goes well and doesn't cost me a ridiculous amount of cash.

I pray it goes well in all regards.

[Buehler445]

My boy is going in for surgery in the morning. Hoping everything goes well and doesn't cost me a ridiculous amount of cash.

Good luck. I can assure you it will be cheaper than if the same procedure was done to you. Vets work cheap :D

[BigRichard]

The size is probably a tad bigger than a baseball on his leg. If the results confirm it, he's going to get whatever the hell he wants until he's ready.

I'm not going to make him suffer for us. When he's ready it's going to be an awful time. As I said, my four year girl is so close to him.

I'm not a veterinarian but is it not possible to drain the fluid out of it if it can't be removed? Shrink it down a bit. She said it was full of blood vessels and she said it bled a lot when she cut into it.

Some cancerous cells will actually emit chemicals telling the body to make new blood vessels grow where the cancer is. It is the only way once a tumor gets so big that it can actually grow bigger. Otherwise the center of the tumor can't get enough nutrients and it dies off.

[Dunit35]

Dropped him off a couple hours ago. Dr. Said it will come back and amputation will have to be next. Hoping he comes out fine. Staying overnight.

Estimates were $1800-2100.

[Indian Chief]

Hoping for the best. My little guy has had two cancer scares, both times we were able to cut it out.

[Dunit35]

We picked him up yesterday. He is doing well. He's stuck inside for a few weeks until the stitches heal. He loves being outside so that sucks for him. We have to take him out on a leash to use the bathroom. He has refused to eat hard food and it's a bitch to give him his meds. He's eating wet food now.

We did get a nice surprise financially from it. They refunded us money and it cost $1640 instead of $2200.

[GloryDayz]

The son and I took New-Dog to the vet today for her shots (all is well, very well actually!!), but on the way out we ran into a man on his way in to put his really old dog down. Wow, just wow, what a terrible Christmas Eve.. I remember the feeling like ti was yesterday, I've dropped a few prayers for his entire family today.

I hope he takes my advice and grieves for only one week, then finds another one. So many dogs in shelters, there's no need to wait long to get back in the saddle. We waited just over a year, that was a year too long. But we found a perfect dog after the wait, so I'll pretend like it was the right thing to do.

[EPodolak]

Glad your pooch is going to be hanging around.

[Dunit35]

Took my dog to the surgery vet recently. Said he was doing real well and healing nicely. He's stuck wearing a cone but no longer has to wear bandages.

We eventually had to put him on sedatives to get him to calm down a notch or five. Dude had bad seperation anxiety when he was stuck inside by himself. Tore up a metal kennel, two cones, his bandages a few times, a door, and curtains. actually set his healing back a few days when he ripped his wound open. He smells like ass too.

$2500 or so so far.

[Nickhead]

you know what, fuck you all to hell, i post a fight club thread, and then i read this shit again. it's what makes me come back for more. i play along with the games and then ya'll post real life shit, and i've been through it too. so i guess, my fuck you was a thank you, because i was a dribbling idiot when i had the vets come to put my cat down four years ago, and dread the day when any more of my animals may become ill. i shelled out three grand for my cats emergency and he still died. i hope any of you that put money forth gives you at least a weeks more happy moments, because i didn't even have that.

pets are fucking awesome!! :D

[Dunit35]

It's been five months and he's doing really well.

Unfortunately my female husky 10 yrs old, was diagnosed with diabetes today. Hoping they can get her stabilized and the insulin figured out. She was drinking a Shit ton of water and was in pain this morning. Vet took x rays and said she had spinal issues. She's on pain meds for that now.

They took Blood which came back that she has bad diabetes. Hopefully it's not too late and she can get the proper medication.

Anybody have a pet with diabetes?

[JohnnyHammersticks]

It's been five months and he's doing really well.

Unfortunately my female husky 10 yrs old, was diagnosed with diabetes today. Hoping they can get her stabilized and the insulin figured out. She was drinking a Shit ton of water and was in pain this morning. Vet took x rays and said she had spinal issues. She's on pain meds for that now.

They took Blood which came back that she has bad diabetes. Hopefully it's not too late and she can get the proper medication.

Anybody have a pet with diabetes?

I really, really hope all this works out for you. Even reading about other peoples' pet problems tugs on my heart strings, can't imagine the mess I'll be when mine come to the end.

I have to take my ~11 yr old cat in for an heart ultrasound next week due to a heart murmur. Just took both of my cats in for a teeth cleaning last week and was petrified that one of them wouldn't wake up from the anesthesia. It worked out fine, but the blood work on my boy showed high enzymes. They ruled out problems with his kidneys and liver, so he's got some issue with his heart.

Was talking to my mother yesterday about what would be my financial limit if some major health issue occurred with either of them. As crazy as it sounds, bills would have to approach $30K before I would even entertain the idea of not treating them.

The only thing worse than a pet dying on you is you dying on them first. If something unforeseen--like a plane crash or something--was happening to me and I knew my death was imminent, one of the last things I would think about would be the well-being of my pets. Crazy how vital a part of your life they become.

[Indian Chief]

I had a friend lose his 9 year old lab mix to Lyme disease last week -- so just a reminder to make sure you check your pets for ticks and be vigilant about their medication.

[Valiant]

Glad to see it went well. My mom's dog was diagnosed with cancer 4 years ago. She keeps trucking. Lost 50% of her body weight. Eats twice a day. She will turn 18 in November if she makes it. What is worse is I loss my dad to cancer in April. My aunt died in late April and I hope Misty can hold on so my mom doesn't lose another thing she loves so close together.

[Dartgod]

Well, this sucks. My wife just called after some more tests on the dog. His liver is even larger now than it was two weeks ago. There is a clear mass on the liver and it is definitely cancer. Very aggressive too I'm afraid. The vet said he probably has another month or so with us. This is horrible news

:deevee: :deevee: :deevee:

So, almost 5 months later and he's still doing well. He has good days and bad days. But he is still eating well and no issues with keeping food down. His appetite is great.

[KC Dan]

So, almost 5 months later and he's still doing well. He has good days and bad days. But he is still eating well and no issues with keeping food down. His appetite is great.
You go Chewie!!!!

[Dunit35]

My 1st attempt at giving my girl insulin. She moved and the needle went through my finger with enough force that it bent the needle.

[Dartgod]

You go Chuey!!!!

FYP. He's a Mexican schnauzer.

[beach tribe]

Had to put down my Doberman a few months ago because of diabetic complications.
Still doesn't feel real. I expect him to hear my car doors lock and be at the door when I walk in a lot of times.
This sucks, man.
I'm sorry.

[beach tribe]

My 1st attempt at giving my girl insulin. She moved and the needle went through my finger with enough force that it bent the needle.

It's tough, bro.

It's really hard to do. Especially if your dog is of any size.
I'll still never forget him looking at me like "WTF, man?"

He got used to it after a while, but only made it 9 months before his kidneys shut down.

Pinch the skin on the back of her neck, and try to get good at to make it quick. Don't fuck around.
I practiced on a stuffed animal.

[beach tribe]

One more thing, and I know this is tough, but if it gets rough on her, let her go.
I waited hoping Sarge would get better.
I wish I hadn't.

I had put dogs down in the past, but that's when I lived in TN, where you fix your own car, do your own repairs, and put down your own dog.

The vet made my best buddy comfortable and then he was gone.
It was actually a relief, believe it or not.

Fuckin dust...damnit.

[Dunit35]

It's tough, bro.

It's really hard to do. Especially if your dog is of any size.
I'll still never forget him looking at me like "WTF, man?"

He got used to it after a while, but only made it 9 months before his kidneys shut down.

Pinch the skin on the back of her neck, and try to get good at to make it quick. Don't **** around.
I practiced on a stuffed animal.

My mom's poodle has had diabetes for a couple years. Other than being completely blind, he's doing well. Much older than my husky.

She seems to barely notice I'm giving her a shot. Her levels were in the 500's when I brought her in and when I picked her up, it was in the 200's. Vet said it was a really good start. Responding really well to treatment.

Before diagnosis she was drinking like crazy. Her water consumption seems to be normal now.

I'm still not comfortable giving the shot. Am I doing it right, is she getting the insulin, always has me worried I'm failing her. I need to call the vet to see about buying an at home tester. Is that possible?

We're hopeful we can get a couple more good years out of her. It's going to be tough when it comes time. My children are very attached to her.

[frozenchief]

We had a mastiff we got from the pound. He was a fantastic dog. Mellow. Loyal. He read the manual for how to be a faithful hound.

He developed a tumor in his muzzle. By the time it was really noticeable, the vet said it had progressed too far. There was too much invasive tissue to remove without taking pretty much his whole muzzle. So we kept him. The tumor grew but he seemed to do fine. About a month ago he stopped eating. He began to lose weight. That was the big key for us. He looked atrocious and we knew it was time.

This being Alaska, I put him down myself. I drove him out into the woods and had him lie down under a tree. I think he knew in some way what was going to happen. That did not make it any easier. I did not cry until after I did it. I told him I was sorry he got cancer and I was sorry I had to do it.

I stopped at a store to get some bourbon before I went home. I did not give the clerk the right amount of money and she looked at me and said, "Are you all right?" I told her I just put my dog down and was not really thinking clearly.

He was a good dog and a faithful pet. Can't ask for more.

[Sassy Squatch]

We had a mastiff we got from the pound. He was a fantastic dog. Mellow. Loyal. He read the manual for how to be a faithful hound.

He developed a tumor in his muzzle. By the time it was really noticeable, the vet said it had progressed too far. There was too much invasive tissue to remove without taking pretty much his whole muzzle. So we kept him. The tumor grew but he seemed to do fine. About a month ago he stopped eating. He began to lose weight. That was the big key for us. He looked atrocious and we knew it was time.

This being Alaska, I put him down myself. I drove him out into the woods and had him lie down under a tree. I think he knew in some way what was going to happen. That did not make it any easier. I did not cry until after I did it. I told him I was sorry he got cancer and I was sorry I had to do it.

I stopped at a store to get some bourbon before I went home. I did not give the clerk the right amount of money and she looked at me and said, "Are you all right?" I told her I just put my dog down and was not really thinking clearly.

He was a good dog and a faithful pet. Can't ask for more.
Damn.

[Dunit35]

We had a mastiff we got from the pound. He was a fantastic dog. Mellow. Loyal. He read the manual for how to be a faithful hound.

He developed a tumor in his muzzle. By the time it was really noticeable, the vet said it had progressed too far. There was too much invasive tissue to remove without taking pretty much his whole muzzle. So we kept him. The tumor grew but he seemed to do fine. About a month ago he stopped eating. He began to lose weight. That was the big key for us. He looked atrocious and we knew it was time.

This being Alaska, I put him down myself. I drove him out into the woods and had him lie down under a tree. I think he knew in some way what was going to happen. That did not make it any easier. I did not cry until after I did it. I told him I was sorry he got cancer and I was sorry I had to do it.

I stopped at a store to get some bourbon before I went home. I did not give the clerk the right amount of money and she looked at me and said, "Are you all right?" I told her I just put my dog down and was not really thinking clearly.

He was a good dog and a faithful pet. Can't ask for more.

Damn bro. I can't imagine how hard that must have been and must still be.