One of my dogs, an 8 year old Pit Bull mix, might have cancer.
He has been drinking and peeing more than normal and this morning refused a treat (which he normally begs for) and was just really lethargic.
Took him to the vet and she palpated his abdomen and felt a soft mass. Took xrays and saw something pushing down against his intestine. Thinks its a lymph gland but hasn’t ever seen one this big.
Blood work came back showing elevated Calcium levels. Not too elevated, but elevated. It also showed that he was dehydrated even though he’s been drinking like a camel. She thinks its moving too fast through his kidneys.
His prostate felt normal on palpitation, his other organ looked normal on xray. She gave us some antibiotics in case it is some weird infection and she sent the xrays to a radiologist for a second opinion. Hopefully we’ll get a call this afternoon.
I just lost my siberian husky to cancer in June, she was only 5.5 years old.
The crappy part is that we didn’t even know she had cancer. She went downhill fast in a matter of 3 weeks. She died in the ICU while the vet hospital was trying to still diagnose her.
Please hang in there! And you are welcomed to PM me about ANYTHING you need to talk about.
I know how that feels. I lost one of my favorite goats that way; it started with a small cough, turned into her unable to walk and then we found out she had a giant mass in her chest that was suffocating her. I sent you a PM.
My Emma also passed away of lymphoma, specifically cardial lymphoma. She had a tumor/mass on her heart and we never knew it.
Have you spoken to your vet about any treatment yet?
I did not get a diagnosis until the necropsy, since it was all contained in her heart. Her passing was like a door slamming shut in my face on an ugly, rainy, wednesday afternoon. I guess I bring this up because I always go thru in my mind, over and over again, what I would have done differently in those final weeks had I know it was her final weeks.
Please be kind to yourself and know that we are all here for you!
My mom took the call, so I don’t know EXACTLY what was said but, she (the vet), said that other lymph nodes are involved, so its metastasized. She said to just make him comfortable.
My childhood dog, Nala, also had lymphoma. She was a 13 years old and we let her go when she started having trouble breathing (it was only in her throat) and looked miserable. That was back in '08.
I saw your thread in IMHO, and I went “oh no!” and came here to check.
As Kipling said in his poem “The Power of the Dog” we know their lives are shorter than ours, that we will lose them sooner than later, yet we still set ourselves up for the pain, because the love we experience can be worth it.
http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp346/QuantrillRaider_album/20100105_134.jpg
Here he is at a year old. The dog closest to the camera was named Chevy(RIP), the tan one was named Abby and we rehomed her at 6 years of age due to trying to eat the cats, and the one with the black muzzle, Deputy, is now 9 years old and has dementia.
He is a sweet if neurotic dog. He has severe anxiety issues and is agoraphobic to the point that he can no longer go for walks off the property without having a panic attack. We’ve tried behaviorists, trainers, meds and a Thunder Shirt. none have worked and he is perfectly happy to get all of his exercise in our 3 acre pasture with the other dogs. He gets to run around, rough house, and sniff to his hearts content.
He also has severe GI issues, skin allergies and is a master manipulator. If he even thinks you have food he’ll pretend he’s starving just to get a small nibble of what ever you have.
He also loves the cats and two of them love to rub and sniff on them, he even allowed them as kittens to play with his tail and chew on his ears.