Anyone lose a dog to cancer?

[U201491]

And just because you can afford it does not mean it really is the best or right thing. I had a good friend who lost his lab Tuba to cancer. He spent close to five grand in treatment, In the end it prolonged his life about 4 months which where all miserable. I understand having to do all you can and you never know but in his case at least treatment was the wrong call.

Yes that is a very tough call. Hard topic to even talk about

 

[3MTA3]

Yes that is a very tough call. Hard topic to even talk about

It has me spending some extra time with Sasha my border collie/blue heeler mix tonight. I suspect a few other pups are getting some extra attention tonight as well.

 

[BDA.45]

Spend as much time with em as possible...don't go through what we just went through. I completely agree with quality of life but don't hesitate for a minute on treatment if you can. It's really hard dude. I mean REALLY hard.....

 

[Caveman Jim]

Now y'all done it Caveman can hardly see to type. ....

 

[Just Jim]

It has me spending some extra time with Sasha my border collie/blue heeler mix tonight. I suspect a few other pups are getting some extra attention tonight as well.

My chocolate lab is always by my side, gave him a new chewy tonight.

 

[Sgt Nambu]

I'm so sorry for your friend, Joe. Yes, I lost my two Rottweilers to a bone cancer. Like Taku says, my wife and I have spent many nights sitting on the floor with our beloved companion's head in our laps. We were lucky that the cancer was painless an the dogs, Rossco and Tonya, were comfortable to the end. Hardest thing to hold them for the last time and watch the light in they're eyes go out! Proud of my wife, she came into the room for our last two friends passing! She had seen how devastated I was and decided that she had a duty. She's great!
Joe, again, sad for your loss!

 

[Sgt Nambu]

It has me spending some extra time with Sasha my border collie/blue heeler mix tonight. I suspect a few other pups are getting some extra attention tonight as well.

Yep, as I write this, Lily is laying next to me getting some sugar!

 

[Sgt Nambu]

The dog hasn't been eating for a few weeks now, took him in when it first began. Spent this evening in a follow up appointment, where we found out his white blood cell count is too high for them to measure. Specifically, the lymphocyte count, making it pretty clear he has canine leukemia. People talk about putting them down themselves when the time comes, but I know I won't be able to do it.

Anyone else been through this with their pup? Tough time.

View attachment 213706

Joe, I was remiss in not answering your question about who will put your dog down.
When I was in the eighth grade there was a scandal about unscrupulous vets who were putting dogs to sleep then selling them for experimentation when they awoke! This horrified me to the extent that I put my own dogs down until I was about 40yrs old. Since that time I have been using the Vet and don't plan on going back to the bullet in the back of the method. Don't let people sway you with that "old West, a man puts down his own dog" crap! You are who decides what's right for you and your dog! If you decide that you have to do it, it's got to be perfect! Put the muzzle right to the skull and shoot through the center of the brain. Shoot into soft earth! It is a damed hard thing to do and do not wound your dog! I don't recommend it at all! SRG

 

[Joe Link]

I was on the fence about posting this, but I'm really happy I did. Reading through the replies is difficult, but it helps. I appreciate it guys

 

[jbett98]

One of my oldest friends has a 200 acre farm out in Sandy, OR.
It's a working farm, which means there are no free rides when it comes to pets.
You're either a guard dog or a barn cat that feeds itself, because Fancy Feast cat chow ain't on the menu.
One day my friend found his favorite tom cat lying behind the barn retching and convulsing and it's eyes all covered over with a pasty film.
Expensive vet bills for a sick barn cat aren't in his future on this farm.
Thinking it had some sort of feline distemper, he grabbed his .22 rifle, a post hole digger and the cat.
After digging a hole behind the barn, he grabbed old Blackie and gently laid him in the hole.
As he was loading up the rifle, Old Blackie looked up at the barrel of the rifle and realizing what was in store for him, jumped up out of the hole and ran into the woods.
Three days later, my friend was feeding the cows when low and behold, there was Blackie with a field mouse in it's jaws looking good as new.

 

[notazombie]

Lost mine just a few weeks ago. I'm pretty convinced she had a brain tumor (tumors?) that was causing the occasional seizure. I witnessed a couple pretty major episodes but I'm sure there were others that I wasn't around to see. It didn't seem to affect her quality of life beyond a few seconds after she came out of it. So cancer, yes. But in the end it was heart failure that beat her. It happened pretty quickly. I noticed that she was a bit unsteady on her feet one morning and by the end of day 2 she was falling over. Her temperament never changed though and that's what made it really tough. Morning of day 3 on our way to the vet I was 99% sure it was her last car ride. Vet told me it was cardio myopathy and that treatment was not recommended on a 12 year old dog. She was sweet to the end but I just couldn't be in the room with her. It was quick and Companion was very respectful. I brought her home and buried her in a grove behind the house.

 

[Bon Sauvage]

Sigh……I understand your pain Joe. I've been there.

 

[clearconscience]

I have some close friends that have a chocolate lab that got cancer. The doc said treatment probably wouldn't help but they did it anyway.
After that the dog looked like it died months earlier. Was a bag of bones, lost half it's fur.
Doc said the dog had only months left.
That was about 5-6 years ago.
That tough bastard is still kicking.

Everytime they take him to the vet the doctor is amazed.

He's never been the same, but he's gotten a lot of life back.

You just never know.

I'll be praying for your buddy! I'm so sorry to hear it.

 

[eightyeight mag]

Had to put down our 15 year old pom-chi about 8 weeks ago. Kidneys stopped working among other things.
No way I would be able to put him down. They are part of the family.

Our Jack Russel who is 9 years old has had the hardest time losing his buddy. Very sad.

It is for sure one of the hardest things to deal with and I feel your pain.
Hang in there

 

[NoFlinch]

Even with a GREAT dog now, I still think about my last dog.

Maybe because he lives on top of my dresser now........

I'm not saying the time is now.....only you can decide what to do.

But, When that time comes, use a Vet.

The vet I used put him down in the back of my van, where he rode all the time.

I took him directly to the crematorium, saw him just before they closed it up, and saw him right after opening it up again.

When the time comes, Just be certain YOU dispose of him, either by cremation or burial.

Otherwise he ends up at the landfill......................NO animal deserves that.........!!

(Don't mean to sound callous or cold hearted here, and I'm NOT crying thinking about this)

There is no pain like the pain of losing a dog.

 

[etrain16]

It has me spending some extra time with Sasha my border collie/blue heeler mix tonight. I suspect a few other pups are getting some extra attention tonight as well.

Our last dog was a border collie/springer mix. She made it 16 years. Was a huge loss for us even though she had all those years. Great dog, we're hoping to get another border collie mix when we're ready for our next dog.

 

[Just Jim]

Most painful word in English language, goodbye....

 

[Medic!]

Tobie stoped eating. They found cancer throughout his liver.
He was in pain so I let him go.

I don't talk about it much. It's been over three years and it still hurts.

 

[i3izzy]

My case is not exactly the same, but I feel it is similar.
About a year ago we had to put down the Husky/Lab mix we had has since she was a puppy, she was 11. She had rectal cancer. She had a giant tumor and eventually it blocked up her system and she couldn't pass anything. We knew about it for about 9 months and had done the best we could to assist her. We mixed a laxative into her daily meal, tried to give her a more natural diet. Because treatment was not an option. It would have reduced her quality of life so much we didn't feel it was worth it, especially with the low prognosis we were given. So at the end we went through a few days of her barely passing anything, then she went inside and outside about 6 times in a hour and nothing passed. That was when we knew we lost. It was very hard because she was still active and happy, but she could not make a bowel movement. It was one of the hardest things me and my wife had to do, but we didn't see any other option. We felt anything else we did was just so we could try and keep her for a few more days or weeks just to keep ourselves happy.

My thoughts will go out to you and yours. Best of luck in these times.

 

[TOVO]

Boy Joe, do I know how you feel. We had to put our dog to sleep after 15 great years due to countless health problems. He also stopped eating and we are still having problem sleeping being in the room when they put him to sleep. But, we owed him the respect of being there and not have him suffer any longer. I'm sure he knows how much you love him. Good luck with your choice.