Osteo Thread

[Guest roselle]

The last three days or so have been a bit more bumpy for Dude. I think mostly because he did so well the first few days home. He was kind of down and blah, but then would perk up for a bit. I've been trying to stretch out his codeine (pain reliever) and nsaid from 4 to 3 times a day. He has had a couple episodes of panting and restlessness and he gets a pill right away if that happens, but otherwise I'm not sure if he really "needs" the pills or not. His incision looks great, he's standing and moving around fine, he's eating and drinking in his usual chow hound manner, going potty, going up and down the stairs to the bedroom (though we don't allow him to do it unsupervised).

 

He's also been having some issues with pee leaking when he stands up. This just started a couple days ago too and I have no idea if the two things are related. I'm thinking a belly band or something like that, which he will hate. Will this resolve itself as he heals and adapts or is this likely to be an ongoing problem?

 

My Gracy is 5 months post amp. After her surgery she started having problems holding her urine until we were out the door. Her bladdER would just open up right in front of the door while I stood there with the door open. This has continued, she has urgency and can't hold it. My vet doesn't know what it is.

[Guest roselle]

Just got back from the vet. Tiny has osteo in his shoulder.

 

Crap. Crap. Crap.

 

We are going the palliative care route. The vet suggested a combo of Rimadyl, Tramadol and Gabapentin. He isn't showing much pain right now, just some minor swelling, so we're starting with Rimadyl. As things progress we'll add the other two meds in and increase the dosages as needed.

 

I'm so sorry to hear about Tiny's OS diagnosis. Sending prayers and a cyber hug.

[Guest roselle]

Hi all, good use some good thoughts today. Not sure if any of you saw my earlier thread about my friend's mixed breed, Tasha. She has a meningioma, a type of brain cancer, but in the process of diagnosing her they also discovered that she has an enlarged spleen and some nodules in her abdomen. She is having a splenectomy today so if you could all send some good thoughts that she makes it through surgery and has a smooth recovery I would appreciate it. Tasha is like one of my own and while I was at least relieved to hear she does not have hemangio, which was the earlier guess, I am still so sad that she's been diagnosed with cancer.

 

Tasha, I'm lighting a candle for you and sending hugs to mom and auntie Jen.

[lovinggreysslp]

Kathy, I am sorry to hear about Ward. It is good that your vet can come to your house. I will be thinking of you and Ward. Sending prayers for all our greasy and their families as they face the challenges of cancer.

[Guest roselle]

Tasha and Ward are in my thoughts. I am sorry you've had to decide to let your boy go, Kathy.

 

Lucy's amp is tomorrow and my heart is in my throat as I try to assure myself this is the right thing to do. She's laying in her bed in the sun, happily, is showing no pain, no limping, and really seems perfectly fine.

 

I've seen the X-rays and the pathology report, and I KNOW that removing the tumor ASAP will give us more time with her, but it's breaking my heart to take a dog that is fine and put them through an amp.

 

You sound like me 5 months ago when Gracy had her amp. My daughter had to finish my sentences because I was crying so hard all the time. It was hard for a couple of weeks, but she has adjusted quite well. If I had to do it again, I would in a heart beat. Good luck to you I'll be thinking of you tomorrow.

[greysandmollie]

Jen...

 

Sorry to hear things weren't better with Tasha...hope she recovers quickly and has lots of good quality time with her family and you and Dave.

[Guest bigorangedog]

Lucy's amp is tomorrow and my heart is in my throat as I try to assure myself this is the right thing to do. She's laying in her bed in the sun, happily, is showing no pain, no limping, and really seems perfectly fine.

 

I've seen the X-rays and the pathology report, and I KNOW that removing the tumor ASAP will give us more time with her, but it's breaking my heart to take a dog that is fine and put them through an amp.

 

You sound like me 5 months ago when Gracy had her amp. My daughter had to finish my sentences because I was crying so hard all the time. It was hard for a couple of weeks, but she has adjusted quite well. If I had to do it again, I would in a heart beat. Good luck to you I'll be thinking of you tomorrow.

 

Yep, me too. It just about killed me to leave my 2 sweet boys at the orthopedic surgery clinic. They were so happy to go in the car, and I felt like a huge traitor. Like you said, even though you've seen the rads and you KNOW it is for the best, it is hard as hell to do it. You just want it to get better.

 

But I would do it over again too. I look back at my videos of Whitey and Apollo tearing around their yard on 3 legs, happy as can be, and I know it was worth it to give them that pain-free time. Whitey especially was NOT ready to be done, and I believe that he would have chosen it if he could talk.

[brindlebaby]

Any updates on Lucy?

[RedFawnMom]

Any updates on Lucy?

 

We had to re-schedule the amp for next Tuesday due to bad weather. In the meantime, she seems absolutely fine, and is enjoying having my husband and I both home with her for the past few days (I've been working at home for the past 2 months and DH has been home the past 2 days due to the snow). She's her normal, sweet, lovey dovey and playful self.

 

Actually, she's probably the happiest she's ever been since she's being spoiled absolutely rotten. She loves new beds, so we bought two at Costco, which brings the grand total to seven. And, my husband, who is very adamant about not teaching dogs to beg, let her lick out an almost-empty spaghetti sauce jar at the counter the other night. We had put her on a diet a few weeks ago (before her diagnosis) because she'd crept up from 66 to 72 lbs over the course of a few months...she ended up losing more than I'd wanted her to (down to 62) so now we're trying to get her to gain the weight back so that we'll have some wiggle room in case she loses a couple of pounds after surgery/chemo. She's very much enjoying the chicken we're adding to all of her meals, extra liver treats, etc.

 

ETA a picture I took yesterday - this is in my home office. She sits in there in the mornings with me and enjoys the sun (or in this case, watches the snow).

 

Edited February 2, 2011 by RedFawnMom

[greysmom]

Hi Lucy! What a cutie pie!

 

Just got back from getting Dude's stitches out. His surgeon was *very* pleased with how well Dude is doing! One little spot on his incision had opened up so we go back next week to take those stitches out and see the Oncologist.

 

We also found out the answer to a mystery! I have been racking my brain since I met the surgeon about *where* I've seen him before. I thought maybe he did Dude's toe amp several years ago, or maybe he consulted on another dog I had there. NOPE! I finally figured it out and asked him today. He was on TV!!! He was on the show "Emergency Vets" on Animal Planet back when it first started 97-99. He said he still does get recognized ocassionally - and seemed more embarrassed about that than anything!

 

Emergency Vets Wiki Page

He's the surgeon Dr Steve Petersen

[NeylasMom]

Glad to hear that Dude and Lucy are both doing well!

 

Jess, I felt the same way about Neyla. It did make me feel guilty that life was less exciting before Neyla's dx. I'm a lot more lenient with Zuri now as a result. He licks breakfast plates most days, and sometimes other plates, has furniture privileges, etc. I've always liked to have well mannered dogs but the truth is, you can have it both ways. If Zuri starts to become ill mannered, I'll cut back, but so far sharing plates has not led to begging, nor has the furniture privileges led to bad behaviors.

 

The other night we both fell asleep with our heads on pillows right next to each other. That has never happened before! I did have a momentary thought as I nodded off that I hoped that wouldn't be the night Zuri decided to display some sleep aggression.

 

 

On a sad note, thinking of Ward's mom, Kathy.

[RedFawnMom]

We're thinking of Kathy today, too.

 

 

I'm so glad to hear Dude is doing well. How long ago was his surgery now? Two weeks? Is he still on a lot of pain meds? Is he getting around well? Is his personality "normal" or does he seem a little off?

[Zoolady]

Something new for Wonder....canine Fosamax. I can't think of the exact name but it's given iv and it takes a couple hours. Friday he will go in for bloodwork to make sure his kidneys are okay with all the Tramadol and Metacam he's had. If everything is okay, he will get this new medicine.

 

It's supposed to help keep his bones (shoulder) strong and will help with the pain. I will drop him off Friday morning and we'll go from there.

 

I'm a little worried too because for the past day or two, his back legs get shakey when he potties. He is not a leg lifter for peeing but leans and it seems this is a little more difficult for him.

 

He still has his zest for life, wants to go out when everyone else does most of the time, brings a toy to the door when we come home and still follows us room to room.

 

This is so hard.....

[Guest bigorangedog]

Something new for Wonder....canine Fosamax. I can't think of the exact name but it's given iv and it takes a couple hours. Friday he will go in for bloodwork to make sure his kidneys are okay with all the Tramadol and Metacam he's had. If everything is okay, he will get this new medicine.

 

It's pamidronate, I think. The IV form of alendronate. I've heard good things about pamidronate. I really hope it helps!!

[Zoolady]

Something new for Wonder....canine Fosamax. I can't think of the exact name but it's given iv and it takes a couple hours. Friday he will go in for bloodwork to make sure his kidneys are okay with all the Tramadol and Metacam he's had. If everything is okay, he will get this new medicine.

 

It's pamidronate, I think. The IV form of alendronate. I've heard good things about pamidronate. I really hope it helps!!

 

Thank you. He's such a trooper and good boy.

[NeylasMom]

Something new for Wonder....canine Fosamax. I can't think of the exact name but it's given iv and it takes a couple hours. Friday he will go in for bloodwork to make sure his kidneys are okay with all the Tramadol and Metacam he's had. If everything is okay, he will get this new medicine.

 

It's pamidronate, I think. The IV form of alendronate. I've heard good things about pamidronate. I really hope it helps!!

 

Thank you. He's such a trooper and good boy.

Yep, IV pamidronate. That's the treatment that Neyla had. I will keep my fingers crossed on Friday that it does the trick. For Neyla, I saw an immediate bounciness when we got home, which doesn't necessarily fit with the way it works, but Kristin saw the same thing each time she did it with Sutra. After that, I continued to see gradual improvement over the next 5ish days? The difference was somewhat dramatic, much more than I would have seen just upping her pain meds a little. I hope it really helps Wonder, and that he doesn't have any kidney side effects. Your vets are doing IV fluids for several hours before/after and then administering the pamidronate slowly along with fluids, right?

[Guest bigorangedog]

When I was considering doing the pamidronate with Whitey (for ulna metastasis in his remaining front leg), my vet suggested combining it with radiation treatments. I don't know whether that's something you want to look into or not. Depends on how he tolerates vet visits and anaesthesia. (They get put under for the radiation.) We never ended up doing it with Whitey because we also found spinal and lung mets. But he had such a go-for-it attitude that I would probably have done it for just the ulna mets.

 

(BTW alendronate is part of the Metronomic Protocol, which some people use either without amputation, or after amputation once mets are found. It's alendronate, doxycycline, cyclophosphamide and an NSAID like Deramaxx. Used this with 3 of my osteo boys.)

[greysmom]

We're thinking of Kathy today, too.

 

 

I'm so glad to hear Dude is doing well. How long ago was his surgery now? Two weeks? Is he still on a lot of pain meds? Is he getting around well? Is his personality "normal" or does he seem a little off?

 

 

Dude's surgery was two weeks and two days ago! He came home exactly two weeks ago Wednesday. He started out on codeine and an nsaid 4 times a day, which we've reduced to three times a day and no nsaid. The vet today said he should be fine without any, but I had him refill the codeine rx just in case. Dude still seems a bit uncomfortable ocassionally, and I'd rather have the pills and not give them to him than not have them and have him be in any pain.

 

He's mostly back to being out Dude! His face and expression look good. He's starting to do things he used to do - carrying stuffies around, attacking sticks in the yard, eating dirt . It's funny, but he seems a little embarrassed to be seen by people. He's usually right there at the fence when our friends in the neighborhood walk by. Since he's started feeling better, he's been hanging back and sometimes standing behind me. I know he doesn't really feel that way andis most likely just insecure about moving around. It's still sad to see. I hope this resolves too.

[Zoolady]

Something new for Wonder....canine Fosamax. I can't think of the exact name but it's given iv and it takes a couple hours. Friday he will go in for bloodwork to make sure his kidneys are okay with all the Tramadol and Metacam he's had. If everything is okay, he will get this new medicine.

 

It's pamidronate, I think. The IV form of alendronate. I've heard good things about pamidronate. I really hope it helps!!

 

Thank you. He's such a trooper and good boy.

Yep, IV pamidronate. That's the treatment that Neyla had. I will keep my fingers crossed on Friday that it does the trick. For Neyla, I saw an immediate bounciness when we got home, which doesn't necessarily fit with the way it works, but Kristin saw the same thing each time she did it with Sutra. After that, I continued to see gradual improvement over the next 5ish days? The difference was somewhat dramatic, much more than I would have seen just upping her pain meds a little. I hope it really helps Wonder, and that he doesn't have any kidney side effects. Your vets are doing IV fluids for several hours before/after and then administering the pamidronate slowly along with fluids, right?

 

Yes. She did say fluids before and after. I will double check with her on the length. Thanks.

[KF_in_Georgia]

It's funny, but he seems a little embarrassed to be seen by people. He's usually right there at the fence when our friends in the neighborhood walk by. Since he's started feeling better, he's been hanging back and sometimes standing behind me. I know he doesn't really feel that way and is most likely just insecure about moving around. It's still sad to see. I hope this resolves too.

 

Chris, I don't know if your other dogs are around when the neighbors walk by. Dude might be nervous about being jostled or knocked off-balance by the rest of your pack milling around to greet the guests. If it's not concern about your other dogs that's holding him back, there's something else that might be going on, but I'm not sure if I can explain it well.

 

You know how trainers always tell us not to console a dog when it's frightened? Don't say, "It's all right" to a dog that's thunderphobic? That that kind of behavior can reinforce the dog's nervous behavior? Instead, we're supposed to be happy-voiced and upbeat--not consoling.

 

Well, Dude has deservedly had some serious soothing from the people around him. You and the medical staff have needed to keep him calm and reassured--and still--through all the tests, exams, x-rays and the surgery. Then, during his recovery, there was the need to keep him from over-exerting himself. And now he's an obviously recent tripod, maybe unsteady on his feet sometimes, and even the neighbors who might normally greet him eagerly are probably a little more subdued around him.

 

Maybe Dude needs what I call a "rumple-petter": someone who'll go all happy-voiced on him, rumple his skin (in areas away from the incision, of course), and just generally treat him like a dog rather than a convalescent. If you've got a neighbor who could do this--making sure not to do anything that'll knock Dude off-balance--it might be good for your boy.

 

I'm a "soothing petter," myself. (Possibly, this is to keep from stirring up lots of loose hair and making my dogs shed more in the house. ) But I've got a neighbor who's a rumple-petter, and both my dogs absolutely adore him. He never feeds them or gives them treats. He doesn't rough-house with them, and he never cuddles them. They don't run into him more than once every couple of weeks. But he pitches his voice really high, says, "Hi, Sam! Hi, Jacey-Kasey!" and rumples the skin on their heads and sides. They wiggle themselves silly, and when he turns to go in his house, my two try to go with him. I'm standing on the other end of their leashes, totally ignored by both dogs. (He's the reason Jacey got over her initial nervousness with male strangers. Now she expects all strange men to rumple her coat--hers before Sam's.) They worship him. They recognize the sound of his truck engine and turn to look for him before he comes around the corner--but ignore the sound of any other truck coming through the complex. If my neighbor ever starts feeding these two, I'll never get them back.

 

I'd loan you my neighbor, but it's kind of a long drive... I hope Dude's got his own rumple-petter nearby.

[Charlies_Dad]

To Dude's mom, I can only say, he will get better and will be back to his normal self. Don't worry too much about him as he will be in tune with your worry and besides his been through a lot. He's here, he's okay and the pain is gone. Just like when he had all legs, he's no different, he'll bounce back, it just takes a little time.

 

To Wonder's mom, I hope the IV pamidronate treatment goes well.

 

Jess, Lucy's a beauty and we'll keep you both in our thoughts over the weekend that everything goes as planned for next Tuesday.

 

To Ward's mom Kathy. I am sorry you had to say goodbye so soon.

[Guest roselle]

Good by Ward, run free. Kathy you are in my prayers today.

[greysmom]

Kathy - "rumple-petter" - I LOVE THAT!!! Yes, I have probably been babying him more than usual, and DH definitely is with his special boy. I do really try and treat him normally, but he's certainly capable of picking up the soothing tones. He's getting around the yard fine. So I just need to get over it!

 

His incision is having some trouble healing up, so I'm having to deal with that. He does hate to be fussed over for bandage changes and stuff though he'll gladly lay for hours and snuggle!

[cmc333]

It is so very hard for me to come to this thread. Reading about each new diagnosis just brings the horribleness of Gypsy's diagnosis and the time we had - only 1 month and 2 days from osteo dx. I try to keep myself really really busy so I don't have time to miss her. We really had no option but pain management - she also had thyroid cancer and suspected lung mets. We kept the thyroid cancer pretty much pain free, but with the osteo dx I'm not sure if we ever had her pain totally under control. She was on the max dose of rimadyl, tramadol and gabapentin from the day she was diagnosed. I look back now and I worry that I kept her alive too long.

 

I hate being in this thread. I'm so sorry for everyone who has to be here. I'm glad that some of the dogs were able to have their leg amputated and are doing great. I do have the tiniest bit of envy that those dogs had the opportunity to go the amp route - I know that's terrible of me to think that way. And I am sincerely happy that there are some hounds that can beat this damned disease. I just wish there was a cure or a preventative vaccine.

 

Sympathy for all those who have lost their dogs - I can't stand to go back and read the roll call again, I'm crying as it is. And white light and prayers for all the amp dogs, so that they might live long and be happy.

 

Connie

[RedFawnMom]

It is so very hard for me to come to this thread. Reading about each new diagnosis just brings the horribleness of Gypsy's diagnosis and the time we had - only 1 month and 2 days from osteo dx. I try to keep myself really really busy so I don't have time to miss her. We really had no option but pain management - she also had thyroid cancer and suspected lung mets. We kept the thyroid cancer pretty much pain free, but with the osteo dx I'm not sure if we ever had her pain totally under control. She was on the max dose of rimadyl, tramadol and gabapentin from the day she was diagnosed. I look back now and I worry that I kept her alive too long.

 

I hate being in this thread. I'm so sorry for everyone who has to be here. I'm glad that some of the dogs were able to have their leg amputated and are doing great. I do have the tiniest bit of envy that those dogs had the opportunity to go the amp route - I know that's terrible of me to think that way. And I am sincerely happy that there are some hounds that can beat this damned disease. I just wish there was a cure or a preventative vaccine.

 

Sympathy for all those who have lost their dogs - I can't stand to go back and read the roll call again, I'm crying as it is. And white light and prayers for all the amp dogs, so that they might live long and be happy.

 

Connie

 

I'm so sorry you didn't have more time with Gypsy. I can sympathize with the envy - having a four year old with a bone tumor, I've found myself envious of people with senior greys, isn't that awful? I planned on spending at least ten years with her and I'm so sad that we'll likely never see her as a senior. I'm envious of those who had so much more time with their dogs before a major illness but I'm also happy that we're the minority. I always knew this was likely, but why did it have to happen to her so early? I'm trying to focus on the positives - we're lucky that amp is an option, you're right. I didn't think of it that way for a while, but now I do. I hope this loss will be a little easier for you as time goes on, I can see how hard this has been for you. I'm sending lots of positive heart-healing thoughts your way.