Osteo Thread

[TwiggysMom]

Did anyone deal with low platelets during chemo? Berkeley's numbers have dropped to the low end - he's at 80,000 now but normally around 150,000.

 

Not so far, but Twiggy isn't as far into chemo as Berkeley. Twiggy's platelets have ranged from 131,000 a year ago pre-cancer, to 310,000 on the most recent results I have from 10/7/11. Oddly, her platelet counts have been going up. Not sure if that means anything is going with her; the oncologist continues to say her bloodwork looks great.

 

 

I could really use some prayers. When I got home from work this evening, Pinky was limping..left rear. I have checked her all over and cant find anything except...when I feel for her femur about an inch above her knee, she cries. I am going to see how she feels tomorrow but will probably try to take her in for an xray. I shudder at the thought of what this might mean... I'm already a member of the club, I don't want to re-activate my membership card

 

Thinking of you and hoping she just tweaked something.

Edited October 22, 2011 by TwiggysMom

[krissn333]

Well, my intuition was correct, unfortunately . There is a lesion EXACTLY where I suspected. The good news is that it's not terribly pronounced-but I have a feeling that this is a fast-moving case. She was FINE yesterday morning, then yesterday afternoon she is limping.

 

My gut says let's go for the amp and chemo. The horrific thought in my head though is that I really can't afford an amputation surgery, plus all of the follow up stuff-chemo administration fees, bloodwork, what if there are complications...but the thought of NOT doing everything for her makes me sick to my stomach.

 

I'm already in debt up to my eyeballs-what if I do this and then she dies right away anyway? I know there are no guarantees...whatever I decide to do its a crapshoot.

 

I know I need to sit with this for a while...and I have to sit with it until at least Monday anyway. It still sucks, regardless

[BauersMom]

Oh no, Kristin! Take your time to decide - it's a big call to make. Hugs.

[Guest KarenFergie]

Chris, I am so sorry. So shocking and saddening since we were all just celebrating his making it 9 months. I'm so so sorry. We're here for you whenever you need us. This has really been a sad couple of weeks.

 

 

Yankeegreyhound also found out that our two girls - Faye Oops and Hailey - are 1/2 sisters born less than a month apart. Their sire is Splishin Vallie. Both girls osteo was found in the same general area too - top of humerous/left shoulder. Our diagnoses were less than a week apart. I can't say that this is "happy" news, but it's interesting to say the least.

I think we might find this to be the case more often if more people were in touch with the owners of littermates. I know someone from our group lost her littermates less than a year apart to osteo in the same location.

 

My Gibson's cancer is very high up in the shoulder too. We decided against amputation for several reasons. Gibson has arthritis in his back end. The location of his tumor in a big, thick bone makes a fracture unlikely. Also there is some speculation that removing the primary tumor can make metasteses more likely to become aggressive and return in another limb. I am not at all sure about the last theory, just throwing it out for consideration.

 

Gibson limped for a few days in May. Xray showed nothing and his limping stopped for a while. He started limping again in late July. This time the tumor was visible on Xray. We did two days of pallative radiation and a pamidronate infusion in early August. Repeated pamidronate in September. After radiation and pamidronate Gibson went 7 weeks without limping at all. We were able to cut pain medication back to a minimum. Limping returned a few weeks ago and we did another two days of radiation. So far I see no change in Gibson. I don't know if this means radiation worked or not. The tumor has grown by about 25% since July. Gibson is no better after this round of radiation but he's no worse. Gibson limps but otherwise he is a normal, happy boy. No evidence of pain other than the limping.

 

I would LOVE to hear from others who chose to treat with radiation. I am feeling a bit alone out here. Seems like most of you are doing amputation and chemo.

 

Best Wishes to All!

Karen

I would suggest trying the pamidronate again rather than the radiation. It's generally given every 3-5 weeks (based on symptoms though so time in between can be longer depending on the dog). There aren't all that many people doing either so you may want to take this with a grain of salt, but I've never heard a positive report from someone using radiation alone (and some report pain worsened), while I have from people using pamidronate (and I saw a significant improvement for Neyla with her single treatment). Most people on the osteo yahoo group are using both in conjunction, making it difficult to discern which is having the effect or if it's both, but generally speaking from what I've heard, I would spend my money on pamidronate before I would spend it on radiation. Just my two cents.

Edited October 22, 2011 by KarenFergie

[Sirocco_Nikki]

 

I'm already in debt up to my eyeballs-what if I do this and then she dies right away anyway? I know there are no guarantees...whatever I decide to do its a crapshoot.

 

I know I need to sit with this for a while...and I have to sit with it until at least Monday anyway. It still sucks, regardless

 

There is absolutely nothing wrong with saying you can't afford the surgery, chemo, and followups and then going with comfort measures only. Neither your dog nor anyone here expects you to sacrifice your ability to provide for your other dogs and yourself on what could be a crapshoot. It might be different if there was a reasonable chance of a cure. However, many times it is a matter of buying some time. Could be a little, could be a lot, could be it cuts time. If you decide you don't have the means, it doesn't mean you love your dog any less.

 

Sirocco's os was fast-growing. We went the comfort route and focused on making his quality of life the best we could. To me, that was more important than extending the amount of time. With Nikki, we never knew she had os until the leg snapped suddenly. Her passing was A LOT harder on me than Sirocco's since I know she ended life in extreme pain instead of comfort.

 

Good luck.

 

You're right, it sucks!

Edited October 23, 2011 by Sirocco_Nikki

[Guest KarenFergie]

I am not quite sure how to post on this forum yet. I think I just sent a copy of a previous post. So sorry everyone.

 

Greyaholic----Thanks much for your advice. We have been doing monthly pamidronate infusions along with radiation. One or both are working to keep Gibson comfortable for now. We aren't sure which helped because we started them at the same time. Gibson sailed through both of his radiation treatments with no pain or side effects. Ditto for his 3 pamidronate infusions. Gibson will have another infusion next week.

 

Best Wishes to all,

Karen

[krissn333]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home? I know that the time has varied but I'm just trying to get a good idea of what this will entail if we decide to go that route. Also, how long did you stay home with your pup before you felt it was ok for them to be home during the day when you went to work?

 

I am working from home November 7-11, so I'm kind of thinking if she could have surgery the Friday prior or that Monday, she could come home mid week (maybe?) and I'd be at home with her for the remainder of that week and for the weekend. I'd likely have to go back to work the following week, but I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind coming up here to spend the day with her if needed.

 

I have ceramic tile in my living room and kitchen...she's never had an issue with it being slippery for her, but I'm thinking I'd probably want to have some rugs for her to walk on for a while.

 

She loves the couch - barely ever lays on dog beds...will she be able to get up on the couch pretty soon after surgery?

 

I'm sure I'm getting ahead of myself, but these are just my random ponderings for the moment...

[BauersMom]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home? I know that the time has varied but I'm just trying to get a good idea of what this will entail if we decide to go that route. Also, how long did you stay home with your pup before you felt it was ok for them to be home during the day when you went to work?

 

I am working from home November 7-11, so I'm kind of thinking if she could have surgery the Friday prior or that Monday, she could come home mid week (maybe?) and I'd be at home with her for the remainder of that week and for the weekend. I'd likely have to go back to work the following week, but I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind coming up here to spend the day with her if needed.

 

I have ceramic tile in my living room and kitchen...she's never had an issue with it being slippery for her, but I'm thinking I'd probably want to have some rugs for her to walk on for a while.

 

She loves the couch - barely ever lays on dog beds...will she be able to get up on the couch pretty soon after surgery?

 

I'm sure I'm getting ahead of myself, but these are just my random ponderings for the moment...

 

Here are my answers -

 

Berkeley's surgery was Thursday, he went home Saturday morning. He was pretty freaked out by the vet, so he went home earlier than planned.

 

We stayed home with him for a week, then we went back to work. We set up a pen for him with soft padding around the perimeter, because he was still a little wobbly. But he did fine. He was never left alone for long stretches of time though.

 

Definitely get rugs for any slippery surface. Berkeley never had a problem with a tile or wood floor, but now his back legs often start to "bambi" if he's on a slippery floor.

 

He does still jump on the couch, but he often can't get comfortable or feels uneasy on the couch and will jump back down. I bought him a really nice bed and he prefers that now.

[TwiggysMom]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home? I know that the time has varied but I'm just trying to get a good idea of what this will entail if we decide to go that route. Also, how long did you stay home with your pup before you felt it was ok for them to be home during the day when you went to work?

 

I am working from home November 7-11, so I'm kind of thinking if she could have surgery the Friday prior or that Monday, she could come home mid week (maybe?) and I'd be at home with her for the remainder of that week and for the weekend. I'd likely have to go back to work the following week, but I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind coming up here to spend the day with her if needed.

 

I have ceramic tile in my living room and kitchen...she's never had an issue with it being slippery for her, but I'm thinking I'd probably want to have some rugs for her to walk on for a while.

 

She loves the couch - barely ever lays on dog beds...will she be able to get up on the couch pretty soon after surgery?

 

I'm sure I'm getting ahead of myself, but these are just my random ponderings for the moment...

 

I took Twiggy to OSU for her amp. We live in Chicago which is about 6 hours away, so I wanted to make sure she wouldn't have a major setback on the road back or soon after arriving home. Her surgery was on a Tuesday and they wanted to send her home that Friday. I made them keep her till Sat morning, when they kicked her out at 9:00am . It's funny, because she did extraordinarily well after her surgery, and they just couldn't justify keeping her there any longer.

 

When we were going to load her into the car, we were trying to figure out the best way to get her in, and as we were discussing options (with the car door open), Twiggy decided to just show us the best way by leaping gracefully into the back seat!

 

I have slippery floors everywhere, and bought carpet pieces to cover most of the walking areas and major areas of flooring. I also live in a tall, skinny townhouse with lots of tiled, turning stairs. I taped down pieces of cheap carpet runner on those to add traction. It definitely helped. Also, we did not even attempt stairs until her incisions were fully healed. (which was later than expected because she developed a horrible infection under her original bandage and needed an extra five days hospitalization here in Chicago and a couple extra surgeries to heal the wound).

 

After getting back from Columbus, I worked from home for the next week so that I could keep an eye on her. She was for the most part self-sufficient, but I definitely felt better being there. Also, you should be aware that for at least the first week or two, about half the time they try to stand up, they freak out - jumping and GSODing. I think it is as much fear and not understanding why they can't use that leg anymore as it is pain.

 

Bit by bit, though, they become their whole self again. Two months post amp, Twiggy is every bit herself. (If you haven't watched her going up/down stairs in prior posts in this thread, or spinning in C&F, or running 37 mph last weekend in her Run Run Fun Run in C&F, you might want to take a peek )

 

Please know that I am not trying to push amputation/chemo. It is working great for Twiggy & I right now, but osteo is a total crap shoot. We have no idea what might come next week/month. For Twiggy, I felt that the other option would have been to just take a week off of work to give her the best possible week she could ever have in her life, and then put her to sleep at the end of the week. I wasn't ready for that personally, but I do feel that it would have been a reasonable option for her (she's too nuts to do pain management - that wasn't an option for her). I should also mention that I was very fortunate to have had saved a bunch of money to do home repairs that I was able to re-purpose for Twiggy's medical needs.

 

I don't know if any of this will be relevant for you, but please try to find peace in whatever decision you make. And I'm so, so sorry that you need to make one.

 

Edited: I neglected to mention couches - Twiggy won't get on one for anything. Her jumping into/out of the car is as close to that as she gets, and she's been doing that with ease from her release date.

Edited October 23, 2011 by TwiggysMom

[joejoesmom]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home? I know that the time has varied but I'm just trying to get a good idea of what this will entail if we decide to go that route. Also, how long did you stay home with your pup before you felt it was ok for them to be home during the day when you went to work?

 

I am working from home November 7-11, so I'm kind of thinking if she could have surgery the Friday prior or that Monday, she could come home mid week (maybe?) and I'd be at home with her for the remainder of that week and for the weekend. I'd likely have to go back to work the following week, but I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind coming up here to spend the day with her if needed.

 

I have ceramic tile in my living room and kitchen...she's never had an issue with it being slippery for her, but I'm thinking I'd probably want to have some rugs for her to walk on for a while.

 

She loves the couch - barely ever lays on dog beds...will she be able to get up on the couch pretty soon after surgery?

 

I'm sure I'm getting ahead of myself, but these are just my random ponderings for the moment...

 

In addition to my Joey, I have observed a number of amputees who have been amputated at OSU. They like to keep greyhounds longer than other dogs, usually 3 to 5 days. There are a number of reasons for this, but they include: greyhounds are prone to bleeding, even with the use of amicar -- they can best monitor that when they are in the ICU at the OSU hospital; greyhounds tend to freak out a bit more than some other dogs, so they keep them doped up on IV meds for the first 36 to 48 hours; they have the facilities and training to get the greyhounds up several times a day starting on the day of surgery -- this helps let the greyhound know that they can, in fact, get along on three legs (if they don't start this early, they have found that some dogs, especially greyhounds, get it in their head that they can't do things).

 

Whatever you do, have your surgeon follow the OSU protocol -- especially the amicar (aminocaproic acid). Make sure that the facility has staff (preferably including a vet) physically there 24/7. If there will only be vet techs there, the vet should be able to get there quickly and the vet techs should be very good at post amputation care. I, personally, would do it in a facility with a vet there 24/7 if there was any way I could afford it.

 

OSU charges between $2800 to $3800 for the typical amputation. We now have a low cost 24/7 emergency and surgery center in Columbus. They have done amputations but not greyhound amputations. Vet is there 24/7. All vets were educated at OSU. One vet (not the surgeon) has greyhounds. The estimate for surgery and a 3 day stay is $1000 to $1500. They do the spay/neuter, teeth cleaning, and regular vet care for my greyhound adoption group.

 

If you come to Columbus, you can stay at my house.

 

I was able to stay with Joe for 2 weeks but it probably wasn't necessary. You should be able to go back to work within a week, although you might want to use a crate or xpen so nothing happens when you are gone. You will probably want someone to let the dog out at lunch time.

 

You can get rubber backed carpet runners by the foot from home improvement stores. All you need to do is provide a safe pathway through the tiled area. You don't have to cover the whole room.

 

Joe is a front leg amputee. He surprised me by being able to jump in and out of the car on his own when I brought him home. I would not want to let a new amputee jump up on their own -- I would want to be there to assist if necessary. If you aren't there, I would confine him until you are absolutely comfortable that he has the balance to do it on his own. I am not sure how different it would be for a rear leg amputee.

 

I chose amputation for my Joe because he was just 7, otherwise healthy, loved being at OSU, I had the money, and I had Dr. Couto and team just 25 minutes away.

 

Remember that dogs live in the moment. They don't think about the future and how long their life will be. If it would be a financial hardship, remind yourself that she really doesn't recognize if she will live 1 month or 12 months. All she will know is if she is loved and if she is in pain. So you could look at it from the prospective that doing the surgery is more for you than for her. However, I strongly emphasize that this is an incredibly painful disease. Dogs are good at hiding their pain. So be sure to provide ample painkillers and put her to sleep before she is experiencing too much pain.

 

Statistics from OSU:

 

no amputation: mean time of survival is 5 to 12 weeks -- euthanasia due to pain

amputation, no chemo: mean time of survival is 3 to 6 months -- euthanasia due to complications from lung metastases

amputation and chemo: mean time of survival is 14 months for a greyhound -- euthanasia due to complications from lung mets

 

Note that for every dog that makes it 2 years, two dogs would have to die at 6 months for a mean time of survival of 12 months.

 

Unfortunately, it is truly a crapshoot. No one can tell how long you will get. So far, I have had 14 months with my Joe, so I am very glad I did amputation.

 

Joe had some complications so he was in the hospital for a full week. He was in the highest level of ICU for two days. The stay at OSU cost me $6000. Each chemo treatment cost about $150 (OSU is quite inexpensive for chemo admin). He gets lung x-rays every 3 months ($120). He is in a Palladia study (long term low level chemo) at OSU. He needs bloodwork every month ($50) and medication (my cost is about $40 -- OSU provides most of the meds). This will continue for the rest of his life. This long-term chemo is optional. I would strongly suggest following up the amputation with the IV chemo however. If you check around, you might be able to find someone who will do the 4 to 6 treatments and associated bloodwork for less than $1000.

 

Let me know if I can answer any other questions.

 

Jane

 

edited to add: Joe never wanted to get up on furniture. This is why I talked about him jumping in and out of the car.

Edited October 23, 2011 by joejoesmom

[krissn333]

This is so dang hard...with Sutra there was no decision to be made. The cards were dealt and we played them as best we could, since he wasn't a good candidate for amputation. In a way I am almost thankful that that's how it all went down. But he was a quiet boy...he did enjoy running, but, he was 12 years old.

 

Pinky is only 8 and is rambunctious. She and Ace lead the charge out into the yard every time they go out. They are the two that race around together. I worry if I DON'T amputate, she will break her leg and I'll be left with the memory of her screaming in pain burned into my soul. I don't want that, for either of us. Don't get me wrong, I was terrified that Sutra's leg would break too, but somehow he knew how to move around so as to not push it too much. I don't think Pinky has those limits...she's like a freight train.

 

When she breaks a toenail (she has lupus), it can be bleeding everywhere, her quick exposed...she doesn't even notice or care, she just keeps running.

 

I think that, in the long run, I will never forgive myself if we don't at least try. Sure, I could lose her during surgery, I could lose her the week after, a month after, a year after...or she could be one of the lucky ones like Winslow, or Darcy, and make it 5 years, or 4 years and counting. I'll find a way to pay for it. If I have to live in this tiny house for the rest of my life, I will. That's how I'm feeling right this moment.

 

As I type this, Pinky is laying on the couch...she is rubbing her ears against the armrest and moaning. She had some Deramaxx when we got home from the vet today and the limp is still there, but, it's faint. No one else would even notice it. It's so hard to believe there's something brewing in there

 

Sorry for all of my verbal diarrhea...I live alone and don't really have anyone to talk to about this at this hour. My mom understands to a certain degree but it's hard to discuss this with her because she hasn't "been there" like many of you have. I'm just trying to work this through my head, which is just swimming right now.

 

I saw Twiggy running - that is AMAZING!! And a front amp at that...just awesome! We don't have ANY stairs here at all. There is about a 2 inch step down out of the back door into the yard. To get into the house from the driveway is about a 6 inch step up. I will likely live in a house without stairs for my entire life, just to make it easier on me and my dogs as they age. Stairs are certainly a factor to consider in a decision, and I'm SO happy that Twiggy has done so well with the stairs!

 

It's a very odd feeling to have been a part of this thread for so long, but to feel as though I still have SO many questions. I guess you just look at things differently when you have to deal with them personally?

[JJNg]

Note that for every dog that makes it 2 years, two dogs would have to die at 6 months for a mean time of survival of 12 months.

Not much to add since everyone gives such good info and support here. But just a minor correction...most of the statistics regarding cancer survival times are given as median survival times (MST). This is not a mean, or average. The median point is where 50% of dogs die before that time, and 50% of dogs will make it longer. So for a MST of 12 months, that means that 50% of dogs will make it 12 months or longer (and 50% won't make it to 12 months).

 

Btw, I think it's great that Joe's in a Palladia study. While it's only FDA approved for mast cell tumors, it seems to show a lot of promise for a number of other cancers. And Palladia is in a fairly new class of drug that provides targeted cancer therapy, so it is more specific to cancer and tends to have fewer side effects than traditional chemo drugs.

 

My mixed breed Corey has been on Palladia for about 14 months now for intestinal cancer and is doing great. He initially had a tumor removed from his cecum (appendix) in May 2008, and then had a recurrence in June of last year. He had a 2nd surgery to remove the new growths (associated with small intestine), and he's been on Palladia since. Interestingly, the original drug in the class to which Palladia belongs is a human drug that is FDA approved for the same type of tumor Corey had.

[Charlies_Dad]

Kristen,

 

I am very sorry to read of Pinky's diagnosis and I understand perfectly what you are thinking about the options. It is very very difficult. For us we chose amp & chemo because Charlie was young when diagnosed, 7, and he was such a crazy bugger full of life that we wanted to give him a little more time and yes, we wanted him to stick around because he is our boy. He started limping on a Wednesday, was seen Thursday by a Orthopaedic surgeon Thursday and I made the call (from out of the country) to go forward with the amputation on Friday. OSU gave us a third/fourth opinion Friday morning that it appeared like Osteo but couldn't be sure either. Regardless we went forward without the FNA as that just wastes time in my opinion. He was in hospital until Tuesday so almost 5 days as we wanted that and our surgeon did as well. It did make for a much more expensive bill at the end, $5300 or so but it was well worth it in our opinion as so far we have been lucky. The chemo we paid for even though some very nice GT'ers could get us the drugs free but we felt if we can afford it, then they could keep the monies for someone else. The bloodwork is expensive more than the drugs and we are also on the same protocol as Joejoe with Palladia however we are not as lucky to be in a study as it costs a fortune ($350/mth).

 

Again we have been lucky and every penny to us has been well worth it. As for your decision, I know it's hard and no matter which you choose, Pinky knows you love her and there are some other alternatives such as what FedX's mom is doing and he is 9 mths post dx, no amp! If you have any questions, you know we are all here for you.

[joejoesmom]

Note that for every dog that makes it 2 years, two dogs would have to die at 6 months for a mean time of survival of 12 months.

Not much to add since everyone gives such good info and support here. But just a minor correction...most of the statistics regarding cancer survival times are given as median survival times (MST). This is not a mean, or average. The median point is where 50% of dogs die before that time, and 50% of dogs will make it longer. So for a MST of 12 months, that means that 50% of dogs will make it 12 months or longer (and 50% won't make it to 12 months).

 

Btw, I think it's great that Joe's in a Palladia study. While it's only FDA approved for mast cell tumors, it seems to show a lot of promise for a number of other cancers. And Palladia is in a fairly new class of drug that provides targeted cancer therapy, so it is more specific to cancer and tends to have fewer side effects than traditional chemo drugs.

 

My mixed breed Corey has been on Palladia for about 14 months now for intestinal cancer and is doing great. He initially had a tumor removed from his cecum (appendix) in May 2008, and then had a recurrence in June of last year. He had a 2nd surgery to remove the new growths (associated with small intestine), and he's been on Palladia since. Interestingly, the original drug in the class to which Palladia belongs is a human drug that is FDA approved for the same type of tumor Corey had.

Thank you so much for the correction. I try hard to remember everything Dr. Couto says but obviously got this wrong.

 

Jane

 

edited to add: Joe gets Palladia on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and Cytoxan on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. He gets artemisinin every day. So far he has had few side effects. He has had to stop the treatment for up to a week twice, due to low WBC. He has had a bout with diarrhea 5 or 6 times (flagyl clears it right up) and has some continuing thinning of his coat. He has been on this protocol for almost a year. I get a CBC and chem10 done every month at my low cost vet ($50 total cost -- no office fee since I just see the vet tech). OSU reviews the bloodwork at no charge. I have to buy the cytoxan, famotidine and flagyl -- about $40 a month. Dr. C has said that initial results appear to be good -- too soon to say for sure.

Edited October 23, 2011 by joejoesmom

[Guest azlorenz]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home?

 

Flash had his amp surgery on a Thursday morning and came on Friday afternoon. In my opinion it was too soon but he HATED it at the hospital. It was a rough weekend but we made it. We split our work shift for the next week. Hubby worked in the am and I went after hubby got home. Flash was probably ready to move on without us sooner than we were ready for him to in all honesty. We will be thinking of you and Pinky as you begin this journey.

 

edited to add: Joe gets Palladia on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and Cytoxan on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. He gets artemisinin every day. So far he has had few side effects. He has had to stop the treatment for up to a week twice, due to low WBC. He has had a bout with diarrhea 5 or 6 times (flagyl clears it right up) and has some continuing thinning of his coat. He has been on this protocol for almost a year. I get a CBC and chem10 done every month at my low cost vet ($50 total cost -- no office fee since I just see the vet tech). OSU reviews the bloodwork at no charge. I have to buy the cytoxan, famotidine and flagyl -- about $40 a month. Dr. C has said that initial results appear to be good -- too soon to say for sure.

 

Jane, it is so good to hear Joe continues to do well.

[Guest roselle]

Dude passed peacefully away this afternoon. Many of the hospital staff ame in to say goodbye. It was very touching to know he had an impact on so many people in such a short time.

 

He was doing better - so we thought. As near as yesterday morning I had thought he was getting better from his trip on the stairs. He was acting up and being sassy, wantingto o all his normal things, going up and down the stairs again without pain. He had a really good massage sesson, and was "our Dude" again. Then, last night, almost like flipping a switch, he started panting and couldn't settle. He was restless and anxious, couldn't find the right spot to potty, didn't want treats or a chew bone. The tramadol and gabapentin weren't helping at all. He did calm down around 2am last night, but this morning it was right back.

 

We went in to the hospital/e-vet. He was having trouble standing up and walking and kept collapsing on his one back leg. And he hadn't gone potty for more than 12 hours. I left him for bloodwork and x-rays, and when the doctor called mid-afternoon, she said the xrays showed two lesions on his spine that were fairly far along. They couldn't offer any treatment at that point and releasing him from his pain was the only right thing to do.

 

We were hoping to have months yet - he was doing so well. We knew it was coming, yet it seems you can never really be ready. We're devastated.

 

Thak you ALL for your help and support and advice these last nine months. I am honored to have shared this journey with you and your own cancer dogs.

 

 

 

I'm so sorry for your loss Dude is now pain free. Please know that there are many of us who understand and share your grief. You were a good mom to Dude .

[Guest greyers]

I love this quote from joejoesmom and thought it worth posting again:

 

"Remember that dogs live in the moment. They don't think about the future and how long their life will be. If it would be a financial hardship, remind yourself that she really doesn't recognize if she will live 1 month or 12 months. All she will know is if she is loved and if she is in pain. So you could look at it from the prospective that doing the surgery is more for you than for her"

 

 

That is SO true and I wish I had been thinking rationally enough when we got our diagnosis for JJ and he was in horrible pain and my husband suddenly latched on to the ER vet saying that "amputation was an option" to tell him those words. I actually had to ask the vet to leave the room and ask my husband to imagine all the stages of the amputation/ chemotherapy route AND how it would be to do recovery in a home full of stairs and on a hill, with no yard and half a block to walk to get to a good place to potty that wasn't on a huge slope. At that time I actually had no idea how much the amputation/ chemotherapy route would have cost and that would have been prohibitive (though not totally impossible) for us to do. For our home setting and the fact JJ was almost 12, it was the right choice to let him go and when we saw how much pain he was in (we think he had a fx in the ER vet), it made it the only "right" decision for us at that moment.

 

Good luck Kris in your decision making. It's always such a heartbreaking one to make. Wishing you peace in whatever path you decide to take.

[krissn333]

Does anyone have a link that will tell me if there are any places near me that do radiation? I'm kind of thinking that I'd have to travel to U of WI Madison or to U of I Champaign/Urbana, which likely wouldn't be an option for us.

 

Amputation is at the front of my mind but I want to explore all options.

[winnie]

I'm so sorry to hear about Pinky, Kristin. This is a lousy club to belong to. Best of luck in whatever you decide. We all have to make the best decisions based on our dogs and our circumstances. We chose the palliative care route for our Faye Oops. She is 11.5 y/o and vets/vets offices completely stress her out. We just want her to be comfortable for her remaining days with us. Perhaps we'd choose another route with a younger dog. I can't say for sure. I just hope that I'm never faced with this decision again.

[Batmom]

Does anyone have a link that will tell me if there are any places near me that do radiation? I'm kind of thinking that I'd have to travel to U of WI Madison or to U of I Champaign/Urbana, which likely wouldn't be an option for us.

 

Amputation is at the front of my mind but I want to explore all options.

 

VCA Aurora -- http://www.vcaspecialtyvets.com/aurora/departments-doctors/departments/radiation-oncology . I suspect, but don't know, that the cost here is much higher than UW or U of I.

 

If you decide to treat other than giving palliative care, I think you *do* want to go to one of the universities or specialty centers as they are more likely than Joe Average Vet to know how any treatments might interact with her lupus.

 

My heart goes out to you. I'm sorry you're having to think about any of this. Give pretty girl some scritchies for me.

[MP_the4pack]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home? I know that the time has varied but I'm just trying to get a good idea of what this will entail if we decide to go that route. Also, how long did you stay home with your pup before you felt it was ok for them to be home during the day when you went to work?

 

I am working from home November 7-11, so I'm kind of thinking if she could have surgery the Friday prior or that Monday, she could come home mid week (maybe?) and I'd be at home with her for the remainder of that week and for the weekend. I'd likely have to go back to work the following week, but I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind coming up here to spend the day with her if needed.

 

I have ceramic tile in my living room and kitchen...she's never had an issue with it being slippery for her, but I'm thinking I'd probably want to have some rugs for her to walk on for a while.

 

She loves the couch - barely ever lays on dog beds...will she be able to get up on the couch pretty soon after surgery?

 

I'm sure I'm getting ahead of myself, but these are just my random ponderings for the moment...

 

 

I went to OSU. Jane (Joejoesmom) was a huge support for me. Spent the entire Thurs and Fri there with me just sitting, waiting.

I drove from NJ to OSU specificially to ask Dr. COuto if he thought Diamond was healthy enough to be a tripod. You see, she was going to be 12 yrs old in 2 weeks. So I drove out Wed. She spent Thursday being tested out the wazoo. The team said that while she has some arthritis in the back and back legs, she seems very healthy for a soon-to-be 12 yr old. So Friday she had the surgery. They warned me that she would probably take longer to heal because of her age but she proved them all wrong. She was discharged MOnday and we drove 10hrs back to NJ on Tuesday. I worked from home the next week. As soon as I was comfortable that she would use her ramp instead of the stairs I felt safe going to work (but I did start with 1/2 days on site and 1/2 days working from home.

 

She had a great 6 months before OS invaded another leg.

[NeylasMom]

The VCA here is where I did the consult with a radiation oncologist. Even the specialty facility we ended up at, with the outrageously expensive "best of the best" onco didn't do it, they just sent you to the VCA hospital.

[Guest Yankeegreyhound]

Those of you that pursued amputation...how long did your pup stay at the hospital before coming home? I know that the time has varied but I'm just trying to get a good idea of what this will entail if we decide to go that route. Also, how long did you stay home with your pup before you felt it was ok for them to be home during the day when you went to work?

 

I am working from home November 7-11, so I'm kind of thinking if she could have surgery the Friday prior or that Monday, she could come home mid week (maybe?) and I'd be at home with her for the remainder of that week and for the weekend. I'd likely have to go back to work the following week, but I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind coming up here to spend the day with her if needed.

 

I have ceramic tile in my living room and kitchen...she's never had an issue with it being slippery for her, but I'm thinking I'd probably want to have some rugs for her to walk on for a while.

 

She loves the couch - barely ever lays on dog beds...will she be able to get up on the couch pretty soon after surgery?

 

I'm sure I'm getting ahead of myself, but these are just my random ponderings for the moment...

 

 

I'm so sorry to hear about your baby girl.

 

Sara had a fibrosarcoma so not osteo but we had her back leg amputated in March. Sara was in the hospital for a while. I think it was over 2 weeks. Maybe 3. It was just this last March but I can't even remember. Anyway, she was almost discharged several times but our vet was extra cautious with Sara because of our home situation. I have 3 little kids and my husband and I work opposite schedules. Also, I have a house with 3 levels. The vet took all this into consideration and I'm glad she did. Sara ended up having an infection and after 2 rounds of antibiotics that didn't help, she needed a special IV antibiotic. Took 5 days but finally cleared up the infection.

 

When we got Sara home, she was doing very well. She was able to get around on her own. She wasn't able to do the stairs for a while but everything else, she was fine with. The first day home, I put her on the couch. She liked that. I was there to help her get down. We kept her gated on our first floor that had access to the outside and was fully carpeted. I went upstairs to get something, came down and would you believe, she got up on the couch all by herself!!!

 

Sara didn't like being on the bottom floor so I moved her to the main level. The main level has wood floors with area rugs and a kitchen with laminate tile. She did fine. She was a little nervous at first and even now, she slips once in a while.

 

It's a very, very difficult decision for so many reasons and it's horrible because you don't have a lot of time to think about it but whatever you do, it will be the right one for both of you.

 

My Hailey was just diagnosed with osteo. It's inoperable but even if it wasn't, I wouldn't amputate. Sara is different than Hailey. I don't think she would do well with the recovery but it's not up to me this time.

 

I just wanted to share something. As many of you are, I'm having a very difficult time with Hailey's diagnosis. It's breaking my heart and I feel bad for her and I feel bad for me.

 

Last night when I was putting laundry away and crying, yet again, I just happened to open up my husband's drawer to put some t-shirts away and staring up at me was his NYPD/FDNY 9/11/01 - Never Forget t-shirt. It made me think how lucky I am to even be here. That, by far, was the worst day of my life. So many people didn't get to say goodbye that day. I have my Hailey and I will be with her to the end. I will be able to say goodbye.

[krissn333]

Pinky and I have an appointment with the doctor that we saw when Sutra was diagnosed. We'll be going today at 4:30pm. We'll do bloodwork...probably chest films, maybe a FNA. This guy is an orthopedic surgeon and has a fabulous reputation. He's done quite a few greyhound amputations. He even does hip replacements in dogs!

 

I've put in my consult form with OSU as well. I attached Pinky's xray so they can have a look at it.

 

There is still the tiniest part of me hoping that this is some weird thing that can be fixed with antibiotics instead.

 

Since I have Pinky's xray - here it is. If you look just above the knee joint there's an area that looks questionable, and that's the area where she cries out if it's palpated.

 

[krissn333]

Here's a pic of my girl last night: