Blood Cancer? Please Help Me Brainstorm This

[Riverhound]

Aww, Cindy. Kiss his nose for me.

[galgrey]

I hope you have some good days ahead.

[macoduck]

Brady

[EllenEveBaz]

Soft scritches to your handsome boy. And cyberhugs to you.

[greysmom]

for Brady

 

for you

[Remolacha]

I am sorry you didn't get better news. I hope you have many good days ahead with Brady.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Brady

Cindy

[tbhounds]

Blindsided by this news--what tests were performed to bring your vet to this conclusion?? Hoping for many more healthy days with him.

[Guest grey_dreams]

Hope its something the antibiotics can help and he will be with you for a long time still

[Trekkysmom7]

I am sorry for the bad news.

Best wishes for many good days ahead for Brady.

[krissn333]

I'm surprised. When Ace had leukemia her white count was through the roof...I can't even remember but it was some insanely high number. We ran PCR and flow cytometry and sent to Dr. Couto for review. She went on leukeran and pred and lived happily for 4 more years.

[JJNg]

I hate questioning the conclusions of another vet without all the information, but I have to second tbhounds questions of what additional tests were run, and what kind of cancer is your vet suspecting? The CBC results you posted earlier look pretty normal for a greyhound. How is he feeling now?

[3greytjoys]

I'd be curious about other tests also. Just in case Brady's condition might be related to, or compounded by two other possibilities you mentioned...

 

Did Brady have a recent fecal test?

Hookworms can be very difficult to eliminate permanently. Even if adult stage worms were undetected after his previous hookworm infestation treatment, a routine worming may not be strong enough to kill lurking undetectable stage hookworms (which could have grown by now). Hookworms can cause excessive weight loss, stool problems, eating issues, etc.

 

None of our Greyhounds can handle walking in temperatures in the high 70's (young through elderly). Our two 12 y.o. hounds with advanced LP would be on the verge of collapse, and hyperthermia under those conditions. (One LP hound experienced a life-threatening breathing crisis which caused hyperthermia during winter.) Our LP hounds begin to suffer walking in daytime temps in the mid 60's if the sun is shining. Their walks are limited to very early morning or after sunset. (The healthy hounds are comfortable walking up to about 72 degrees.) LP related nerve damage often extends to rear body/rear leg weakness too.

 

If interested, here's a snippet about LP from one of my previous posts:

 

Signs of Laryngeal Paralysis (per MSU, link below):

• Increased noisy breathing from throat (stridor), sometimes called “roaring”, most noticeable when panting.
• Distressed breathing, especially in hot weather, humidity, and when excited or stressed.
• Unable to exercise as much, may sit down or even collapse.
• Bark change / hoarse bark (in about half the cases).
• When severe, the gums may become pale or blue colored.
• Throat-clearing, or hacking, or coughing.
• Gagging with or without regurgitation (may or may not be associated with drinking/eating).
• Hind-end weakness and an unsteady gait.
• Loss of muscle mass.

 

If a Greyhound shows any of the symptoms above, please alert a veterinarian re: Laryngeal Paralysis.

Important Tips to Help Manage Laryngeal Paralysis:

 

- Ensure hound's home is kept cool, and remains a calm, stress-free environment.

- Limit dog's excessive activity (e.g., avoid running).

- Avoid walking dog in warm temperatures. (Early morning is coolest time of day.)

- Moisten dry kibble with a little water before serving.

- Be careful to not overfeed dog. (Healthy pet Greyhound weight is being able to see the last two ribs.)

- Leash walk an LP dog with a harness instead of a collar (to eliminate pressure on the dog's larynx).

- Stop using collars. (Please be EXTRA careful to keep Greyhound from getting loose by mistake. Ensure Greyhound gets microchipped since this means dog has no I.D. collar. Keep microchip records updated with current contact info.)

Additional links:

http://www.acvim.org...lParalysis.aspx

http://cvm.msu.edu/h...ving-with-golpp