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And So It Begins


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And the big D has started. Gave him Tylosin this evening. His D cleared up around the 5th day on it's own during the last round, and these meds are for 5 days so I'm hoping very much that this will work. The poor guy just keeps getting more and more pills rammed down his throat. I read a side effect of the Vincristine could be a sore jaw. I'll try not to open his mouth too wide going forward. Hoping he keeps eating. So far no bruising and after his pred today he seems to be much better with his back end. I'm expecting Tylosin to jam him up a bit so I shouldn't be expecting much to come out the other end in the next few days? I'd love to get some Slippery Elm into his system, but he is very likely to refuse his meal, since he's already disinterested. He is also on Mirazapine to help encourage his eating, which I found worked last week. Also, the Probiotic the vet gave me must have an enticing smell because he readily eats his meals when that is sprinkled on there. Expecting a long day tomorrow but for now he's resting comfortably.

 

On the plus side, I've recently noticed some of his fur growing back on his sides from where they shaved him at the end of May for his ultrasounds. Kinda cute. When he's all done this, I'll be looking forward to growing back his luscious coat.

Edited by XTRAWLD

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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So far this round is much better. No bruising (yet). He's not as weak as he is just completely sleepy and tired. He's beginning to lose his appetite now, but I'm trying to avoid the people food as much as possible so his D will be a little bit more under wraps. Surprisingly he had a great poop this morning. So I will hold off on those meds for now until I see it get worse again. Crossing fingers. Going in for bloodwork in 24 hours and then we'll try to give him tablets if all is well.

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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I have been following Kasey's saga, not commenting much since I don't really have any advice. Glad this round doesn't seem to be as hard on him, hope that things continue to improve!

 

Either way, your following and comments are appreciated. He's such a trooper. I wish I could notice a difference in the tumour though. Positive visual results on what we are trying to attack would be a welcomed sight.

 

For any of those that would like to read up on a paper the Couto recently wrote about what Kasey (and no doubt other dogs are experiencing), the link is below

 

Intramuscular HSA

 

I hope it is viewable to you as it's a PDF.

http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.michvma.org/resource/resmgr/SAS_Proceedings_14-15/Couto_-_Hemangiosarcoma.pdf

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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ANNNNND Kasey is making a comeback. Platelets 204. All is back to normal. We went ahead with the tablets today. Vet said tomorrow might be a sucky day. Scheduled one more IV of Vincristine on Friday and if that will be handled as well as this one then we're lookin' pretty good. Surprisingly they said Vincristine helps elevate platelet levels so it's nice to see that Kasey rebounded back from that so quickly. He refused brekkie today though so I think that might be my biggest struggle throughout this week. Thank you for your thoughts, they are indeed helping!

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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He's doing fabulously. He's still not eating, was never a big eater, but what a difference from the first round vs. these rounds.

 

Interestingly, he had a very weird spot on his tail, stud tail for all his life. It's gone! Maybe all this chemo is just fixing everything that's a little weird. LOL

 

We're scheduled to do another IV round of Vincristine on Friday morning and that's that!!!

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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I can't tell you how good it makes me feel to read this latest update. I've been so worried since your previous update.

It must have been nausea or something, he settled within a half hour and was peacefully sleeping. I wish they could talk sometimes!

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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I so glad he's doing better and hope his appetite comes back tonight!

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The handsome boy Brady, mid-morning nap. The sun, the sun feels so, so, so good.

I can't keep my eyes open ... ... Retirement agrees ...

... and the Diva Ms India, 2001 - 10/16/2009 ....

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Glad he's feeling more peaceful and sending good tummy wishes. Is he drinking?

He certainly drinks more with kibble that's for sure. He's really such a trooper, but his back end is sagging so badly these days. The vet doesn't want me to give him more than 10mg of pred every 36 hours while he's on chemo. As soon as he's in the clear, I'll be bumping him to 10mg every 24 hours. It seems to be taking a little bit longer to start working once he's already declining, so I want to stay on top of the game so he's not on pain. I wonder if I should start using another pain med instead of gaba? Certainly the stress on his back must be painful. Would Metacam be approriate?

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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Guest AndyK

Can't comment as to whether Metacam is appropriate but I will say it worked wonders for Misty (RIP)s arthritis and back leg nerve issues

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Can't use a NSAID (metacam) concurrently with a corticosteroid (prednisone). Couto ok with the pred use during chemo? Personally, I'm not a fan of pred for musculoskeletal problems (understand you don't have a choice sometimes) because it tends to cause muscle wasting-not something you want to promote with a dog with already weaken muscles.

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Kasey is not really eating much, he's drinking a lot, he's very very restless, is whining and is fussy, and had a bit of D this morning. I'm not sure what is up.

 

His general overall weakness seems to be improving though. Going in for bloodwork on Saturday to make sure all is well. I'm not really sure what else I can do for him or what else seems to be the matter.

 

He's had a change of routine as well, but he's usually very quick to bounce back from change. It's day 3 of change and day 5 of the last chemo round.

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10 year old "Ryder" CR Redman Gotcha May 2010
12.5 year old Angel "Kasey" Goodbye Kasey Gotcha July 2005-Aug 1, 2015

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