Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Jake's mom,
Thanks for your post! What is antiangiogenesis therapy? Ella had 5 rounds of chemo (unfortunately spread out over several months due to financial issues), but I don't remember the name of it, and am unsure if this is what you mean. Is that standard? Either way - yeah - Ella is minimally MY miracle dog. And I remain optimistic that getting rid of that nasty leg within 2 weeks (or so) of her starting to limp was a good thing (I got totally lucky with an amazing group of vets and specialists). I am not naive to the fact that this cancer is terrible...BUT for now my wiggle is oh so good and I am loving every sloppy minute.
And yes, I will post some photos. In the meantime, if you are on facebook, my primary vet's office has a great video of Ella. The office is Kingsbury Animal Hospital (you can search for it by name), and Ella's video is one of the fan videos posted on their site. It is from Nov. 9. She looks even better now!
Hugs to everyone (and slobbery ear-kisses from Ella)
Anna and Ella
Oh my gosh that is INCREDIBLE news! A six-month hemangiosarcoma is nothing short of a miracle. It's the one we all pray for when pups get diagnosed with cancer. Ella, you are just magnificient, we are so hoppy for you! Anna, thank you very much for taking the time to write us with the great news.
Dang, I looked for the video on your vet's FB page but couldn't find it.
As for antiangiogenesis therapy, that's another word for Metronomic Therapy (=chemotherapy pills by mouth + antibiotic + NSAID), which you can find lots of information about here. I was on it, and here is my story about it:
Metronomic Therapy for Canine Osteosarcoma Metastasis: Jerry's Experience
We are trying to add tags everytime someone mentions "metronomic therapy" in the Forums, but there are so many posts with it in there, we still have a lot of work to do there. You can search for this exact phrase and find a ton of feedback from others who have tried it. I hope this helps somewhat.
Many, many hugs and cheers to your dear girl Ella. We are so very proud!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Ella and Anna
Anti=angiogensis therapy (metronomics ) means you give chemo at low doses frequently, each day, with the goal of cutting off the blood supply (that is the "anti-angiogensis" or blood vessel part). You should find a few threads from August through September when I was delving into this subject. Toto found a nice abstract in PubMed from an article suggesting that it was more effective and had less side effects for dogs with hemangiosarcoma than high dose chemo. But none of those dogs came close to the time you have had. So something is working right for you, you lucky dog.
The dose in metronomics is low enough that most of us do not notice side effects from this form of chemo. People typically use Cytoxan, although we were going to switch to Leukeran (a less common drug for metronmics) after 8 weeks. The one downside for Cytoxan is a substantial risk of bladder issues (I believe cysts that hemmorage (sp)), so the dog's urine has to be monitored frequently.
Thanks everyone for the info about the meds!
That is great information. I will ask the doc about it when we go for the next xray and blood tests (in February - I CAN'T believe I am not in there every other week any more!)
I wanted to say/ask two things regarding pics.
1) Regarding the FB video on my vet's website, perhaps you have to be a fan of Kingsbury Animal Hospital to see the other fan videos (I would be a fan 100 times if I could...)? I posted a photo (that doesn't really do her justice) in the fan photos section, and another fan posted a video of Ella (though I suspect that this fan is one of the clinicians or doctors there); she is running in the video and the caption says that Ella proves that 3 legs is just as good as 4 :D. She is not listed by name in the video - it is listed by date (Nov. 9). You might scroll down on their home page and the video should/may be in a box on the left of the screen toward the bottom.
2) With this new website setup, how do I upload photos onto tripawds? I am happy to do a shout out with photos of Ella. She is a wonder-pooch (at least for me).
Thanks again for all the support and love. Big hugs to you all.
Anna & Ella
ella & anna said:
...how do I upload photos onto tripawds?
We started the Tripawds Blogs as an easy way for members to upload photos and share videos. Without a blog, the photos must be hosted somewhere else online. Here are detailed instructions for easily adding photos to your forum posts, and embedding videos in the forums.
Note that photos will not display if they are hosted behind a password protected account. If you have other questions please ask them in the Tech Support forum so we can share the answers with others.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I'm sorry that I don't know anything about an hemangiosarcoma. I just wanted to welcome you to tripawds and let you know that we are here for you. Hopefully someone will be able to share their experience with an hemangiosarcoma. It seems most of us are or were fighting an osteosarcoma.
It sounds like your Ella is doing well. Maybe the pain is making her nauseous since she stops the dry heaves when she gets her pain meds.
Anyway, I wish you luck with Ella and you were certainly be in my prayers.
Debra & Angel Emily
Debra & Emily, a five year old doberman mix, who was diagnosed with an osteosaecoma. She had a right rear leg amputation on May 19, 2009. On November 10, 2009 she earned her wings and regained her fourth leg.
ella & anna said
Hey everyone!I hope you have all had a lovely transition into the new year. I wanted to update you about Ella. She is doing beautifully - a full 6 months after her hemangiosarcoma diagnosis and leg amputation. She is my hero. Her coat is thick and silky again, her tests are all coming out clear so far, she is eating and running and playing...and has picked up the lovely new habit of licking the inside of my ear in the morning when she wants me to get up. Her puppy-ness is back in full swing. Thanks again for all the support.
Big hugs to you all, and Happy New Year.
Ella & Anna
Hi Anna,
I know its been many years since your post. I hope I'm not bringing up an upsetting topic. My 10 year old pooch Ginseng was recently diagnosed with primary in the bone as well. They amputated about 6 weeks ago, and he is, like you reported Ella was, regaining himself and quite spirited. Could you tell me how things progressed? There still does not seem to be much written on primary HSA in the bone.
Thanks, Sue & Ginseng
Sue said
My 10 year old pooch Ginseng was recently diagnosed with primary in the bone...
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Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Anna,
I have just joined tripaws and your post leaped out at me because so many of the dogs have osteosarcoma and my girl, Ruby was diagnosised with hermangioscarcoma in the skin of her front leg. I have been in constant turmoil over how to proceed. I want to amputate and move forward as though she will recover. But our vets are very discouraging. They are just being realistic by their scientific views. Her spleen, liver, and lungs are clear. In the morning we go in early for a ultra sound of her heart and if that looks good then I will go ahead with the amputation. But it's killing me to think she may go through that recovery and still only have a couple of months! I dont' want to do that to her! But I have no way of knowing if maybe she would recover and live for quite some time. It's been really hard and I was just wondering what your experience was and if you would be willing to share any helpful information?
Blessings to you,
Sabrina
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