Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
Tripawds is your home to learn how to care for a three legged dog or cat, with answers about dog leg amputation, and cat amputation recovery from many years of member experiences.
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my sweet 12 yo JRT/beagle mix, Buster, had a right forelimb amputation last week and is recovering great, though this has been rough. This website has been a godsend to figure out how to get through it. But I found out today that the biopsy confirms he had stage 3 nerve sheath cancer, very aggressive but hasn't spread to lungs or spinal cord. Margins from surgery are minuscule, less than 1mm. So it could come back and if I do nothing may well come back in 6 months. Options include full 15-18 sessions of radiation + chemo or palliative radiation at 4 sessions + chemo. What makes this so hard is his age plus we have been dealing with his limp, plus a prior tendon release surgery that had nearly 2 months of downtime because everyone thought the issue was a torn tendon not cancer. The limp and prior surgery dominated the last 9 months - so this poor dog has been through a LOT, even before last week's amputation. The palliative radiation could give him 2.5 years, though maybe more and maybe less. At age 12 maybe that isn't so bad. How should I be thinking about this? I'm lucky and I can afford these different options so that's not really the issue. Any advice welcome. The notion of 15-18 more vet visits with anesthesia sounds terrible to me given so much time at the vet already.
My goodness, Buster sure has been through a lot!!
You certainly have a lot to process as far as what path to take. Of course, there are no guarantees either way...good or bad....with the options you are comsidering.
I ABSOLUTELY understand uour commitment to giving Buster a pain free quality life where he can continue to live life to the fullest for however long he is in his earth clothes.
Dogs don't count days on a calender. They live in the present and flow effortlessly from one blissful moment to the next.
I've read your post over and over several times. Obviously uou are tuned into Buster amd you know jim better than anyone! What would Buster say? It seems to me your answers is already answered in yiur post and in your heart.
Sending you lots of extra hugs, clarity and peace
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
I agree that the best way to think about this is to put yourself in Buster's shoes. What would he want? Does he mind vet visits? Or do you think he wants that part of his life to be behind him now?
Another idea: are there any clinics nearby that can do stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT i.e., "cyberknife")? SRT cuts the usual radiation treatment times by more than half, which means less visits and less anesthesia.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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jerry said
I agree that the best way to think about this is to put yourself in Buster's shoes. What would he want? Does he mind vet visits? Or do you think he wants that part of his life to be behind him now?Another idea: are there any clinics nearby that can do stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT i.e., "cyberknife")? SRT cuts the usual radiation treatment times by more than half, which means less visits and less anesthesia.
This is a good thought. I think the answer is that I don't have anything like this near me but I'll have first consult with radiation vet in a couple of weeks and will ask about this. Thanks for the idea.
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