Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello, My almost four year-old black lab male was dx'd last week with spindle cell sarcoma of the left hind hock. X-rays ruled out detectable metastases however he was found to have an enlarged heart; he is not symptomatic.
Now our decsiion about whether or not to amputate is complicated by the enlarged heart issue. I consider this double jeapardy! Is there any way to predict how fast he may decompensate from the heart issue or whether or not he may be able to live a relatively normal life span? Tough! How can we make htis decision wihtout understanding more about the enlarged heart?
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Hi Anne, thanks for joining us and posting your question. Our favorite vet, Dr. Pam Wiltzius ("tazziedog") will probably be by soon with some ideas. I wish I had some for you, but all I can offer are hugs. Have you talked to a specialist yet? Seems like that would be the way to go with news like this.
Hang in there, and thanks again for joining us.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Anne,
I'm so sorry for the terrible things going on with your furkid. I'm sure the news is devasting to you.
Did your vet detect the enlarged heart while looking for the cancer? Or was this known already. Have you had a ultra sound on his heart? What does you vet recommend?
I have no information about any of this. Hopefully someone might have some experience here.
In the meantime, please register with us so your posts won't have to wait until they are approved. If you register, they will show up instantly.
Good luck and best wishes.
Comet's mom
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
"An enlarged heart, as determined by ultrasound studies, does not always indicate disease of the heart. Certain physical conditions, such as obesity, natural aging changes or low thyroid can result in an enlarged heart, however the presence of actual cardiomyopathy (heart disease) such as congestive heart failure is not always the culprit."
I found that enlarged hearts cannot pump the blood adequately, and eventually the muscle becomes weak and the condition worsens. However, as the above quote shows, heart disease is not always the cause of an enlarged heart. Does your doctor know of any reasons as to why your doggie's heart has become enlarged? If the blood isn't pumping right, perhaps this could affect the way the amputation site would heal. Also, tripawds tend to get tired faster (not all, but some do)...maybe an enlarged heart would make him tire faster? Those are the only negatives I could come up with...I'm sure Pam will offer much better insight 🙂 Also, if you are considering chemotherapy, I would stay away from adriamycin (doxyrubicin) as this drug damages the heart. Good Lucks!!
<3 Laura and Jackers
Does your dog have symptoms of heart disease (cough, exercise intolerance, weakness)? Did your vet say if the entire heart was enlarged or just the left atrium? I would look into an ECG to check for arrythmias, an echocardiogram (ultrasound) to rule out dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) or you could consider the new blood test (BNP) that measures an enzyme leaked by the heart muscle but that test is not perfect.
My dog Tazzie was 6 years old when I diagnosed her with bone cancer and when the radiologist looked at her chest films he said that she had an enlarged heart. I did the BNP test (which was high) but the echo was normal so we proceeded with the amputation. She went on to survive for 14 months. Her BNP test remained very elevated but a follow-up echo was still normal.
If you can only afford to pursue 1 test then I would have a cardiologist do the echo ASAP. If a dog has active DCM then there is a good chance that they might not survive surgery, but a dog with a normal echo might not ever progress to heart disease.
Pam
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