Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi All,
My Great Dane was DX with Osteosarcoma in Aug 2016 on his front right humerus. We opted for Cyberknife (Sept 2016) followed by 4 rounds of Carboplatin (Completed Jan 2017). He recently started limping in the same limb and we went on Weds to the Ortho. Turns out the limb that had the tumor now is showing a fracture in the tumor area (we were aware there was a 30% chance). He is still very active regardless of the precautions we've taken to prevent the fracture. He is overall healthy/happy outside of this bone tumor/cancer. They also took chest Xrays that turned out clear.
We are now at the crux of amputation as the only viable treatment for prolonging his quality of life. So this is 9 mos post DX. Does anyone have any experience of this course of treatment? We have a couple of calls out to our team of Drs (Primary, Ortho, Radiation Oncologist, Oncologist) for opinions.
1. It was recommended that if we were contemplating amputation that Xrays of the additional limbs should be done to rule out any possible tumors
2. I read that possibly an Xray of the Spine should also be done
3. We are waiting for the Oncologist to advise if additional Chemo would be recommended after the amputation
4. Quality of life would obviously improve as the limb pain would be mitigated, but it's unclear what the additional length of life would be because there aren't many studies around this.... at least I can't find any....
Any thoughts and/or advice would be appreciated! TIA.
-Kelley
Fur Family:
Gideon & Finnigan (Dogs)
Gypsy, Merlin, Nova, Panda, Mickey, Minnie (Cats)
Forever in our Hearts over the Rainbow Bridge
Troubles 2002-2015
Hello and welcome, your future posts will not have to wait for approval.
It's great your boy has done so well with his treatments so far, is he Gideon or Finnigan?
I wanted to get your post approved so others could offer their input- I have to run right now but I'll check back later.
Karen and the Spirit Pug Girls
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
Hi and welcome!
I am not really all the knowledgeable with cyberknife but in terms of amputation:
it is pretty standard to have x-rays taken before surgery. Usually they check the lungs and maybe the spine. I have not heard of checking the other limbs but maybe that's specific to cyberknife?
We did chemo after amputation because I was told then that it would better the chances of a longer survival. We didn't run into any problems during chemo and are now at a very good 16 months post amp. There are quite a few here though that didn't opt for regular chemo and their dogs did well too.
The thing with this is that there are just no guarantees, which makes it especially difficult. We do have quite a few Danes here, such as Otis and Eurydice and Astro. You can use their names to search in the forums.
Sorry I can't be of more help but I'm sure others will chime in. Keep us updated
tina & Manni
Guardian of Manni the Wonderdog. -Or was it the other way around?
Osteo and amputation in Dec 2015. Second, inoperable, primary osteosarcoma found in June 2017.
The end of our adventures came Dec 10, 2017. 2 years to the day.
Hi there and welcome 💕
My girl Eurydice is also a Great Dane and she is very large (77kg before amputation) and lost her right front leg to osteosarcoma May 4, 2016.
I am puzzled as to why they want to X-ray the other legs because as I understand it it is rare that osteo migrates to the other limbs...
It is standard to do either an X-ray or a scan of the lungs to check whether there are any metastasis as the lungs are the most likely place for osteo to metastise.
Again, it is not common osteo metastasis appear in the spine, I asked this very question to her oncologist months ago.
Eurydice did 6 sessions of carboplatin and then we switched to metronomic therapy which consists of a daily dose of chemo combined with antibiotic and anti inflammatory.
The aim is to prevent cancerous cells from growing inside blood vessels.
Sadly, she still developed lung mets so we then tried doxorubicin, another IV chemo and had 3 sessions of that.
I can assure you is quality of life is great after amputation!
The first weeks of recovery can be quite challenging, especially for a big dawg, but once stitches come out all dawgs generally become more and more mobile and happier too!
Length of life really depends and can vary wildly but if lung mets are not present our babies can have "long" lives and even go into remission, sometimes for years!
Generally they also take a lymph node when they do the surgery to check level of spreading.
In any case, it is paramount to have a good, pawsitive attitude and pamper your cutie to oblivia !
Sally always recommends lots of ice cream and burguers, I'm sure your sweetie will be excited to hear!
Is it a front or a back leg, in your case?
Back legs are easier to handle as 70% of the weight is supported by the front legs but it is all duable, Eurydice lost a front leg and she is just great!
You might like to have a look at some of her videos and photos hoping around happily and enjoying life to the full, I'll send you links.
We are ALL here to help you and guide you through your journey, you can do this and so can your cutie pie!
Sending you a big bear hug and lots of tummy rubs to your baby 😘😘😘💕🐶💕
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
Oh ...
I just realised you did mention it is the right front leg.
Same as Eurydice, then.
We got her to wear a tshirt with a soft harness on top to help her going out for pee and poop until stitches came out.
Big hug !
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
Well, first time I copied a link, hope it works ok ...
Eurydice's travel logs started 5 months after amputation followed by 7 1/2 month after amp and these are the most recent.
I was quite shacken with the news but here we are a few days short of celebrating her 12 month ampuversary and she is just great!
Big hug!
Eurydice's travels in Europe with further lung mets 9 months after amputation
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
My boy who is a fighter right now is Gideon. He's approximately 145lbs (66kg).
It seems there has been a higher case of pups having the cancer spread to the other limbs post-amputation and therefore the new protocol is to Xray the other limbs before the initial tumored limb is removed. I have also seen this in some of the Facebook groups for Osteo in dogs.
So great to hear how well Eurydice is doing post amp on the front leg. It's good to have a breed comparison. I will have to check out her videos. What type of harness have you used?
Really ????????
That's scary ...
I don't recall one single case on tripawds and zero cases as well at the hospital where Eurydice had her surgery and chemo done and they see thousands of dogs per year ...
Where did you hear cases of spreading to other legs were recorded????
My girl had a soft harness until stitches came out but I don't recall the make, the hospital lent it to us.
Maybe worth asking at Gideon's hospital whether they could lend you one too?
Ever since stitches were removed, she's been wearing a ruffwear harness and I swear by it, it has a handle which is great and is very comfy for her.
Crucial point is traction , if you have slippery floors you must get carpets/yoga mats/rubber underlay so Gideon doesn't run the risk of sliding.
Sending you big hugs and cuddles 😘😘😘💕🐶💕
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
First, just cause there is a fracture doesn't mean that this is the end. My friend Mark did the same treatment you did for his greyhound and after 5 months, there was a fracture. He chose amputation and Taylor lived another 23 more months and was a very active dog even on the day Mark chose to say good bye.
A coworker of mine did cyberknife 14 months ago on his husky mix and the tumor started growing again 2 weeks ago so they amputated last Monday. Lungs are still clear and other limbs are still clear.
The biggest obstacle facing dogs as candidates for amputation is their human not thinking they're a candidate. As for quality of life, the biggest problem with most danes after amputation is that they're a smidge overweight. They don't look overweight to their humans as most of them carry their extra bulk well but on 3 limbs, you do need to get them svelte like a racing greyhound over time and it will help with the additional stress the joints take.
A front leg amputation is a little harder to adjust to than a rear leg amputation at first. They have to play around with where to put that front leg to balance right. Even if they weren't using the other leg before the amputation, they were using it for balance. Anything you can do to build up and maintain the core muscles before and after amputation is very helpful.
Please keep us updated when you can. I know this is a lot to process.
Ditto the wonderful Miss Cow...
Which teaching hospital/practice are you at that is suggesting this and what studies/data supports this assertion? Absolutely not questioning you but am questioning the assertions and, yes, there is meta data on this site and other studies that is contradictory. However, if new data or studies support this, we at TriPawds Nation need to know as this would be a game changer in terms of how we understand and treat OSA.
Charliebear- I should clarify I'm not referencing any data to support just talk in groups about what others have done prior to amputation. We also volunteer for an organization MAGDRL (Mid Atlantic Great Dane League) and have had some members who had X-rays on all limbs before amputation. As well as a couple of folks who have had that unfortunate experience of amputation then the spread to another limb. There was just one on the Facebook group Osteosarcoma in Dogs. 😢
I think my Ortho suggested for piece of mind to give me as much information as we needed in order to make the right decision for our family. We've been using Metro ER in PA for the Ortho/Chemo specialist visits and they have been fantastic.
Ohmynixon- Great advice on the traction . When Gideon had his Cyberknife we covered our hardwoods with rugs and mats. I'll def post updates. We've always been open minded about all the treatment options just gathering information and like to hear other's experiences and outcomes.
Eurydice- Thank your for info in the harness. We currently have borrowed from a friend a HelpEmUp made by Bluedog. And wanted to get some user feedbacks on other brands. Do you only have her wear it when you're out and about? I also just saw your most recent post on some of the holistic treatments. Very interesting. I'm a Young Living Essential Oils distributor and have been using combo oils on both my boys as well as diffusing then. Gideon loves when I pull them out and have seen that they make a difference in his mood and overall wellbeing.
Okay, calling all computer geeks who know how to search really well on here. I do believe, unfortunately, that we have had a case that I recall where it did cross limbs. Now, it may have been a very different form of osteo or my memory may be waaaaay off.
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!
Wow! Thanks for the clarification! And super that your vets are giving you as much information and choices as possible. And, likewise, fantastic that the vets you are using have been so supportive. Best wishes, hugs, and PyrPaws all around! (Is it possible for the folks who have had x-rays on all legs and/or spread of OSA to other legs to share their stories with us on this site? I am certain folks would be very interested!)
Here's one link....it's not the one I was looking for though. Note TWO legs!!
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!
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