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Griffin's Journey
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On The Road


Member Since:
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26 August 2020 - 3:04 pm
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He's sure unique and special in every single way! I'm so glad he's interested in food again.

I know we've had a handful of members whose dogs lost light amounts of fur during chemo. Not many, but it occasionally happens. If it's anything like how humans lose hair during treatment, his fur will come back thicker and prettier than ever. Paws crossed!

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet

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26 August 2020 - 7:02 pm
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Hi Stacy!

I have not been connected for a while so I tried to do some catching up on you and Griffin. OMG I absolutely love your photo shoot with Griffin, you two look like the best pair 🙂 sp_hearticon2 So much love on these photos

Also, your family vacation put a smile on my face. Griffin certainly seemed very happy surrounded by the whole family and playing with the kids.

I am very happy for how the Yale vaccine turned out, I am looking forward to hear about the results. 

Sorry to hear about the fur lost, but at least Griffin seems to be doing well otherwise. On a funny side, Arktik's fur as not even fully grown back yet! Some told me it takes about 6 months for huskies. 

Good to hear from you!

Patricia & Arktik

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30 August 2020 - 5:18 pm
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What a lucky accident about Yale shipping the vaccine - it's so nice that you were able to be there with Griffin for the injection - I bet that made his day.

I love the pic and video of him in his orange rain coat with his goose friends. What a smile! 🙂 Sounds like you're getting his food pickiness sorted out and hopefully his appetite is back to full zeal again now. 

New York, NY
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31 August 2020 - 10:57 am
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So, Griffin's pickiness with food has intensified.  He basically is refusing any food that he has been happily eating for months (home-cooked meals of meat and veggies) and years (American Journey wet food and Taste of the Wild dry food).  I checked his mouth to ensure there were no abscesses or other issues, but his mouth and teeth seem normal.  He is absolutely interested in treats (soft and hard), cheese, and some meats.  He has also eaten other wet food (I bought a variety of options to tempt him).  But, he is not eating nearly enough each day.  Other than the pickiness with food, he is fine - playful, swimming at my dad's over the weekend, happy to go for morning walks, drinking water regularly, and peeing/pooping normally.  I reached out to his oncology team last night to ask if I should try Entyce or some other appetite stimulant.  They recommended first trying Cerenia, which we were sent home with after his first round of chemo and never wound up using.  They said that food pickiness is one of the first signs of nausea, and nausea is definitely a side effect of Palladia.  I gave him his first dose a few hours ago, so fingers crossed that it works! I am waiting for a reply from the oncology team as to how long Griffin can take Cerenia (the standard dosing info says "up to 5 days" for severe vomiting, but I'm not sure if that is a hard cap or just because a dog should not be severely vomiting for longer than 5 days before you should try something different) and how long it could take before I know if the Cerenia is having a positive impact.

If anyone here has input as to those 2 questions about length of time a dog can take Cerenia and how quickly it works, I'd appreciate the input.  Thanks!  ~ Stacy

Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com

On The Road


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31 August 2020 - 12:08 pm
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Aww darn I'm sorry he's not feeling 100%. Thank goodness he is taking some food, which is very positive. Is the food that he will eat very stinky? 

Also, don't forget to feed him off paper plates so there is no microscopic residue of the previous food left in his bowl. That's been known to help.

It's my understanding that Cerenia should start working in a matter of hours. I can't answer the other question, it's a good one to ask your vet though. 

Keep us posted and we'll keep our paws crossed he starts feeling better!

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet

New York, NY
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31 August 2020 - 4:46 pm
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It's hard to tell if the Cerenia had any effect today.  Griffin ate 1/2 can of dog food this morning, had the Cerenia a few hours later, and then ate the remaining 1/2 can in the late afternoon, which is exactly what he ate yesterday.  He avoided eating the kibble at the bottom of the bowl and I deliberately did not mix the wet food with the dry since he hasn't seemed to want any dry kibble lately.  Griffin's oncology team said that if the Cerenia is working, he should remain on it as long as he is on Palladia.  We are heading out of town for 10 days starting tomorrow, so we picked up extra Cerenia from his local vet.  I took the opportunity to weigh Griffin and his weight is exactly the same as it was 9 days ago, so his food issues are weirdly not impacting his weight.  Thank goodness!

Rene - I haven't tried feeding Griffin off paper plates because he is continuing to eat out of his regular bowls - just not wanting to eat his regular food (and honestly, because I don't have any around!).  And the new canned food I'm feeding him is not particularly stinky nor is he gravitating towards one particular protein source - he's eaten food with liver, lamb, chicken, and turkey and seemed to like all of them equally.  I think I'm going to buy a few small bags of kibble to see if he is simply looking for a change in both types of food.  I do wonder, though, what turned him off to his home-cooked meals that he used to love so much.

I asked the oncology team about using Cerenia every other day (instead of every day) in conjunction with the Palladia because it is rather expensive (4 pills are $30 online, $42 at our local vet, and $48 at the hospital), and that is a possibility once we figure out if it is actually working.  I also asked about other medications altogether since Cerenia is so expensive and Griffin may be on Palladia for a long time.  They mentioned using Zofran (brand name of Ondansetron) and keeping Cerenia as a back-up.  As Ondansetron is way less expensive than Cerenia, if we find that an anti-nausea medication is working to improve his appetite, I'll revisit that discussion.  If not, I'll ask for the team to consider a regular appetite stimulant, such as Entyce.

Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com

Livermore, CA




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31 August 2020 - 7:45 pm
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I'm sorry Griffin isn't wanting to eat- that can be really worrisome and frustrating.

My experience with cerenia with Maggie when she was doing chemo was that it worked pretty fast...she wouldn't want food at lunch time but would eat a few hours later.

I'm sure Griffin is getting lots of labs done at this point so his kidney and liver values are good?  Are they checking his urine?  Palladia can affect the kidneys. When Maggie started getting picky with her food (years after her chemo) it was a kidney issue.

It's good his weight is maintaining and he is still eating regularly. 

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

 

              Maggie's Story                  Amputation and Chemo

New York, NY
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31 August 2020 - 8:22 pm
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Hi Karen - Griffin hasn't had blood work done since he started the Palladia, but I've been in close contact with his oncology team who tends to be very conservative in their approach, so if they thought blood tests were needed, they would definitely say so.  I feel better after weighing him today at his local vet and seeing that his weight has been stable since 9 days ago, which is when the food pickiness started.  The issue really isn't that he's not eating - it's that he suddenly decided he would not eat the food that he's been eating regularly.  There have been times when treats and hamburgers do not tempt him and so I know he is truly not feeling well.  That is not the case here.  He hasn't stopped eating treats or human food, such as cheese and liverwurst.  He has enthusiastically eaten the new canned food that I purchased over the weekend, and so it is hard to tell if the Cerenia made any difference today.  I'm going to give it about a week with the Cerenia and if he is not interested in eating his regular food during that time, I won't push it but I also won't feel the need to continue using that medication.  Maybe Griffin just decided he was bored with the same old food and if that is the case, I'm happy to make some adjustments! icon_lol Stacy

Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com

Virginia







Member Since:
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31 August 2020 - 9:50 pm
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Well, glad his weight is holding steady.  So the only side effect of Palladia  (or possible side effect) is lowered appetite.  And that is a known side effect.  But the fact he is not vomiting or runny poop is good.

I think I read that chemo makes food taste weird for humans on some schemes.  Makes food taste like medal, or something  like that.  

Might also try Fresh Pet.  That seems to be a real go-to  yummy food dogs cant resist.

As Karen suggested,, as apparently will be done by the Onco, the blood work will be good to do.

Keep is posted. And yeah, whatever he will eat is the solution for now!   Be safe in your trip and send us pics!   We love seeing pics of this RockStar!!

Higs

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!

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1 September 2020 - 1:43 pm
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Hi Stacy

Arktik and Griffin are definitely twins....they should have a discussion centered around what is good to eat 😉 Arktik has been eating a bit better since Saturday but I always wish he would eat more. Oddly enough it was pretty much the same thing when we weighted him on Saturday he had not lost much weight (relief here...) He also seems fine with human food so this is pretty much what I have been feeding him mixed with some kibble and a bit of water for the past few days. He has always been very picky with his food, it is just that now he seems to get tired of the same meal very quickly. 

I used Cerenia a little bit during chemo, the oncologist said to use it for 3-5 days after the first chemo and see if we thought he needed it or not. I don't think I have seen a big difference whether I was using it or not at the time. But maybe there was .. I also tried appetite stimulant but it was not a great success. 

I hope Griffin feels better soon! 

New York, NY
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3 September 2020 - 7:18 pm
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Thanks to everyone for the encouragement and suggestions!  I think we have finally turned a corner with Griffin eating.  I didn't really see any improvement with Cerenia and stopped using it 2 days ago, but I started thinking about the timing of when I gave Griffin his doses of Palladia (every other day) and Piroxicam (every day).  I used to give him those meds together with his afternoon meal.  Since Griffin was so specifically avoiding all of his regular foods, I started wondering if he was connecting feeling nauseous with his regular food, especially as he was still willing to eat other foods.  Griffin never exhibited any overt signs of nausea, but clearly something was off.  I now give Griffin his meds at night, hours after his last meal, which gives him the night to sleep through any discomfort.  I switched to a new dry and wet food and for the last 2 days, Griffin has eaten full meals - 1/2 can wet in the morning and the remaining 1/2 can with 1 cup kibble and a handful of shredded chicken in the evenings.  I'm not sure if the switch to the new foods will be permanent, but for now, I'm just happy that he is showing an appetite and eating well!

We came to Pennsylvania to visit my 4 godchildren, so Griffin is thrilled to be with some of his kids.  We found some ducks in a park during our walk yesterday morning and hiked a nature trail today!

Griffin-creek-with-Savannah-sept-2-blog-rotated.jpgImage Enlarger

Griffin-nature-trail-sept-3-blog-rotated.jpgImage Enlarger

Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com

Virginia







Member Since:
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3 September 2020 - 8:17 pm
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Such sweet pictures.  Griffin looks happy as always😊

Thrilled to know Griffin is eating better now!  Great news!

Just double check with your Vet about Piroxicam  without food.  It seems like when I've had my dogs on it jn the past it had to be with food to avoid GI upset, ulcers, etc.  May have nothing to do with Griffin and his doses, etc, just thought II'd mention it.  And it may ve that he just needs every  minimal amount  of food to coat his tummy for the pill.

Regardless, you've found a way to get Griffin to eat his meals again and that's  such great news!!!

Extra smooches to that sweet boy!  We love him!!!

Hugs

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!

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3 September 2020 - 8:18 pm
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❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

New York, NY
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3 September 2020 - 8:27 pm
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Hi Sally - You are absolutely correct about the Piroxicam needing to be given with food.  I will check with his oncologist as to whether or not waiting about 2 hours after his big evening meal is sufficient instead of just assuming that it is.  He also gets it wrapped in a pill pocket, but I'm not sure that would count a "food".  icon_lol

Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com

On The Road


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4 September 2020 - 1:27 pm
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Wooooohoooo! Those big smiles say it all. I'm so hoppy Griffin is feeling great again. Your instincts are PAWESOME! It totally makes sense that the meds with food were causing the inappetence. Good job Detective Mom!

Let us know what the vet says about the evening meal. I love that you double-check everything with them, that's being a thorough advocate 🙂

Is a pill pocket food? Great question!

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet

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