Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello everyone I'm judy and my baby is pepsi, she is a greyhound lurcher and was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her back leg. She is now 9wks post op and doing well. she runs half a mile most days, She is so good at running but struggles if she has to walk. We were told by our vet that we would know if the cancer had spread from between 6 to 12wks post op so we are still looking for signs of this. Has anyone else been told this?
Hi Judy and Pepsi, welcome to Tripawds. Your future posts will not require moderation.
I'm not sure what your vet meant- but then I have dealt with different cancers. Seems to me that 6 to 12 weeks post op is pretty soon to see cancer spread unless it was particularly aggressive. Most here with OSA do chest xrays periodically (if they choose to) to look for mets in the lungs since that is where OSA usually mets to first.
Hopefully others who dealt with OSA will chime in with their experiences.
Almost all the tripawds I have met do much better going fast than slow. My little pug Maggie was also a rear amp and when she was trotting along you couldn't tell she was missing a leg. When she was at a walking pace she had the 'hop' and until she was really strong often had trouble standing still.
Karen and the pugapalooza
Hi Judy, welcome to you and Pepsi. Sorry you had to find us here.
I've never heard it put that way before, but I think most of us with OSA dogs have done xrays at about the 3 month mark, then repeating them every 3 months. Usually the outwardly visible signs don't show up for a long time - at least that was the way with us. Our dog had lung mets almost right from the beginning (a single very tiny one at least) but we didn't see real outward signs of it until a year later.
And, yes, as Karen said - most tripawds do a lot better going fast rather than slow. I think it's just so much easier when they have some momentum going.
Hang in there!
Jackie, Angel Abby's mom
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
Hi Judy, glad to hear that Pepsi has recovered well from surgery.
We were told similarly to Jackie..... xrays of the chest every 3 months to see if there are any mets.
Our oncologist cautioned us that it was very likely that the cancer had spread but couldn't be seen yet and that we should enjoy each and every extra day we had been given because there was no way of knowing for sure just how long we would get. Magnum started to have problems with mets to her hip around the 6 month mark (although we didn't know it was mets at that time) and shortly afterwards at her regular xrays they found the lung mets.
Plan for many more months and years together but make sure you immerse yourself in every single day with your beautiful Pepsi because you just never know what is going to happen with cancer.
Karen and Spirit Magnum
Magnum: 30th May 2002 to 5th May 2012. Lost her back left leg to osteosarcoma on 5th Sep 2011. Lung mets found on 20th Mar 2012 but it was bone mets in the hip that ended her brave battle. Magnum's motto - "Dream as if you'll live for ever, live as if you'll die today" (James Dean). Loyal, loving, courageous and spirited to the end. My beloved heart dog, see her memoirs from Rainbow Bridge ...... http://princess.....pawds.com/
We were given lots of info but not the 6 to12 week window you were. I'm just wondering too about the lung mets, I'm wondering if the regular X-rays are just so that you know that they're there or if there's a treatment started at that point? We are 10 weeks post amp and haven't done chemo, we had planned to but they recommended we wait because of the pressure ulcer we're dealing with.
Hello Judy and Pepsi! Welcome. I can't wait to see photos of your pup!
I'm sorry you're dealing with osteosarcoma. Many of us here have. If there's one thing I've learned is that oftentimes Tripawds can make those depressing statistics look dumb. Many of us have outlived the standard prognosis, with or without chemo.
It's true that when osteosarcoma is found in a dog, micrometastasis" has likely already occurred. This is when the lung mets (cancer spread) have developed but are just too small to see with a standard x-ray. I believe your vet meant that at 6 to 12 weeks you should be able to see the mets with a standard x-ray. Did s/he recommend a follow up x-ray?
Some folks like Zeus have opted to get a CT scan to be sure, which is about the only way you can see micro-mets as far as I am aware. But even if micro mets are present, it still does't mean a worst-case scenario, as Zeus has proven! He's defied the odds completely.
Oh and yes, Tripawds do better when moving at a faster pace; that momentum helps us keep our balance.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi and welcome. We started chemo soon after amp and our vet recommended x-rays every two months to see if the chemo protocol was working or if we needed to switch meds. Since you aren't doing chemo, I agree with Jerry that maybe the vet meant that would be sufficient time for micro mets to become visible if they existed.
I'm Zeus's mom that Jerry referenced above. Our story was a bit unique - you can see the link Jerry provided if you are interested - but, yes, Zeus has beaten the odds he was given. His vet initially gave us little hope for more than six weeks after amp. Almost nine months later Zeus is still fighting (and they have been nine good months!) Although he had a lung met even at the time of diagnosis, it remained a single met and never really grew after the first month. Although the cancer has now spread (it went into his abdomen instead of invading the lungs), he is still very happy. So, yes, most of us do periodic x-rays so that we know whether the chemo is working or even just for peace of mind. But even if something shows up on the x-rays, there can still be great times ahead!!
Zeus was a Husky mix diagnosed with Osteosarcoma at age 11. A visible lung met and suspicious spot on his liver meant a poor prognosis-six weeks was our vet's best guess. We decided to fight for our boy and his right front leg was amputated on 12/1/11. We did six rounds of chemo, changed his diet and spoiled him completely rotten. We were blessed with 10 great months after diagnosis. Against the odds, the lung met remained a single met and grew very little over those months. A wonderful furbaby with the most gentle spirit, he fought with a strength that we never imagined he possessed. We have no regrets...
http://zeuspod......pawds.com/
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