Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Wolfgang had his right front leg removed May 16, 2019, he suffered from a nerve sheath tumor which took 6 months to find. The pathologist said it was cancer and that the margins were clean but it was a very small margins and there was a 30% chance the cancer would return. Sadly he fell into the 30%
A month ago we took him back to the vet who did the amputation as I was concerned it had returned as he was showing signs of pain, he was distant (just like before) and he was growling at his best friend Meeko (our 8-year-old cat). He checked him out and took Xrays but he said he felt it was probably inflammation and treated that, frankly I thought maybe I was overreacting too so I went home with the pills. Two weeks later I started to noticed he had a lot of discharge from his eyes and his right eye was drooping. Thinking it was allergies which he has suffered from before I took him to our regular vet. She was very concerned as he was showing signs of Horner's syndrome and with his history she felt maybe the cancer was back. The only way to know if to do another MRI $$$. I called the vet who did the amputation and basically he said this
"Terry you can get the MRI and find out the Cancer is back and there is nothing we can do so you can spend the money and still be in the same position you are in now." He then asked what I thought and I told him I always thought it was back and he said there is your answer
So Palliative care is where I am, more and more every day I see him being so distant, he goes out every day and lays down and the end of the yard, I swear if I didn't have a fence he would just disappear. He just isn't my boy and I don't know what to do I mean when do you decide it is time? This really SUCKS
I am wondering if anyone has used CBD for pets instead of the pain pills they have given me and what your thoughts are on that
Thanks for listening to me
Terry my heart goes out to you and Wolfgang, I'm really sorry. With all the medical diagnostics we have access to, we still can't cure cancer. It breaks my heart.
I'm wondering though, if you've been able to talk to an oncologist to find out what treatment options do exist for this type of cancer? Because as much as I respect your decision to do palliative (I truly do!), and your vet's professional opinion, oncologists are the best people to talk to when you want to know all of your options.
Meanwhile, what kinds of medications is Wolfgang on? Are there more side effects than him being distant? If so, he may not be getting enough pain relief right now, or quite possibly too much. Have you talked to your vet about this?
As for the CBD....I'm not a vet but from what I know in talking to pain management experts, in a situation like this, I would not replace any of them with CBD until talking to a vet who has expertise with CBD for pain relief. Yes, many people use CBD during palliative care, but since product quality varies widely and dosages are still a big guessing game, Wolfgang could suffer unnecessarily if all conventional pain meds were taken away. Dogs are so good at hiding their pain as you know.
As for knowing when it's time, that's a tough one and it's different for everyone. Please check out our blog post "How to Prepare for Pet Loss Before It Happens" for some thoughts.
I hope this helps. Stay tuned for feedback from others.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thank you Jerry I appreciate your response - I have spoken to an oncologist and they did say that he may be able to get radiation however they are unable to say whether it will work until and MRI is done. So I am back to getting an MRI $$$$ and then IF the cancer can be treated it will be 750.00 a treatment and it could be up to 8 treatment. This is a little out of my reach I am afraid......I feel like I have failed him
Wolfgang (100 lbs) is on Gabapentin (400mg twice a day) which seems to keep his pain at bay so I will stick with that for now. I say it works because he is not crying out when he stands up anymore
His behaviour of being distant is one of the triggers for me in knowing there was something wrong. He has always liked being close to me and my husband always under foot but we never minded. He did the distant thing when he first got cancer and that changed after the amputation and now he is doing it again hence why I took him back to the vet.
I was curious about the CBD so I went to a local store to speak to them they were pretty knowledgeable and they told me it is used for anxiety really so I don't think I will trust it to manage his pain.
Thank you for the blog post that is exactly what I needed there is some great info there. I do have my husband to take this journey with however this is really hard for him and he doesn't do this very well I am afraid so I know it will be up to me which is OK. I really like the idea of having a joy list, he loves his morning car ride to a local bakery where he is lavished with love an homemade dog treats or a simple walk in a local park so I think I am going to work on that list.
I haven't posted on this forum often but I do visit and read all the posts and I do thank you for your support and I will keep you updated
thanks again
Terry
Terry, you've definitely covered all your bases. You have absolutely not failed him, not at all. Please be kind to yourself. You've given him all the love and care and concern that a great parent gives to their dog or cat, and he knows you are awesome.
Cancer is such a crappy situation, so full of second guessing. Don't let it steal the quality time you have with Wolfgang. Make that joy list! Do those little things that make him happy and you will not have any regrets.
Oh and as for the medication, that's really good that the Gaba is helping. The dosage sounds typical for a dog that size (our Wyatt Ray gets 300mg 3x day and he's about 80 lbs). Keep an eye on his pain signals and if he shows any more then ask about Amantadine, which can compliment the Gabapentin. Oh and one more thing...Gaba makes many dogs sleepy so that could possibly explain some of his behavior. It's a hard call when it comes to pain management during palliative care, so you may want to check with your vet about tweaking dosages.
We are here for you, just holler with any questions or concerns or just to vent.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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