Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Looking for referrals for my 9 year old Saint Bernard who was diagnosed with bone cancer this morning.
also, any advice or threads on amputation for large dogs would be appreciated. I’m worried that she won’t do well with it if that is what is recommended.
Thanks in advance
Hi Michael, welcome. Sorry for the delay getting your first post approved, the rest won't need to wait.
Im so sorry about the diagnosis. Where is your vet referring you? If going to Colorado State in Fort Collins is within reach I would highly recommend it, they are one of the best places in the world for treating cancer in pets. Many members here have gone to CSU. They also have some clinical trials your dog might qualify for. See all our posts at:
https://tripawd.....m/tag/csu/
Do check out our Size and Age Mayters Discussion forum and post your dogs story by starting a new topic there so we can help you ok? See:
https://tripawd.....e-matters/
See you there!
Hey Michael!
I second Jerry's recommendation of going through CSU, that's who I use and they really are the one of the best in the country let alone in Colorado. It is a bit of a wait if you aren't going a clinical trial with them. When I originally called they didn't have any openings sooner than 4 weeks out, but if you do a clinical trial you tend to get in much quicker. I did do a clinical trial with Ellie (you can see the current ones here: https://www.csu.....al-trials/), and was overall happy with my experience.
I also had a consult with Treeline in Boulder (https://www.tre.....nevet.com/), and Dr. Oberthaler is awesome, I would have gone with them if Ellie hadn't been accepted into her clinical trial.
I know amputation is hard on bigger dogs, but I want to throw out there that Ellie is a 97 pond Great Pyrenees Mix who had her right forelimb amputated, she has adjusted to 3 legs marvelously...it took longer than 2 weeks like they say over and over, but I have no regrets of getting the surgery done.
Feel free to reach out if you have any questions, I will gladly share my experience.
Thank you for your responses. I feel panicked right now. She has two oncology appointments on Monday. One at Colorado Animal Specialty and Emergency in Boulder and one at Wheatridge Animal hospital. CSU can’t get her in until July 10th. I will look at the clinical trials to see if that is a possibility.
in the meantime, i am overwhelmed and don’t know where to start. I’ve been reading a lot about ELIAS Animal Health's ELIAS Cancer Immunotherapy. I’m still figuring out how to navigate this site, but I’m wondering if there are any discussions on this.
Also, amputation is a huge concern. Ophelia (my dog) is a 9 1/2 year old Saint Bernard. She’s in great health for her age and breed. I’d bet that she’s in the top 99th percentile. Until this. But i don’t don’t know how she would adjust to three legs and what her quality of life would be like.
I’m so depressed over that potential decision that may need to be made for her. Do i give her a chance, or do i let her pass when she’s still happy?
that’s a rhetorical question of course but I’d like to read others experiences and maybe get some opinions.
And now I’m rambling. Sorry.
Hi Michael,
You're not rambling at all. I answered your post here (https://tripawd.....diagnosed/) .
Others can chime in that topic too for support so be sure to subscribe to that topic for updates.
How old is Ellie?
i need to understand why someone would want to do a clinical study? I’m not questioning the decision to enroll in one, as I’m sure that there is a reason, but wouldn’t it be preferable to use treatment that has already been tested and studied?
Michael that is a great question and if you want to discuss in another topic please do start one somewhere in our forums like Treatment and Recovery this topic can stay on course.
You can also check out this article we wrote about clinical trials at CSU:
https://tripawd.....al-trials/
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