Roxy I need to ask you a dog ?

[fish_fanatik]

Hi Roxy or anyone else reading,

I have a 13.5 year old 50 lb dog. He has always been very healthy and active. Within the last few months he has definitely slowed down but I was not worried about his health.

Anyway, today he is urinating blood. His **** is VERY red. We took him to the vet, had tests and xrays done. We have to wait for the results of the test but his xrays show he has medium growths in his spleen and his kidney. They want to perform surgery to take out 1/2 his kidney and i think the whole spleen.

Honestly, do you think that at his age an invasive surgery such as this is worthwhile? Do you have any data of what his chances of survival are? I know that the older a dog gets the anethesia gets harder for them and they can go into shock. It is going to cost a little less than 2K.

thanks for your input,

Julie

 

[savethereef]

Wow Judie. I am sorry to hear this about your dog. But at that age of 13.5 year old and with surgery it does not really go good. When i was a teenager i had a St. Bernard that was about 10 yrs old and had surgery and never made it. I think at 13.5 years he has live a pretty full life. But if you have the $$ to do the surgery for all means give it a shot. but the dogs only has another year of life left. Hope your dog gets better

 

[microbubbles]

wow, that sounds terrible. i feel for you- to my family our pets are like one of our own and those decisions are never easy to make. good luck and i hope you make the best decision possible. good luck through this difficult time

 

[JenDub]

So sorry Julie, it's the moment even dog owner dreads. You should ask yourself what is best for the dog; to go through the pain of surgery or to be put down. At 13.5 years it has had a good run and may be better off just being put down (so sad)

 

[fish_fanatik]

Thank you for your kind words.

I recently purchased a home and am tight with funds but by no means can I NOT afford the surgery if I feel it is worthwhile.

I had another dog, an 11 yr old basset hound who died of cancer 2 years ago. With him, I paid for the surgery and then he died within a month. It was sad b/c he had to wear an elizabethan collar and suffered for most of the final days of his life. I should have put him down.

I am VERY torn b/c my husband thinks we should euthanize and my mom wants to have the surgery.

I just want whats best.....

 

[Onesaltydawg]

Julie...I feel for you and the position you are in...I know in your heart that you will make the right decision...even with surgery there will be costly meds later on and more vet bills...if he/she does go to doggy heave you will have all the memories of his/her life.

 

[PasadenaReefer]

im sorry to hear about this an im just saying this from my opinion im sure it would change if it was really happening to me but. Euthanization would be my choice, only if his/her sickness is fetal? what if you wait it out? Is your dog showing signs of pain? I wouldnt want to take a chance with the surgery and put the dog to more pain if so. Its really up to you im just sorry you have to go through it.

 

[NVTE]

sorry to hear that Julie. They always come to me (to get me?) when I come to your house.

 

[Macimage]

We would have the surgery done if the dog has a chance of recovering.

We have had a few surgeries that were successful (dogs & horses) and in one instance, when they got our fella on the operating table, they called us and told us he had cancer everywhere inside. In that one instance, they recommended we put him to sleep on the table. Otherwise, we try to save them all. In fact, my horse was over 20 (which is pretty old for a horse) and he's now 26.

I am so sorry to hear this and know you will do what you feel is the best for him.

Joyce

 

[Lewin]

At that age on a bigger dog I would say no. That is a pretty advanced age for a non-toy breed. Think of it this way: If everything goes perfect with the surgery you will have extended your dogs life what? 6 months? And half that would be in pain/discomfort from the surgery.

It is a decision that every pet owner dreads.

 

[roxy25]

Sorry to Here this Julie I gone through this about 3 times

I will say do what you think is best for your dog , I can't really tell you what to do. But if it was my dog I would PTS ( put to sleep). Since he 13.5 yrs Surgery is risky like you stated the healing time will be hard on the dog also. I don't know how your dog reacts to a vet office but usually dogs get very stressed just sitting in the waiting room. Its going to be too much for an older dog to handle this. Like Onesaltydawg states meds will also be added to his regime until he gets better.

I adopted this 5yr old german shepherd at the pound and within a year she has severe hip dysphasia. I had to put her to sleep those kind of surgeries don't have 100% cure. She was becoming crippled and she started to loose eye sight in her eyes. This mad me so mad and frustrated because here I am saving her from being PTS but then within a year I had to let her RIP At least she had one year of happiness and joy.

I also had this rottweiler she was about 14 yrs , she had a stroke and lost a lot of function of back legs and it was hard for her to go down stairs and go to the bathroom. I had to put her to sleep because she was suffering trying to stand up and go to the bathroom

Then my german shepherd that I raised from a puppy died last year of cancer. They found out she had cancer on her chest and it spread to her lungs the doctor said she will die soon , I should have PTS when I was at the vet but I didn't have strength in my heart to do it . She died 2 days later in my arms which was the most HORRIFYING thing that has happened in my life ....... ( man I can never even talk about this or type about her with out crying ) Im crying now :sad2: :sad2:

I can't even watch I am legend any more ....

 

[Mr. Brooks]

I had a 12 year old Beagle that had all kinds of problems. We put him through costly surgery to remove a large tumor on his chest. In the end he only gained a couple months of happy living. The tumor came right back and we had to put him down. The Vet said he wouldn't survive another surgery. In my opinion, if a dog is in his senior years, and his quality of life is declining, faced with surgery in the $1,000.00 plus range. I say it's not worth it. Rarely at that point does a dog have many good years left anyway. You really have to consider the quality of life of your dog. In many cases it really is best to just let go. I get emotional just writing this out. It's just such a crappy part of owning a dog.

 

[JenDub]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13454722#post13454722 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by thechad21
It's just such a crappy part of owning a dog.

Seriously it is the absolute worst part of having a dog. It helps to focus on the years of joy that you shared together and the quality of life you provided for the dog...

Good luck Julie

 

[Captain Quirk]

Julie...

I'm a sucker for this kind of thing. We've spent thousands over the years on our pets (one pony was 5K in a month! *cough*).

Only YOU know what the quality of life for your animal is now. Odds are his health has been deteriorating for some time (hence you mentioning that he's slowed down over the last few months). However, that "slowing down" is most likely related to this and - should you do the surgery - he might recover completely.

Will he recover? Hard to tell.

In all honesty, your vet and you are the ones to best decide what the chances are.

IMO if you can get a couple/few years more with him and he's COMFORTABLE, I say go for it. Although that is quite a few years for a larger dog, we've had dogs live for almost 20 years... Even big ones.

So if his health has been good up until this, and your vet thinks he can recover (and the loss of the spleen and half a kidney isn't too big of a deal), IMO it CAN be worth it. Not knowing the breed/other factors, I can't say for sure.

Again, you and your vet should decide. Just try to remember that you need to think rationally and remove your emotions (tough, I know). You need to do what's best for your animal, and if needed, let them go peacefully and with dignity.

I don't envy you... This is indeed a rough decision.

 

[Rakie]

Ah, it sucks to lose a dog.

My puppy (Brittany Spaniel) lasted 16 years, or, just shy of it actually.

Around 13 is when he started showing signs of slowing down too, he didn't have any medical issues but by 14 he didn't see so well, by 15 he was very weak and couldn't see. He'd bump into things that have been there all his life. About 15 and a half I heard him howling one night, which he hadn't done in years... I went outside to find that he got up to pee and tripped over a planter and was too weak to get up, my poor dog was calling for help

We put him down shortly after that, he stopped eating and all.

 

[Eels&Lions]

Fish_Fanatik - I have 4 Akitas right now and have grown up around dogs all my life. It sucks when you have to put a dog down to to old age or severe ailments. Even tho you know your dog has lived a long life it still sucks to lose a good friend.

I really hope its something minor that can be fixed with medication.

I would wait for the test results before agreeing to do surgery or rushing to put the dog to sleep.

 

[johnwah]

damn i am legend got me sniffling too.... damn you samantha!!

sorry to hear...i had to put my doggy to sleep too...i got really drunk that night...

 

[fish_fanatik]

Last night I took him to the beach and let him eat sausages for dinner. He loves the beach!!!! In a way it is a blessing since he can still walk around, I can take him places and have him enjoy doggy life to the fullest.

I was crying my eyes out while at the beach, people must have thought I was crazy.

We are still waiting for the results of the test, but I am sure we are not going to put him to sleep. He really is my mom's dog and she does not want us to forcefully "kill" a part of our family.

She has a friend who is vet and even she said the surgery would be too much at his age. He is part german shepard and australian shepard I think.

Thank you so much for your kind words all. It really helps.

 

[dodgerblew]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13455029#post13455029 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Captain Quirk
Julie...

Again, you and your vet should decide. Just try to remember that you need to think rationally and remove your emotions (tough, I know). You need to do what's best for your animal, and if needed, let them go peacefully and with dignity.

I don't envy you... This is indeed a rough decision.

Julie...these are real good words to meditate on.

I just had to do a very similar thing with my 12 yr old Akita, and truthfully this is a very hard thread for me to read as I had to also pause and seperate the emotion from the reality. I miss my dog everyday but I know I did the right thing in the long run "in my situation". I'm not suggesting....

 

[Reefski's]

it is a tough choice.

we have a friend who's dog has cancer right now too. she is very devoted to the dog and is giving it chemo and radiation to prolong it's life. it has only been a couple of weeks now. she is very torn about when is the right time to let go.

the vet pointed out that dogs don't live as long as we do, so the end comes faster. the goal of therapy is not just to prolong life but make them more comfortable. since they are already near the end of their life.

what would you want for yourself? i personally have a DNR order. i don't want to be in a hospital draining my family's resources just to be on a respirator. kill me please.

my father was a 40 year smoker, was in and out of the hospital for years with emphysema and heart failure. he had been in the hospital for a couple of months deteriorating when he asked me to get him out of there and shoot him. much like the farm boy, hunter and fisherman he had been, with his various animals who had been at the end of their lives.

of course i coudn't/wouldn't do that.

the next day he pulled out the central line in his neck trying to kill himself. there was a lot of bleeding but they caught him and then tied his hands down and upped the morphine.

a week later was the Northridge quake and right after the quake he had a massive heart attack and was brain dead but lived on for another week before we pulled the plug.

i told the doctor about my dad's wishes to die before the quake and thought we had a clear understanding about DNR. he didn't and that last heroic effort that left him brain dead also netted the doctor about $5-10,000 and the hospital $20,000. i forget the exact numbers.

when i confronted the doctor about this he said it wasn't what my father wanted. put your wishes in writing.

Has anyone read "Merle's Door"?

it is a wonderful story about a man and his dog. at the end he wrestles with the issue of what to do as Merle nears the end of his life.

highly recommended.

why do we think it is humane to Euthanize our pets but not our family? do you treat your pets better or worse than your family?

Carl