Golden has one heck of a tumur.

[dmccarty]

Dog People,

Our last Golden Retriever is getting patched togather as we
speak. A few weeks back we found out that the dog had a 5 inch turmor in her liver. From my wife's discription it looks like a Kong Toy. /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif The two tests said it was not cancerous which was great news but the vet REALLY wanted to take out the turmur. They are afraid that the thing will bust and the dog will die....

They just operated on Chase a little while ago and said the tumor was too dangerous to take out. If they cut the tumor out they figured the dog would bleed to death over the next couple of days.... So they are patching her up.

They wanted to know if we wanted to put the dog down..... /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

My wife is asking the following questions, feel free if anyone has an answer! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
- What is the likely hood of the tumor popping?
(From the vets actions/words this seem like 100%)

- WHEN is it likely to pop. A day? A week, A month? A year?

- WHEN it pops does she die within a few minutes or does it take hours? Is it painful?

My wife is barely rational on all of this. She has been forced to sell her horse last month and we lost her other Golden last fall in 2000. The dogs got her through some tough times....

I figure if Chase can have a minimum of a few more weeks, hopefull more, then she should have the time. But I don't want her to suffer if that tumor breaks.

Thanks for any info....
Dan McCarty

 

[MossRoad]

Sorry to read about your pet. That is one of the most heartbreaking decisions any pet owner has had to make. If you are not sure about what to do, you might want to call a veterinary college, such as Purdue University in Indiana, and see what they have to say. Hope this helps.

 

[dmccarty]

I just got off the phone with the wife and they have finished
stitching the dog. The vet said that it was not as bad as it first appeared and they took more samples for tests.

He said Chase has 4-8 months and when the tumor goes she will be lethargic, listless, etc. At that point it would time to put her to sleep.

It might be possible to treat the tumor but he won't know until after he sees the test results.

Chase had some bad turmors years ago that we could feel and was treated successfully. Our big fear has been an internal tumor that we could not see or feel.....

Maybe she will beat this tumor as well.

The vets that are treating Chase are pretty danged good. We talked to our regular vets plus some vet friends and they all pointed to the vet hospital treating Chase. The hospital really is high tech and I think its quality of care is pretty danged high. There are BILLIONS of people in the world who receive much worse care than Chase....

Course it costs a pretty penny to walk in the door...... /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

Later...
Dan

 

[MarkV]

Dan,
Glad to hear that the diagnosis on Chase is not as bad as it looked at first. Sounds like your dogs are as much part of the family as ours are. We have one that is getting to the age where we worry. Just can’t imagine things being the same with out Max around. Have you thought about a new dog while Chase can still be a guiding force and share some of the qualities that make her part of the family? We are thinking about that now.

MarkV

 

[Boondox]

Dan -- Glad to hear the prognosis improved, but having a dog in pain just rips your heart, doesn't it? How old is Chase, anyway?

My wife and I pulled out all the stops to keep Mercedes, our alpha *****, alive beyond her time. She was 15 when she finally passed, and we'll never let another dog suffer beyond its time again. Sounds like you made a much more rational choice than we did. Now our alpha male, Molson, is completely white faced and pretty stiff. As much as it'll hurt me to lose him, we'll let this one go with his dignity intact.

Pete
Ragtag Golden Retriever Rescue
Molson, Glenfiddich, Tetley and Tuppence

 

[dmccarty]

Mark,

I have thought of it but I have not dared mention it to the Wife. Chase and Thorpe, who died 17 months ago, are like children to my wife...

My GSD is about 5-6 and still full of vim and viger. Chase is to docile for Kelly. A young puppy would do Kelly some good! Not sure about us though! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Chase is 10 or so.

The idea of having a puppy, a sick dog, Kelly, and a 22 month old child while trying to build a house and sell a house makes me want to look for a Beer! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif BUT, Kelly needs an active playmate so I don't know what we will do. Shoot, Kelly gets me up at 2400-2430 to go to the bathroom and patrol the yard every night so what is another dog in the mix..... /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

So we will wait and see......

Later...
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

BoonDox,

We won't let Chase suffer.

My wife lost it a bit when we got the first news this afternoon but I told her if Chase can make it a couple of months then we need to keep her around. It will take a few weeks for her to recover from the surgery, GGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR, I really did not want to put her through it but I don't think we had any choice. Once she has recovered if she only has three good months left well that is three more than she would have had. I try to take the dogs to the property when I can to let them run. I guess they will have a priority know. The wife lost it when I said that the best thing would be for Chase to be running on the property and have the tumor rupture. At least she would go out doing what she likes to do best...

Heck, I hope *** I *** go out that way! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Later...
Dan

 

[Boondox]

One of our rescues, the littermate to our Tetley, had a heart condition. He lived with us here in Vermont, living a wonderful life full of tennis balls, deer poop, swimming in the pond and long walks in the woods. He was a beautiful reddish golden, happy and full of love. We knew his days were numbered, but it still came as a shock when he jumped up to catch a ball and died before he hit the ground.

It's times like that when I wonder why in the world we ever got involved with canine rescue. Each loss hurts like hell.

Enjoy each day and play like a dog. Chase sure will. Sounds like she has a couple of great humans! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Pete

 

[Thomas]

If and when the time arrives you both shall know,for now continue giving your love to Chase and Chase does to the both of you.

 

[kiphorn]

Dan:

I'm sorry to hear about Chase. I just went through a similar situation this weekend with one of our dogs.

Borris was an 11 year old Irish Wolfhound. When he was rescued he was 85 pounds under weight and had never seen the light of day. He and several dozen cats and dogs were locked in a basement. He couldn't even climb the stairs to get out of the basement. Fortunately someone spoke up and the animals were taken from this ignorant SOB.

Borris' mind and body were in great shape except for his hips. As is common with large breeds Borris suffered from hip displasia. He was a wonderful dog for the eight years we were fortunate to share with him. Except for the constant want for attention you would have never known that he was abused.

We had to have him put down on Sunday because the old guy just could move very well and his hips were giving out on a regualr basis. Prednisone helped with the hips but we knew that the time had come when we had to say good bye. The pain he was enduring had to take precidence over our feelings.

The house sure seems empty. Borris weighed in at 185 lbs + and his head was at chest level when standing. He'd look you in the eye if you were sitting.

Love Chase with all your heart while you can. From reading your posts, I can tell you'll do the right thing when the time comes. It will be hard but the next day you'll know that you did the right thing.

Kip