Dog with Cancer - Update

[RF536]

We received the devastating news that our 8-year-old dog has cancer. Our vet does not recommend chemo due to his age and the fact it doesn’t normally gain the dog much time. At this time, we have decided to use steroids to treat the inflammation and just keep him comfortable. He is not showing any signs of being ill, other than enlarged lymph nodes on his neck. Per the vet, we are realistically looking at a few weeks to a few months before he takes a turn for the worse.

We have a second dog who is 7-years-old and is attached to him and we are concerned how she will handle things when he is gone. She looks to him for security and reassurance that everything is ok. If she can’t find him in the house, she will panic and frantically check every room until she finds him, or we find him and take her to him. When he goes to the vet, either someone must be home with her, or they both must go. She panics if left alone and will chew anything she finds.

Now we are facing the fact that she will out live him, by probably several years, and we are not sure what to do to help her. Should we try and get another dog soon and get them all used to each other in hopes that when he dies, it will be easier for her? Do we wait until he is gone and then get a second dog or wait and see how she does without him?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. This is the first time we have had 2 dogs and want to make sure we don’t do anything to upset the existing dogs and make this any harder.

 

[AgentMama]

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this! I would base my decision of when to bring a second dog into the house on how you think your dog who is sick will adapt to having another dog in the house. I think my main concern would be not to stress out my sick dog and create a situation that he deteriorated faster. But I really don't think there is a right or wrong answer to this, I think its a gut check about what you think will be most beneficial to your existing canine family and what you think your human family can handle in transition.

 

[OneOftheB's]

I’m so sorry that you are going through this. We had a similar situation (twice) with our lab mix, Libby. She lost her original companion to neurological issues and we adopted an older dog companion whom we lost a few years later to cancer. Libby just couldn’t handle life as an only dog either time so we adopted within a couple of months both times. We made certain, in both adoptions, that the new dog was a dog she liked but wasn’t too active for her; the last thing she would have wanted was a puppy to bother her all day long.

Who knows maybe your dog will blossom as an only dog, if not then you can look at adding to your household, but I personally wouldn’t bring a new dog into your home while your 8 year old is still around. It might stress him out or I’ve heard of cases where a younger dog will turn on a sick dog and injure or kill the sick dog (this happened to a friend of the family).

 

[RangerPooh]

We've gone through this before. Eight years ago we lost our old German Shepard to cancer. We did steroids, had the cancerous sections cut out, but it kept coming back. When it began to affect him neurologically we had to make the hard decision that it was time. Prior to him passing we began to look into adding another dog to the mix so that he was be a role model to the pup. Seven years later that pup would pass, but not before we added another dog to the mix for him to role model. We have had two dogs at once for many years. Currently we have three. Our ten year old female is hanging in there, but for how much longer is unknown.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Our remaining dog got a bit more cuddly with us humans. But other than that, no real change in behavior.

 

[yoopermom]

Our 10 year old hound with CHF had a sister, who we lost at the age of 4, quite tragically. She had always been alpha, and he had always been the quiet one. It may sound macabre, but we were bringing her body home to bury anyway, so we let him sniff her all over, and I'm sure he understood *something* from that. I know most people can't do that, but perhaps have her use a certain blanket in her crate, then have her wrapped it in while passing, and then bring it home for the surviving dog to sniff. Yes, the survivor will seem "lost" for awhile, but I personally would wait to bring in a new dog until after that time period is passed. The dog with cancer has precious little time now, and the survivor is going to be going through a lot quite soon. Both will need your love and support.

I am SO sorry for what you are going through, but know that all dogs go to heaven (and are waiting for us, I believe....).

Terri

 

[WDWBarb]

I had two dogs when my GSD died of cancer. They were very close, and, in fact, my little guy had never been apart from her since they day we rescued him. The first time he had been alone was when we rushed her off to the vet to never return. I was so worried about how he would handle it.

He was sad, but he was OK. Like, really OK. In fact, I think he preferred to mourn alone. And when we came home without her, he knew. He knew how sick she was when we rushed out the door. He didn't even look for her when we came home.

We gave him several months and then we finally took him to the Humane Society to see if he could find a new friend. He found two. He picked out a very special bonded pair and the old boy came home with two ladies half his age.

One of them got cancer just a few months later. I had already fallen head over heels in love with her. So, we did radiation to buy her a little time. I was told it would give her 6 months, but we've had over 2 years (two years, 4 months, 18 days since she finished treatment). However the radiation had a long-term price and we are facing having to take her to the vet to say goodbye in the next few days. I probably should have done it already, but I'm very much in denial.

So don't feel like you have to find a new companion right away. Sometimes a little time in between can be OK.

 

[lovin'fl]

Aw, so sorry. It is so hard with a pet when they can't talk to you (like people can). You just second guess everything. Hugs to you. We went through same situation.

We had 2 dogs, 8 and 7, when the 8 year old was diagnosed with lymphoma and she had a rectal tumor that they said was not the lymphoma but another type (that's what brought us to the vet). They found the lymphoma when doing pre surgery Xray and then did biopsy on the large lymph node. They wanted to do surgery to remove the anal tumor and then treat with chemo saying it 'might' give her up to a year. Or 'might' be a few months. No guarantees. We declined and went the steroid route. She also seemed pretty normal except that she slept more. But the tumor hanging out really bugged her and the steroids (or her illness) started making her vomit up bile like stuff and tremble. She was on it for maybe 3 weeks and we took her in to end her suffering.

And a year prior she had huge lymph node in her neck and I took her in and they did needle aspirate (had trouble getting any cells so had to put needle in like 5 times). Then said it was negative and put her on antibiotic which made the lymph node go back to normal. I suspect she had the lymphoma then and asked vet if that were probable and they said it could have been. Ugghh. So she may have been sick for a year and that's why the quick decline.

Our other dog did kind of go wonky after she passed. He did seem a little sad. He always followed her outside to potty and when she was gone he didn't want to go. We had to start going outside with him or walk him. He also became our shadow (more DH than me but when DH isn't around it's me). He is 12 now. He actually doesn't like other dogs (only liked his sister dog and that's because she was there when we brought him home). But he freaks a little when we leave him alone. He waits right by the door. He sleeps in our bed now (all 8 years, we had his sister dog, they NEVER slept in our bed). He's not a cuddler but he just has to be near us. He tends to be fat and all the walking, since his sister died, has been good for him. Though his health, being 12, has been declining and I suspect we have limited time with him.

So he was depressed at first and did look fo her. But he adjusted and actually is a much happier (though maybe a pain in the butt for us) dog as a solo dog. He can hang with his people and get walks and lots of treats and goes on car rides (sister dog got carsick so we never took them back then). And sleeps on a big comfy bed.

Best wishes and hugs. I will also add that going through that made me not want to get any other pets because I didn't want to go through that again and I felt such guilt for not doing chemo and taking every measure. But, now, 5 years later, I am wanting to get a cat. Fighting DH on that and looks like I will lose :-(

 

[RF536]

Thank you for the kind words and advice. We are going to hold off on getting another dog. My husband reminded me that when my parents dog came to visit several years ago, our older dog went out in the yard and did not interact with the other two dogs. We are both afraid that bringing a 3rd dog into the house would stress him out and we don't want to do that. We will wait until he passes and see how the other dog does. We started the steroids last night.

 

[christineann]

Hugs to you in this difficult time. I lost my sweet Rasta three years ago rather suddenly to cancer, and her companion Gabe was deeply saddened. Very shortly thereafter, we went to my mother's house to help her out, and Gabe and her adult male/only dog bonded, which I think helped him. Animals do grieve as we do. He is now 15 and has recently been diagnosed with cancer, and my vet assured me we are not at that time yet. Then we will need to help my mom's dog through it. Such happiness they bring to their humans and to each other! I would wait to get another dog in our situation, but you know your pups and what would be best for them.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I'm sorry to hear this. I would wait to see how it plays out and take it from there.

 

[Kitty 34]

So sorry for you and your doggie.

 

[WDWBarb]

My little one lost her battle to cancer last night. My other two dogs, at this point, haven't even seemed to notice her absence. I'm sure they do, but they are acting like live is normal.

The humans in this house are not. We are completely heartbroken.

I'm sorry about your baby. I wish you strength through this difficult time.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

My little one lost her battle to cancer last night. My other two dogs, at this point, haven't even seemed to notice her absence. I'm sure they do, but they are acting like live is normal.

The humans in this house are not. We are completely heartbroken.

I'm sorry about your baby. I wish you strength through this difficult time.

That's so sad! You lost your Shepherd not too long ago. I'm sorry.

 

[WDWBarb]

That's so sad! You lost your Shepherd not too long ago. I'm sorry.

Thank you... my heart has never been so broken. Every time I lose one, it just seems to get so much harder...

 

[sara_s]

Just commenting to send you hugs.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

We received the devastating news that our 8-year-old dog has cancer. Our vet does not recommend chemo due to his age and the fact it doesn’t normally gain the dog much time. At this time, we have decided to use steroids to treat the inflammation and just keep him comfortable. He is not showing any signs of being ill, other than enlarged lymph nodes on his neck. Per the vet, we are realistically looking at a few weeks to a few months before he takes a turn for the worse.

We have a second dog who is 7-years-old and is attached to him and we are concerned how she will handle things when he is gone. She looks to him for security and reassurance that everything is ok. If she can’t find him in the house, she will panic and frantically check every room until she finds him, or we find him and take her to him. When he goes to the vet, either someone must be home with her, or they both must go. She panics if left alone and will chew anything she finds.

Now we are facing the fact that she will out live him, by probably several years, and we are not sure what to do to help her. Should we try and get another dog soon and get them all used to each other in hopes that when he dies, it will be easier for her? Do we wait until he is gone and then get a second dog or wait and see how she does without him?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. This is the first time we have had 2 dogs and want to make sure we don’t do anything to upset the existing dogs and make this any harder.

Sorry about your pup.

I would not jump the gun and get a dog. Keep things peaceful as possible in the home.

Let the other dog mourn and move on. Then if you want another dog, go for it.

I have 2 old dogs, 13. It is tough watching them decline.

 

[donaldbuzz&minnie]

We had 2 dogs, and when the first one died I was worried about whether or not the 2nd one would be too upset without a new friend. But it turned out that I think he actually loved being an "only" dog, and lived happily that way until he passed of old age. I agree with the previous poster that you might want to wait a bit and see.

I feel for you. Our current dog is almost 13 and I'm afraid he may have cancer. He is behaving normally in every respect, but he is losing weight. He has a vet appointment coming up and I dread going. I love this dog so much.

 

[Scifidiner]

First, I would recommend considering getting a second opinion. Unfortunately we have found out that not all vets are equally competent. Second, your second dog may very well miss her companion it can be affected by the breed and how smart the dog is. Getting another dog may be a viable solution by helping her and saving another dog's (rescue) life.

 

[RF536]

I am sorry for all of you who have lost a pet to cancer, it is hard. The vet did a blood test and confirmed lymphoma, but not the specific type since we aren't doing chemo. Even with the steroids, he is losing weight. We have started cooking things like chicken, green beans and rice to encourage him to eat. He seems to be feeling ok and still wants our sons to play with him
We are taking a wait and see approach regarding getting another dog. Nothing will change until he passes, then we will see how our other one does. If we get another it will be another rescue. Both of our current dogs are rescues.