tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post3838674022507532323..comments2023-09-02T03:03:26.994-07:00Comments on Vet On The Edge: Aflack... Aflack... AAAFFLLAAAACK!AKDDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-49956295600280071172011-07-25T11:26:55.897-07:002011-07-25T11:26:55.897-07:00@Sportmom: YOu're right - it's all about t...@Sportmom: YOu're right - it's all about the quality. WE care how long they live, but they only care how WELL they live.<br /><br />@Marilyn: I'm sorry to hear you and your dog have had to face this disease. It bites. Still, the best we can do is to fight the good fight, and have the grace and courage to let go when it's time.AKDDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-59101844416828202202011-07-24T10:35:51.446-07:002011-07-24T10:35:51.446-07:00I have a six year old boxer that was diagnosed wit...I have a six year old boxer that was diagnosed with lymphoma. I started a blog http://luccalymphomatrial@blogspot.com<br />your readers might be interested in his story too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-40779156429340990412011-07-24T09:14:20.438-07:002011-07-24T09:14:20.438-07:00Went through lung cancer with my beloved Fox. Qua...Went through lung cancer with my beloved Fox. Quality is everything. As long as there is quality it is worth the fight for a youngish dog. The Fox told me when it was gone and he left. Hugs to you both. Thank you for sharing.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11917634046111913285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-45382308090377568082011-07-08T16:07:00.633-07:002011-07-08T16:07:00.633-07:00Go Finn!!! I will be watching for updates on how h...Go Finn!!! I will be watching for updates on how he is doing.<br /><br />My friend with the Berners recently lost another dog to histiocytosis. She was diagnosed in August and given 2-4 weeks without treatment. This was the dog she said wouldn't do well with treatment, so keeping her comfortable was the plan. She lived til January! That strong girl beat the odds feeling great and going on the daily walks with the rest of the pack until that last week. Her vets were stumped. <br /><br />They fed her whatever she wanted (within reason of course), and I swear the dog thought she had already "died and went to heaven" as she had been on a strict diet up until then. <br /><br />Thanks again for your post, it does help to remember that cancer can be cured in many cases, and that strides are being made all the time in making a longer life possible for our loyal friends.Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17598891218608102466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-23629731854307987292011-07-08T08:06:51.951-07:002011-07-08T08:06:51.951-07:00Thanks, D. That IS the suck thing about cancer: it...Thanks, D. That IS the suck thing about cancer: it is no respecter of breed, age or gender - nor how dear and valuable a given pet might be to its owner. <br /><br />On the plus side is that we often DO cure cancer, and the odds are better with it than with any other chronic disease. Small comfort, though, when it's your dog under the gun.<br /><br />I'm sorry about your friend's young Berner; that's a heartbreaker. Not that cancer is ever expected, but it's especially unexpected (and sad) in a dog so young. <br /><br />I have had a long discussion about this with Finn, however, and informed him he has to make at LEAST 13 (to match his sire) but 15 (to match his dam) would be better. However, if he wants to get creative and go completely hog wild, older would be entirely acceptable. He's an obedient sort, and eager to please; we'll have to see what he makes of this, but I expect he'll give it the old college try. :)AKDDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-50798951462521695882011-07-07T20:11:25.188-07:002011-07-07T20:11:25.188-07:00Sorry to hear about Finn's Lymphoma. We see s...Sorry to hear about Finn's Lymphoma. We see so much of this awful cancer at our clinic. It seems to hit any breed, very sad. A friend of mine lost her 3 year old Bernese Mountain Dog to it, after getting a year in remission from Chemo. Her thoughts on treating other dogs were very similar to yours. She said that though that particular dog did well, her current dog would've never been able to take all the treatments. Thanks for posting this. I hope Finn continues feeling good, and driving you nuts with the AFLAC duck!Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17598891218608102466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-87149946863182788502011-07-06T11:09:54.034-07:002011-07-06T11:09:54.034-07:00@Dragon: Thx. It was scary, but maybe it'll he...@Dragon: Thx. It was scary, but maybe it'll help someone else.<br /><br />@AKPG: Yes, and gratitude - because he's still well. X your fingers this continues. I'm certainly Xing mine... and feeling grateful, every day that stupid Aflack duck wakes me up! :DAKDDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-61059191790388238882011-07-04T14:22:38.760-07:002011-07-04T14:22:38.760-07:00Tears and laughter........Tears and laughter........Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-58956430145170598832011-06-29T09:02:54.555-07:002011-06-29T09:02:54.555-07:00So glad you shared this.So glad you shared this.Dragon43https://www.blogger.com/profile/10300731439715496511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-90822427537261246202011-06-29T08:50:27.284-07:002011-06-29T08:50:27.284-07:00I would never have done it if he'd been 12, an...I would never have done it if he'd been 12, and at 10 I would have hesitated, but 8.......... My first corgi lived to 16.5, and the second to 14.5. 8 should have been one of his prime years.....<br /><br />Having two other fatal issues on top of the cancer is what broke me, I think. Especially the DM.<br /><br />Sheesh.<br /><br />I guess I'm not ok with everything that lives dying. Or, at least, not when it's "too soon."<br /><br />:-/<br /><br />Happy and bouncy is excellent. Our 12-yr-old beagleX? was bouncing all over the bed last night chasing a tossed toilet paper roll....I need orangehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16819543886910857718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-78626105604195319302011-06-28T21:45:05.373-07:002011-06-28T21:45:05.373-07:00My first Border Collie had cardiac hemagio. His l...My first Border Collie had cardiac hemagio. His last echo showed that greater than 90% of his right atrium, right ventricle and left atrium were occluded by tumor. His cardiologist could not believe he was still alive at that point. I let him go peacefully the day he stopped eating and chasing tennis balls.<br /><br />My second Border Collie had hepatic hemangio. He was best buds with the first one that I lost, and the exact same age at his time of diagnosis, so when he had an abdominal bleed and everything screamed hemagio I went into denial mode. I just could not believe that I had two dogs in a row with such a horrible disease. A week later he had another bleed. I almost changed my mind about deciding against surgery and I was still very much in denial. Somehow I found the strength to let him go, but it was nearly 18 months before I could look at his medical records with fresh eyes and know beyond a doubt that I made the right choice.<br /><br />I tell people that hemagio is my arch nemesis. During school I even had an 8 month old Morgan as a patient with hemagio. His tumor was layered between the muscles of his shoulder.Dangerous Dreams Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11546933889205383272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-72881167124741908122011-06-28T13:50:02.262-07:002011-06-28T13:50:02.262-07:00@INO: Wow, that's rough. But two years is a GO...@INO: Wow, that's rough. But two years is a GOOD long time in a dog's life, so your treatment was very successful from the dog's point of view. And if your assessment is that your dog was a stoic sort, not one to mind treatment - well, then you're probably right. Who knew him better than you, after all? <br /><br />I have had dogs I treated very agressively for cancer. I'll post, one day, about my dog Merrik. We did 15 fractions of radiation on her over 3 weeks. Ten of those days were hard for her, but I got four good years out of it for her (and for me, come to that.) An excellent trade. Those last 4 years were the best of her life. In retrospect I'm REALLY glad I treated her so agressively.<br /><br />Meanwhile Finn is happy, bouncy, energetic and obnoxious - all of which make me grin from ear to ear. <br /><br />As for where peace is... well, I think it is where you find it, and that may be different for everyone. Everything that lives, dies. That's okay. I just wasn't prepared to have my eight year old Border collie die that week - and the way he was going, it would not have been long. I'm wondering if in this case that sense of peace was some instinct of mine, letting me know we weren't there yet, and I should just ease up for a minute before I went all overboard. I have these intuitions from time to time; I'm not entirely sure where they come from, but they have generally proven useful.AKDDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-44152255412285549942011-06-28T08:01:30.463-07:002011-06-28T08:01:30.463-07:00Nah, you can't de-voice the duck -- it's h...Nah, you can't de-voice the duck -- it's his favorite thing about it, no? :-) You might hide it at bed time, though, so it doesn't wake you up?<br /><br />My Buzz-dog loved squeakies of any sort. The only thing he loved more than squeaking them was removing the squeaker.....<br /><br />It took them a while to decide if he had lymphoma or leukemia, and I think they finally came down on the side of leukemia, though they wanted him to stay on the lymphoma chemo protocol. CHOP, I think. He was, of course, eight when diagnosed. Not old for a corgi........<br /><br />This was in 2007; the names of things are escaping me. The first two doses of IV chemo didn't bring his white cells down the way they wanted, but the first dose of the truly scary adriamycin did. He went into remission, and stayed that way.<br /><br />Then his kidneys began to fail (I was assured that none of his chemo had been especially hard on his kidneys), and he began to go down in back (degenerative myelopathy, I think).<br /><br />He was very stoic about treatment. I don't think he hated it. I hope not.<br /><br />I stopped all chemo in 2009 when he had to go on kidney food, figuring that everything might as well go wrong at once. His kidneys failed him about two weeks after he could no longer walk, just over two years after the cancer diagnosis..<br /><br />I wish I knew where peace is. I believe that what I did for/to him was not wrong -- but I can't think about any of this without being a mess.<br /><br />Hoping with everyone else that you have many many good days (weeks, months, years) with Finn, and that your peace stay with you.I need orangehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16819543886910857718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-38766674780930662472011-06-27T10:21:05.359-07:002011-06-27T10:21:05.359-07:00@MM: Truer words, and all that. :)
@Dangerous: He...@MM: Truer words, and all that. :)<br /><br />@Dangerous: Hemangio *sucks*. I'm sorry that you - and your dogs - had to go through that. I've had the two LSA's, but also a meningioma, an osteosarcoma and a soft-tissue sarcoma. They all suck, but some suck worse than others.<br /><br />@Miss Mouse: I'll be sure to go get squeaky-toy surgery tips from your video! :) (Strangely, I used to do a lot of needlework, but anymore, I find it hard to stitch things up unless I have an intrument to hold the needle, and the needle is curved. You should see me stab my fingers to death with a straight needle.) :pAKDDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-519986563473747992011-06-27T05:44:40.457-07:002011-06-27T05:44:40.457-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Wednesdayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07601299794563593457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-76687026333037868672011-06-27T05:39:34.907-07:002011-06-27T05:39:34.907-07:00So glad he's doing well! :) I had to do a sq...So glad he's doing well! :) I had to do a squeakerectomy once and made an informative video :p http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjCF_VtWfxMMiss Mousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08692653356775272248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-41332958270477571392011-06-26T23:51:52.503-07:002011-06-26T23:51:52.503-07:00Good. That is all: Just Good.Good. That is all: Just <i>Good</i>.MaskedManhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01847118110075039840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-45548848054015940312011-06-26T20:54:51.079-07:002011-06-26T20:54:51.079-07:00I am so sorry to hear about Finn. I've lost 2...I am so sorry to hear about Finn. I've lost 2 Border Collies in a row to hemangiosarcoma. When I diagnosed the second dog I found myself very angry at how unfair it was to watch yet another dog fall to the same type of cancer. I am glad that you have been able to find peace. It will make whatever time you have left with Finn much more enjoyable for both of you.Dangerous Dreams Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11546933889205383272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-67132306268082992612011-06-26T20:52:08.158-07:002011-06-26T20:52:08.158-07:00@Holly: Yeah, me too. He's sprawled out with c...@Holly: Yeah, me too. He's sprawled out with complete abandon at my feet even as I type, not a care in the world. Does my heart good. :)<br /><br />@Jiller: Thanks - and, you're welcome. Even wihtout my personal stake, I'd be interested in this story from a medical aspect. And maybe someday it might be of some use to someone else; comiseration or guide.<br /><br />@HDsheena: He's doing great, touch wood. And fair point about the Aflack duck. I guess it lives to quack another day!AKDDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10533003137934379516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-51193065398057756432011-06-26T15:22:07.004-07:002011-06-26T15:22:07.004-07:00I hope Finn is still doing alright. And you better...I hope Finn is still doing alright. And you better let him keep the darn AFLACK noise.. you'll miss it soon enough. *hugs*<br /><br />Archie is definitely in need of Paper-towel-eaters-anonymous, as well as general-made-of-trees-eaters-anonymous! Cardboard, paper, carton, it's all fair game!<br /><br />West mostly sticks with corrugated cardboard as his favourite.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06612738073966453343noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-70424659568964294402011-06-26T10:37:02.201-07:002011-06-26T10:37:02.201-07:00wow what an amazing story! I hope all goes well an...wow what an amazing story! I hope all goes well and he continues to improve. Thanks so much for sharing this with us.Jillerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03823661869234336280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6589783647802842771.post-33944777569657553902011-06-25T19:14:22.383-07:002011-06-25T19:14:22.383-07:00I am so glad you have the time to be with him. How...I am so glad you have the time to be with him. However long or short it may be.Hollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17685436243608973979noreply@blogger.com