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Our newly adopted dog woke up one day with a small, red bump on her back. She is about 1 yeaes old, a chocolate lab/bulldog/beagle(??) Mix. The bump does not bother her at all. She still plays, eats with gusto, and no sign of any changes. She is going to the vet later today to confirm what most people think it is: histiocystoma or mast cell. I am crossing my fingers that it is histiocystoma or a bug bite. My sister lost her 3 year-old rottie to mast cell so I would not react well if Mushu gets it at this young age.
As we wait for our vet visit, my husband and I have to have that conversation: How far do we go, if it's malignant? We love our pets. They sleep on our beds, hog up our couch, eats good food, and pampered with walks, play, love and kisses every day. But we are not rich. Pet insurance was not a feasible option for us - if I can pay up front, I don't want another headache dealing with possible denied claims for bs reasons (I work for an insurance company). I do have an emergency fund saved up for her but the vet bills will quickly eat it up.
Not only that, we have consider our other dog and elderly cat who has renal failure. They need our attention just as much as Mushu, and the same amount of devotion.
We both came to the conclusion that we will fight for Mushu, if the results are dire, because she is still young and healthy. If she was in her last years and had other crippling health problems, we would go to a more conservative route. However, I noticed some owners would go bankrupt for their dogs, even the old ones. Others say you could use the same amount to save another dog who is healthy and need a home.
I'm sorry to hear this. I'm hoping it's just a cyst. One of mine had one - I got scared but it was fine, a quick lance and after care.
I would recommend looking into CareCredit. It helped when I had to have surgery for one of mine. Yes, it's a credit card but they have always offered a no interest promotional period when I've had to use it.
As long as it had a reasonable chance of success and improved their quality and length of life, all the way.
We just had to put down a dog after more than 5 years battling 3 different kinds of cancer and she was still in great shape until the last month or so and that's how we knew.
As long as it had a reasonable chance of success and improved their quality and length of life, all the way.
We just had to put down a dog after more than 5 years battling 3 different kinds of cancer and she was still in great shape until the last month or so and that's how we knew.
Did you go thru NC State?
Ours has a brain tumor most likely, first available appt is early August.
We're told all the treatment does is extend life by a few months, not sure if it's worth it or not. It's unfortunate we can't get in any earlier, as normally the earlier you get involved the longer the patient lives. 5 years is incredible, I would certainly sign up for that...
A small red bump? I would not jump to the cancerous conclusion right away. Don't borrow trouble - the odds are pretty good that this is nothing. And if it is something, the treatment might be just a one-time cash outlay. Labs are notorious for their skin problems, so this could just be an ingrown hair or an allergic reaction.
Now, I found a small bump on my border collie's underside when she was young. It was confirmed to be a cyst and I had the entire nipple chain removed. It was still benign at the time, and she has not had a recurrence or a major health problem since. She's 15 now and in kidney failure, but um, she's FIFTEEN.
In any case, I would do everything I could without jeopardizing my long-term financial security and the welfare of my other animals. If there was still a chance at a reasonable quality of life after unaffordable treatment, I would consider surrendering the dog if I thought it would be able to thrive with someone else (though my last few dogs would not have done well in that scenario at all).
Do what you can, and don't feel guilty if you can't do more. Most of all, minimize any suffering.
We took our basenji there when he had aspergillosis. It didn't end well, but I was thoroughly impressed with the facility and the level of care our dog got there.
I've learned that sometimes too much is just...too much. With our Buddy (the dog we took to NC State), after it was all over and we were nearly $5000 poorer, I realized that maybe we had gone too far. I loved Buddy, and he wasn't "old" (a 10 year old basenji is not too old) but the stress of the illness and the treatments we put him through...it breaks my heart to think about it now. I re-think our decision to pursue treatment at all costs all the time.
Now, that experience effects my thought process. There is a limit to what I'm willing to put my dog through. I've learned that I have to consider the treatments and what they will do to my dog (stress/anxiety) and if the end result is really worth it. Of course it is to me, but....it's such a difficult decision.
Each person must decide their limit for themselves based on the information, prognosis, etc. available at the time. And no two people will give you the same answer.
We sold our Condo, and moved into an apartment because the Vet Bills, and the Mortgage was squeezing us.....once Casey was gone, we bought another home, and I would not hesitate to do it again, but the biggest deciding factor is "Quality of Life"....I wouldn't spend a dime to prolong my pups life just to watch him deteriorate and suffer.
Our newly adopted dog woke up one day with a small, red bump on her back. She is about 1 yeaes old, a chocolate lab/bulldog/beagle(??) Mix. The bump does not bother her at all. She still plays, eats with gusto, and no sign of any changes. She is going to the vet later today to confirm what most people think it is: histiocystoma or mast cell. I am crossing my fingers that it is histiocystoma or a bug bite. My sister lost her 3 year-old rottie to mast cell so I would not react well if Mushu gets it at this young age.
As we wait for our vet visit, my husband and I have to have that conversation: How far do we go, if it's malignant? We love our pets. They sleep on our beds, hog up our couch, eats good food, and pampered with walks, play, love and kisses every day. But we are not rich. Pet insurance was not a feasible option for us - if I can pay up front, I don't want another headache dealing with possible denied claims for bs reasons (I work for an insurance company). I do have an emergency fund saved up for her but the vet bills will quickly eat it up.
Not only that, we have consider our other dog and elderly cat who has renal failure. They need our attention just as much as Mushu, and the same amount of devotion.
We both came to the conclusion that we will fight for Mushu, if the results are dire, because she is still young and healthy. If she was in her last years and had other crippling health problems, we would go to a more conservative route. However, I noticed some owners would go bankrupt for their dogs, even the old ones. Others say you could use the same amount to save another dog who is healthy and need a home.
How far would you go for your pet?
Every situation is different.
Personally, we've had our elderly dogs in lined ***** pants and belly bands for many months to over a year when they became incontinent. We've traded off sleeping on the couch because our elderly dog with canine cognitive dysfunction (on costly meds for it) paced at night. We've spent thousands on a week long stay in the local 24/7 emergency veterinary hospital ICU...CareCredit was our friend. We've declined chemo and an MRI with chemo for older dogs who we felt would not tolerate the process well.
We had pet insurance up until our multi-dog household reached four dogs. At and after that point it was just too costly.
Every situation is different. Every dog is different. Every person is different. There is no right answer beyond the basic rule of considering your dog's comfort above all else. There is only what is right for you and your dog.
All that said, please don't suspect the worst. Dogs grow all manner of bumps that, much more often than not, amount to nothing.
Over the years I have learned to relax even if I find a lump as most lumps are nothing,except for a long frightening sounding name.
Do get them check out by a vet as that is important and can give you piece of mind. In all of my many dog owning years and all the lumps I have taken a dog to the vets for there were only two I was really worried about and one was a very fast growing strange looking lump on Dash's leg. It came off that same day we went to the vets but it turned out it was some harmless bump with a very long name.
The other was the large lump I found on the front Of Jazz's chest, the vet filling in for my vet who was off that day said Oh that is nothing it is just a fatty tumor, but my gut said different and I told her so and she kept saying really I feel it is just a fatty tumor even when she had a hard time aspirating some fluid she kept telling me it is nothing. I left the vets very doubtful as I said my gut said this was serious. Got home to see my answering machine blinking and it was her saying, I am so sorry but I just looked at that fluid and am sending it to pathology..well it turned out to be a nerve sheath sarcoma. ( cancer)
We consulted with Dash's oncologist ( he had nasal cancer at the time). His advice was get if taken off ASAP and try to get large margins on it. My real vet did the surgery the next day and despite it having some long fingers he got clean margins so that was it no further treatment. Being I was already loosing one dog to nasal cancer I think my vet did try his hardest to get those clean margins on Jazz so I was lucky and thankful for that!
As for mast cell tumors my cousins aussie has had issues with those and despite the fact they can be very deadly her dog was part of a clinical trial years go and has done great and an now is an old dog. So even when it is a cancer sometimes it is worth the effort to find a treatment.
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