MomPatty

Last Tuesday we found several lumps on our dog Sapphire. We took her to the vet on Wednesday and he did a fine needle aspiration and told us yesterday (Saturday) that it was lymphosarcoma. We are devastated and heartbroken. The vet said chemo would be very expensive and probably wouldn't work. He gave her anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. He said that lymphosarcoma is not painful but can be somewhat uncomfortable. He told us to just wait until Sapphire is not eating any more. He said when Sapphire has more bad days than good, then it is time to put her down. But how do you know a bad day from a good day? How do I know if she's in pain? I found a website on how to recognize when your pet is in pain, but it wasn't very helpful. She has some signs that she's in pain but how many signs are enough? Do I wait until she has four signs? Five? Six? Twenty? You get the idea. Right now all she does is lay on her side and breathe really hard. She does not seem happy but she still wags her tail when we pet her and she still barks at the neighbor's cat. I have not stopped crying since I found out. I also have 3 children (21, 16 and 12). They want to wait until she's not eating, and she's eating like a horse! It's just so sad because she was always so full of life. I don't know what to do. I don't want to wait too long, but we've only known for one day and we haven't had time to say goodbye. We're going to ask about the prednisone tomorrow so maybe that will buy us some time.

Thanks to all of you who have put your blood, sweat, and (literally) tears into this site. I think it's a big help. As I said, I've been crying almost non-stop since yesterday and I was beginning to think there was something wrong with me. Thanks for letting me see that I'm not the only one in the boat.

Meesh

Dear MomPatty,
First of all, get a second opinion! I can't believe your vet would be so insenstive and send you home with no advice or treatments.
My baby Hamlet was diagnosed with lymphoma at the end of January and is in FULL REMISSION today! Lymphoma is one of the most treatable canine cancers. If you can't afford chemo, there are definitely holistic/homeopathic options. And, if you want to do chemo but the finances are an issue there are places to go for financial assistance - one of them is the Magic Bullet Fund. We took the chemo route with Hammy and he had very few side effects through out the protocol. We also supplemented his protocol with holistic treatments and now that he has completed chemo continue with those treatments to maintain his remission.
While you're contemplating your next step, switch Sapphire to a grain-free diet, bottled or filtered water, and put her on a good quality Omega-3 supplement. If you think you're going to try chemo, don't put her on a steroid until she starts (most protocols include prednisone) as it may cause some drug resistance. But, if you are not going to go with chemo, get her on pred immediately; it'll help with the inflammation (discomfort) and stimulate his appetite. And, find a good antioxidant. Now that Hamlet has finished chemo (there are some schools of thought that the antioxidants interfere with the chemo drugs), we have him on CAS Options in addition to his other supplements.
Please ask questions. Don't give up. There is hope.
NOT TODAY, NOT WITHOUT A FIGHT!
Michelle & Hamlet (and Rufus, too)
Dx 01/29/10 Stage Va, B-cell lymphoma including liver, spleen and bone marrow involvement
Tx 02/01/10
FULL REMISSION 04/26/10
Completed protocol 06/28/10
Remission Confirmed 07/16/10, 08/16/10

MomPatty

Meesh,

Thank you for your response. I have a call in to the vet about the prednisone but he hasn't returned my call yet. I was also a little upset that I had to ask about the prednisone and that the vet didn't bring it up. My vet is usually very good. Sapphire seems to be doing better this morning. I have a few questions and hope you can help. What is a grain-free diet? Is there a dog food that offers that, or should I just make it myself? If so, are there recipes on the internet? She already only gets filtered water so that's not a problem. Where do I find an Omega-3 Supplement? I guess a health food store would have something like that, but can dogs take the same supplement as humans? And how much should I give her? Also, can you recommend an antioxidant? Is that also something we can find at a health food store? I'm sorry to ask so many questions. I know we're not going to have Sapphire as long as we had hoped, but I'd like to keep her around as long as we can.

Meesh

Feel free to ask as many questions as you have. That's why we're all here. Our holistic vet recommended Wellness Core which I buy at Petco, but there are other commercially available grain-free kibbles on the market. The bags will say grain-free on them. And, the salespeople should be able to direct you in to the right products. I also add in a home cooked mix. Hamlet is 75 lbs and this recipe lasts him and my other 75 lb dog 1 week:

2 lbs ground beef, cooked, undrained
1 can yams, drained, sent through rice strainer
1 bag of steam-in-the-bag microwaveable broccoli
3 plum tomatoes, chopped

Also as a treat, I give my boys sardines in oil, one or two fillets at a time. Cottage cheese and plain or vanilla yogurt is also good.
Our holistic vet recommended Nordic Naturals Cod Liver Oil for Pets but you can use human grade OTC supplements. The nice thing with pet specific supplements is the dosing instructions are on the packaging but human-grade supplements tend to be a little less expensive. She also recommends a probiotic, specifically Animal Essentials Plant Enzymes and Probiotics. I get most of Hamlet's supplements from her office or two websites: OnlyNaturalPet.com or Drs. Foster and Smith. Those are pretty universally recommended as far as supplements go. I use Genesis Resources CAS Options for an antioxidant. Also, liver support is important in cancer cases; a general liver support supplement is Milk Thistle (again OTC from your pharmacy or health food store is fine).
You should try to find a holistic vet in your area who can make recommedations specific to Sapphire for the rest of her regimen. This website allows you to search by zip code for a holistic vet: AHVMA - American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association. Hamlet is taking several other supplements but I think it's best to get an individualized assessment for your baby. Each dog is different and this horrible disease affects each dog differently.
Hope that helps. Keep asking questions. There are a lot of people on this site with a lot of experience and I'll continue to help as much as I can.
Michelle & Hamlet (and Rufus, too)

MomPatty

Hi Meesh,

I just wanted to drop a quick note to say thank you. We started Sapphire on the prednisone and the supplements and she seems to be doing much better. We've also started her on the grain-free diet that you recommended. She's breathing easier and she's much more active. I know it's not a cure, but hopefully it will give me and my kids some time to adjust. I'm just glad I'm able to pet her without turning into a human bouillon cube! Thanks again for all of your advice and I'll keep you updated on how she's doing. If you're ever in the San Diego area let me know. I owe you dinner!

Patty

Meesh

Hi Patty,
I'm glad that Sapphire is doing better. Definitely keep us posted on her progress. I don't think I completely got rid of the teary eye until 2 months into treatment. For the first week after diagnosis, I couldn't NOT cry when I looked at him. But, it's important to keep our emotions in check; our babies can sense our emotions and feed off them. Remember, they don't know they're sick and live in the moment. We've got to try to do the same for their sakes. Thanks for the dinner invite; I hear San Diego is gorgeous. Not sure when I'll get a vacation next though...chemo treatments took a big chunk out of that fund! But, I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. We'll keep you and Sapphire and the whole family in our thoughts and prayers.
Michelle & Hamlet (and Rufus, too)

Loki

Patty
Thank you so much for telling me about this site. I have added it to my growing list of sites I visit daily (since all this started). Bruiser is at 2 weeks today and still doing well, thank you for the thoughts and prayers, I hope Sapphire is doing well. I am keeping you and Sapphire in my thoughts as well.
John

TJandDante

Patty
My dog had 4 really good months after the bad news from the vet. He wasnt eating at all, but the Prednisone helped bring his appetite back. We got the Holistic vet to make a house call and he got us started on several supplements and we weaned him off the Prednisone. He ate well and went for his walks every day until the day before we had to have him put to sleep.

I cant tell you exactly how you'll know when the time comes, but you will know. The prednisone shrinks the lymph nodes for a while, but when they grow back they get pretty big. The ones in Dantes neck got big, did not seem to hurt him, but the day he had to be put down he was reluctant to get up or move, and was breathing shallow rapid but quiet breaths. I called a vet and he said he was either not getting enough oxygen or was in pain, and I knew it was time. It will be the hardest thing ever but you will make the decision out of love for your pet. Hopefully you will have many more months of good times and memories before that time comes.
We are here for you
TJ

hershey

Best wishes Patty for continued great days with Sapphire. You'll know when it's time, and hopefully that will be quite some time away. We lost our 10 year old Wesite, Hershey, in July, 2 weeks after being diagnosed with Stage 5 B Lymphoma. No sypmtoms until diagnosis, and it just happened so fast, that within 2 weeks his chest was full of fluid and he couldn't breath, nothing was working, his quality of life was very poor, and we made the heartbreaking decision to put him down. Saddest day of my life and still a big emptiness at home. Hopefully that time is far away for you. The members here are a great and helpful support system. I could not have coped without them. Good luck.

MomPatty

We had to put our sweet Sapphire to sleep yesterday and it was one of the hardest days of my life. She seemed to be doing okay, but around 2:00 p.m. she had a seizure. I knew it was time so I called the mobile vet about coming to our house to put her down. Because it was a holiday she couldn't come until today, but Sapphire couldn't wait. Around 8:30 p.m. she started having seizures about every 10 minutes or so. It was so horrible, especially for my children. (I was out buying back-to-school lunch stuff so they were home alone with her). We took her to the 24 hour emergency hospital and it was over very quickly. I'm not even sure she knew what was going on but we all talked to her and petted her. I know that we will always love her.

I want to thank all of you for your support - not only to me but to everyone who comes on to this website. I feel like we're all members of this awful club that we don't want to be a part of, but we haven't been given any choice about joining. I will continue to pray for all of you and for others who are forced to join our club. God Bless and thanks again.

Patty & Sapphire