Should I do an MRI or not.....

Dawn, I don't have any advice for you, but I commend you for being strong for Chandler. He sounds like a very sweet boy and is lucky to have you as a mom. Thinking of you.
 
Our Louie has high blood pressure, collapsed trachea and has a history of pancreatitis. Now he has bladder cancer. His tumor is in a place where it it inoperatable, we chose to not put him through chemo, not because of money but because we want him to have the best quality of life for as long as possible. Chemo would not change anything, the end result is always the same. We have known he has cancer for the past two months and he has been doing remarkable well, we are just loving him for every day he has left. It is very hard to look into their eyes and know that the end is sooner reather than later, you don't take any day for granted. The best treatment that you can give Chandler is your love and extra treats!
 
Dawn, I'm so sorry to hear about Chandler and him not eating. :cry: I had the same problem with Rusty for the past year or so. He was recently diagnosed this past spring with bladder cancer that we found through an ultra sound. We decided not to operate due to his age (he just turned 14) but put him on medication. We came to this conclusion after many discussions with our vet. Our vet said that the tumor was in a location that it was operable, but there are still risks involved. He also felt that Rusty has had the tumor for a couple of years as we had an x-ray done previously and it looks to be in the same exact spot. Maybe you can talk to your regular vet who knows Chandler's history and ask him what he thinks about the possible diagnosis and treatment. That may help you decide on whether or not to do the MRI.

As to Rusty, he has dropped 10 lbs in the past year, but recently, he decided that he wants to eat again. I hope Chandler will too. Good luck.
 
Char, I'm so sorry to hear about Louis, But I'm happy to hear he has been doing as well as can be expected. I appreciate your advice at a time when you are going through so much yourself.

We'll keep you and your family in our prayers,Dawn Chandler and Gypsy
 
Penny, I'm sorry to hear Rusty has Bladder Cancer. Wow! I can't believe he started to eat again after a year that's great ! That's why I still try everyday to entice Chandler with something yummy at meal time. What was done for Rusty during the time he wasn't eating to keep him going. Do you have any suggestions for me?

We're praying for you and Rusty, Dawn Chandler and Gypsy
 
My very first Sheltie, Blossom, had a brain tumor. We opted out of surgery and chemo for her and chose a homeopathic route. She was given three months to live and we had her for 18 months. My Mom says that the supplement did wonders. I am having a brain block on the name of this supplement, but will get it and let you know. I do remember that it was expensive. This was probably 15 years ago or more.
 
dawns2shelties said:
Penny, I'm sorry to hear Rusty has Bladder Cancer. Wow! I can't believe he started to eat again after a year that's great ! That's why I still try everyday to entice Chandler with something yummy at meal time. What was done for Rusty during the time he wasn't eating to keep him going. Do you have any suggestions for me?
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I am sure you probably tried all these, but this is what we did. You might also be limited to his diet due to his pancreatis. Most worked for a short time before we moved on to he next option. We started with adding warm water to the kibble. Then we started warming it up. We also added various brands and kinds of wet food to the kibble. We had good luck with that for some time. He seemed to like the venison and duck flavored foods. One in particular was Petkind, venison. But I had to feed him with a fork after awhile. :uhoh: When he completely stopped eating, we switched to ground beef, chicken, eggs, rice. We switched it up until he stopped eating them and then we went back to the kibble and wet foods as we have a lot of different kinds in the house. Almost looks like a petstore... We found that at most, he would stop eating for 2 -3 days, but he would always start eating a little bit after that as I think he was really hungry. When he stopped eating completely, we would feed him treats to get something into him. The vet said it's better than nothing. We also started to feed him senior supplements as we were worried that he wasn't getting a balanced diet. We currently are having success with Fromm 4 Star duck and sweet potato. Strange thing is, he was on that before for awhile before he stopped eating, but our other dog Sophie is on it and we had a fresh bag and he decided that he wanted to eat that. We are still hand feeding him, but we don't mind if that's the only way we can get him to eat.

Hopefully there is something here that might be new to you and will work for Chandler.
 
I think so many of us can relate to your situation. I am so sorry your going through this.

The one dog I had taught me a lesson. He had problems starting at three and every year they became worse. I stuck so much money into him and I learned I wasn't doing this just for him, but for myself. By doing what I did keeping him alive I didn't do him any favors. My boy was 7 when I put him down, and it was hard for me to cry, because he had suffered enough, and I knew he was at peace. I can only post my position with my setter.

He ended up with cancer, and I donated his body to Purdue University to gain knowledge.

It takes alot of soul searching, but never ever blame yourself, or question yourself if you did the right thing. Your a great mom, and enjoy all your days ahead.
 
danisgoat said:
My very first Sheltie, Blossom, had a brain tumor. We opted out of surgery and chemo for her and chose a homeopathic route. She was given three months to live and we had her for 18 months. My Mom says that the supplement did wonders. I am having a brain block on the name of this supplement, but will get it and let you know. I do remember that it was expensive. This was probably 15 years ago or more.
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I would appreciate if you remember the name of the supplement you could let me know. I would rather spend money making him comfortable over time than $1500.00 on a test that wouldn't change anything.
 
sable said:
I think so many of us can relate to your situation. I am so sorry your going through this.

The one dog I had taught me a lesson. He had problems starting at three and every year they became worse. I stuck so much money into him and I learned I wasn't doing this just for him, but for myself. By doing what I did keeping him alive I didn't do him any favors. My boy was 7 when I put him down, and it was hard for me to cry, because he had suffered enough, and I knew he was at peace. I can only post my position with my setter.

He ended up with cancer, and I donated his body to Purdue University to gain knowledge.

It takes alot of soul searching, but never ever blame yourself, or question yourself if you did the right thing. Your a great mom, and enjoy all your days ahead.
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I want to thank you for sharing your experience with me. I'm so sorry your setter was struck by illness at such a young age, it's very tough. I also want to commend you on your courage and love of animals for donating your beloved dog to save others from this horrible disease. What a gift you have given many of us by doing so.
 
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