As I am coming to terms with the reality of my recent great loss, I have been researching and reading (
many of you know well by now that I can be quite annoying in this way!) so I want to inform you pet owners and pet lovers of this terrible and nasty affliction which my Livvie suffered from and then succumbed to so suddendly and so quickly.
After reading the emailed veterinarian's diagnosis (
on the fateful day, I just managed to hear bits and pieces which were gobbledygook so needed to research more) I am more convinced that mine had the nasty cancerous Hemangiosarcoma as opposed to the benign Hemangioma which is treatable but the cancer to none-cancer ratio is like 75% to 25%, i.e, only 1 in 4 dogs are lucky enough to have the benign tumor as they develop Hemoabdomen (
blood in the tummy, making then look bloated and ballooned all of a sudden). The dog will have to go on the surgeon's table, be cut open and then have the tumor removed if benign and if not, we humanely euthanized by the surgeon there and then if the spleen is already shattered and it's all a mess in there although a CT scan pre op, if available, can be more telling (
we did not have than option on this past NYE). Post surgery a dog with the benign version may live many more happy months if it recovers and even if it recovers post the cancerous version, the dog may give the owner 3-6 months with chemo and other recommended medical and dietary treatments.
Dogs do not suffer from heart attacks like us humans but this Hemoabdomen which is mostly manifested by Hemangiosarcoma is the doggy version of a "heart attack"!. One moment the dog can be as happy as it can be doing all things which it does and then all of a sudden, loss of appetite, loss of interest, complete lethargy and issues with the basic bodily functions. Some do collapse there and then and will need to go to ER on a gurney, which luckily for me was not the case.
The purpose of this blurb is to be more informative as opposed to alarmism; it does happen to dogs as often as a veterinarian ER seeing 2-3 cases of this on weekly basis. Some breeds seem to suffer more from this affliction than others (
GSDs and Goldies in particular) but it is prevalent across the spectrum; seeming to happen in older dogs in the 7-11+ age range but that is not an absolutely established baseline. Those owners who can afford the financial burden of op and post-op (
typically $10K+ in range), may eek out 2-3 months more time post op with their beloved companions, to enjoy all the devilish indulgences which the dog likes to its heart's desire before the owner will have to say goodbye. As hard as it may be without knowing with 100% certainty, I thank
@TRfromMT for stating the correct words, i.e, takes courage to make that fateful decision on behalf of a beloved family member, it really sucks balls but ultimately it will prove to be the correct decision to lessen the pet's suffering at the expense of the owner's lingering pain.
My condolences kind Sir.
