My dog is 11 or 12 years old and she has mammary cancer she has cancer sores and my parents are talking about putting her to sleep ive cried all day does anyone know if their in pain? does it hurt them? she doesnt act like shes in pain i just know the sores bother her i dont know what to do i dont want to see her go ive had her since i was in 1st grade but i really dont want her to be in pain if shes in pain then i guess we have to but if shes not is there anyway to get rid of the sores? or does anyone know? i hope so because i really dont know what to do we didnt have enough money to get them removed... i think shes had it for about 6 months i dont know..around that time.i just hope someone knows if their in pain i mean she chews on it and licks it but she runs around plays with me acts like shes fine..and i just dont know what to do...
2007-11-12 12:09:42 · 11 answers · asked by Dusty D 1 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Not all the time. Many dogs dont seem to react with pain as a symptom. Some only have swelling and leakage. Eventually if let go untreated or medicated I'm sure it will. It's better to let the dog go, rather than let it eat her up. Sorry
2007-11-12 12:16:32 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
My dog also had mammary cancer, but she had the most aggressive form of it. Mammary cancer is treatable though. You can just take her to the vet and they will remove it. Basically, they need to do an xray of her chest first to see if the cancer has spread yet. My dog had mammary tumors for a year before my parents took her to the vet, and the cancer had NOT spread (and she had a really aggressive form of the cancer).
If the cancer has not spread, they will do blood work to make sure she is healthy enough for surgery. She probably is since she is only 11 or 12 yrs old. When they do the surgery, they will remove all or most of her mammary glands. They can treat the sores with a cream called Animax (it is like a Super Neosporin). She should recover from the surgery within a day or 2.
It is possible that the cancer can re-occur, but that is only possible if the vet does not remove all the mammary glands during the first surgery. Even then, it usually takes awhile for the cancer to reoccur. It could be years before she gets another tumor.
Here is what happened to my dog: My dog had very large mammary tumors. About half of her glands were full of tumors fo a year before my parents finally took her to the vet. The vet removed the tumors and some of the closer mammary glands, but left a few glands. A biopsy showed that the tumors were cancerous and it was a very aggressive form of cancer. The surgery went great and she was tumor-free for about 3 years. After 3 yrs, she developed another small tumor in 1 of her remaining glands. I immediately had it removed along with her other mammary glands and a biopsy shows that it was also cancerous. 2.5 yrs later, there is no cancer and she is completely fine. She is a very happy dog, and getting her the cancer surgery was the best thing I ever did. There is no reason to put her down unless the cancer has spread beyond treatment. Email me if you have more questions.
Good Luck!
btw, don't forget, she needs Animax for the sores.
2007-11-12 12:48:17 · answer #2 · answered by iloveeeyore 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just think about when you have a sore, does it hurt? She is probably in pain but how much is the question. If the pain is to the point where she no longer finds enjoyment in living then the best thing to do would be to put her down but if there is the will to live, let her live. We had a dog actually fracture her spine but would still try to go for runs with my dad and wanted to do everything with us. She ended up living for another year (with some pain meds) before she went in her sleep one night. The best thing would be to talk with a vet and get their opinion on it.
2007-11-12 12:17:56 · answer #3 · answered by Meg 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well if you guys can't afford the surgery to remove them it's only fair to her to put her down. If it has spread through her body already then now is the time to put her down. Dogs get this when they aren't spayed at 6 months of age even if they are spayed later they are already predisposed. It's good that she had such a nice kid in her life to take care of her and she had a long happy life. It's hard to tell when dogs are in pain sometimes but the open sores probably hurt some. If the cancer hasn't spread through her body she might not be in that much pain. I'm very sorry that you have to go through this.
2007-11-12 12:24:01 · answer #4 · answered by bassetmom 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I personally would have her put down now. I know it sounds harsh, however--better to end life when she can still play and pay attention to things she loves and is not occupied with pulsating pain to the point she can't interact or do anything but try to sleep. And you would feel much worse seeing her waste away and loose control of her bodily functions. So sorry! I lost my old Dane at 11 from cancer and I wish as soon as it was diagnosed that I just had her put down. She couldn't hold her bowels, she would lift her head and bark at the sky, sometimes doing the right thing really hurts, but you will know it was the kindest thing.
2007-11-12 12:22:19 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Any disease process that causes tissue damage and destruction can be painful. Surgery would be best - removal of the entire mammary chain. 50% of mammary tumors are malignant and 50% of them metastisize to normal tissue (abdomen and lungs). I'm sure the open sores are painful for her. The only way to get the sores to go away is to remove the tumors (i.e. mammary gland). When abnormal cells are present, tissue growth is abnormal and normal healing cannot take place.
It sounds like you really love your dog and don't want to see her suffer, however it sounds like she may be in disconfort. These sores can become infected and that is painful as well. Only you and your family can understand if she is suffering or not. The kindest thing you can do for her is to end her suffering and give her peace with honor, respect and love.
2007-11-12 12:20:22 · answer #6 · answered by Diana 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
No the sadness want fade. I lost a Siamese a while back. He was very special to me. Take comfort in knowing she doesn't hurt and suffer anymore. As with loseing any family member try to think of how special your pet was. Seems you did every thing you could for your dog. I'm sorry I can't add more to help you cope. Jim
2016-04-03 21:41:59 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's cancer honey. Do you really want her around when she starts showing the extreme pain she will wind up in ? How about when she just spends days at a time on the floor not moving, so you have to walk up to her and poke her to see if shes still alive or not? It can happen at any time. Won't that make you feel much worse that you have to watch her like that? Please do the humane thing, if you cannot afford to attempt treatment.
2007-11-12 12:22:46 · answer #8 · answered by boots6 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The one question you have to ask yourself is, "Am I keeping her alive for ME or for HER?"
The answer to that question will help you answer your other questions.
If she has open lesions, and chew and licks them she is probably in some pain. Dogs want to please their owners, so they will continue doing some things because they know it makes you happy.
I was in your same position last March. It was devastating to put my dog down, but I'm happy knowing that she isn't suffering anymore.
2007-11-12 12:16:39 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If they "bother" her, she is in pain. Dogs do not show pain the way people do. By the time they are really showing pain, they are REALLY hurting!!!
The kindest thing to do is let her go.
It also sounds as if even if you had the money, it is too late for surgery to be effective.
2007-11-12 12:16:19 · answer #10 · answered by ARE YOUR NEWFS GELLIN'? 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋