kayla1

I was able to get a consult with the head surgeon at Glen Waverley today, which was good. So we now have a plan, Maxie will go back on Wednesday for a full body CT scan. Assuming the cancer hasn't spread, he'll have surgery next week. Unfortunately because a drain was placed below the incision after the first operation it means the surrounding tissue all along the drain hole has been compromised, so that will also have to be removed with margins. They will definitely keep him in overnight after surgery. If it has spread and is not operable then we'll go straight to the oncologist there. He said because it's an intermediate grade, it's not the best case scenario but not the worst either. So I'm hoping for some good news when I speak to him again after the scan.

Yep, understood Kayla. The surgeon your vet suggested is probably an excellent surgeon with a history of successful results but I too would want a team of qualified oncologists caring for my dog after surgery. I'm sure, if you wish, the recommended surgeon could perform the surgery and then refer you on to an oncology team following surgery. The surgeon would be well aware of the need to try for clear margins. I doubt there would be a waiting period for you to see an oncologist. They're well aware that time is of the essence when dealing with a malignancy. I got in to see the oncologist at Glen Waverley the following day after my dog's pathology results were in. My vet called them and made the appointment for me. Yes, I'm sure the surgeon is very good. Hmm that's an idea, see the oncologist afterwards. Though I guess the only thing is that they're expecting to keep him in overnight, and because I'm not prepared to leave him in the clinic unattended, it would mean picking him up after surgery and taking him to AEC, which I'm worried would create more stress for him.

Thanks kirty.

Thanks persephone and VizslaMomma, and thanks for the info cavNrott. Actually Melb Vet Specialist was one of the centres I was going to call. I remembered they have oncology as I’ve seen the dermatologists there before. I heard or read somewhere that the oncologists are really busy(?), so I was going to call to see how quickly I could get in before asking my vet for referral. I’m just feeling really pressured time-wise and it has sent my head spinning. It's good to hear of a positive experience with the oncology team there, though obviously under sad circumstances for you. The pathologist report says neoplastic tissue extends to within 1mm of biopsy margin – doesn’t say clear – so I assume the margins are not clear. Which I guess is why the vets here have recommended further surgery asap. My regular vet has suggested one of the other vets down here on the Peninsula do the surgery, but he's not an oncologist and the clinic is not staffed overnight. So that's why I thought either Glen Waverley, or perhaps South Paws (which I've never been to before). Just trying to work it so the next surgery has the best chance of success, and fairly quickly.

Thanks for your thoughts cavNrott and Airedaler. cavNrott, I'm hoping to get it done this week. I'll call a couple of the specialist oncology centres tomorrow. The margins were very narrow so the sooner the better. Though I don't blame the vet for taking narrow margins, because at the time there was no indication of sarcoma so no reason to take wide margins. The FNA was taken with Maxie sedated, and a couple of samples were taken, and all that showed up was lymphocytes. The sarcoma was not picked up by the FNA. I don't know if this is common with sarcomas, but it's pretty scary to think of what could happen if someone relied on that and nothing further was done. It's a grade 2, which is some good news, but it's extensively inflamed. Because of the lymphocytes, it's possible that it's a lymph node that was infiltrated by the sarcoma. But nobody knows and the cause of the inflammation is unclear. So I really hope it hasn't spread, and that the surgeon is able to take wide margins.

The biopsy results have come back as soft tissue sarcoma. I'm still in shock because this result is so unexpected. No cancer cells showed up in the FNA samples, only lymphocytes. Apparently it's an unusual situation and it's possible that the lymphocytes are there because they are attacking the tumour. So Maxie has to have surgery to remove more surrounding tissue, and because the tumour was in the muscle, this means removing part of his stomach muscle. I was so excited about going to the vet tomorrow and finally getting his drain taken out from the lump removal op, now I feel awful that he'll have to go through more surgery, and xrays to see if it has spread.

I agree, that's such a beautiful photo of your husband and Bella. It says it all really. Run free Bella.

It's a beautiful video. I'm so sorry for your loss.

I paid $54 recently for the parvo titre test. My dog was getting a blood profile done so the blood for the titre test was taken at the same time. Can't remember how much I paid last time my dogs had it done, I'd have to go back and check - it was more than $54 but not overly expensive.

Well antibiotics didn't seem to help, and there have been no other reported cases of it occurring in the region where Maxie's lump is. The lump was smaller after the first sample was taken, now it's larger again. So Maxie is now booked in to have it removed, and it will be sent to pathology for further testing. Hopefully that will give us some answers as to what the cause is.

There is a difference between acute renal failure and chronic renal failure. The acute type can sometimes be reversed, presumably if it's treated early and aggressively. Perhaps that is what you were thinking of? Chronic renal failure is different as the damage cannot be reversed, but further damage can sometimes be slowed by adopting the kidney diet.

By the time a dog is showing symptoms of chronic kidney failure, the majority of kidney function has already been lost and it cannot be repaired. Sadly there is no cure. The only thing shown to improve quality of life, and sometimes slow the progression, is the strict kidney diet. Other medications and supplements can be added to help ease the symptoms as they arise. Sammyelle, I'm sorry that you're going through this with your beautiful girl. I lost my dog Coco to kidney failure last year. It's an awful thing. How is she going now, is she still eating?

Nothing really annoys me. Kayla doesn't like to sleep on the bed anymore, so it's only Annie and Maxie. Maxie is pretty good. Most of the year he sleeps in the same spot, on the pillow next to me. Except on cold winter nights when he snuggles under the doona - he gets under, leans on me and slides down, so he is pushed up as close to me as possible, then puts his head on my pillow. He is a creature of habit! Annie is a bit more adventurous and changes spots during the night. She's only small, but I'm still not left with much room when she curls up in the middle of the bed. On cold nights, she will give me a polite tap on the shoulder with her paw to let me know when she needs to come under the doona. :laugh:

I heard of a similar incident where a papillon was chasing a bird and ran straight into a brick wall. The poor little dog suffered a broken neck and didn't survive.

Sounds like he is doing exceptionally well. That's great!

This is my older girl Kayla. She's about 14yrs now. She is really slowing down lately and has a few health problems, but she is happy enough. Hoping for some cooler weather because the heat really knocks her around now.

Oh...I was in tears before I'd even finished reading the first line. Such a beautiful picture too. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Dyzney and Rebanne. DesertDobes, glad to hear your girl's lump is nothing to worry about. I've spoken to a couple of vets and they've never seen lymphoid hyperplasia in the location where Maxie's lump is, so they're going to try to find out if there have been any other cases reported. I'm monitoring for the next few days and if there is no change will commence antibiotics. But at the moment, we have no clue as to what is causing it unfortunately.

I don't know much about those conditions, but I just wanted to say I'm sorry to hear of your pup's problems. It must be an incredibly stressful time. I hope you get some good news from the xrays tomorrow.

I'd never heard of it either! I'm not finding much treatment info on google. The vet looked at the FNA samples and ruled out lipoma, foreign body, and MCT, but apart from that it was inconclusive. So it was sent to pathology. It's a firm oval-shaped lump and feels different to the lipomas that my other dog had - they were softer and moveable. It doesn't seem to be bothering him and he's acting normally. DesertDobes, I hope your girl's lump turns out to be nothing.

Maxie has a lump under his skin on his flank. The vet did a FNA and got a couple of samples, and the results from pathology have come back as lymphoid hyperplasia. The cause is unknown, but the vet thinks the results at this stage are 'encouraging' and to monitor for a week to see if it changes. I've done a search on here and can't find much at all. Don't suppose anyone knows anything about lymphoid hyperplasia? If so, how did you treat it?

Lovely to hear. :)

Poor Boof. Hope his splenectomy goes smoothly.

I've had white stuff on isqueak balls from Clean Run a couple of times. Not sure what it was, maybe they were older stock or sitting around for a while...don't know! I wiped it off anyway. No white stuff on this latest order though, they're all squeaky clean.

I've never ordered prescription vet meds online, but I'm pretty happy with my vet because they don't charge me the dispensing fee for one of Kayla's ongoing medications. It usually costs $60 for 20 days supply but I pay $45 without the dispensing fee, so a decent saving. Looking at the same product online, it's slightly cheaper again taking into account postage. But in my case I'm happy to continue buying it from my vet. Depends on the product though and how often you need to buy it.