Anyone had a pet diagnosed with osteosarcoma?

[ZeroZeroSeven]

Long story short...my parents dog (which is sort of like my dog since he was around when I still lived with them and I still dogsit when they're out of town), was diagnosed with osteosarcoma.  He's got a huge mass (think the size of a grapefruit) just above his front paw.  I took him to the vet yesterday and 3 small masses in his lungs, so it's already metastasized.  The vet gave me a 10 day supply of prednisone and cephalexin to make him more comfortable and see how his demeanor improves.  He hadn't been eating for a few days but starting him on the prednisone seems to have picked up his appetite.  The problem is he still seems lethargic and he won't even get up to do his dog business (I spent an hour cleaning crap off of his backside yesterday before I took him to the vet.)

The vet basically gave me three options...put him to sleep, try medication to see if it improves his quality of life or amputate the limb.  Has anyone had any experience dealing with this?  It seems like the dog has already given up, so I'm wondering if we should just make it easy on him and put him to sleep or if there's something else we could try before resigning to that fact.

[Ja Rhule]

How old is he and how much he weights?

[ZeroZeroSeven]

He's about 7 years old, Great Pyrenees.  He was about 110 lbs, but he's 100 lbs now

[Ja Rhule]

2 hours ago, ZeroZeroSeven said:

He's about 7 years old, Great Pyrenees.  He was about 110 lbs, but he's 100 lbs now

Dang... Horrible age to be so sick... He should have at least 3 good years in him.  If he was 5, I'd say do the surgery, if he was 9 I'd say put him to sleep.  

[Captain Morgan]

I have a 3 legged Jack Russell who runs like the wind, but she lost her

leg when she was 2 years.  At that age, and the weight of that dog, arthritis

is going to be a problem in the future.  My best friend has a GP who is getting older (great dogs), but I was told not to let my dog get overweight.  If yours is overweight, take that into consideration. 

[ZeroZeroSeven]

1 hour ago, Captain Morgan said:

I have a 3 legged Jack Russell who runs like the wind, but she lost her

leg when she was 2 years.  At that age, and the weight of that dog, arthritis

is going to be a problem in the future.  My best friend has a GP who is getting older (great dogs), but I was told not to let my dog get overweight.  If yours is overweight, take that into consideration. 

He's losing weight because he's refusing to eat.  I know bone cancer is painful and it's already spread to his lungs (granted they're not large enough to cause issues yet) so I'm kind of at a loss as to what to do.  The dog seems like he's given up at this point...he refuses to even get up at all.

[Paa Langfart]

If it is already in his lungs as you say then there is no point in putting the poor dog through the torture of removing his leg.  Unless you or your folks are willing to spend thousands of dollars on some sort of hope and prayer treatment.  My choice would be to make his last days as comfortable as possible and say your goodbyes.  Dont put off what you know in your heart needs to be done because you are weak.  It sucks and my heart goes out to all of you.

[Anybodyhome]

As difficult as it may seem, a dog usually lets you know when it's time and it almost sounds as though this is the case. There are questions you either need to ask the vet or the vet should have already told you:

1. Is the surgery a cure or simply delaying the inevitable?

2. Will the dog's quality of life improve after the surgery?

3. Am I wasting my time with the surgery option?

4. How much pain and discomfort is the dog in now and is simply not showing it (they rarely do for their owners).  

[Cuttinedge]

I've was told once how to make the decision to put a sick pet down

think of 3 things your dog loves to do when he gets to point that he is unable or doesn't want to do 2 of them anymore it's time. Quality of life.  It sounds like your dog has already made his decision.   

Hate to hear you're going thru this losing a pet sucks.

[Lumps]

Put him down. Make sure they put him to sleep first, THEN give the lethal shot. It's a two step process.

 

I've worked with dogs my whole life, it'll be hard but it's the right thing to do. Might I suggest and in-home euthanasia, to make sure he is as comfortable as possible.

[ZeroZeroSeven]

We did an in home euthanasia this past Saturday. It was a tough decision, but we knew it was for the best.  He had stopped eating and drinking for about 4 days, so he may have passed within 24 hours without euthanasia.

[Anybodyhome]

Sorry to hear, but he's no longer in pain. And knowing that he provided you with great times and you did the same for him are the best memories. 

[mashburnfalcon]

6 hours ago, ZeroZeroSeven said:

We did an in home euthanasia this past Saturday. It was a tough decision, but we knew it was for the best.  He had stopped eating and drinking for about 4 days, so he may have passed within 24 hours without euthanasia.

My condolences. with it being in his lungs, that is rough. specially at his age.... You did the right thing.

[ladypanther]

21 hours ago, ZeroZeroSeven said:

We did an in home euthanasia this past Saturday. It was a tough decision, but we knew it was for the best.  He had stopped eating and drinking for about 4 days, so he may have passed within 24 hours without euthanasia.

Sorry to hear that.  It is a very tough decision to have to make but it sounds like you did what was best for your dog. I understand though that it is a tough loss.