I have the worst luck....cancer again?

[testdeprived]

ok so last june my 8 yr old golden died of mast cell cancer. We were pretty surprised as 8 in our minds is young also we always fed high quality foods such as acana.
anyway the month after we adopted a great pyrenees called winston and he has been with us for the past year.
Anyway I have had winston for about a year now and have been super focused on trying to limit his exposure to chemicals. I give him interceptor once very two months and he is not on flea/tick meds.
Winston is 3 yrs old....and great pyrs are healthy dogs.

well we went to the vet saturday after seeing a lump and the vet said it looked like a tick bite(i pulled what i thought was a tick off there so it makes sense) but to use antibiotic and it should heal in 72 hours. Well it never healed and we went back today because we found another round lump on his back leg!!!(i know ipulled something off of this lump but nto sure if it was a tick)

Anyway vet told us he;d be surprised if it was cancer but I think that's bc of our dog's age.....an since puppies get cancer that means nothing...

he aspirated him and we will get results wednesday.

it looks lie my second young dog will die from cancer...i am a jinx.

[lindapalm]

You might think your jinxing your dogs, but I think they are very lucky, to have an owner that cares so much and tries to help them like you do.

[ginger899]

I can understand the worry you must be going through. Waiting for results of tests on our loved ones is a particular form of torture, I know.

While this MAY be cancer .....there is a way much higher likelihood of it being benign. Statistically -you'd be surprised how much higher the chance is that it is a benign lump!
Also, if by chance it IS cancer, there are many many dog cancersthat, caught at an early stage like this -are completely curable -yes COMPLETELY curable by surgical removal! OK not all....but many.

So be brave. Wait for the results. Don't be scared if this isn't benign, just schedule him for surgery A.S.A.P.

[testdeprived]

idk if we'd do surgery with my last dog it was too much for us to handle...als othe spots r on his legs..

i bet they r only tick bites they have t be =(

[ginger899]

I know how you feel. Waiting till Wednesday must feel pretty dreadful. And then when the call comes you'll be scared answering it! I know because I'm the same!
At least you know you can come here and let off steam.

OK worst case scenario....Even if they ARE mast cell tumors, you have caught them early by the sound of it. It's highly likely they will be graded as "Grade 1". Grade 1 tumors have a good rate of success with treatment.

There is the possibility of using "Cryotherapy" on them (freezing them to death)

Anyway you don't know yet. This waiting for results is awful. I understand totally how you must feel.

[testdeprived]

yah it's tough i dont want to pick up the phone.....i just feel jinxed my last dog had grade 3 aggressive ast cells and he was young at 8! My current dog is A Breed NOT Prone TO Cancer let alone mast cells, and he is only 3...so if he has them i know i mcursed!!!
I try to do everything right and it seems it doesnt matter im cursed!

i just know the call will be bad.

[tonyb286]

I can just imagine how difficult it is waiting for the telephone call. I really do empathise. But ... let's hope the call creates more relief than anguish ... try to be optimistic. No owner is jinxed. Even though we all feel that way sometimes when things go badly, particularly in short succession. If it turns out that it is cancerous, then stay positive and look at the options open to you. As Ginger has already said, caught early, many cancers can be completely cured with the appropriate treatment. I'm keep my fingers crossed for you and your great pyranees (aren't these gentle giants just the most fantastic dogs and the best friends a human can have). Thinkinbg about you ... Tony

[testdeprived]

still no call..maybe he's scared to call me!!!

[testdeprived]

i also see a pink discoloration on his nose what could that be???

=(

[TwoBitsMom]

Try not to worry too much about the lump. No news is good news. Call your vet in the morning. They should have called you by now. As far as the possible tick bite goes...it is a possibility. I pulled a tick off my dog 3 weeks ago.  She still has a large lump at the spot the tick was pulled from. It is hard and feels like scar tissue. I am hoping it will eventually go away.
I also pulled a tick off of myself about 3 weeks ago, and I still have a large hard lump in the area I pulled the tick from.  
If things don't look like they are getting better soon, I will take my dog to the vet. The head of the tick may still be lodged in the skin, and causing problems.  
I hope that you have good news tomorrow....I will keep my fingers crossed for you...!  Let us know what you find out.
Connie

[tonyb286]

Hi. The pink-nose is a sign of possible infection, as the black colouration is actually the protective layer of skin on a dog's nose. It is worth mentioning this to your vet when he calls as oral antibiotics are normally needed. A locally applied topical antibiotic ointment is also available, but as dogs tend to lick their noses alot, it is important this is specially prescribed by a vet to ensure it is non-toxic. The pink-nose could potentially also be the result of a scratch, though less likely as it would have defined and slightly bloody edges to it, which you would see. There are other possibilities, but just check out the symptom with your vet. Fingers still crossed for good news. Tony

[testdeprived]

called the vet wisnton is fine ;)
aspiration said POSSIBLY worst case scenario it's a bengin mass...but most likey a bite.

yah we have antibiotic for him but we havent been applying it ill admit..

i cant believe the vet wasnt gonna call......

[ginger899]

Oh that's good news. I'm relieved for Winston, and you. It's horrible, waiting for results isn't it?

Don't mess about now! Keep putting the antibiotic cream on! I'm sure the bites will be fine, but if the vet prescribed the cream it's because there may be some infection, so keep using it.

Glad you have nothing serious to worry about there.

[TwoBitsMom]

So glad to hear you got good news. Thanks for the update on Winston, and keep using the cream...!
Connie

[tonyb286]

Oh that's great news. You must be relieved. Now ... you heard Ginger and Connie say it, so here's the 3rd one ... please apply the cream on a regular basis, as any delay or infrequency may prevent the infection from healing properly, which means it will just come back and you'll have to then start all over again with a different antibiotic. Tony

[testdeprived]

thanks guys ;)

[testdeprived]

putting it on twice a ay for now on ;)

[testdeprived]

btw does anybody have any experience with plaque attack...a lot of people i knew said it worked but winston's teeth are getting worse

[tonyb286]

At 8 yrs old your dog is already in middle age and approaching the elderly stage of life. The teeth and gums are likely to become sore and infected, unless you do certain things to improve them. If left untreated, infected teeth can have a major impact on the digestive route, causing problems in the throat and stomach.

A build up of plaque is not uncommon - and this often it has a lot to do with the type of things you might be feeding your dog. Treats high in sugars are very bad - you would be much better going for for natural high quality treats or things like sugar-free rice-bones, which are hard enough to loosen some of the plaque when your dog chews on them and, being low in carbs and fats, they tend not to add weight to readily.

You can buy specially formulated dog toothpaste and a slightly soft doggy toothbrush from all good pet stores. It may take a while to get your dog used to this, but eventually it will become second nature if you approach it in small stages. Consistency is the key ... so regular brushing, at least once a week, will soon remove any build up of plaque over time - and your dog will be much happier and healthier for it. Tony

[tonyb286]

Hi. Sorry, I got the ages of your dogs mixed up there, I realise now that Winston is only 3, so this is a really good time to start tooth brushing as he is young enough to enjoy his good teeth for many years to come, with a bit of input from you. If there is plaque build up in Winston (despite him being so young), then there's a good chance it is due to the foods and/or treats you are giving him - perhaps it's time to reassess. Tony

[testdeprived]

Hi guys I figured Id make a post n this thread as it has all of my unlucky history and i can get the pity party I deserve =(

You guys helped me through this last time.

I found a bump on Winston about a wee ago. It was under the skin, and not visible to the naked eye. We just got back from the vet's today and the vet said it's not raised, and too small to aspirate.

He said he is not sure what it is, but it could be bad..or it could be a cyst. He said to make an appt in 2 wks to see how it looks, and if it has not gone away we should have surgery to remove it.

ugh i have the worst luck it is prob cancer..and even if it's not it's prob not gonna go down in size(it's been the same for a WK) and he will need surgery =( I actually think it got bigger in the week although maybe i'm just being paranoid.

[testdeprived]

im freaking out bc it's hard and not mobile...omg  i cant believe he has cancer =(

[testdeprived]

idk if this considered attached..but it's not moveabe..however if  i lift his hair up and grasp his skin and squeeze the sin i can lift the skin with the bump attatched off his body...so it is attatched to the skin but not any muscle or bone i think?

[testdeprived]

idk if this considered attached..but it's not moveabe..however if  i lift his hair up and grasp his skin and squeeze the sin i can lift the skin with the bump attatched off his body...so it is attatched to the skin but not any muscle or bone i think?

[ginger899]

It's not always the case that lumps which are "movable" and not attached are NOT cancer. My dog had a breast lump which was quite "liftable" and not attached to any body tissues, and which had been previously aspirated and found to be benign. I got the vet to remove this breast lump, and it was found to have become partly cancer.
Removing it, (and  a few weeks later other breast tissue that seemed suspect) proved to be a complete cure (for that particular ailment anyway)
The vet told me it's impossible in most cases to tell if a lump is cancer or not by simply examining it.
He also told me that the majority of dog lumps are in fact NOT cancer. Statistically, the cance of malignancy is lower than we think. Dogs are very prone to lumps and bumps, and there are so many things they can be.

The only way to tell for certain what a lump is -is to have it removed and biopsied. For a tiny single lump, the trauma involved is often no worse than they would get going in for a routine teeth-cleaning. And for a tiny lump, the scar will be no more than an inch or more long, and in most cases even if the lump is cancer, removal at an early stage will often provide a cure. (depending of course on what it signifies, and whether it it single, or there are lots of them)