liver cancer

[fordy42]

My dog has liver cancer and has quite a bit of ascites. He starts getting lethargic, will not eat, and his belly gets huge. We get him tapped then he is his old self again for about a week. It seems like this fluid builds up quickly, and when we look at his belly we feel we have to get it drained becasue it looks extremely uncomfortable. He does not appear to have trouble breathing. How often can we get this done. At present he goes in weekly and they drain about 2 liters. (although the vet states he could get twice that much) Could we just let it go until he has trouble breathing?
He is only 8--a golden retriever.
Donna

[Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A]

I am sorry about your poor dog!

I would not wait until he is uncomfortable and has breathing problems because the amount of ascites that would have to be removed under those circumstances would be such a large amount that it could cause additional vascular problems.

Your dog could be drained daily if necessary.

If you are interested in pursuing some alternative therapies, and it is not too late,  please post again.  Thanks

[heartfluttersflyawayplz]

donna, am so sorry, my baby had a liver twice its size and it was painful he would no longer lay on his belly, always laided on his side, than he started having breathing problems , but his heart was large to. i know when my baby was a live the dr said it was painful for him, plz dont let it go on to long, for his sake, its a very hard thing to do when you have to put them to rest but, they love you even more for not letting them suffer. God bless you . Barbara