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Nov 4 2006
My Love! Love! Coty! Today would be your 15th birthday, had you been still alive. If we had known what we know now and had treated your cancer successfully, you would be celebrating your birthday alive. We are now looking back over the last one year and disclose where we failed. Hopefully, any master of an old dog like you will learn by reading this blog and do not repeat the same mistake with his dog as we did with you.
Coty Lesson 1 – Old dogs are likely to get Cancers –
To More Photos... |
I am quoting the article I read only after we had learned of your cancer (too late!). "According to an October 1997 Morris Animal Foundation survey, cancer is the number one killer of dogs and cats, and the number one concern of pet owners. At least 25 percent of dogs and cats die from cancer; in some veterinary practices, 40 percent of the patients have some form of cancer. In the Morris study, which surveyed 2,003 pet owners, the leading cause of nonaccidental death in dogs was cancer (at 47 percent).” The following possible cancers are listed:
- Abdominal Tumors: These are quite common but difficult to diagnose early on. Abdominal enlargement and weight loss are signs of these types of tumors.
- Bone Tumors: These are quite common in large dogs but rare in cats. The leg bones near the joints are the most common sites for these tumors. Lameness or swelling of the leg are early warning signs.
- Brain Tumors: These may occur in both dogs and cats as primary or metastatic tumors.
- Canine Mammary Tumors: These are the most common tumors found in female dogs, generally those that are older. If a dog is spayed prior to her second heat cycle, the risk decreases. Approximately half of all mammary canine tumors are malignant.
- Head, Nose, and Neck Cancers: Mouth cancer is common in dogs, but less so in cats. Because many of these swellings are malignant, early treatment is critical. Masses on the gums, bleeding, odor, or difficulty eating are warning signs. Nasal cancers may occur in both cats and dogs. Signs are bleeding from the nose, labored breathing, or facial swelling.
- Lymphosarcomas: This is a cancer of the lymphatic system that occurs mostly in middle-aged animals (in cats, around eight to ten years; in dogs, around six to eight years).
Coty Lesson 2 – Be Alert to a small irregularity –
Again I quote an article that I read belatedly. In the middle of September last year, you whined once in a while when we were petting you. At that time, you seemed quite healthy as you had recovered from two serious diseases, kidney and vestibular diseases. At that very time, we should have paid attention to this irregularity of yours and investigated thoroughly what was causing it.
“Dr. Boyce recommends that dog and cat owners make a habit of looking for irregularities on their pet while petting and grooming, paying close attention to the most common sites for tumors. In dogs and cats, these are the skin, mouth, mammary glands, and lymph nodes." As I was brushing your teeth every evening, I should have checked your whole mouth carefully after your first whine. Then I would have touched a small mass in the upper edge of your right gum. |
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