DerRottweiler

How did you go?

Thanks for all the support guys. :)

I haven't updated in quite some time, so here goes.

02/08/2012:

Bison had chemo again today, he is now getting treated much less, around 1-2 times a month.

He is still in complete remission which is great. He is eating well, exercising well, his energy levels are high and he has a hiqh quality of life. I find it amazing that the same dog, left untreated, would have been gone, months back.

Today he weighed in at his normal adult weight of 51kgs, when he was getting weekly treatments, this went down to around 48kgs.

Thanks for reading, I'll try get some pics up shortly.

Thanks for the update SC.

Any decision you make will be the right one, they both have their pros/cons. :)

What a nice pic of Emma too, she's very cute.

I'm so sorry to hear this.

If you are able, I would definetly try chemo, radiation etc. Please keep us updates as to how she is going.

Diet will also make a huge difference.

Best of luck.

Hi Der,

Sending you good vibes from my end.

Just love to know a bit more about your story and how Bison is going? I don't exactly have a purebred - But I've seen this is a predominately Aussie Dog Forum (and you are from Melbourne too) and the case for my pup is similar.

My little maltese x - Sushi was diagnosed with Lymphoma on 11/7, waiting the on bloodwork results to see if he is a good candidate for Chemo today (13/7) and we are awaiting our meeting with the oncologist (and hopefully start treatment) on the 17/7 purely due to appointment issues.

Love to know how Bison was in the initial stages - was he slower or listless. Just seems my pup (far from a puppy haha) is a bit slower but still happy to go for walks if the leash is picked up and is happy with the poached chicken he is being fed as advised by our vet.

This dog is my partner's rock and since aside from the slow down - seems ok - hence the decision to treat him.

So i'm going to be the gatherer of information from all internet forums :)

Cheers

Chris

Hi Chris,

Bison is doing really well and is still in complete remission.

Prior to him being diagnosed, he was a bit sluggish for 2 days and didn't really eat properly.

On commencement of treatment, he was pretty much back to normal.

While his treatment is still ongoing (he know gets treated once or twice a month), thus far, he has only really had 2-3 off days at most. He hasn't been sick at all, his appetite has been strong throughout and his weight has been constant, at the 50kg mark.

Given that dogs with lymphoma are given about 4-8 weeks when left untreated, I see no reason (besides cost) as to why one wouldn't pursuit the oncology treatment. Bison's life has been extended already, in exchange, he's had a few bad days where he didn't really eat and was just 'sick' because of the drugs in his system. But as the treatment progresses, the dog does get used to it and the side effects are very minimal.

You'll need to be strict with diet, keep carbs on a minimal, feed mainly protein with some vegies mixed in.

Good luck with the test results. If you don't mind me asking, which specialist clinic are you taking your dog to?

Thanks.

Thanks again for your response.

Bloodwork came up with a few issues, but nothing major according to the vet.

Our pup has been very sluggish today (although he did have a big day out at a friends big backyard to explore - so he could be over tired due to that). We are taking him back to the vet tomorrow, if he isn't chipper tomorrow morning.

Eating fairly minimal at the moment - have been hand feeding poached chicken in very small portions as per the vet's instructions, but he isn't taking too much in. Keeping the fluids up though.

Since our appointment isn't until Tuesday, any slight change we stress out quite a bit in this household.

Our vet in Hawthorn has an oncologist to come on site so we don't need to go anywhere (i hope that's the right route to go down - I am aware of a few specialist clinics around town though)

Cheers

No problems.

Has he been given any injections? My dog was given an injection to decrease swelling and increase his appetite whilst waiting for his first chemo session.

It worked a treat.

Any oncologist is fine, so long as they have experience.

Good luck and keep us all updated.

Hi Der,

Sending you good vibes from my end.

Just love to know a bit more about your story and how Bison is going? I don't exactly have a purebred - But I've seen this is a predominately Aussie Dog Forum (and you are from Melbourne too) and the case for my pup is similar.

My little maltese x - Sushi was diagnosed with Lymphoma on 11/7, waiting the on bloodwork results to see if he is a good candidate for Chemo today (13/7) and we are awaiting our meeting with the oncologist (and hopefully start treatment) on the 17/7 purely due to appointment issues.

Love to know how Bison was in the initial stages - was he slower or listless. Just seems my pup (far from a puppy haha) is a bit slower but still happy to go for walks if the leash is picked up and is happy with the poached chicken he is being fed as advised by our vet.

This dog is my partner's rock and since aside from the slow down - seems ok - hence the decision to treat him.

So i'm going to be the gatherer of information from all internet forums :)

Cheers

Chris

Hi Chris,

Bison is doing really well and is still in complete remission.

Prior to him being diagnosed, he was a bit sluggish for 2 days and didn't really eat properly.

On commencement of treatment, he was pretty much back to normal.

While his treatment is still ongoing (he know gets treated once or twice a month), thus far, he has only really had 2-3 off days at most. He hasn't been sick at all, his appetite has been strong throughout and his weight has been constant, at the 50kg mark.

Given that dogs with lymphoma are given about 4-8 weeks when left untreated, I see no reason (besides cost) as to why one wouldn't pursuit the oncology treatment. Bison's life has been extended already, in exchange, he's had a few bad days where he didn't really eat and was just 'sick' because of the drugs in his system. But as the treatment progresses, the dog does get used to it and the side effects are very minimal.

You'll need to be strict with diet, keep carbs on a minimal, feed mainly protein with some vegies mixed in.

Good luck with the test results. If you don't mind me asking, which specialist clinic are you taking your dog to?

Thanks.

Sorry for your loss.

RIP Basil.

DR, no cancer cells found. It got a little smaller over the weekend so the plan is to monitor, if it gets bigger or does not go over the next one to two weeks she goes in for a surgical biopsy.

Did the vet give her anything to try and reduce the size of the swelling?

That's good news indeed, probably just an infection or something. Monitor closely either way!

Sorry for your loss, RIP Tara.

She lived to a ripe old age indeed.

Sorry for your loss.

She was a very nice looking dog.

Thanks, stans mum, wished this evil disease was curable.

10% chance, so there is always hope. Although I wouldn't bank it. That said, plenty of dogs have 2-3-4 year remissions. Well worth it!

18/06/2012: Nothing much to report, Bison had a few major tests done recently and everything is fine. He is still in remission and there are no signs of the cancer in his system.

Last week he had chemo administered at home, no side effects to report. Diet/exercise, attitude etc are all fine. He doesn't have to go back to the vet for 3 weeks now! Not that he cares anyway, the idiot looks forward to chemo because he likes the staff there and he gets fed treats.....he literally runs into the clinic. Credit to the staff there I guess.

I am waiting on a diagnosis on my Rotty NellieRose on Monday, Miss Squish your thread has given me hope. Thankyou.. I am of course hoping so hard the lymph node in her neck is only something minor, not the vets opinion though.

Hope it is minor.

But even if it is Lymphoma, Chemo is super effective in fighting it. By and large it seems the Rottweilers do well on it, makes sense given that they're pretty tough dogs.

Sorry to hear.

But it sounds like the right decision given the circumstances.

Relevant:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD3cgDRsDck

How did you go with the blood results?

Is Tara okay?

He is doing very well.

He had chemo two weeks ago and is now having more breaks between chemo, as the bulk of his 'heavy' treatment has been completed.

He is his usual self, it is really nice to see him happy and well.

He has another treatement tomorrow, I'll update here then.

RIP Lola.

Thanks for sharing the nice photos and sorry for your loss.

Sorry for your loss.

RIP Tiny Tim.

RIP Jay Jay. She was a very nice looking dog.

Sorry for your loss.

18/05/2012: Bison had chemo again yesterday. His treatments are now going to be less often as he has undergone most intensive treatment component of his protocol already.

He is still well, eating good, exercising fine and still in complete remission, no swollen lymph nodes, no cancer cells in the blood. :)

Thanks all.

I know what I'd have done.

Picked up my pup and told the Weim's owner to come and get their effing dog NOW. :)

Or you could have a bit of class and behave in a polite manner.

Some people don't know any better, being nice and a bit of education goes a long way.

I am sorry for your loss Scratchcat. .

You made the right decision at the right time. RIP young guy.

Hi all,

Just an update. My cousin ended up getting lucky and has been promised a cream male in a litter from Perth (http://www.sherae.com.au/chows.html). It should be arriving in

Melbourne next week sometime. I say lucky because every breeder we called didn't have any puppies, or if they had planned litters, the puppies

were already for accounted for. Also, my cousin was specifically after a cream male and that's what he got!

There are two pups below, his is one of them (I don't know which one lol).

Thanks all.

Hello all,

10/05/2012: Today Bison was adminstered treatment at home, this is the drug that he didn't respond well to last time.

I'll be keep a close eye on him.

Beyond that, everything has been good, he is eating well, exercising, his happy usual self with no complications.

Thanks for the all the support. :)