[Dailydrool] tumors... to operate or not

[Angelika Hastings]

 This is for the drooler with the old girl with a spleen tumor ( sorry I have forgotten both of your names).

About 4 years ago- our vet said Ms.Brandy's tumor needed surgery NOW. ( this after telling me since she was 5 years old that is was probably just a fatty tumor on her liver). She was just about 10 at the time. She has a history of not doing well under anasthesia and too often on the drool I read about a basset that had something like that done and then died on the table or soon after surgery. I told him no surgery unless he could tell for sure that she had something terminal and that he could actually remove it all. We butted heads for a bit and then he suggested I put her out of her misery then and there. I bid him farewell. We've never gone back to him. She will be 14 in just under a month. The tumor is quite big now and easily visible on her side. It seems to be a battle of wills- whether the tumor chokes off her belly & intestines or old age gets her. She keeps on going... I will never know what the tumor is- though not likely to be malignent as she has had it for so long. If not for a random x-ray to check her spine when she was 5 - we may not have even known there was anything there until it could be felt. I do not for a minute regret not having had the surgery. Even now- her teeth are HORRID- again she does not do well with being 'put under'- actually it's the waking up part that causes problems for days. Even with the 'easy' anasthesia and the shots they gave her to help her. At her age- everything is a toss-up. She HATES going the vet- it really stresses her out. Maybe she won't have as long- because I chose to not have surgery- or to have her teeth taken care of ( she did have a dental 4 years ago- but they are awful now). But I will nver regret not putting her through something that I had a questionable outcome, that may have sent her atb even earlier...and that would have caused her a lot of stress.

go with your gut feeling- and enjoy every day you have with her.

droolies, Angelika

 

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