Sorry for your loss Greg.
For Dog Lovers: Beware AIHA
- Thread starter Pilgrim
- Start date
Sorry to hear about that - I've been off the screen for a few days of R&R. Sounds like you did all you could for him; it's good to know these tidbits of information to help prevent health problems for our furry family members. As you implied, one of the most important things everyone should remember is to give their pets good quality food. Yes it's more expensive but it's nothing compared to the health problems and vet bills that might result from foods full of corn gluten and fillers. Processed meats like bacon, hot dogs, etc are especially bad, and for those that might not be aware - chocolate and onions are toxic to dogs. You're right about being aware of their bladder habits - any sign of blood or difficulty urinating should mean a trip to the vet ASAP. This is a sign of several things going on, and all of them are bad. Here's hoping your remaining four-legged copilot learns to appreciate travel as much as the others did.
Greg and Pilgrim sorry to hear about you loss of your best friends. We have three in the house with us .they do let you know when they want to go out.I try not to think about losing any of them exspecialy my chihaha?.He sleeps with us every nite.they go with us just about all the time also. It gets aggrivating sometimes but they get tired of staying home to.
Yesteryear
Expert Expediter
Oh Greg, I am so sorry for your loss. It was heart-breaking to read your post. I do have a question for you. In your post you said you thought having him fixed contributed to his cancer? Could you explain more.
I have been contemplating weather I should go ahead and have Miss Minnie spayed. I have not had it done even though we have no plans to breed her. She cannot have pups due to her health condition. I just did not have the heart to put her through an unnecessary surgery. When we got her she had a collapsed trachea among other health issues and I just couldn't cause her more pain by spaying her. The vet thinks we should have it done to prevent cancer, this is why I am asking about it?
I have been contemplating weather I should go ahead and have Miss Minnie spayed. I have not had it done even though we have no plans to breed her. She cannot have pups due to her health condition. I just did not have the heart to put her through an unnecessary surgery. When we got her she had a collapsed trachea among other health issues and I just couldn't cause her more pain by spaying her. The vet thinks we should have it done to prevent cancer, this is why I am asking about it?
greg334
Veteran Expediter
Thanks everyone.
The issue in our case are with male dogs, beagles and a number of other breeds are susceptible to bladder/prostate cancer after being fixed. There seems to be a trend that has shown up in the last decade with these breeds, my source for this info is Purdue University and Michigan State - both top vet schools. We didn't know much about this specific issue and would have not gone through with it if we knew we would face this. As the cancer vet said, a lot of vets don't really delve into the issue much because of the complexity of it and the cost involved so they are not all up on the issue. I found out that many vets don't look for it at all and many times it is stumbled across.
The two biggest gains in knowledge that we can take away from this is food and water are two factors involved. Food is a given, even though in the past 10 years the FDA has been involved with regulating pet food but water is something everyone assumes is safe for pets to drink tap water - one example is the fluoride in the water is actually a poison for pets but there are many other things in the water.
The other thing that I stress is to learn about it if you have one of the breeds like a beagle. Unfortunately I can not find any of my links to all the sites I used otherwise I would post them.
As for spaying Miss Minnie, I would think you would look into it for her long term health just in case. The pain is short lived.
The issue in our case are with male dogs, beagles and a number of other breeds are susceptible to bladder/prostate cancer after being fixed. There seems to be a trend that has shown up in the last decade with these breeds, my source for this info is Purdue University and Michigan State - both top vet schools. We didn't know much about this specific issue and would have not gone through with it if we knew we would face this. As the cancer vet said, a lot of vets don't really delve into the issue much because of the complexity of it and the cost involved so they are not all up on the issue. I found out that many vets don't look for it at all and many times it is stumbled across.
The two biggest gains in knowledge that we can take away from this is food and water are two factors involved. Food is a given, even though in the past 10 years the FDA has been involved with regulating pet food but water is something everyone assumes is safe for pets to drink tap water - one example is the fluoride in the water is actually a poison for pets but there are many other things in the water.
The other thing that I stress is to learn about it if you have one of the breeds like a beagle. Unfortunately I can not find any of my links to all the sites I used otherwise I would post them.
As for spaying Miss Minnie, I would think you would look into it for her long term health just in case. The pain is short lived.