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Hi JoWi,
I am so sorry you are facing nasal cancer with your precious dog. It is a hard road to travel. My Scottie Ozzie had this awful cancer. Like your dog, he had very short legs and would smack his face on the floor during sneezing fits. The worst was outside on pavement during a walk. Ozzie stayed close to me so he typically could only get one big sneeze in before I could get to him and cradle his head or put my hand under his nose and absorb part of the force. I did notice that Ozzie did adapt to the sneezing after a time. He would crouch when he sneezed and tilt his head slightly upward so the head slam would be located more at the bottom of his chin not his nose and his front paws also helped cushion the blow. I kept pillows and folded towels/blankets in his favorite areas too and that helped some. Make sure they are washable and bleachable. I hope the yunan baiyao is helpful. I think it helped Ozzie. All my best. I hope for many happy, comfortable days ahead.
Thank you for your kind words! Our little guy has eased up on the sneezing since the nosebleed stopped. Of course he still sneezes, but not as often or as forcefully. Unfortunately, his general health is deteriorating, and he seems to have taken a downward turn the past couple of weeks. He still eats, but is fussy about it, and has almost constant GI problems. The vet is helping us with that, but we can’t seem to get a handle on it. His liver is not good, and that may have a lot to do with it. His mobility is also decreasing. He can still walk and get up from lying down, but standing still is hard as his legs are weak and he loses his balance. I can also tell his breathing is becoming more obstructed as the tumor grows into the other side of his nose. I believe he can still breathe some through one nostril, but things are narrowing. There is a spot on the tip of his nose where the skin looks like it is dry and peeling; I am not sure if this is from the cancer (can it spread through from the inside out like that?), from constantly hitting as scraping his nose when sneezing, or from licking it frequently. He is still himself at times (mostly at dinner time when he hopes for scraps), but his good days are getting fewer and farther between, and he is no longer enjoying things like he once did. We are hoping to have one last Christmas with him, but sometimes that seems like a stretch. After that, it is probably time to let him go. My heart will break into a million pieces, but he has given us a good life in his 15.5 years, and we owe it to him to bring him to a peaceful and good end. He has been a good dog, has lived longer than we ever imagined, and was given more time than most dogs get. I really can’t ask any more from him.
Our Sheltie Chase just diagnosed with nasal cancer
I have followed this forum for years as we have Madison (Sheltie, age 15), Chase (Sheltie, age 8) and Laddie (Collie, age 6).
Years ago, our Murphy (a large Sheltie) had liver cancer. He made the decision for us and we used Lap of Love to come to our home. It helped Madison (only 6 at the time) heal.
Then, we looked for another Sheltie. That was our Chase. On October 28th, we found blood in our house.
First, we didn't know which one but it was Chase. Many vet visits and they gave medicine which cleared him up and he seemed fine and happy.
Well, every 4 weeks, it would happen again. I finally begged the vet to search further and they referred us for a CAT scan. It came back today that he has nasal cancer. It does not appear to be in the sinus but in the nose cavity.
So, we need to go to a vet oncologist.
He seems happy and I have read this post a few times in the past and today, I got up to page 50 with many tears.
I know this thread started in 2008; are there new things on the market that help?
. . .
I know this thread started in 2008; are there new things on the market that help?
I think you will get more replies if you start a new thread - your own thread. There may well be new developments, or options. I don't know. Good luck.
I am so sorry to hear about Chase, Bette. Our little old guy - Wrigley - was diagnosed this past summer. I can tell you that the primary treatment for this cancer is radiation. We opted not to do that since he was (is) 15 years old, and also has early stage heart disease and liver problems. Anesthesia is a risk for him, and we didn’t want to put him through the stress at his age. If he had been younger like Chase, we would have seriously considered it. Other than that, we were offered two drugs -Piroxicam, which is an NSAID with the added off-label benefit of having some anti-cancer properties in some sorts of canine cancer, including types of nasal cancers. (Wrigley’s biopsy was inconclusive so we don’t know what exact type he has, but I imagine it is the most common one, adenocarcinoma.) The other drug was Palladia. This is more of a chemotherapy (though not exactly), and it is often used in conjunction with other things. It is excreted in urine, which can pose risks to other pets or anyone who comes in contact with it. You are supposed to wear gloves while handling the pills, etc. We have another dog and children, and were therefore a little nervous about it. As it turned out, Wrigley’s liver issues ruled out the Palladia. So we started him on piroxicam only. He has done very well on it; his life expectancy at diagnosis was about 3 months. It’s now been about six months. He didn’t seem to have any disease progression or any issues at all until about the middle of November, when he had a bad nosebleed. He got through the bleed alright, but then started having GI issues, which took a couple of weeks to get on top of. He is now better in that department, but things have turned a corner for us. His mobility is diminishing (age-related more than the cancer, I think), and his breathing is getting more difficult as the cancer has spread to the other side of his nose. We hope to have him one last Christmas, and from then on it will be one day at a time until he tells us he is ready to go. He still eats and drinks alright (though I have to cook for him now), is enthusiastic about dinner, engages with what is going on (when he is awake), and can walk. His back legs are weak and he sways when he has to stand still. Has trouble getting his footing in the morning or anytime he has been laying for a while. We carry him down steps. But he is still himself. I am sure there is some discomfort, but he doesn’t seem to be in pain. He sleeps okay, though he snores now, and does wake up now and then to snort and snuffle (he sounds like someone who has too much mucus and can’t clear it, which may very well be the case). We have had very little bleeding, thanks be to God. I love him so much and am doing my best to care for him. The breathing will likely be the decisive thing.
Try to be the best advocate you can be for Chase. You know him better than anyone, and what his limits and preferences would be. He is young enough that he will probably do well on whatever treatment you decide to use. Don’t be scared by the timeframes; most dogs seem to live longer than what the stats say. Even our little old man has lived six months - most of it symptom-free - and that is on palliative care only. At 15, six months is a real gift, cancer or not. Take it a day at a time and try not to get ahead of yourself. It is hard to do, especially in the beginning with the shock of it all (and again at the end), but you very likely have many good days with Chase ahead of you. Enjoy him and use you love for him as your guide.
I have followed this forum for years as we have Madison (Sheltie, age 15), Chase (Sheltie, age 8) and Laddie (Collie, age 6).
Years ago, our Murphy (a large Sheltie) had liver cancer. He made the decision for us and we used Lap of Love to come to our home. It helped Madison (only 6 at the time) heal.
Then, we looked for another Sheltie. That was our Chase. On October 28th, we found blood in our house.
First, we didn't know which one but it was Chase. Many vet visits and they gave medicine which cleared him up and he seemed fine and happy.
Bette & all --
My beloved sheltie, Willpower, began experiencing reverse sneezing in early September 2020 at the age of 12 years 3 months. After a few bouts of it and a vet visit, he was scheduled for some dental extractions and a dental cleaning later that month. But, the reverse sneezing continued for a couple additional months.
In mid-late December, one of his third eyelids became visible, all the while still acting his usual sweet, fun-loving self. In early January 2021, the tiniest, almost imperceptible bit of swelling appeared on his snout near/under that same eye. Within days, he had his first nosebleed -- his vet prescribed antibiotics and a NSAID in hopes that a possible infection would clear up, but, as I feared, Willpower did not respond and he continued to have nosebleeds. Our vet also did some x-rays, checked Will's medical records from the extractions for any oversights, and suggested a visit to a specialist for diagnostics but, upon asking, he said his professional opinion was that it was almost certainly a cancerous nasal tumor. After that conversation I decided not to put my Willpower through a rhinoscopy because the prognosis information I had found throughout the web seemed to suggest treatment would not buy us much more time together and would involve a sizable amount of struggle.
The nosebleeds were sporadic from early/mid January until late February, after that time they did not return -- all along, his spirits remained high. However, the swelling of his snout and tumor growth progressed fairly rapidly in March from under his eye to the middle of his forehead and bridge of his snout and his breathing became raspy. He was uncomfortable. Just this past weekend he began to have bloody discharge from the tumor side of his mouth and that same eye would close up after a night of sleep and resulting accumulation of discharge. Looking into his mouth, his gums were sustaining pressure and destruction from the tumor and one of his teeth was now pointed inward toward the center of his mouth.
After seeing these new symptoms, looking at my photos of the progression of his disease, and reading the majority of the stories on this thread for guidance, I decided to say goodbye to my soulmate yesterday, 3/30/21. I could not bear to have him experience any additional decline and for his last days to be full of misery. So, my family and I spent his last few days with him outside, at the forest preserve, feeding him freshly cooked salmon -- his favorite -- and doing all of his favorite things. Even with a facial deformity from the tumor he was still breaking hearts on his last day on earth, getting comments from several passersby about how pretty of a dog he was. During these two days we kept Will so distracted that he managed to find it in him to be nearly as energetic as he's known for being and I started questioning things. I was beating myself up about the decision but then just 2 hours before our appointment at the vet to say goodbye, my Willpower and I were sitting in our yard with the last few pieces of salmon when he had the salmon right up to his lips, turned away from me, refused the piece of fish, walked to the back gate and sat there facing the other direction. He stayed there for the next 30 minutes until it was time to leave -- and even then I had to pick him up and carry him inside. My literary-symbolism trained brain took it to mean that he was telling me he was ready to go and that he would be okay.
I am devastated and irreparably heartbroken with him now gone.
During these two days we kept Will so distracted that he managed to find it in him to be nearly as energetic as he's known for being and I started questioning things. I was beating myself up about the decision ....
I'm so sorry for your loss. I noticed this part in particular - we've experienced similar, too, and a vet friend of mine even warned me about it after we made a decision to put our most recent senior dog to sleep. There will still be "good days" - or at least, good PARTS of days. It's hard not to doubt yourself, but I TRY to just receive them as the blessing they are. It sounds like your timing was very good, and Will was ready to go. But what a lovely ending you gave to him. I know it's very painful. I'm sorry.
Sorry for your loss of Willpower. It is never easy to say goodbye and grant your dog that one last act of love. Having lost Dash to nasal cancer it always breaks my heart to see it claim another dog.
My very first dog ( in my adult life) taught me an important lesson about letting go and not spending time second guessing the decision. She had lymphoma and a bad heart. I came home from work one morning offered her food and she refused it. She had always been a chow hound so refusing food was a big deal then when she looked up at me and our eyes met I knew she was telling me it was time.
I called my vet and made an appointment for later that afternoon, grabbed a couple hours of sleep got up at noon and took just her ( already had a puppy too) and lunch and sat at the park with her . She was acting happy and I started second guessing my decision and thought when I get home I will call the vet and cancel ( this was before cell phones). Suddenly she stared panting very hard and became short of breath within minutes I could feel the fluid in her chest and knew she was in congestive heart failure so scooped her up and raced to my car to go to the vets.
I put her on the other front seat and part way there she put her paw on my lap and passed out. I arrived at the vets with an unconscious dog with agonal breathing . A few more minutes she would have died in the car. My vet acted quickly with the injection and she died in my arms. To this day I believe it was her way of saying that I was right it was her time to leave me. It was her gift to me she taught me not to second guess what my gut says even when my heart is arguing with it.
May wonderful memories of Willpower help heal your heart and make you feel blessed for all the time you did share with him.
I'm just now finding and reading these posts (am only on page 17 so far), and I don't know if WOOF WOOF WOOF is even still anywhere on this forum 13 years later, but I have to say I agree with his expressed opinion, however much he was booed, bashed, and bullied for expressing it.
Nasal cancer carries a TERRIBLE prognosis - I understand wanting to hope, but it's basically hopeless - and, when allowed to exist and/or progress (even if the pet parent thinks or feels treatment is a helpful thing), it is a very uncomfortable condition. Can you imagine having a stuffed-up nose and being unable to clear it or having stuff continually running out of it and unable to blow it? Plus the sinus headaches! Finally, is the OP a physician? It's unaffordable!
I'm most likely facing this with my elderly pet and will take steps only to keep him comfortable.
I don't agree just in general on principle with aggressive vet treatment for elderly and terminal pets; I feel it's exploitative on the vets' part and often selfish on the owners' part. It constitutes, in many cases, animal abuse, in my opinion (speaking in general; not necessarily of folks here).
Yes, I know you all claimed your pets were happy and healthy on these treatments, but your ongoing descriptions of what was actually happening at the time seem to belie those reports.
Can anyone catch me up on how the early posters' dogs did? I likely can't read all 184 pages!
Last edited by otterhere; 07-24-2021 at 07:45 AM..
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Our Sheltie Chase just diagnosed with nasal cancer
OK - thank you
