Hi all,
This is an update on my 9.5 year old boxer, Diva. A few weeks ago, she had an episode of rapid breathing and partial collapse even after she was taken to the hospital, given EKG's, sonograms, etc., then prescribed Sota
. Thing was, the dosage wasn't high enough, so after the episode, I called the cardiologist and he suggested we raise the dosage from one half tablet (40mg.), to a whole one (80mg.) twice daily. She seems to be doing fine on that, only occasionally breathing a little irregularly, but no collapse, pale, cold, gums or anything.
So, if you recall, when she went in to the emergency hospital, they treated her heart problem, but also found a tumor on her spleen (hermangiosarcoma). We debated over it one too many times and finally decided to have it removed. We don't want to risk it rupturing which would cause internal bleeding. She was given a prognosis of only 3-6 months to live without removal, but if they remove it and find out it's cancerous, she still gets the same prognosis, but at least there won't be the threat of rupture. If it turns out NOT to be cancerous, then they say a year, but I will do my best to drag out any amount of time we have left with her to the fullest extent!
She's going in for the operation tomorrow, so please say a prayer for her. We have faith in the skills of her vet, but extra prayers never hurt! The recently diagnosed heart problem coupled with her age in general could pose complications during surgery.
It's funny because except for a little stiffness in her joints upon waking , you would not know that anything was even wrong with her or that she was an old girl (well, the whiteness on her brindle mug might give her away).
I'm a little concerned because her stool has been loose for the past few days, but I'll mention it to the vet before she's prepped for surgery.
Thanks again for your support here!
Tanya
This is an update on my 9.5 year old boxer, Diva. A few weeks ago, she had an episode of rapid breathing and partial collapse even after she was taken to the hospital, given EKG's, sonograms, etc., then prescribed Sota
. Thing was, the dosage wasn't high enough, so after the episode, I called the cardiologist and he suggested we raise the dosage from one half tablet (40mg.), to a whole one (80mg.) twice daily. She seems to be doing fine on that, only occasionally breathing a little irregularly, but no collapse, pale, cold, gums or anything.So, if you recall, when she went in to the emergency hospital, they treated her heart problem, but also found a tumor on her spleen (hermangiosarcoma). We debated over it one too many times and finally decided to have it removed. We don't want to risk it rupturing which would cause internal bleeding. She was given a prognosis of only 3-6 months to live without removal, but if they remove it and find out it's cancerous, she still gets the same prognosis, but at least there won't be the threat of rupture. If it turns out NOT to be cancerous, then they say a year, but I will do my best to drag out any amount of time we have left with her to the fullest extent!
She's going in for the operation tomorrow, so please say a prayer for her. We have faith in the skills of her vet, but extra prayers never hurt! The recently diagnosed heart problem coupled with her age in general could pose complications during surgery.
It's funny because except for a little stiffness in her joints upon waking , you would not know that anything was even wrong with her or that she was an old girl (well, the whiteness on her brindle mug might give her away).
I'm a little concerned because her stool has been loose for the past few days, but I'll mention it to the vet before she's prepped for surgery.
Thanks again for your support here!
Tanya
