Worried about putting my dog to sleep

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Lilydee

Boxer Pal
Hi, my 8 year old boxer started having seizures about 3 weeks ago. The vet did blood tests and all was well and his heart sounded good. Most of his seizures were short, less than a minute, a couple have lasted longer.. Our vet put him on Pexion 9 days ago. His seizures got more frequent, up to two a day so she said he possibly has a brain tumour and to keep him on the tablets.. Yesterday he didnt have a seizure but seemed to have an episode where he stared into nothing, one eye slightly bouncing, for about 10 seconds.. Lastnight he had a few face twitches, like as if he was avoiding something hitting his face. Today seemed ok, seizure wise, but tonight he had alot of the face jerks.
He is eating plenty and drinking loads but he sleeps alot and playng little or none. He has always been a lazy boxer but never slept this much and played alot.
As we live in Ireland we would have to travel quite a distance for a brain scan which would cost two thousand euro, which we dont have, and if it was a tumour on the brain would find it almost impossible for someone to operate.
My dog is getting worse, not happy, sometimes seems as if he is blind, walks into things, and is either sleeping or pacing through each room for long periods, sometimes his rear left leg doesn't work properly, we were advised the best thing is to put him to sleep when the time is right..
The thing is, I dont want to do this in case its not a brain tumour. So when is the time right? He doesnt seem to be in any pain, but he does seem frightened before and after a seizure.. This is his second day with no seizure though he has developed the head jerking mostly at night and while awake, not during sleep.. Also while eating and drinking he seems as if he cant tell the distance from his mouth to the water..
Sorry this is long and mixed up but i want to get as much advise as i can get as my dog is a massive part of our family and I do accept there is a huge possibility its some sort of brain tumour, is there a possibility it might be something else? I wont consider putting him to sleep until he is in pain and suffering. But is he already in pain and suffering?
Thank you in advance for your help..
Maria
 

Jan

Reasonable Moderator
Staff member
It's a tough decision, deciding when to put your dog to sleep. You need to base it on the quality of his life. Is he happy most of the time? Is he still eating? Does he still like going for walks? We are very lucky with our dogs that we can make that decision. We don't have to make them suffer.

You will probably know when it is time. If you are still questioning it, it is probably not time yet.

Good luck with your decision. When you decide to put him to sleep, don't question it. You will have done the best thing for your dog.

Good luck!
 

Lilydee

Boxer Pal
Thank you Jan, I'm not sure if he is happy because he is either sleeping or pacing. We do try and get him to play but he does try and can last a good 5 minutes before he is exhausted, he only manages this once or twice a day. Walks have stopped but he has always been the laziest boxer and was always happy to laze around or pounce on us all day and his walks were always short, and an effort to get him back home lol, he is so lazy.
He is eating loads and drinking even more, he is so greedy too lol..
He just seems depressed and i dont know if he is in pain or not because he never cries. I cant remember what my last boxer was like because it was so long ago when she died.
I certainly couldn't watch him in pain and im afraid to do anything with him just in case it's not a tumour..
It's hard coming in and him not greeting us by pounding on us, he just looks at us and goes to sleep. No more bum dance either.
I just hope he isn't in pain.
 

Roge

Boxer Insane
My sister went through this with her Lab about 5 wks ago and she knew it was time , he didn't cry but she knew that he was not comfortable and that he was feeling pain ,she said that she loved him too much to see him continue like that .. when she made her decision the vet came to her house which I think is the best way if its possible .

Your dog has been with you a long time and you know him best.. you will know when he has had enough and it will be your final act of love ...
 

MichBoxerMom

Boxer Buddy
I would try some supplements first to see if it helps at all... Diatomaceous Earth Food Grade 10 Lb you can order on Amazon. You can give 1 tsp a day... Supposed to rid the body of toxins. I just ordered some for my baby and I will be taking it myself. You have nothing to lose by giving it a try...
Very sorry for your situation. It would break my heart also...
 

johann

Boxer Insane
I'm very sorry you are going through this with your boxer. It is such a hard and heartbreaking decision to make.

If your dog is pacing a lot, then it sounds like he is anxious. Did the vet do a full thyroid panel?

Good luck with whatever you decide. If/when you do put your boxer to sleep, don't doubt the decision- you did what was best for him.

Thinking of you.
 

Lilydee

Boxer Pal
Thank you everyone for your kind replies. I spent alot of time today googling about Tysons symptoms and also how to know if he is in pain..
I came to the conclusion that of course he is in pain, he has all the symptoms of a brain tumour so of course he has a headache. I started him on some pain killers today and soon afterwards he got up and played for a bit so he is getting some relief. Tonight he started digging his bed like a female about to give birth, it was good to see him pouncing for a few minutes..
His thyroid results were normal as were the liver and whatever other bloods she took. Heart is fine too. She treated him for epilepsy, and he is still on that medication because it has shortened his seizures and he even had a couple of days without any so I will keep him on them pills (pexion) because he looks so frightened during a seizure and doesn't seem to know that I am comforting him, or even there with him..
Unfortunately my vet is convinced it's a brain tumour so when it gets too much for him i will see him off peacefully..I am more convinced myself now after all the reading I did about it today.
I don't know how long we have left with him, days weeks or months but I will not hesitate to let him go when i see he is suffering. We will do what is best for him, not us.
I googled that diatomaceous earth but I'm not sure about it, but I will read some more on it before buying it. What put me off is that it can kill insects etc so I will look into it more.
Thank you all again, I will keep you informed about Tyson, it is so good to be able to talk to someone outside my family because there are so few dog lovers that I know. He is a member of our family and all the kids have moved home with us so they can spend as much time with him as possible beforee he has to go.
Thank you all again
xxx
 

Roge

Boxer Insane
You seem to be coming out of the mist and from reading your post you know a lot more about what you are dealing with.
I hope that you have continued success in pain and seizure management and that you have your Boy with you for as long as is possible.
Keep us posted....
 

Jan

Reasonable Moderator
Staff member
I googled that diatomaceous earth but I'm not sure about it, but I will read some more on it before buying it. What put me off is that it can kill insects etc so I will look into it more.

DE is safe to feed your dog in small amounts. It acts well as a wormer. I can't say that I have ever heard of it removing toxins. It kills insects because, it is very abrasive. It scratches they exoskeleton, they dehyrate and die. It works very well on fleas.:)

I hope the painkillers will continue to make him more comfortable.
 

Poetic_thing

Boxer Insane
I'm so sorry to hear about Tyson, I'm just going to put this out there for you to think about. My Rock had a growth on his gum and I tried Brocogen for him, I had him on it for about 3 months and it disappeared. I tried this because I found another thread somewhere on line that said: My female has had a lump/bump on her, my holistic vet gave me a supplement called OncoPlex by Xymogen. Within two months the bump was gone.

She also had a bump on her gum, diagnosed as epulis. I used a comparable product since OncoPlex is prescription only, but I found BroccoMax by Jarrow at Vitamin Shoppe. Both of these supplements have the beneficial ingredient that is found in cruciferous veggies that is known to be anticarcinogenic and promotes healthy cellular activity. But it did shrink these bumps on my girl, sparing her from an invasive surgical procedure.


I used Brocogen as it is the same make up as OncoPlex and was readily available at my health food store. Research is finding that broccoli seed extract is useful in reducing tumors, cancer and beneficial for many more things. Good luck with Tyson, he is in my heart and thoughts.
 
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