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the hitman
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Hi Folks 

My 13 & 1/2 year old cocker has been taking antibiotics for an infected anal gland which is working although the vet said there is still some blood present. The vet also told me that one of his testicals is enlarged and the treatment would be castration under anaesthetic and they would also investigate his anal gland.

The problem is his age and that he might not survive the anaesthetic.

He is running, eating and showing no signs of discomfort- so do I just leave it or have the operation.

Any advice is welcome 

Hitman 

 

 

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I would get the anal gland treated and leave the testicle alone. We made a similar decision with a 12 year old GSD with a spleen growth. It was 50/50 whether she would survive the operation. We decided to leave her and monitor her quality of life. We had another 18mths of quality time before She showed any signs of being ill.

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Thank you for your reply 

 

My worry is because  the testicle is solid and swollen and if it’s a cancerous tumour it may spread and kill him . If it’s not cancerous then then he would hopefully  be ok.
It’s his age that’s putting me off surgery however that might be the only way to give him a fighting chance .

 

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 this may sound cruel but not meant that way            nature takes us all one way or another    if suffering end quickly      if not let nature take its course  with a view to end quickly to save suffering         an operation can cause more suffering inc pills for months ending up watching a dying dog     crook       as not himself        an unscrupulous  vet will rince your wallet as a new Porcha ordered      (sadly all to common these days )          its your responsibility to look out for your shooting buddy and do the kindest thing  for him      ( not you or the family )     when its time they look at you in a certain way         and let you know its time        and you have to step up     and be cruel to be kind         ( and save suffering)              its hard but the right thing to do     when that time comes         you are not there yet enjoy the time left it could be years without intervention   (we have all heard the saying he was ok until they opened him up )

Edited by Saltings
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Hi Saltings

 

totally agree- I would never let him suffer- thankful he is not in any discomfort and still running about and eating well.

The vet called me back to say that they would leave the testicle alone because of his age- but would like to have him back to check out the anal gland under sedation.

He is booked in for this week.

He’s hoping it’s nothing suspicious.

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I totally agree with Saltings 110%, BUT.................. If the vet checks out the anal gland and does find something at that age and god know's it's hard, wouldn't it be kinder to let the old boy carry on sleeping. I know it's hard, currently I have 6 girls myself, and every time at the vet's I'm the one to carry out so I do know how hard it is, trust me.

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  • 2 weeks later...
2 hours ago, the hitman said:

Hi folks

 

Just an update- anal gland has cleared up and nothing suspicious obvious.

Old boy lives to fight another day 👍

Brilliant, give him a cuddle from me.   My old choccy lab had annal gland problem all through his life. Vet used to just squeeze 'em out ( he loved that you can bet) the dog not the vet stupid.:lol:

He was 14 when I had to make that dreaded decision and had a great life..

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On 27/07/2020 at 20:14, ninjaferret said:

I totally agree with Saltings 110%, BUT.................. If the vet checks out the anal gland and does find something at that age and god know's it's hard, wouldn't it be kinder to let the old boy carry on sleeping. I know it's hard, currently I have 6 girls myself, and every time at the vet's I'm the one to carry out so I do know how hard it is, trust me.

 

I did the same recently.

 

Old lab coming up 12 year old. My first dog and gundog. Started with a small lump like a plum on her back leg joint. They said tumour, we can take it off if you want / take the leg off. She had lost a lot of weight and was struggling and I genuine didn't think she'd survive the op.

 

My folks didn't want to take her to be PTS but I kept a close eye on it and a few weeks later her entire leg was swollen. I took her in for her last sleep, they said it was a bone tumour when we went back in and they couldn't have done anything about it. 

Bloody tough day that was, but I hate seeing these people who put the dogs through massive ops or procedures and string it out for months and months when the dog struggles on. (Not saying you'd do that mate). 

 

It was all very quick in the end. 😞 

 

In your shoes I would just sort the anal gland and keep an eye on the situation.

 

Which also unpleasent to consider or discuss, the financial aspect has to be taken into consideration unless your fortunate enough (unlike me) that worry no matter what cost isn't an issue. Some vets will push all procedures they can as its big money for them. Others will be a bit more honest (but also blunt) and ask if you really want to spend big sums of money when the dog only has a few months to go anyway. 

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14 minutes ago, Lloyd90 said:

 

I did the same recently.

 

Old lab coming up 12 year old. My first dog and gundog. Started with a small lump like a plum on her back leg joint. They said tumour, we can take it off if you want / take the leg off. She had lost a lot of weight and was struggling and I genuine didn't think she'd survive the op.

 

My folks didn't want to take her to be PTS but I kept a close eye on it and a few weeks later her entire leg was swollen. I took her in for her last sleep, they said it was a bone tumour when we went back in and they couldn't have done anything about it. 

Bloody tough day that was, but I hate seeing these people who put the dogs through massive ops or procedures and string it out for months and months when the dog struggles on. (Not saying you'd do that mate). 

 

It was all very quick in the end. 😞 

 

In your shoes I would just sort the anal gland and keep an eye on the situation.

 

Which also unpleasent to consider or discuss, the financial aspect has to be taken into consideration unless your fortunate enough (unlike me) that worry no matter what cost isn't an issue. Some vets will push all procedures they can as its big money for them. Others will be a bit more honest (but also blunt) and ask if you really want to spend big sums of money when the dog only has a few months to go anyway. 

Absolutely agree with all of this. In my mind the ultimate responsibility you take on when you buy that little fluffy bundle is the end of life care and responsibility to make the ultimate decision.

i left it too late with one of my labs by the time I took him in for the final injection. He had little blood pressure and I was sitting on the floor with him for ten minutes whilst they finally found a vein they could use. I will never make that mistake again. Whilst they have a quality of life physically and mentally don’t put them through anything unnecessarily. When they don’t, just make the decision. They deserve at least that for all they have given us.

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I would leave it alone like you said if you mess it could spread.

Our ruby had mast cell tumer  witch is cancer we had her operated on all was ok for five months then it came back more aggressive sadly we lost a few months later 

Edited by snow white
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