Tuesday, August 06, 2013

Not out of the woods yet, but better!

Good grief.


Tristan made it through surgery. They found a SIX POUND hemangiosarcoma (tumour) attached to his spleen, so out came the spleen and the tumour! He's not out of the woods yet, as he just had major surgery, but he can come home tomorrow if he's doing okay. We are so lucky it didn't burst and bleed out. Many dogs just collapse and die from these things, because there are few symptoms until it's too late. I have a friend who lost her GSD that way.


But I noticed his belly was a bit swollen and told Gordon to let the vet know when he dropped Tristan off for his gum surgery this morning. They did an ultrasound and saw the mass.

On the bright side, there were no signs of it having spread throughout his abdomen. The vet said sometimes he opens the dog up and see tons of little hemangiosarcomas as well as the big one, but Tristan was lucky. And no sign of any previous bleeds, either.




He said he's seen some dogs live three months after this surgery, and some dogs live three years. I have a friend who had a dog named, amazingly enough, Tristan, who had the exact same thing happen at the same age. He lived for three years after his surgery!


We'll just take it a day at a time. For now, I want him to get through tonight and come home tomorrow so I can give him a big hug.



I've been worrying a lot about his bad arthritis. We sure didn't see tumour this coming!


So grateful he made it off the operating table. We'll see how it goes from here.

Thanks for continuing good thoughts! We love our goofy old dog.



41 comments:

  1. Like I said on FB - Tristan isn't done yet! He's going to be happy to see you tomorrow!
    I wonder how much of a difference the tumor removal will make to his mobility - how much of his slowing down was arthritis and how much might have been the tumor?

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    1. Unfortunately, it's mostly the arthritis affecting his mobility. His arthritis xrays are really ugly. But I do think the tumour has been affecting his energy as of late. Around the same time I noticed his belly swelling, i noticed him becoming really reluctant to climb stairs. I just thought THAT was the arthritis but maybe not!!

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  2. Here's to Tristan coming home and living comfortably and happy.

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    1. He's home and wagging his tail a lot! good drugs!

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  3. It's obvious Tristan is a great dog... and well loved. Hopefully he will get through this well and have more happy times ahead.

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    Replies
    1. THank you Rian! We all appreciate the kind thoughts. :)

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  4. Good grief Tristan, indeed. Tell him he caught the brass ring; the ride isn't over yet.

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    1. He's not ready to check out yet! :) We'll take it a day at a time.

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  5. I'm so glad it turned out well. With the weight of the tumor gone and the resting during recuperation, he might have a little spring in his step when he's back on his feet!

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    1. Thank you!! He seems pretty happy to be home.

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  6. I'm so glad Tristan came through his surgery OK. I will continue to send good thoughts for Tristan to get well soon. Tristan is a sweetheart and needs to get get home where he can relax and recover his strength.

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  7. PURRS!!!!!

    Hubby has a six pound lump...oh wait, that's his brain!

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    1. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Gordon's got one of those too!

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  8. Oh Tristan ,my sweet...
    Love hugs and big smoochy woochy kisses from Me,Chris and the cats. Hugs for you two as well...heck! Smoochy woochy kisses for all the furry family.
    Jane x xxxxxxxxxxxxx

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    1. We are loving all the smoochy woochy kisses. Thank you!!!

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  9. So it pays to be very alert when it comes to an animal's condition. I hope he makes a complete recovery.

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    1. The vet complimented me on my observation skills. We were very lucky!!

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  10. Anonymous11:55 pm

    Oh, so very sorry to hear this, Natalie. What a love Tristan is! It's so hard when our furry friends become ill. Sending really, really good thoughts your way!

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    1. Dogs are so amazingly resilient. THanks for the good thoughts!!

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  11. He's such a lovely looking boy; and those eyes....

    Big hug from the gang over here in France. x

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    1. Thanks Cro. We're so happy he's home!

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  12. Love to you all, but especially dear old Tristan. I hope that dear old boy is soon on the road to recovery. His sweet old face melts my heart. x

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    1. He's got some life left in him yet! Thanks for all the support. :)

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  13. I am so glad Tristan made it through the surgery! That is a big deal for an old dog. I hope he recuperates from this soon!

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    1. I'm happy he's sleeping a lot and eating well. He has good pain meds!

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  14. Give our love to Tristan!

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    1. Done! I gave him a kiss from you.

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  15. May he be around for three more years, and more. Luv your photos, esp. the last one.

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  16. Oh my goodness! What about his mouth surgery? Did they do that too? I hope he gets back to normal in no time and lives another 30 years after this!

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    1. They did! It was quite minor; they took off the growth and it doesn't seem to be bothering him at all! Thanks for the kind words.

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  17. Will keep him (and you guys) in my thoughts! I'm so glad he made it through surgery. It's hard to believe that he had a six pound tumor inside him! Animals can hide things so well. I hope he can come home soon so you can give him lots of love to help him heal! :)

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    1. He's getting lots of loving! THank you, Tammy!

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  18. I hope it all goes well xx

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    1. THanks! We're taking it a day at a time.

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  19. Anonymous9:26 pm

    So glad Tristan has a perceptive mom who noticed he looked a bit swollen. It sounds like there were several bits of positive news in there.

    I love that photo of the two of you. So, so sweet.

    Thinking good thoughts!

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    1. I am very relieved we found the tumour before it bled out and killed him, which is usually what happens with hemangiosarcomas. I know more than one person whose dog had that happen and it's not a nice way to go. Thanks for the good thoughts!!

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  20. Tristan is, indeed, a beautiful and lovable dog! I love to rub around his ears on my visits to your farm! And thanks for the sweet photo-retrospective - the very picture of canine affection!

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    1. He does have THE softest ears!!

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  21. Anonymous12:16 am

    Poor Tristan. Poor you. Thinking of you both...Sheri

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    1. It was a stressful few days but things are better now! Thank you Sheri.

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Thank you for all your comments, which I love to read!