[Lena]

Hi Jenny,

The most helpful thing for hemangiosarcoma I have found, esp if there is bleeding is Yunnan Paiyao. http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2011/06/11/a-magic-vial-of-yunnan-baiyao/

I also usually use artmesinin. The rest varies a lot dog to dog. Hemangio is unfortunately one of the hardest cancers to work with but the yunnan paiyao can be pretty impressive.

best wishes,

Lena

[Lena]

Hi Dagmar,

While I have worked with dogs with brain tumors in the past and seen good results I feel like they are a tumor where I don’t have a set protocol and a lot of it is me seeing an animal and getting a feel of what to do. I don’t know where you are in Australia but you have some incredible vets in Australia. See the beginning of this list from the VBMA.

http://www.vbma.org/international%20members.html

Barbara is one of my herbal teachers and Elaine is also very active in the holistic community.

Here is also my article which has some other links to find vets outside the US

http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2011/12/11/how-to-find-a-good-holistic-vet-to-work-with/

You are going to get so much better results from having someone who can actually see Gina.

Some formulas I have used in the past are Xiao Chai Hu Tang and Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang. Artmeisinin can also be effective. However there are formulas that can also work with her seizures and a good herbalist can tailor the right one for her.

best wishes,

Lena

[Lena]

There is a lot of debate about the antioxidants. I tend to use artemisinin with antioxidants as I think the positives of the antioxidants outweigh any potential decrease in artemisinin’s ability to work. From a Chinese viewpoint I don’t see an interaction. I tend to dose artemisinin twice a day and don’t have exact times to give it. Some Chinese formulas do have times I prefer to give them. Melatonin I use more for dogs that sleep more in the day and less at night. It sounds like if she is sleeping less deeply that may be more a blood deficiency issue or possibly a shen disturbance. If you have a Chinese practitioner or holistic practitioner you can take her to they may be able to help you find something that will work well for her sleep. You could also try feeding her a canned or cooked food meat rich meal right before sleep.

[Lena]

I have never used artesunate so I am not sure. It seems like you would not need both.

[Lena]

Hi Ajmax,

I hope it isn’t osteosarcoma. It is an unusually location for it but is a possibility.

I have used all the Chinese herbals you mention together. I usually do not use all of them if there are not lung mets but also am usually doing acupuncture with the animals I treat. It might be very helpful to find a holistic vet who can take a look at him and help come up with the best protocol that is specific. Bulldogs tend to be damp and if he is the herbals like Si Miao San and/or Hoxsey make be more appropriate for him however they will be able to determine that much better by seeing him.

I have had dogs I treat get treatments with pamidronate and it seems to help at least for awhile and they seem to tolerate it very well. It is a fairly new treatment but if amputation is not an option that and radiation might be good options. The best pain management I have seen for osteo is a combo of radiation, pamidronate, gabapentin, tramodol and a NSAID (like Rimadyl). I don’t like morphine long term because of the side effects. Please read the warning about artemisinin and radiation.

You are doing a lot for him. He is a lucky guy to have people who care about him so much!

My best advice would be to find a holistic vet to work with. Not only are they going to be able to work with you on protocol but they can also change that protocol if it needs to be changed as you go through treatment with him. In addition they may be able to do acupuncture with him, which I highly recommend. If you haven’t seen my article on finding one here it is

http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2011/12/11/how-to-find-a-good-holistic-vet-to-work-with/

best wishes,

Lena

[Lena]

I have used those four herbals together and there should be no interactions between them. While I usually do not see side effects with any of these four I always recommend to start no more than two at a time and then wait three days to start the two more. Any herbal has potential for side effects although they are rare with these four.

I hope she does well!

[Lena]

I haven’t had experience with Palladia for osteosarcoma however my assistant Diane’s sister used it for her cat with squamous cell carcinoma and it greatly extended her cat’s life and quality of life. She also had no side effects from it. It is a fairly new drug so not a lot of info out there but it seems to treat more than mast cell.

You could try it and see how she does on it. If she gets sick then you can stop it. But go with your gut. If it doesn’t feel right listen to that.

[Lena]

Hi Dora,

That all sounds so stressful. It is true if she has a partial cruciate tear and then you amputate while she is healing that she could fully tear.

I had a wonderful golden retriever I worked with who had osteosarcoma and he tore an cruciate within a day of surgery for amputation of a front leg (at first we thought it was swelling from an IV). Because he was really walking on two legs after that he ended up tearing his other cruciate about six months later and they ended up having to euthanize him.

So if you can get the cruciate healed first it may be much better for Missy. Every cancer is different but even with osteo which spreads fast the Sanshedan and Artemisinin seem to be very good at keeping it from spreading.

Maybe you can do some acupuncture to speed up healing?

Ruta graveolens 30C homeopathic is a great one for cruciate injuries, you can use it with arnica.

I would consider waiting on the surgery until she is healed or at least mostly better as she needs that back leg to be strong if she loses the other. Yes there is a risk of the cancer spreading but if you don’t wait there is a risk of her going down all together, if that ligament tears.

I know it is a hard decision to make.

[Lena]

The sweet potato is better cooked for any dog or human as you get more of the effect to help with digestion and you still get all the vit A (however it isn’t harmful if it is not), I actually like using the big cans that you buy for pies (pumpkin is also fine).

Mushrooms should be cooked – you get more of the medicinal and immune stimulant effect (you get very little if they are not) and mushrooms have mild toxic properties if eaten raw. Actually a very good question that I should add to the article.

All other veggies are fine raw or cooked – if you cook them steaming lightly is the way to go because you don’t loss as much of the vits. You are right that raw you get even more vits but they are not always as tasty.

If she is on chemo then any meat should be cooked but the veggies are fine either way. If she isn’t on chemo raw meat is fine (except pork or fish) as long as it has been frozen first.

I hope the oncologist is able to help you with a good plan for Lola on Monday and I am sorry they are mets.

[Lena]

I have a great article on this blog about FIP, which explains that it is not contagious. Hopefully this is helpful.

http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2009/03/06/fip-is-not-a-contagious-disease/

[Lena]

It might be worth a visit with a holistic vet – there may be a stronger herbal that can be used to drain some of the swelling. Also if they are thinking this is cancer or related to the lymphoma I would recommend seeing an oncologist. They may also have a better idea if this is really cancer. Have you considered a biopsy to see if you can figure out exactly what it is – that is going to be the best way to diagnose what is going on and probably something you regular vet can do. It will give any vet you end up working with a better idea of plan to treat her.

[Lena]

I really hope you do have a little more time with Prizley with him being more comfortable and you sleeping better. There were a couple people who also added some comments about Prizley on the path with paws facebook page http://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Path-With-Paws/363205485501

[Lena]

See reply on the other thread you started

[Lena]

Hi Adrienne,

I would highly recommend you set up a consultation with a veterinary oncologist even if you have to travel to find one. From my experience most osteosarcoma will spread if not treated either holistically or with chemo so I agree that it is highly possible that the spots are lung mets, although I hope with all my heart they are not. Once you have lung mets it becomes much more difficult to treat, the protocol I talk about for osteosarcoma may help slow things down by you need something stronger. While I have treated dogs holistically for lung mets see http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2011/04/26/breathing-through-cancer-holistic-herbal-therapies-to-control-lung-metastasis-in-cancer-in-dogs-and-cats/ and http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2011/04/06/prognoses-are-only-as-good-as-the-paper-they-are-printed-on-lous-story/ (Lou is still with us and going strong) it is a very serious condition. I would also strongly recommend finding a holistic vet to work with who does acupuncture and herbs http://pathwithpaws.com/blog/2011/12/11/how-to-find-a-good-holistic-vet-to-work-with/ . In Lola’s case it might be worth working with an integrative approach between an oncologist and a holistic vet if these are lung mets they are seeing. If you can find a good acupuncturist but they are not an herbalist by all means bring them my article on lung mets and hopefully you can work together to come up with a good holistic protocol for Lola.

best wishes,

Lena

[Lena]

I know how hard this decision is. A little over a year ago we had to make it with my little almost 15 year old dog Mel. He had cancer that had returned after two years but his main symptoms was that he was up every half hour all night. My largest issue was he was pretty good during the day however my sanity was going. I was able to help him for awhile with some of the times I recommend but there reached a time when nothing was working anymore and I was going crazy.

Sometime dementia and anxiety reach a point where nothing works and we know they are only getting worse. I think it is different dog to dog when the right time is. For me working with a shaman Rose DeDan towards the end helped me realize that Mel was clearly ready to go as well. He didn’t want to live he life in the way he was living it and he didn’t feel very good even though he was somewhat ok during the day.

With both my dogs that I have lost over the last three years dementia was a large part of their decline. I was amazed that within the sadness over their lose there was also a large sense of relief. I realized when they were gone and could remember them in their prime easier how much they were suffering through their dementia and I was glad I was able to let them go before it got worse.

Sometimes euthanasia, while hard, is one of the greatest gifts we can give our animal companions in the end.

[Author]

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