good vibes needed please

Boxers

Boxers

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My Rottweiler, Tommy, is not well and I am taking him to the vet tonight.

He is 12 years old and the softest boy you could meet.

for the last week he has been lethargic, off his food, but also not settling, finding it hard to get up from laying down and his back end is wobbly. Today I have looked at him and thought that his testicles don't look right. Not that I have inspected them much! But they seem swollen and he is clearly uncomfortable.

As he is 12 we don't want to put him through a whole lot of tests, injections and operations.

when he was about 5 he tore all the tendons in his foreleg and had to have a metal plate put in. This often bothers him particularly in cold weather.

About 3 years ago he had a tumour on his spleen removed. It weighed 6lbs.

Just feel he has been through a lot already and in human years he is about 83!

anyway, not sure what we will do, but will see what the vet says. OH and I are both going so that we both know what the vet says. It's difficult to pass on all the information if only one of us goes.
 
Thats a very good age for a Rotti and Im sorry he isnt well, re his testicles I would be worried about prostrate problems that is why all my male dogs are neutered.

I hope the vet finds something that is easily sorted and like you would not be happy about putting an old dog through lots of tests etc.

Good luck with the vet and hope it goes well, please keep us updated, vibes for your lovely old boy from me.
 
I agree with you Dobiegirl about the neutering. I would have got him done, but OH went all 'manly' and refused to let him get done.

We have a 6 yr old GSD male who was neutered at my insistence because he had temperament issues! also done on advice of vet re prostate problems etc.

I will update when we get back. Appointment is not til 5.20.
 
Been to the vet. Poor Tommy screamed when husband went to lift him out of the car and touched his back end by mistake.

Vet could not see all that well because Tommy would not lie down and we could not lift him onto the table.

anyway, he is obviously in a lot of pain and vet says it is most likely a tumour.

so options for a dog his age are pts, castrate or pain killers.

Pain killers only really masks the problem and a not a long term solution.

Castration, vet says is not too big an op (compared to opening him right up). Smallish incision near testicle, take them out and stitch up.

Pts :(

So he has some really strong painkillers for the weekend while we think about what we want to do. OH is in favour of castration, I don't want him to have an op, but also balk at pts cos he is bright enough in himself.

it will be a hard weekend. We have 2 teenage daughters who can hardly remember a time when Tommy was not around, so they must have input too.
 
Im sorry to hear your news, the fact the vet couldnt examine him thoroughly is a worry, I hope the pain killers kick in fast and he is soon pain free . I can understand your reluctance to pts and to give him a chance via castration. My worry would be when they put him under they will find it may have spread and they have to pts anyway. Apart from his age and given his heart is good castration isnt as bad as spaying a bitch, my current dog was nearly 2yrs old when he was neutered and the biggest problem was lead exercise for 2weeks and keeping him quiet. I dont now whether Rotties like Dobes suffer from VWD and because my dog was a rescue I had to have tests done to ensure he didnt have VWD.

I hope all goes well for your dog and Im sure you will make the right decision.
 
So sorry to hear you news. :(

Sounds like you all have a lot thinking to do over the weekend. The only thing I can can offer you is a lorry load of <<<<<vibes>>>>>, and hope that once the pain killers kick in, Tommy will feel much more comfortable.

Keeping you all in my thoughts.

C xx
 
Neutering to prevent future testicular cancer has the possible effect of hiding a warning sign of cancer elsewhere so don't kick yourself for not having him done earlier.

Have tests done (X ray &/or Ultrasound) once under for castration and have the vet call if anything else is found.
Have a plan of what to do if.... in advance.


Hope he is ok but please do what is best for him.
 
s4sugar said:
Neutering to prevent future testicular cancer has the possible effect of hiding a warning sign of cancer elsewhere so don't kick yourself for not having him done earlier.

Have tests done (X ray &/or Ultrasound) once under for castration and have the vet call if anything else is found.
Have a plan of what to do if.... in advance.


Hope he is ok but please do what is best for him.
Click to expand...

depending how he goes over the weekend with these painkillers, we have decided to have him castrated next week, but will tell the vet that if they think there is more, then to let him go whilst he is under the anaesthetic.

We will always do what we think is best for him. he is in good spirits in himself so don't really think he is ready to go quite yet.
 
thanks for your kind words.

Tommy was pts this evening.

He was 12, had a fun life, and now he can run free chasing rabbits again like he did when he was a pup.
 
I noticed on Saturday afternoon that his testicles seemed even bigger, and then a little while later, he was licking and I looked and could see the skin had split. there was no blood or pus but it was raw.

So we took him to the emergency vet. what with one thing and another, the vet sedated him so she could examine him as he would not let anyone touch him. she did an anal examination and found that the size of the swelling we could see on the outside was far far larger on the inside and also there was some enlargement on the prostate. all this swelling was pushing upwards and inwards and his bowel was full. I knew he had not done a poo for 2 days.

She said an operation would be much biggerr than just a castration and so we decided to let him go.

We sat with him and talked to him while he went to sleep. He was already sedated, so the vet just gave him an intravenous injection in his leg.

This was the first time I have been with a pet being pts, when we lost our Boxer (Billy RIP 2006) my husband sat with him, and I looked after our daughter in the waiting room. I had expected Tommy just to fade, but he kept taking deep breaths and kind of huffing, which I did not like, although the vet said his heart had stopped. My husband said this had not happened with our Boxer, he had just gone to sleep quietly.

I have since read that this breathing can happen if the dog is already sedated before being pts.

anyway, he is no longer in pain, and I imagine him reunited with Billy now.

thanks everyone for your kind words. X

Tommy 13.1.2000 - 10.3.2012.
Billy 17.2.1997 - 4.12.2006.
 
So sorry to hear this Helen but it is the kindest thing we can do for them when theyre old and ill. He will probably meet up with our old labrador Kelly..
 
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