Changed the thread title since he is doing okay.

So my 6 year old boxer dog had 3 seizures about a month ago. He was diagnosed via an MRI with a glioma tumor. Generally considered inoperable and incurable. The veterinary neurologist told me he would be blind in 1 eye within a month and dead within 2 months. This was 1 week ago. From the seizures he has decreased mobility on his right side and partial vision loss on the same side. He was absolutely 100% before this. It seems absolutely unreal to me that he could go that quickly. I never thought I would make a post this personal but I am tore up. I have two small children and he is an equal part of this family.

I was ready to accept his fate and then found a University clinical trial looking for his particular type of tumor. They are offering surgery to remove the glioma and chemo for 1yr. The hope is that this treatment can be used on humans in the future. The surgery is being done not by a vet, but by a very well know human neurosurgeon. He is one of very few who operate on this type of tumor. The science is in the surgery combined with the chemo they are using to penetrate the blood brain barrier when a glioma exists.

There is no real prognosis on life expectancy as there are too many unknowns. I do know that radiation therapy in addition to what he is receiving would help his chances. However that is a 4k-6k endeavor so I doubt we will be going down that path.

My worst fear is that we put him through this surgery and he has to be put down because of some complication. I don't want him to suffer.

He really is my best friend and it is excruciating to put him through this.

His surgery is Friday. I plan to give him a great steak dinner on Wednesday.

What else should I do for him before the surgery?

What do I tell the kids who love him like the brother he is?

Here are a few pics of the boy.

Beautiful dog.

I speak from experience.

If it wont take food from your mouth, or your families..

Put everything you can into trying to heal him. Or you may regret it.

I know, it sucks.. I took out two loans to try and save my 13 year old dog.

I didnt regret either of them, even though she died on the table.

I could sleep at night knowing I tried everything.

Best of luck OP.

dusty in here.

Don't assume the worst and give up.  You never know when the worst case that you are assuming now does not happen.

Im so sorry OP. He's beautiful. They are so full of love. If I could come back as a boxer dog, even just for six wonderful years with a family like yours must be, Id take it over anything else.
Just love him, man. Love him.

My heart goes out to you. Boxers are exceptionally loyal and protective dogs and would put themselves in front of any threat to protect your family. Do what you can for him and when the time comes be at his side and not allow him to suffer.




 

I just told my son the truth he was 5 when we had to get our dog put to sleep for cancer.

Best of luck it's thought to lose a great dog

I think you should let him have the surgery.

Without the operation, he will be dead in two months.  The operation is his only chance.  And the operation may advance the cause of medical science and help in the fight against cancer.

Wolverine, a friend of mine had a similar situation to yours 12-13 years ago - dog had cancer, but no treatment, so they went with clinical trials (surgery then chemo) - their little pup passed 2yrs ago from old age. Here's praying yours does, too and the Dr's have a sure and steady hand on Friday. I'm sorry you and your family have to go through this :o(



You might think about giving your Boxer a couple of 'dog days' - great and favorite dinner like you have planned for him, big trip to the park, lots of swim time (if he swims) or sprinkler time if it's warm enough, and LOTS of photos.



What do you tell the kids? The truth :o( Boxer is sick and he's dying (or may die), but do it in advance, IMO. There are a BUNCH of books for kids you could get that will help.



Again, I'm really sorry for all of you and I hope the treatment works.  

Beautiful 4 legged family member you have there OP.
Let them do the surgery.  I had a pit, you can find my post about him from this past June, who had an 11 pound tumor removed.
The vet said he had never seen such a large tumor in a dog and didn't know if he would survive the surgery or not.
They opened him up from top to bottom and removed a tumor that looked as big as a brisket.
My family got another full year of enjoyment from him.

It breaks my heart to hear about your boxer.  My family love our that is 2 years old.  We got her when we knew our Boston was starting to go downhill.  My kids are 5 and 8 and the Boston died a year ago.  They haven't forgotten her and mention her at least every month on how they miss her.  They understand she is in a better place and that is what I keep reminding them about and tell them to think about all the good times.  Regardless on what you decide to do....spend as much time holding him as possible.  It will make things better for you both.  My Boston was not in pain so I decided to let her have her finally days at home in stead of being put down.  She died in my arms and I would not have it any other way.

Very sorry OP.  Just let him go to rest peacefully. If you're at peace he'll be ok.

I just had to put down my little buddy of 14 years for biting my little girl. It sucks that's for sure. You have to remember that they are animals. If it is going to impact your family at all I would not waste the money on a surgery. A new dog is most likely cheaper and you will love it just as much in a few months. Good luck.

thats my biggest fear. having a kid and having a dog bite.

He's a beautiful dog!!

Thank you everybody for the thoughts so far. Boxer dog can sure use the thoughts and prayers.

While you can never say never, the chances of this dog biting are slim to none. That said, as a responsible dog owner we always are within an arms reach around kids. I have seen him take on kids hanging from his junk. He gets up and walks away like nothing happened. He is the best dog I have ever had.

He protects my girls and is the best family member you could ever hope for. He never leaves his yard, even with dogs, squirrels, and cats, walking down "his" sidewalk. It took much training but he is absolutely obedient and damned near perfect in every way. When he goes, he will be missed dearly. I wish I could clone him, I would do it in a heartbeat.  

When that dumb ass beagle in the other pic takes off after a deer he looks back at you and says with his expression, "that dumb bitch is running off again". "Do you want me to go after her"? Again, best dog ever, he can actually communicate with a facial expression.

I came here to say something like this. Give it a shot but you'll know if the suffering becomes to much. The dog will enjoy a steak but probably enjoy hanging out with you as much as anything. Good luck from me and my crew.

That is a very thoughtful thing to say. Thank you.

I believe we have given him a fantastic life. He has however given the rest of this family 10 times that in return, whether he knows it or not.

This is what I would do, I have a 13yo 115lb boxer that I picked out when he was 8 days old and his days are sadly numbered
My best buddy.
No way I could turn my boys last few days here into an experiment, I'd wait until I seen a little more progression , like won't eat or move comfortably and would put him down..YMMV
Sorry

put down my best friend a little over a year ago. its not easy but i wasn't going to spend a few grand on a surgery that might not pan out.

she was a little older, didn't make sense to put her through it. my advice, spend ALL the time you can with your buddy while u have him and let him go peacefully.

With a face like that, if this surgery has a chance to give him good quality of life awhile longer with your family I would do it for either of my GSDs.

Well my boy had his last dinner at home. He goes in tomorrow night for surgery on Friday afternoon. They will be checking his blood and getting the medication and anesthesia ready based on his weight tomorrow. Then the brain surgery on Friday afternoon.

It is a 6hr drive each way  to take him in so tomorrow will be a long day. He also has never been boarded, so being away from the family will be hard on him.

Recovery (to get him back to his current state) is expected to take about two weeks. One week at the hospital and the other at home. After the two weeks he should gradually improve. We are hoping for a full recovery and a long, high quality of life. He deserves it.

He enjoyed being outside playing with his ball while I cooked and obviously he enjoyed the meal its self.

A 12 oz, Prime, Fillet Mignon, lightly salted and peppered. Not too bloody, he needs to have a stable stomach for the next few days. The rest of the family had beef stew. He was the only one getting steak tonight.

Dad enjoyed the cocktail on the left while cooking and the one on the right is going to be for sitting on the couch with him later tonight.

Good luck to your pup, OP

Just lost my second Rottie to lung cancer last month.  Very aggressive cancer and she was not a good candidate for chemo due to her age.  

Best of luck to you and your friend.  Keep us updated!

OP,,,Talk to your friend. Tell him everything you know about what is going on. He will understand more than you think. He needs to hear your voice all the way down in the car. Pet him. This is how I treated my Mom when she was dying. Beautiful pup you have there. Mine has a Phd in napology.

Good luck with everything.  My 7 year old boxer Tank has been my best companion.

Best of luck with your pup. Sounds like you are taking the best from a bad situation.

Try to explain the best you can to your kids about what is going on with honesty.

Boxers (as you know as a owner) can be stupid, silly , messy dogs but they can really get into your head and heart. As you also know it is a real shame they are generally quite short lived

Best of luck.

Well boxer dog made it through surgery. The entire tumor was removed along with clean margins. The tumor at its widest point was 1".

He is now 72hrs post op.

He is in worse neurological shape than when he went in, but that was expected. He should improve from this point to be better than he was before the surgery. At 2 weeks he should be as good or better than when he went in. Time will tell.

He will be on Chemo probably for the rest of his life. Again we will see.

He should be able to taper off the anti seizure meds as he recovers. The tumor is gone that was causing these. Phenobarbital was f'ing him up so this is great news.

I don't know if he can come off the Prednisone. I haven't asked yet. Again this was tearing him up.

Thank you all for the kind words and support. I will update with pics of his shaved head with scar running across it. Kinda gruesome but not as bad as I expected.

I already showed pics of him to the kids so they know what to expect when he gets home.

Give him a good steak and let him enjoy his night. Then, I'd count myself lucky that the operation, slim chances and all, was a possibility and roll with it.  You know the prognosis without it......there's a chance the surgery could do some good.

Good luck man. I hope it goes well.

+1
He might suffer the least this way

Well, having actually read your posts, let me say great news! I hope your boy makes a quick recovery  and you gain many extra, happy years with him! I also want to see pics of awesome scars. He'll need a cool nickname now.

There is something to be said about boxer dogs as they are awesome animals!I think that I would have done the same thing. I'm glad to hear that your boy is doing well. Hopefully the treatment and surgery were a full success. Just remember to spoil him as soon as he gets home! My Zoey wishes him a full and healthy recovery!




 

That is a great looking dog.  Prayers for his recovery.

<--- Boxer family since 1991

I understand the feeling, OP. We had a much-beloved Scottish terrier that succumbed to cancer after a long fight. Very glad to year that your pup is doing well postop.

My boxerdog sends his best wishes. He's going through a nasty respiratory infection, but that's nothing compared to a glioma.

Okay here is the first scar pic. He is doing as expected. Resting well but worse neurologically than before the surgery. He should get better over the next week or two.

Aw hell yeah. Bitches love scars. Hope his neurologics are back on track fast!

Little dusty in here as I read this with my boxer snoring next to me.  Glad your boy is on the recovery and hope it is full and quick.  

A little closer up. He has to wear the harness so I can grab him when/if he falls over. He also cannot wear a collar because there can be no chance of reduced blood flown through the neck.

Hope your buddy recovers well and quickly.

I have to keep going back to that first pic. Love the expression.

Bimba Bulldog sends her best wishes to her boxer cousin

Hoping for a full recovery for your Boxer!  My whole family owns Boxers, I have 1, my brother has 2, and my dad has 2.  Amazing dogs, I don't believe I will ever own another breed.

Best of luck.

Buster, my papillon/poodle mix, by the vets experience, was not expected to live past 6 months. 5 years later, healthy, and a hell of a sparrow killer. Even though the sparrows are about his size when they get to batting their wings against him.

Me and Buster are praying for your dog. Vets may speak from experience, but God has his hand in everything, and miracles do happen.

Boxer dog had his 2 week evaluation today. All seems to be as good as it can be.  He is back to his normal self after 2 weeks. I can't believe he is as good as he is. I can still see him miss a step here and there. Nobody else would be able to tell anything is wrong with him, except for his shaved head and scar.

I just hope this thing does not come back anytime soon. Again nobody will give any prognoses beyond 3-6 months. He has a follow up MRI at 3 months to see if anything is there. He starts his second chemo med this weekend. The two drugs work in very different ways but this second one is a more traditional chemo. We have to watch his blood work and make sure he does not get sick. This drug will be taken for 5 months. It must be pretty damned strong because it is only 1 pill a month.

Thank you again for those that shared stories and kind words.

Excellent news.

I wasn't going to post on this but our boxer insisted so here is hoping your family enjoys many more years with your boxer.


oh and our dog says whats up!