I'd just come out of hospital after two serious head injuries caused some issues, I'd just gone to pick up Tanna up from Mums after a meeting to, she ended up spending 10 days there instead. Poor lass saw her dad leaking the red stuff.

I get out and stay overnight at mums, After being greeted by the lass I noticed a massive tumour, Lumps are solid not mobile. Rings vet

The short story is Tanna needs surgery I thought about it a lot before agreeing, given how fast they've grown (there's a couple) I felt I had no choice.

Now I've made the decision I'm as anxious as hell, wondering if I've made the right decision, I based the decision on she's 14 but lively and now in good health even with arthritis, We just celebrated our first anniversary two weeks ago.

I'm embarrassed to say I crumbled a bit in the vets reception to the point one of the nurses followed me outside.

Talked it over a bit more with her I said I know you cant guarantee anything but its the what if, she says we've known the your wee lass since she was very young long before you came along, You've put a massive amount of work already in be proud of that. IF the worst should happen you tired, but she's much stronger and healthier than she's been in a long time.

Thursday going to be a very tough day

The only comments I've had from most close at hand, How much is this costing !

OP you don't say what sort of animal Tanna is
If it is cancer will Tanna need ongoing treatment like chemo? If so how will Tanna deal with any side effects?
What is the prognosis after surgery?
What is the prognosis if lumps are left?

These are the sort of things you have to take into consideration when deciding whether to do anything invasive..

My border collie is 16 so more or less at the end of an average collie lifespan. She has some chronic conditions but is so far holding her own with a good quality of life. I won't put her through anything invasive at this stage. She probably wouldn't be able to handle surgery anyway.
That said I had a 13 year old dog who had a massive non cancerous lump removed. The main reason for removing it was that it was interfering with daily life. He sailed through the surgery and lived a good life afterwards..

It's all an individual judgement call. Good luck on Thursday!

Sorry She's a German Sheppard

I thought about the chemo a lot, Who would I be doing it for, Me just to say she's still here, or her. I've seen how exhausted humans get after such treatment I don't think it'd be fair to put her through further treatment if it turns out the worst. I'm removing tumours to try and make her more comfortable she's been pulling at them

There are some of her vets that disagree with surgery others recommend, the lumps have regularly monitored every 3 months the fact they've grown after staying the same, she's also shown no sign of being hassled by them until this week.

https://www.instagram.com/clarkg39/

If you want to see her

Thank you. Be a tough day

Did the vet suggest doing a fine needle aspiration to have a look at some cells? Having said that any lump that suddenly changes is a huge worry. As for chemo I have a few friends whose dogs have had it for bone cancer and it is quite different from when we have it. Because they can't tell us how they feel it's done using a much lower dose so side effects are minimal but because of that it tends to buy time not cure it. Obviously it does carry risk, one is that it can cause other cancers to develop. It's also expensive. There are different sorts and if you are insured or can afford it you could ask to be referred to one of the specialist vet hosps to discuss your options if it comes to it but I understand it if you feel you don't want to put her through it at her age.

I hope all goes well on thursday. Are you having pre op bloods done and is the vet putting her on a drip to help 'wash' the anaesthetic out? I have both done every time when they are older. The bloods will check that her liver and kidneys are up to a GA. These days GA's are a lot safer, I've had older dogs have them and they've been fine but I sympathise, it won't be an easy day for you, we always worry so much.

No they didn`t suggest that

Yeah she's having bloods and will be tested pre op and stated they wont get it if she's not fit enough, I wont be convinced I've done the right thing until I see her after the op, the surgery is already pricey cos I've asked for her to be scanned to see if there's any we cant see plus the lumps being tested adds to it also.

Money I didn`t ask about until the very end

I drop my wee lass off in the morning then pick up my new power chair in the afternoon. Thursday will be mixed emotional day. If I tell the real truth.. I'm very scared

I think we are all anxious when our furry companions have surgery - even if it's for something minor. Good luck OP.

I've got no advice about surgery on dogs, station, but I didn't want to post and run without telling you that your worry is totally and utterly natural, and that vets must do this type of operation quite often. Added to Tanna's problems, your own personal health has been very troubling recently and that's broken down your resilience to emotional trauma. I hope you're feeling better physically, at least?

You said you were told your Tanna's in better health than she's ever been, so she'll most definitely have that strength to help her pull through the op.

Reaffirm how much you love and treasure her and trust in the vet's surgical skills if she has to have the op, but I'd also ask about what RiversMum said: a fine needle aspiration before Thursday. If she can avoid the op it's even better (emotionally, for you), but she may still have to have it anyway, if it's a lump like MrsGrumpy's dog had.

All the very best wishes, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you both. x

Hiya station - just wondering how Tanna went on today? You may not know yet, so I might be being a bit precipitate asking.

Still keeping fingers crossed! X

Yay Tanna's home, A bit spaced out, bigger operation than originally expected there were more tumours when they started , she's wearing a body suit , her scan came back clean, tumours away for testing

My heart was in my mouth when the vets number rang about 11.30am, Her first words "Don't Panic honestly she's fine, we just found more tumours, we need to ask first before we deal with"

Mum came across to help, Vet said light exercise, She's staggering quite a lot at the moment

I've 10 days to wait before I get the test results

Now I've calmed quite a lot, I'd like to thank everyone for asking

Oooof what a relief - very well done! I'm sorry about the other tumours, but let's hope the results come back as benign.

Aren't they funny when they're coming round from anaesthetic? My cats sit and stare at the wall.

So glad it went ok, everything crossed for good results from the lab.

They often give dogs a vetergesic injection for post op pain relief. Whilst a lot of dogs are fine with it some, especially greyhounds and whippets react badly to it as if they're having a bad trip. It can be quite scary if you have a dog that reacts like that and some even have to go back in to the vets because of it.

Other than feeling sorry for herself , and disliking the diet and body suit they put her in, she's doing well. Very clingy I often find a wee brown face on my knee, she's either wiping her nose or giving me a cuddle.....I dunno

First 24 hours home were quite tough, The nice problem I have now is she think she's fixed and I've got to keep her calm

Back to the vets Tuesday just for a check, Not quite sure how I get her in the car though even with her steps theres still a small jump, I'll see if I can get someone to lift her in

Update from Tanna's surgeron, she's had the results back

Its not entirely bad the tumours underneath are benign, the only ah shite moment was the one on her legs. Aggressive Spindal cell tumour I'm told it may well return. Not quite sure what happens now.

I'm so sorry to hear that, station. Do you know how likely it will be that it'll return? Perhaps your vet wants regular checkups so they can tell?

I bet Tanna's feeling like a new dog at the moment, though! x

I'm not really sure, she get checked every 3 months anyway as she's on Rymadyl for Arthritis, I've asked for a full check over on those visits.

I was a little shocked I was always led to believe the leg was a cyst.

Your right don't think she's feeling to bad, she wanted me to help her get her toys out earlier, she's not quite managed to figure out she's supposed to bring it back and gets thrown again.

The primary reason for surgery was to make her more comfortable on that front its worked