My dog is on chemo. How long to regain lost weight and muscle?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Chopper looks very sick. I would worry about kidney or liver failure or even cancer. Sadly cancer, specifically lymphoma, is non-discriminatory regarding age. Lymphoma, liver and kidney disease all cause weight loss, increased thirst and urination, weakness and a poor appetite. Chopper needs to see a Veterinarian. I wish you all the best!

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Unfortunately, cancer is not uncommon in older dogs and can cause weight loss. Weight loss can also be caused by conditions such as IBD, diabetes, or be a normal part of the aging process. I recommend having Milo seen by a vet for blood work and x-rays to check if he has any masses and make sure his organs are functioning normally. I hope all is well with Milo!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. I am sorry to hear that Petitte has cancer and that it has spread. I typically recommend using the prescription diet Hills and feeding N/D (neoplasia diet) with any diagnosed cancers. This diet is a proprietary blend of antioxidants and nutritional ingredients to help dogs with cancer especially going through chemotherapy. Your vet will need to prescribe this food as it is a prescription diet. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Poor Panpan! Unfortunately, weight loss is part of the cancer process. It's called cachexia, and the dog loses both fat and muscle even if an adequate amount of food is fed to the dog. It becomes worse when the dog won't eat. First thing I would do is feed Panpan twice a day, once in the morning and once at night. Then I would feed him a high calorie and high fat dog food, such as Eukanuba premium performance dry food. A high endurance or active dog food would also be good for him. If Panpan continues to keep getting skinnier, it would be a good idea to look at his quality of life. It's an extremely hard decision to make, but there are times when it is kinder to let an animal go peacefully. I work for an home euthanasia business, so I come across these kinds of issues all the time. I'd be happy to consult with further on this issue, if you'd like. Simple click "consult online" under my answer.

Hello, Im so sorry to hear about Nemo. There are various types of lymphoma that have different degree of aggressiveness. Although steroids is one form of treatment, there are multiple other chemotherapy agents that could increase his life expectancy. With steroids alone however, expect survival time is about 1-3 months depending on the type of lymphoma. Additional chemotherapy can increase survival time up to a year. If you're interested in chemotherapy for Nemo, have your veterinarian consult with or refer Nemo to see an oncologist. He may need additional testing to determine the type of lymphoma he has and offer you a better informed prognosis for him. Hope this helps and best of luck.

I'm so sorry to hear the Cooper has cancer. I understand your concern. There is no blanket answer to your question though. He may be nauseated so taking a medication like Zofran (ondansetron) daily may be helpful. Ask your vet about using that. You know him best so just give him anything he wants to eat. You can try human baby food (meat flavors) often that works. Dogs also like Hill's a/d that you can get from your vet and it is very high in calories so they don't have to each much to take in more calories. I do think it is best to consult with your vet on this issue since they have all of his medical history. It is hard for me to comment without all the facts. I hope you understand.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Unfortunately, if Chloe is dealing with kidney failure and heart disease, the weight will decrease. Cardiac disease can lead to what is called cardiac cachexia (muscle wasting) and renal disease can also lead to weight loss. The prognosis for both of these conditions is not good and if Chloe is taking a turn for the worse and medications are not helping, it may be time to consider letting Chloe go. I would first have a veterinarian take a look at her so that you can discuss this option further with the vet. If it is too much for her to go to the vet, I would look up a mobile veterinary clinic that comes to your house. I hope this helps!