My dog has a mouth tumor and won't eat before surgery. What to do?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Tashi's loss of appetite can be related to her cancer, similarly to humans who have cancer, animals can lose their appetite and not feel well. However, it can be caused by something else such as a toxin, intestinal parasites, or a number of underlying medical conditions. I recommend keeping a close eye on Tashi, and having her seen by a vet prior to her appointment if she does not eat for a full 24 hours, has loss of energy, or vomits/has diarrhea. I hope all is well and that everything goes well for Tashi during surgery!

Hi there! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sasha is gorgeous! Some dogs can develop lethargy and inappetence within 1-3 days post vaccination. Even if she has tolerated her vaccines well before, she can still develop side effects at any time. Her clinical signs are unlikely to be related to her mammary tumors. I would mention this to your veterinarian tomorrow when she is in for the surgery so that they can run some pre-operative bloodwork to make sure that everything looks right before anesthesia. Have your veterinarian submit the masses to the laboratory so that a diagnosis can be reached. If they turn out to be malignant (only about 50% of them are), feel free to set up a consultation with me for further information on that type of cancer. Good luck! Keeping my fingers crossed that it is something benign and nothing to worry about!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Boppa. The mass appears quite large from your pictures and ulcerated. I assume this is painful to him. If he is no longer eating well, this is also a sign of pain. I recommend discussing euthanasia with his veterinarian. He appears to be a stoic dog based on his breed and other than not eating well, will likely not tell you he is in pain. I am sorry for your situation and hope this information helps.

Try feeding her some sloppy soup with rice and white boiled chicken, or canned dog food. You may have to sit next to her and entice her to eat. Be patient, she will start eating . The Tramadol sometimes will not work very well, so she may be in pain.

Poor guy. Your vet should be able to prescribe several medications to help with Ozzy's pain including: Gabapentin, Tramadol (mild pain control in many cases), Fentanyl patch, Rimadyl (NSAID, for pain) or even Hydromorphone (if severe). He may not be eating due to the pain, so its important to get him something prescribed as soon as possible. A simple phone call should be able to get him the pain medication he needs. We call this palliative care (keeping the pet comfortable) when dealing with inoperable cancerous masses. Until then, you can try offering him some plain boiled chicken or lean ground turkey and white rice OR canned baby food (meat/vegetables) to hopefully entice him to eat something. I DO NOT recommend any over the counter human pain medication as these can be very toxic to pets causing acute liver or kidney failure. I do hope that Ozzy's pain can be managed well soon! Best wishes and take care.

I am so sorry about the diagnosis for you and Diamond. This is a cancer of the blood so it can go anywhere. Typically without chemotherapy and only prednisone the survival time is 30-60 days. You can try low fat yogurt, lean ground beef, turkey, chicken and rice and baby food. Typically they will feel nauseated and sick and will not have an appetite towards the end. The swelling from the lymph nodes can interfer with their comfort and breathing. They will drop weight drastically. When they are too weak to walk anymore and have no appetite or keep vomiting then it will be time for you to discussed euthanasia and quality of life with your vet.

Unfortunately, there are no safe OTC pain relievers for dogs. Many are toxic for dogs and can be fatal if given. I'm not sure what kind of surgery your dog has, perhaps a spay, but she should likely not still be in pain three days before taking out her staples. It's also concerning that she won't eat, which could also be due to pain. This pain and anorexia could be an indication of a post surgical complication. Her symptoms are serious enough that she needs medical treatment now. There will be a vet on call for emergencies in your area. The information to find that vet is found on the clinic's answering machine or website. You can also see if there is an ER veterinary clinic in your area. Please take her into a vet asap.