{"id":1269,"date":"2019-02-26T11:55:17","date_gmt":"2019-02-26T16:55:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/?p=1269"},"modified":"2022-07-11T09:40:13","modified_gmt":"2022-07-11T13:40:13","slug":"luna-a-happy-ending-despite-an-agonizing-decision-to-amputate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/luna-a-happy-ending-despite-an-agonizing-decision-to-amputate\/","title":{"rendered":"Luna, a happy ending despite an agonizing decision to amputate"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Luna, an 11 year old shepherd mix, had a large mass (larger than a golf ball) between her toes in the left front leg.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1270 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-face.jpg\" alt=\"Luna, an 11 year old Shepherd mix\" width=\"1002\" height=\"635\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-face.jpg 1002w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-face-768x487.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1002px) 100vw, 1002px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">WARNING \u2013 WHAT FOLLOWS IS GRAPHIC \u2013 YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Actually, the mass got much smaller suddenly, after she literally chewed up half of it. That left a large open wound, which got infected, and caused a horrible smell.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Luna was limping because of the severe pain this mass caused.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Her family vet did a needle test (\u201cfine needle aspirate\u201d), which came back normal or as we say \u201cinconclusive\u201d. So there was nothing to worry about right? It was likely a benign mass after all.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Amputation was mentioned, but Luna\u2019s loving owner could not accept the idea. She thought it was a horrible idea and Luna would be miserable. She found me through my website, reached out to me, and we had a little heart to heart. I explained my concern that this was not a benign mass at all, and that amputation was the only reasonable option.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">After agonizing over this difficult decision, Luna\u2019s owner eventually agreed to do the right thing for her beloved dog and scheduled the amputation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">But first, we needed to take chest X-rays, because the cancer I suspected typically spreads quickly to the lungs. Fortunately, no spreading was visible at that point.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1290 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-chest-1.jpeg\" alt=\"No cancer is spreading\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-chest-1.jpeg 1980w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-chest-1-1100x847.jpeg 1100w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-chest-1-768x592.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">We performed the amputation (let\u2019s call it day 1) and surgery went smoothly. Luna went home that night &#8211; walking. Below is a summary of what happened after surgery, to give you a feel for the emotional roller-coaster Luna\u2019s owner went through.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Day 1: surgery was performed. Luna went home and had a rough first night. Of course, Luna\u2019s owner questioned her decision.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Day 2: I recommended adding a third pain medication.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Day 3: One of my nurses called to check in. Luna felt much better already.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Day 5: Luna\u2019s owner wrote: \u201cHi Dr. Zeltzman, she seems to be doing great so far. She&#8217;s acting more like herself each day. She&#8217;s just sad she can&#8217;t get on the couch or bed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Day 6: The biopsy results came back. The news was not good. As expected, the mass was indeed cancerous. It\u2019s called malignant melanoma.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">In spite of the bad news, Luna\u2019s owner was relieved that her dog was finally out of pain. She wrote: \u201cThanks again. We can&#8217;t thank you enough for the amazing work you did to her!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Day 28: Four weeks after surgery, Luna\u2019s owner wrote: \u201cHi Dr Zeltzman. Just wanted to thank you again for the wonderful care you gave to Luna. She is doing wonderful and living a happy pain free life. I wanted to share a picture of her because she looks so beautiful and happy!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1272 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-body.jpg\" alt=\"Luna after her recent amputation\" width=\"1002\" height=\"1927\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-body.jpg 1002w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-body-572x1100.jpg 572w, https:\/\/www.drphilzeltzman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Luna-body-768x1477.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1002px) 100vw, 1002px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">So what is the purpose of this blog? I\u2019m not sharing this story to brag. And I am not here to try to convince you that amputation is a wonderful thing and a walk in the park\u00a0<span style=\"color: #000000;\">(no pun intended)\u00a0<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">What I would like pet lovers to believe is that when we recommend sacrificing a leg, it\u2019s never for fun. It\u2019s always to help a cat or a dog feel better, once the source of the pain is removed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The biggest obstacle is most often in the pet owner\u2019s mind. They are often terrified that amputation is cruel. I suspect that, subconsciously, they think of themselves as an amputee, walking on one leg. Well, remember, pets walk on 3 legs after amputation and they adapt very well. And typically, they start walking a few hours after surgery!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Pets don\u2019t even know they\u2019re missing a leg, all they know if that they don\u2019t feel the pain anymore.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">In Luna\u2019s owner\u2019s own words: \u201cShe is doing wonderful and living a happy pain free life.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ, Fear Free Certified<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Luna, an 11 year old shepherd mix, had a large mass (larger than a golf ball) between her toes in the left front leg. WARNING \u2013 WHAT FOLLOWS IS GRAPHIC \u2013 YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. Actually, the mass got much smaller suddenly, after she literally chewed up half of it. That left a large open [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[140,201,157,156],"class_list":["post-1269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-amputation","tag-malignant-melanoma","tag-phil-zeltzman","tag-veterinary-surgeon"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Luna, a happy ending despite an agonizing decision to amputate | Dr Phil Zeltzman\u2019s Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Luna, an 11 year old shepherd mix, had a large mass (larger than a golf ball) between her toes in the left front leg.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link 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