Molly's Story of Lower Jaw Tumor
Molly, an 11 year old Cavalier, had a tumor (plasma cell tumor) on the lower jaw. Part of it had to be removed. To be fair, her owner, a vet, was afraid of the surgery. She writes:
"I pictured prolonged listlessness, poor appetite, difficulty with maintaining hydration and significant bleeding and swelling. I expected severe jaw instability. I could not imagine how she could eat and drink with loss of the ability to scoop using her lower jaw, difficulty in retaining food in her mouth, difficulty grabbing and chewing with fewer teeth."
Yet after surgery, she writes:
“After the first day she was able to hold her tongue in just fine. I had really been worried about that preop. The first day it stuck out, but now is fine. I am amazed at how little her appearance has changed, even though a large junk of jaw was removed. The skin reconstruction was excellent, with minimal swelling or bleeding.
At home, she was avidly accepting hand-feeding and oral syringe hydration that same evening. There has been no break in her joy in food whatsoever. She is even getting more proficient at licking up spilled bits of canned food that fall in the E-collar."