# We lost our Maggie to Hemangiosarcoma



## Jssejme

Maggie was ill in early February. She was having diarrhea and up several times during the night and just feeling puny. (Never off her food, but Maggie would never miss a meal). We took her to our vet who was concerned as she was very dehydrated (took two units!) and her gums were pale and tacky. He did a fecal and a blood panel. Her blood results were really good. The fecal showed a bacteria...l infection. His opinion was that since she was an older girl, that just as the flu can hit seniors so hard, so this did with her. We deduced that the bacterial infection came from her new disgusting hobby of eating poo. I did wonder at the time about her eating feces, thinking she may be lacking something in her diet. She was put on antibiotics and was back to normal a couple of days later.

Between early February and early March, Maggie was her normal, happy self, playing with Kenzie and Joey, her Jolly Ball, etc. She would have stiff moments when she first got up with her rear, but she'd walk it off after a few steps and then be fine. We only gave her pain medication and Rimadyl as she needed it and she rarely did. She continued her new "hobby", but we stayed diligent in keeping the yard free of "snacks".

Maggie at her usual breakfast and went out with everyone else the morning of March 5th. She was totally normal until around 2pm. She vomited and my husband had let all of the dogs out while he cleaned it up. When he went to call them in, she was laying in the yard and wouldn't get up. He went out and helped her and she got into the house and laid by the back door. She was shaking and again, wouldn't move. He called me to let me know what was going on and I prepared to head home to pick her up and take her in. He said when he grabbed her collar and leash, she immediately jumped up for a car ride. As I was getting closer, he called to tell me things were dire and he would meet me there. I ended up getting to the vet first and told them that she was crashing and they prepared the back for her. When he arrived at our vet's with Maggie, he said she jumped up to see where she was and fell over. He carried her into the clinic (her nose was pointing to the ground as he carried her -- she HATED to be carried and would never have allowed that if she could have helped it) and we immediately went to the back. The vet put Maggie up on the table and they put her on oxygen. She was breathing heavily and her heart was working very hard as her circulatory system was shutting down. She was in shock and laid on the table on her side without moving. For anyone who knows Mags, this is not a position she would ever choose to be in. They took her back for x-rays so we could decide what our next step would be. The x-rays showed her heart was smaller than it should have been. (not sure if that is important, but am mentioning it now because it was evident on the x-ray) It also showed a large amount of fluid in her abdomen. They tapped her abdomen (which was quite distended) and there was a large amount of blood. It was also felt that she'd had a stroke as her pupils had developed nystagmus. (We believe this is why she fell over when she arrived at the clinic) The vet conferred with our regular vet and felt that her condition was very grave. We would have to take her to a specialist for a transfusion and surgery and he felt that there was a good chance that the specialist would not elect to do surgery. We made the decision to let our sweet girl go. 

Hindsight I guess is always 20/20 and what I want to share are the things I've since read enough about to question further.

1. Poo eating can be a sign of anemia
2. Hemangiosarcoma can have smaller bleeding episodes, which we think now that early February was. 
3. Loss of blood = Anemia. Would this have shown on the blood panel
4. Dehydration related to smaller bleeds?
5. She was drinking a lot (one of the reasons we'd done the blood panel) and shouldn't have been that dehydrated?
5. Pale gums early February

Maggie was never off her food and the antibiotics worked. With the blood panel looking so good, we were excited to have more years with our girl. I do not believe she would not have survived a surgery in the condition she was in post-rupture... but what about in February? From what I've read, there is no cure for hemangiosarcoma. It is very aggressive and by the time dogs show any signs, it's almost always spread to other organs. It is known as the silent killer because most dogs do not show signs until the end. Regardless, I will forever wonder what if? What if I'd read more a month ago instead of after the fact? What if she'd had the surgery in February? What if I failed my beautiful girl? Unfortunately, I don't believe I'll ever get to hear the answers to those questions. The only thing I can do is mention them here in hopes that it sticks in someone else's mind. I don't wish this to ever happen to anyone else, but with the latest article I read stating that between 1 in 2 and 1 in 3 dogs developing cancer in their lifetime, I think we need all of the knowledge that we can get. 

Ussi Von Stevenhaus (Maggie's page)

Rest in peace my Guardian Angel Maggie.
Ussi Von Stevenhaus January 11th, 2001 - March 5th 2013


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## Loneforce

I am sorry for your loss of Maggie  Rest in Peace, and be young again at the bridge....


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## Courtney

I'm so sorry for the loss of Maggie. These GSD will shatter us into a million pieces. She was a beautiful girl. Thank you for sharing her story with us. This is such an awful, awful cancer.


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## KSdogowner

I am so very sorry for your loss. She is beautiful. R.I.P. Maggie. 
Hugs


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## Lilie

I'm very sorry to hear of Mags passing. Big hugs to you and yours.


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## RocketDog

I'm so sorry. I've lost a dog to the same thing and I really feel for you right now. Hang in there.


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## Stevenzachsmom

I am so very sorry for your loss. Many here have lost their dogs to hemangiosarcoma. It often kills quickly with little or no warning. Please don't blame yourself. Had you done anything differently, it is doubtful the outcome would have been different.

Big hugs to you and your family.


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## fuzzybunny

I'm so sorry for your loss. RIP sweet Maggie.


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## middleofnowhere

From my experience, I think I have an inkling how devastating this is. Hamangio comes out of seeming no-where, you probably haven't heard of it until your dog tanks with it. I'm sorry your girl left you so early with this.

Hemangio is a death sentence. If they have a fairly early bleed & you catch it, remove the infected organ before it is detectable as having spread, opt for chemo (which they tolerate very well) on top of the surgery, you get another three months of a relatively happy dog. 
So whatever it is worth from my point of view, you can quit beating yourself up on this one.

From the reading I have done, hemangio & acl issues are both decidedly more (like 5+ times more) likely in spayed dogs compared to intact dogs. Right now, the youngster is intact. I figure that I have 1/2 a chance of detecting & successfully treating mammary cancer - none with hemangio. 

You have my sympathy. I still feel my dog was cheated by this crappy disease. She deserved another two years.


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## RebelGSD

I am very sorry for your loss, she was beautiful.

I lost two of mine to hemangiosarcoma. The female was spayed (8), the male was intact (9.5). The female had metastases on the liver when I discovered it, and was too sick for surgery, with poor prognosis. She was put to sleep. My boy was very healthy and the other organs were clean, no visible metastases. I did surgery with him and chemo, we had 4 wonderful months.

This is his story
http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/loving-memory/105191-please-say-prayer-my-boy-hs.html

Hemangiosarcoma is a death sentence, if you are lucky, you can buy yourself a few months with treatment. It is a silent killer, no signs until it is too late. It is a very aggressive cancer without effective treatment. Even if you discovered it earlier, you could not have had saved her. Please don't beat yourself up, you gave her a great life and she was very happy.


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## Daisy&Lucky's Mom

I am so sorry for for your loss of your beautiful Maggie . Reading your post it sounded so much like how we lost our Daisy. This thing moves so fast and takes so many. My thoughts are with you and your family.There iis no way to know this. daisy's blood work was fine. We thought she was early stage DM. She had no bleeds was like maggie and never turned down a meal. The questions you are asking yourself I asked myself since July. It is truly a swift and silent killer and there are few signs. Daisy had pancreatitis a very mild case one year almost to the day we found the cancer.Maggi had a wonderful life looking at your pictures and she loved and was loved in return by you and your family. This happens so quick you have no time to even think, Take care and know you did the very best you could do for her. Run free Maggie girl run free.


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## BellaLuna

So sorry for your loss, she was a beautiful girl..


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## Jssejme

Thank you so much for your kind words. Maggie was such a huge part of our lives -- I cannot believe that she's gone. I still expect to see her coming around the corner. We miss her so much. We had 12 wonderful years with her, but I think I needed 12 more. 

I's so sad to hear your stories of loss -- unexpected and much too soon. Maggie was spayed at just over three... I wonder if it helps to spay/neuter later in life?


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## RebelGSD

One of mine was not neutered and it did not do him any good as far as this cancer. I am not sure if the spay/neuter theory for HSA is true. It is quite possible that altered dogs are more likely to get diagnosed. People who let their dogs run around and breed are not likely to take their dog to the vet to get them diagnosed after they die. There is probably a large portion of unaltered dog population that dies of HSA without getting diagnosed.


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## Nigel

I'm sorry you lost Maggie. We've lost two to hermangiosarcoma, our lab Daisy 14.5 yrs and our malamute mix Wilee, also 14.5yrs. Both appeared healthy right up to the end.


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## arycrest

:teary: I'm so sorry for your loss, hemangiosarcoma is a silent, deadly form of cancer that affects many of our GSDs.

Like others, I've also lost some of the Hooligans to this dreaded cancer ... three from hemangio of the heart (Echo, Ringer and Kelly) and one to the spleen (Bo). All four were neutered.

:rip: Rest in peace Maggie.


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## Jssejme

I picked up Maggie's ashes today. I wanted so much to rewind a week and be able to spend some time with her when she was herself again. That morning, I'd been running late to work and just left so quickly. My husband said she was still Maggie up until the point she fell over in the car. In the office, she was fading away so quickly and wasn't responsive at all. She did lift her head once when I told her about the squirrels she'd be chasing and once again to lean it on my arm. Other than that, she just didn't move. I just really hope that she knew we were there and felt our love. I feel perpetually stuck in the part of Karla M. Bertram's The Greatest Gift that says "And I must accept my pain so you can be free of yours".


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## Sunflowers

I am so terribly sorry. 

I can think of a lot of evil people who deserve to be struck by something that awful-- but not ever a GSD


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## DunRingill

I'm so sorry for your loss. I lost my special girlie Ianna just last month, and we're pretty sure it was hemangio. Like Maggie, Ianna was fine and appeared to be healthy until suddenly she wasn't. We knew there was something going on when she had to stop and take a rest in the middle of eating her dinner. By the morning her belly filled with fluid and she got very weak, and we knew.

again, I'm so sorry for your loss....she was a beautiful girl!


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## lorihd

a beautiful girl, and im so sorry for your loss.


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## NancyJ

I am so sorry for your loss. It is a wicked disease.


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## Jssejme

Thank you so much everyone. We are blessed to have three very attentive Aussies that are very devoted in their attempts to make us feel better. I cannot imagine if we'd lost Maggie and didn't have anyone to lick away the tears when we got home. The house just seems so empty without our big girl. 

I'm so sorry for everyone's losses. We don't have them long enough.


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## Msmaria

So sorry for your loss. Maggie's sounds like a wonderful dog. Thanks for making us aware of this horrible disease.


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## Jukebox

this made me tear up. i had to put down my almost 13 year old baby a month ago. it was the hardest thing i have ever had to do. she had cancer and it go really bad. i cried like a baby and for the first time since i can remember. I miss her every day as im sure you do as well. but she is in a better place now.


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## readmeli

Brought me to tears as well - lost my 13 year old BC 2.5 months ago to the same thing. Seems like yesterday. We also wonder, "what if".. she had been on/off food for months, battling lyme and probably this which we didnt know. Then one day she was too sick to move, and then she was gone that night. It's never right. hugs


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## chicagojosh

RIP Maggie! My prayers are with you Jamie


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## sitstay

I am so sorry for your loss. Your experience with Maggie is very similar to my experience with Jackson last year. My guy died before we reached the emergency vet.
Sheilah


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## readaboutdogs

So sorry for your loss. We just miss them so much, wish we could have done more, wonder if we did enough. Like u said, if we could just turn the clock back and do something,anything different.


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## KZoppa

I'm very sorry for your loss. 

Run free at the bridge Maggie. No more sickness ever again sweet girl.


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## Jesseg

I just lost mine last week to that dreaded disease. Jesse was 11 and my love. The pain is unbearable. I understand


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## it hurts so bad

I lost mine the same way, only mine was much younger.
Yours is such a beautiful girl
To her you are the world and all the blessings she hoped for.
I understand that only time heals and words can only soothe the heart.
But i hope it may help you as much as the rest helped me.


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## RiverDan

Sorry for your lose. She is very beautiful.
Thanks for sharing the information.


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## dakotachloe

I'm so sorry for your loss. Your experience sounds similar to mine, as we lost our 10 year old GSD about 18 months ago. It's an awful, awful disease and robs us of these wonderful creatures so quickly and traumatically. Your Maggie was beautiful.


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## Billn1959

So sorry to hear about your Maggie. We lost our Maggie last summer. We called her Mags too.


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