EG's Bladder Cancer

Hi all.  We have a 10 yr old female Sheltie, EG, who was diagnosed with Bladder Cancer 3 wks ago.  We had been treating for urinary problems since October (6 months!) before the final diagnosis.

 She is on Piroxacam, 1 ml per day (she is only 12 lbs) which she seems to be tolerating.  She does seem to be emptying her bladder better than she was 3 wks ago.  That is the only med she is currently on.  We are considering taking her to a holistic vet who is local to consult and see if there is any recommendations (Graviola?) and possible changes in diet. 

We have made severe changes in her diet already (cut out starches, while flour, pork, beef). She is currently on Canidae food (turkey, fish, chicken) with a little yogurt.  Her treats consist of Broccoli, pea pods, green pepper.

 She has just in the last few days started peeing in her sleep - will be putting down pee pads to help that. 

 Other than above she is acting fine.  Our vet did not want to see her back for 1 month after going on the Pirox.  - don't know if that is typical or not.

 Any advice would be appreciated.

 Thanks,

 Connie

I am 5 months into treating my 14 year old cocker spaniel for TCC and can give you some suggestions if I knew more details from you. What type of bladder cancer does your dog have. Where located - trigone or other area. How was cancer diagnosed - urine test/ ultrasound/ biopsy. Your dogs age is fairly young. There should be a fair amount that you can do. I can tell you one thing based on your comment about night incontinence. Watch for a lot of licking. Because of the wetness and urine on the skin my dog developed yeast infections which I treat by cleaning frequently with chlorhexiderm soap and neo-predef powder from the vet.

They haven't told us what type of cancer (my husband took her in, so he may not have retained that info), but it is located in the trigone area.  We did several urine tests, nothing showed except "dirt".  An ultrasound was done, but due to her size, the trigone area was not visable.  The tumor was diagnosed by rectal exam. 

We are switching to Wellness Simply 5 food which contains none of the things we are suppose to avoid.  We are also watching her carefully to see how she tolerates the Piroxicam.  So far so good. 

 I have advised my husband (she spends most of her time with him) to watch for signs of Yeast infection. 

At this point I am a little concerned that my vet may not be as pro-active as I would like to be.  All of the changes we have made were done after our own research.  That may be due to the fact that is the approach we take with many of our dogs illnesses, but I would still seek her "expert" advice.

 I am going to push this week to get her in to make sure the meds are not effecting her kidneys.  Also want to make sure the night-time wetting is not due to an infection as some have experienced.

I greatly appreciate any input.