My old dog has a brain tumor and seizures. What are my options?

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm so sorry to hear that your veterinarian suspects that Sky has a brain tumor. There are some clinical signs/neurologic abnormalities that can increase suspicion for a brain tumor, such as abnormal behavior, circling when walking, seeming blind or staring off into space, seizures, etc. Advanced imaging such as a CT scan or an MRI would be the way to definitively diagnose a brain tumor. Prednisone is a common steroid medication with anti-inflammatory properties that can help decrease some of these clinical signs and make dogs feel better. Making the decision to euthanize a pet is never easy, and I'm sorry that you are faced with this right now. If Sky is improving, it is not wrong to delay her euthanasia. I recommend thinking about Sky's ability to do things she normally enjoys, and if she is still able to do a lot of those things, maybe it isn't time to euthanize just yet. I hope this is helpful - my thoughts are with you during this difficult time.

I am sorry Gizmo was diagnosed with cancer. The treatment will depend on: the type of cancer, the stage it is in, the size of the tumor and the location. It would be best to schedule a consultation with a veterinary oncologist to discuss any treatment options. You can find a specialist at the link below. http://vetcancersociety.org/pet-owners/find-a-vcs-member/

Initially it will be important to make sure they were seizures and not heart related (syncope/arrhythmia) as these can appear similar. Try to catch an event on video for your neurologist and document what happens before, during, and after the event. You are right the most common sign of a brain tumor is new onset seizures. But we do also always rule out any other causes like systemic issues, heart issues, and any other cancer elsewhere in the body. There are also other problems that can occur in the brain like inflammation. Ultimately what your neurologist will recommend will be based on the exam and information you provide but is likely to include chest xrays, an abdominal ultrasound, and MRI +/- CSF tap. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

In my opinion, it is a long shot to diagnose brain tumor based on one episode like that. First of all, it should be established if the episode was a seizure or not (it could have been a muscle spasm or a bout of neck pain, maybe ?). I assume that neurological examination at the time of your visit at your vet was all ok. If Sookie has another similar episode, ideally you should record a video of that and play it back to your vet. It will help to establish if this is a seizure or not. Even if the episode was an epileptic seizure it is not necessary because of brain tumor. Problems like blood clot in the brain vessel, bleeding from a brain vessel, inflammation of the brain, infection or even diseases distant from the brain (for example diabetes, heart diseases) can result in seizure-like episodes. So, the best approach for confirmed seizure is to run blood test first to rule out diabetes, drop in blood glucose level, liver/kidney function etc. If the results are negative AND your dog is experiencing similar, frequent epsidoes you can consider MRI of the brain. Lastly, brain tumors do not respond well to chemotherapy/radiotherapy therefore this mode of treatment is usually not recommended. However, some brain tumors can be surgically removed.

It's possible that the seizures are due to a brain tumor, which is very likely due to his age. this means his condition will deteriorate regardless of the treatment, sometimes the deterioration takes several months and sometimes it's a matter of days.

Your dog is in pain, likely due to a brain tumor that is also causing the aggression and the seizures. The prognosis is not good. Please take him to your veterinarian for an exam. He may need strong sedatives, possibly steroids, and strong pain medicine. I realize you are in India, and that euthanasia is not necessarily legal or customary, however it may be time to let him go peacefully. If that is not possible, your veterinarian can at least ease his passing. Be careful that you are not bitten, as your dog does not have control over this. I am very sorry your dog is so ill.

The brain tumor may have spread to his other organs causing him to have multiple problems. Unfortunately, it sounds like his quality of life is not very good at this point. You could have your vet run some lab work and possibly take x-rays of his abdomen to see if anything can be done to help him and make him more comfortable but, if not, than you may need to consider euthanasia, especially if he seems to be suffering. So sorry that Peppe is having all these problems.