What Is Chemotherapy for Dogs?
Chemotherapy in Veterinary Oncology
Chemotherapy is a vital tool used by veterinary oncology specialists to treat a variety of cancers in animals.
Chemotherapy for Dogs is a treatment for cancer using drugs which work by damaging the cancer cells that multiply at a faster rate than non-cancerous cells divide. While chemotherapy damages dividing cells, healthy cells are capable of recovering.
It’s the goal of chemotherapy to restore and improve the quality of your pet’s life while prolonging it by slowing down the cancer.
How Does Chemotherapy Take Place?
Chemotherapy for dogs can be administered by injection or orally. Injections take around 30 minutes to be administered with a catheter, or the tablets can be hidden in your dog’s food from home. If your veterinary specialist has prescribed chemotherapy drugs for your dog, you must be careful handling them and managing your pet when they receive chemotherapy at home.
How Pet Owners Can Administer Oral Chemotherapy at Home
Administering oral chemotherapy to dogs at home requires careful attention. Here’s how to do it safely and effectively:
- Proper Storage is Crucial: Always store the medication in the original packaging it came in. It’s important to keep it out of the kitchen and away from all food items. If the medication needs to be refrigerated, store it in its packaging in a separate area from food and other liquids.
- Protecting Others: Ensure the medication is kept completely out of reach of children and other pets to prevent accidental ingestion.
- During Dosing: To avoid contamination, refrain from eating, drinking, or chewing gum while you’re administering the medication. It’s also vital that you never crush or break the pills.
- Safe Handling Practices: Always wear unpowdered latex gloves when handling the medication. If you have a latex allergy, use unpowdered non-latex gloves instead. As soon as you’ve given the dose, promptly dispose of the gloves and wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water.
- Disposal and Supplies: For proper disposal, you can bring used gloves and any empty medication packaging back to Davies Veterinary Specialists. They can also provide you with necessary supplies like gloves, waste bags, and incontinence sheets.
Please phone the practice if you have any cause for concern or are worried about your pet after chemotherapy.
What are the Main Benefits of Chemotherapy for Dogs?
For some cancers, such as Lymphoma, chemotherapy is the most effective standalone treatment, offering the best chance for remission while maintaining a good quality of life for the patient.
Often, chemotherapy is recommended after surgical removal of a tumour. In these cases, its purpose is twofold: to prevent the local regrowth of the cancer and to slow down or prevent its spread to other parts of the body.
Chemotherapy for dogs can also be administered in conjunction with radiotherapy. For instance, certain mast cell tumours may be treated with both chemotherapy and radiation.
Finally, chemotherapy can be used as a primary treatment for cancers that cannot be surgically removed or controlled with radiation, or in cases where the cancer has already spread, leading to secondary tumours. This approach is often recommended for some patients with mast cell tumours.
Dog Chemotherapy Side Effects:
Dogs and cats tolerate chemotherapy rather well in comparison to humans, however, you might want to look out for symptoms and side effects to support your pet and their comfort from home.
Vomiting and Diarrhoea– If your dog is experiencing vomiting and diarrhoea, they may require medication to help with this. You can remove their food and water for a few hours until their stomach settles but return them so they can rehydrate and eat some plain food for a few days.
Hair loss– This is not very common in chemotherapy for dogs; however, long-haired dogs may have significant hair loss due to continuous hair growth.
Infections– Chemotherapy will affect your dog’s immunity as it lowers the number of white blood cells, and they will become more prone to infection. Chemotherapy will also reduce the number of platelets in your dog’s body, so they’ve got an increased risk of bleeding. Blood tests before chemotherapy will determine if your pet is already unwell and needs antibiotics, and check the blood cell and platelet numbers.
Is Chemotherapy Treatment Worth it for My Dog?
This is perhaps one of the most common and most important questions pet owners ask when their pet is diagnosed with cancer. The goal of chemotherapy is to extend your pet’s lifespan for as long as possible while also improving the quality of the time they have left. You will likely receive more time with your pet, and if they tolerate treatment well, then you can make the most of their time and make sure they receive lots of love.
Why Choose Davies Veterinary Specialists for Chemotherapy for Dogs?
At Davies, we have an Oncology team that goes the extra mile to ensure your pets are taken care of and comfortable. We take pride in our state-of-the-art facilities that are designed to support our referred patients as best as possible. Our cutting-edge diagnostic facilities, surgery centres, and consultation rooms are tailored to meet the unique needs of each patient.
We highly value our partnerships with general practice veterinarians and are dedicated to delivering quality care and specialised treatments for your animal companion. If you would like to refer your pet to our Veterinary Oncologists or have any inquiries, please do not hesitate to reach out.