Dobermans Among Top 5 Cancer Breeds

Doberman Cancer Is A Sad Reality

paw print of doberman that died of lymphoma cancer

Trupanion pet insurance looked at their cancer-related insurance claims to discover which dog breeds had the highest cancer rates. Dating back to the year 2000, they found that Boxers, Golden Retrievers, German shepherds, Rottweilers, and Dobermans were the breeds most prone to cancer.  

The National Canine Cancer Foundation doesn’t share good news either. They state that one in three dogs will develop cancer at some point in their lives. Furthermore, this disease is claiming the lives of roughly half of those diagnosed with cancer. The American Veterinary Medical Association states, “Approximately 1 in 4 dogs will, at some stage in their life, develop neoplasia. Almost half of the dogs over the age of 10 will develop cancer.”

Doberman Cancer Symptoms

To help your Doberman dog, have regular vet check-ups, and be attentive to any changes in your dog’s behavior. Do a lump and bump body check regularly. My Doberman with lymphoma had obvious lumps on her neck. Some cancers if caught early can be successfully removed and treated.  Other signs may include, loss of appetite, weight loss, difficulty peeing or breathing, less interest in exercise(not due to old age), sores that don’t heal, bleeding/vomiting/diarrhea, limping, or stiffness (not due to old age or arthritis). 

Having personally lost a Doberman to lymphoma cancer, I encourage everyone to educate themselves on Doberman health issues and support cancer research in general.  Luckily, I live near the Ontario Veterinary College in Canada that conducts animal medical health research. I was able to give my Doberman some chemotherapy treatment for her lymphoma. But sadly, it was not successful.   The treatment did extend her life but the cancer did return.  The chemo treatments were difficult for her physically, and for me mentally. I eventually made the awful decision to let her rest, but thinking back I probably should have done it sooner.  Deciding when to euthanize your dog, is probably the most heart-wrenching decision you’ll ever make. So when should it be done? In some cases, it’s not so clear. It’s a very personal decision but this tip might help you decide. When the bad days outnumber the good days, then it’s probably time to let your friend go.  You can use the HHHHHMM quality of life scale to help you make that decision.  You might want to mark the good and bad days on a calendar to try to be more objective about the decision. 

It was a heartbreaking year, but in the end, I felt some consolation knowing that my dog had a great doctor and vet team treating her.  I also like to think that we contributed to Doberman cancer research by trying the chemo and drug protocol options at the time.

Have you lost your pet to cancer?  Please share your experience in the comments below. I believe these comments help other owners make some difficult decisions and help them through the grief of losing their dog.  

Lastly, remember one of my favorite quotes.  This simple quote helped me process the death of my dog. Maybe it will help you also. Our pets give us wonderful memories, let’s focus on that instead of the heart-ache.

Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile, because it happened.  

dog dying of cancer

146 thoughts on “Dobermans Among Top 5 Cancer Breeds”

  1. Just want to say I feel everybody’s pain on here..I had such a deep bond with my boy Primo he was the sweetest hyperactive handsome blue doberman.. he turned into a bull at a rodeo spinning around and jumping everytime I walked into the house. we did everything together! Walked and ran so many miles..I could talk about him and all his idiosyncrasies like I’m sure you all could also..they are so smart and such characters!..anyway it’s been 2 months since he passed he was only 8 years old. He ended up having a tumor on his spleen that was leaking and spreading and the doctors weren’t very optimistic about his chances of making it.. even through surgery because he was so weak..I really couldn’t bare the thought of him suffering or dying in surgery so I made the difficult decision to euthanize. He died in my arms..I struggle with the thought that I made the wrong decision and the fact that it all happened so quick he was his regular healthy vibrant self that morning and suddenly he completely lost all energy and would just lay on the floor lifeless..I just want to say idk if this pain will ever leave but thinking about all the good times really helps I’m sure you all spoiled your dobe as much as I did..also I ended up going to a rescue and getting a 4 month pup.. and he’s really helped through this painful process and brought so much light into me and my families life..life is so hard if u can help a dog in need of a home do it! They are really here to help us get through life..no 1 will ever replace your dog but it really does help. I wish u all luck and strength to get through your loss..your not alone dobermans are such an amazing breed we all understand your pain

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  2. I lost my baby Clio, a beautiful american black and tan dobie, to lymphoma on April 19th, 2021, it was Monday, I am writing this, the next Friday after, She was going to turn 10 yo next month, she was a very healthy dog all her life, she was active and lovely, I used to say “Ella es más buena que el pan” (She is better than bread), She was my best friend, I never bonded with someone in the way I did with her, I will never forget her 😞 she started with stomach problems just a year ago, which was weird, this January she had surgery because something was obstructing in one of her intestines, and the thing was positive for cancer, she got to her old self during February and some part of March, but towards the end of March she started to have diarrhea and the prednisone wouldn’t do much, she pasted away in her sleep right next to me. But even in her last day she wanted to go for a walk, and to be pet.
    I started to read if there was something else I could do, and I just found how many dobies pass away from different kinds of cancer, and at so young age.

    I will miss Clio every day of my life. She will be always in my heart.

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    • I am going through this pain as well I love my Bella so much and I can’t stop crying she passed away from lymphoma dec 1 2021. I have a special bond with her and now I’m completely lost and can’t even function in life without her. She was a Black and Tan dobe. I’ve never experienced such pain before almost as if I need counseling but I feel like nothing will help me I just wish my Bella was still here. I’m here to get support from others that are going through this also. Your Doberman sounds beautiful and amazing I’m sorry you are going through this pain as well I have a male Doberman that is 14 he’s lost without her too. She was the life of our home full of cute personality and she was only 10 ish ( she was a rescue not sure of her actual age) I am just so upset and it happened so fast right after her chemo treatment. Dobermans are super amazing dogs and I love them being in my life they give so much love!!!

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  3. My dogs name was Diesel. He was a beautiful Red Doberman 80lbs. He never got sick a day in his life. Diesel was a powerhouse a big baby who never grew up. About one month ago he got sick with a fever 105. Vet suspected an infection and gave antibiotics & NSAIDS. He got better until the NSAIDS ran out. Went for second opinion and next vet thought tick bite, we got prednsione & doxycyline. He began to eat again and recover. By the third week i noticed he was losing weight fast, even though his appetite was great. He got thru Thanksgiving 2020, a month after his 6th birthday and he was active. The next day on Friday his eyes were going blank and the doctor showed me huge lymph nodes everywhere. I held him and he died in my arms he had lost 30 lbs. I feel a great loss, I miss him. I understand everyones pain on this blog.

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    • I’m so sorry for loss! 😞 I have a year and a half all Doberman and he has lymphoma and having a hard time making a decision on when to put him down. It is heart wrenching and the worst thing I’ve ever gone through! His name is Jax and I will be devastated when he’s gone.

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      • my dobermann will be 3 in July 2023. he has what they think is bone cancer. it’s insane these dogs are dying at such a young age!

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    • I’m so sorry for everyone’s loss… I’m sitting here balling reading all the stories 😭
      I was giving my 51/2 year old Ayla a bath tonight and felt a lump on her side near her ribs. It’s not very big but I can see it on her. While I was washing her neck it seems she has a swollen lymph node on the right side. I haven’t been able to sleep I’m so worried. I’m going to get her to the vet ASAP. She is eating and drinking…acting normal. I’m so nervous tho… I got her after my husband passed so we’re very attached to hear other. I’ve never left her side since I got her except to go to the grocery store. I don’t know what I will do without her. Praying for all to ease your pain 🙏🙏

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      • Does your dobie also have like hardness on the side of her back kinda ? Maybe near her bladder ! I also seen a ball on my dobie and now something I thought was a tick . He’s never been ill ever . But the hardness where his bladder is feels rock hard shouldnt he be squishy ?

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  4. I just had to put my red Dobie down on, ironically, Friday the 13th. He was such a huge personality. He weighted nearly 130 lbs and would barrel into a room like a bull in a china shop. He said hello to everyone.

    Toward the end of summer 2019, I came home one day and he was putting no weight on his left hind leg. I immediately took him to the vet and they suspected a slightly torn ACL. Since he was about 8 years old, we decided to try to treat with medication and, if that didn’t work, then ACL surgery. He was responding well to it until about Thanksgiving. He was knuckling (walking on the top of his foot.) After having to be sent to Johns Hopkins for imaging, he had that awful bone cancer. I was going to have the amputation surgery, but the vet said his lymph nodes were swollen. I decided against it due to his size and the fact that the cancer very likely spread. In just three days, he changed and was in obvious pain. We had the vet come to our house to send him home.

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    • I am so sorry for your loss, my heart breaks for you. We all know how you are feeling right now, it is so hard to lose such a huge presence in your home and heart. It takes a long time to move on but you will laugh again and smile about the memories you made with him. Wishing you healing and beautiful memories of your big red boy. Praying for a cure for cancer.

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  5. My baby Tyrion crossed the rainbow bridge on June 30, 2019 he had just turned 5 but had raised him since 6 weeks old. He had just been diagnosed with lyme 2 months earlier and was not responding to treatment as thought. He continued vomiting and we found blood in both his vomit and stool. He went from 93 pounds to 65 pounds in just 2-3 months. He had gone to the vet several times and to a veterinary university no one had any explaination and didnt suspect cancer at such a young age until an ultrasound was performed and found his entire gi tract was affected. He was suffering and I made the decision. Although it devastated me and my family, Im greatful for the short time we had together and know I’ll see him again.

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    • Gerry, I am so sorry to hear of your tragic loss. I know exactly what you are going through. It’s been seven awful months since my Toby passed, but he is in my thoughts constantly. Gerry just try to remember all the good times, and the happy, wonderful life you and your family gave him. Until you meet again, in a better place…

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    • So sorry for your loss, We lost are Max who was 6 years old to pancreatic cancer a few months ago, the worse decision we ever had to make, he was our best friend and companion like you we raised him from a pup

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      • I came on here looking for answers about this awful disease and could not help reading the posts. So sorry for everyone’s loss. Sadly, we put our boy Max, 7 yrs, black and tan dobie down on May 16, 2023. What started as a little bump in the centre on his upper nose sometime in April grew to a big bump in a short space of time , even forcing one eye close slightly. When we first noticed we thought it was a bee sting so waited a few days to see whether the swelling would go down. It did not, so brought him to vet and he was given antibiotics and to monitor the course of meds.
        It did not go down but got slightly bigger, brought him back and another antibiotic was tried along with an anti inflammatory. By this time he was having difficulty breathing and obviously trying to clear his nose at times. I did not sleep a wink on the 15th afraid that he would suffocate during the night. I saw a nasal drip from one nostril which was a mix of mucous and blood. By this time blood work and x-ray was done. X-ray showed a depression and the cancer lump had already eaten into some bone as there was an obvious disapperance of the bone line in the image. The vet said it was a very aggressive cancer, a surgery would be very risky and not guaranteed a success as blood vessels would be involved. He was still sedated at the vet after the xray. We dropped him off in the morning before work, since she was busy with appointments she advised we leave him and she would call us. The call which changed out lives came at 3:30 that day. When we got into his room I believe he took our scent and his mouth moved a bit, my husband whistled to him and I rubbed his chest and ears while uncontrollably crying. We made that decision with the help and advice of the vet and euthanized there. We carried his body back home in a blanket and buried him in the yard. I will plant a rose tree over my Maxie. I have been offered another dog but I just can’t right now, I can’t, it feels as if I am betraying him.
        Even now as I write this I am so overwhelmed, My comfort is in knowing he is not suffering, he was a good dog to us and we had to do what was best for him. He never lost weight or his appetite but started drinking an awful lot of water during his last days. We ruled it out to the heat since we live in the Caribbean and its the dry season right now sonits quite warm. I hope this helps someone take action quickly and request blood work and xrays, scans etc as soon as you see something unusual.

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  6. Hello everyone. My name is Steve, I’m 59 years old and I’m from Cumbria, UK. I lost my wonderful black and tan boy, Toby the dobie, to lymphoma on 27 Dec, 18. He was 10 year’s and 9 months old. After reading some of the heartbreaking posts about other people losing their dobie at scandalously young ages, I feel very fortunate to have been blessed by Toby’s prescene for so long. He was started on steroids on 22 Oct and the 4 drug Wisconsin treatment program began a week later, along with weekly reduced steroid doses. 6 treatments later, you couldn’t even find his once huge lymph nodes. After a few more days, it was back. After the 7th treatment, on vets advice, we stopped the program. He was fine over Xmas, he wolfed down his chicken and gravy Xmas dinner, but less than 2 days later, he had a horrible seizure, I called the vet and she ended his wonderful life 30 minutes later, with a home visit. I was lying with him, on the rug, the tears falling on his neck, as I whispered to him how much I love him, and that my dad was waiting for him. And then, he was gone. God bless you all, and thanks for listening.

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    • Stephen, I am in tears as I read your post and am most likely facing the same sad end of my dear black and tan boy, Eli, who will be 9 years old in March if he lives that long. He developed hugely swollen lymph nodes behind his jaws last week, seemingly out of nowhere. We are seeing our vet this afternoon but of course, I read everything I could online and am fearing the worst. Everyone knows how much I love my dear, funny boy, and one day, my grandson, Levi, said, “Nana Lydia is going to cry for two weeks when Eli dies.” Well, I’m crying already just reading your post and fearing the worst. Knowing these dogs don’t have a long lifespan in the first place, I’m not sure what I’ll do about treating him if his time has come to leave this earthly existence. Having retired a year ago and living on Social Security, with 6 cats and 3 dogs, there are practical limits to what I can do for him. If it’s time for him to go, I’ll have to make some very hard decisions. It’s one thing to know in the back of your mind that these dogs don’t have a long life span, but it’s another thing to know the end is suddenly in sight. I always think to myself that if anyone gets an afterlife, surely every dear spirit on four legs will be there, too. I hope your Toby will come bounding across green fields to meet you when it’s your time to leave this earthly existence … because surely, if there is a merciful and loving God, all dogs really do go to heaven.

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      • Dear Lydia, thank you for your lovely post. I am so very sorry to hear the news about your boy. My Toby was insured but I fully understand your comments as the chemo program is expensive. My advice would be to talk things thru with your vet. Toby had an aspirate at first which was a waste of time. Then a full lymph node biopsy which revealed stage 3 B cell lymphoma. But all this took a fortnight giving the cancer time to progress on it’s evil path. Lydia, whichever road you choose for your precious boy, I wish you all the best, just be sure you cherish every hour of every day with him. And cuddle and spoil him like you’ve never spoiled him before !

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      • Stephen, Jamie, and others reading these posts, I realized today that I had not updated my post above. On the afternoon of Monday, January 21, 2019, I took Eli to our vet and she took fluid biopsies from the lymph nodes under his jaw and one under his arm for the lab — but agreed it did look like Eli had lymphoma. We talked about chemo vs. palliative care and decided to try prednisone to bring down swelling while waiting for the lab results. It seemed to help at first and did cause an increase in urination as it flushed fluid and reduced the size of his lymph nodes. Unfortunately, by Saturday morning, January 26, he was holding his left rear leg up and limping. We could see that his lower leg and ankle were very swollen, which was occurring despite the fact that he was on prednisone. I rescheduled his Tuesday, 1/29 follow-up for an earlier 8 am time because by now he was scarcely able to walk. My husband and I had to lift him into the back of my Toyota RAV4 because he was unable to jump into the back seat as he had always done. The vet wanted to keep him overnight through Wednesday 1/30 because he was running a fever now. They were closed on Wednesday but staff were there working. I called to see how he was doing and didn’t hear back for several hours, but the news was not good. She wanted to keep him one more day on IV antibiotics and prednisone to try to get him back on his feet; but when I called Wednesday, 1/30 and finally spoke to her, the news was not good. Although he was alert, responsive to staff and enjoying their attention, he could not get up on his own power. She wanted me to come in and talk about “making some decisions,” which was obviously code for putting him to sleep. I told her I absolutely wanted him at home for at least a few days so my kids and grandkids could come to say goodbye and give him lots of love, and I also wanted him to be home if he had to be put to sleep. So he came home on Thursday afternoon, 1/31, left rear leg still swollen, unable to stand or walk. The paralysis was advancing and although he tried, he could not get up off the floor to walk even a few steps without being carried and supported — not an easy task with a 93-pound dog. I made him a cushy bed on the floor and kept towels between his legs to soak up his urine and changed them constantly. I knew he wanted to poop, but he couldn’t walk or squat or do any of the behaviors involved in having a bowel movement. I fed him lots of fresh broiled chicken from the grocery store and home-made peanut butter cookies and brought him bowls of water to quench his thirst. I slept with him on the floor and held him tight and kissed his face and ears and eyes and told him how much I loved him through my tears. The kids and grandkids came Thursday night and throughout the day on Friday and paid homage to my dear boy. And on Saturday morning, February 2nd, Dr. Fixler of Happy Endings In-Home Anesthesia came with his assistant, Grace, and gently put him to sleep. He is now buried in my back yard between the oleanders where he had created a dugout to stay cool in our Arizona summer. He was laid on a sheet with a favorite sweater that he loved to steal from me under his head for a pillow and a yellow tennis ball by his face, then the sheet was folded over him and tucked in all around and the grave was filled in. I have been burning a candle over his grave these last several nights and looking out at it from my kitchen window, crying my heart out and wondering how I will ever get over this heartbreak. He was the sweetest, funniest, most loving and loyal dog I’ve ever known. He was My Good Boy, and for almost nine years, he enriched my life every single day, though I did not fully appreciate how much until faced with his sudden demise. – P.S. The first lab report was “inconclusive” but all clinical signs and symptoms were indicating lymphoma; our vet resubmitted the samples for review and the result came back as lymphoma on the second go-round. Since all this happened, I have now read about lymphoma tumors putting pressure on the spine and causing the kind of lower limb paralysis Eli experienced. Keep your loved ones close and take time every day to make sure they know they are loved to the moon and back … because you never know when the end will come without warning. xoxo

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        • Lydia, I am so very sorry for the loss of your boy Eli. Reading your words, it’s obvious you gave him a fantastic life. He is no longer suffering, treasure his memory. Once again, another one of our precious breed has been taken by the curse of cancer. It’s been six heartbreaking weeks since my darling Toby left my life, and I am yet to have a tear free day. People have been kind, saying time is a healer. I hope they are right. I would give everything I have to live those ten years we had together once more, but the arrow of time only travels in one direction.

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          • Stephen Allen, thank you for sharing your experience on this terrible journey. When cancer moves so quickly and aggressively, there is simply no time to process the emotional devastation for all concerned. When the vet came to the house to put Eli to sleep, he briefly raised his head to see who this stranger was who had just come in the front door, then put it right back down on the pillow where he was laying. I think vets have a certain smell from the materials they wear and carry around that communicates who they are, and somehow Eli knew this was a doctor coming to see him. Eli always loved to go to the vet and loved everyone there, so he was fine with this new person who’d just come in the door. At the same time, it was clear that he was exhausted by his condition. If I had done what my heart wanted, I would have laid on the floor with my arms around him for another day and night, but I knew that would just prolong his misery. There was no way I could be ready, but I knew I had to let him go. I treasure the memory of him and the years I had with him more than ever now, and am trying to hold that thought and take it as a lesson in relation to the other animals and people in my life. As the ending message in the movie, A Dog’s Purpose, emphasized, dogs just want to be joyful and they want us to “be here now,” just as they are always fully present and ready to connect with us. It’s hard for us because we have such complex lives and so many other relationships and responsibilities demanding our time and attention, whereas we are their whole world. I am trying to process this terrible loss and allow it to make me a better and more present, more loving human being going forward. If I can succeed in that task, then I will know that Eli’s spiritual “work” with me was successful and that I got the message he came into my life to deliver. I pray that, over time, our pain is lessened and that love and gratitude for these angels in disguise will have taken its place. xoxo

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        • I read your letter with fear. My black/tan girly Tessa
          Is 12 has a growth that is hard the size of a large cantaloupe, in her chest and is lurking on the right side of her body. She has been vetted and they aren’t really sure what it is. She is old for a dobie and I don’t want her last days to be procedures etc
          She was on cortisone and then CBD both kept the pain away. Now I am trying to get a dosage that will pain and allow her to stay with her 3 cats and little brother Timmy the Newfoundland. They all stay around her and Timmy lays next to her.
          Any ideas on dosing she weighs 95 lbs?

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  7. My boy Bentley was on day off his 9th Birthday when we had to say goodbye.
    He started to limp on and off in April, the vet first diagnosed an infection and he was given pain killers and antibiotics. He seemed to improve but by June the limp was back. He was given x-rays and diagnosed with arthritis in his hip. He was then prescribed daily anti inflammatory medication and tablets for his arthritis. By August his hip suddenly changed and he was using his leg less and less. We took him back to the vets who scheduled in some x rays. I knew taking him in that morning we were about to say goodbye and I was right. Bentley had a huge tumour that covered all of his hip, the cancer had also spread to his lungs. So the day before he turned nine we had to make the awful decision to say goodbye.
    I still have a female Doberman Bella who misses her brother so much. I have just found some lumps on her left side which I am hoping are nothing but going to get it checked out just in case.

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  8. We are putting our 7 year old Doberman to rest tomorrow evening. Our baby Gunner was diagnosed the day after Christmas with osteosarcoma (bone cancer). He had a small lump on his wrist which alerted the vet (I originally took him because he was throwing up on Christmas Day – family fed him too much junk….spoiled). X-rays were done, options were given, but we felt that the best was to let him live his last days with pain meds. His lump is now the size of a baseball, his paw is swollen, he hops around in order to not bear weight on his leg, and he’s slowing down. We feel that he is now suffering. The difficult part is that he tries so hard to act himself and he really does, which makes this so difficult, but it’s the best thing for him and we need to let him go and not keep him for our selfish needs. So we will say farewell tomorrow night and we are absolutely devastated. Best dog I’ve ever owned. <3

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  9. After putting our Shepherd down from DM after only 8 years needless to say it killed me. It was September of 2015 and I still cry about him weekly. Anyway, I got the breed I’ve always wanted which is a Doberman. His name is DieZel and he’s pushing 100 lbs. (97.4 yesterday) I love him so much and literally tell him 100 times a day how much daddy loves him and kiss his face even more. I even got, “DOBRMAN” as my NH license plate! (DOBERMN was taken) I actually like my spelling better anyway..
    My problem is this. Today is the second day he will not eat. I mean nothing, Not even his ice creams or his favorite puperonis. He is always at the table whenever we eat with his big schnoz right in your face wanting table food. He is spoiled so he’s not corrected for that, and gets table food all the time. Last night he just sat and watched us eat. I actually had to hold a piece of Italian sausage in front of his face and he literally took it off the spoon and dropped it on my floor. Something is wrong with my dog and I’m hoping I can get some feedback. The only thing that changed in his life or rather routine, I brought him to get his nails grinded yesterday morning. He did throw up in my living room well before that which is a first. He went poop two times in the morning (540am and 855am)which were normal. He went a third time when we got home at 145pm. I personally think thats a lot but whatever. He does it in the woods which I think is hilarious. Anyway, can someone give me feedback if they’ve been through this or know someone that has? I’d really appreciate it. I can’t stop holding him and telling him how much I love him while I’m crying like a baby, Im a 215 lb competitive bodybuilder so I don’t look the best when Im balling my eyes out thinking he’s got cancer or his stomach flipped, etc. Any help would be huge. I don’t know if I can leave my cell but I’ll try.. 617******* call or text if possible or please reply to my post….
    Thank you so much.
    Tony Tripari

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    • Sorry your boy is sick! It is best to get him to the vet now before he gets any worse. They can do blood work to determine what is going on. There are many things it could be besides cancer but anytime your dog will not eat it warrants a trip to the vet. Be sure to tell them about what you have been feeding. Sometimes table food can make them sick if it is too fatty, but even this would need a veterinarian to get under control with some antibiotics. Maybe he ate something and it is causing a blockage. Did you look at his poop in the woods? Was it normal? Three times is a lot maybe he cannot go(blockage) or he has diarrhea. Better to be safe and get him looked at right away by your veterinarian before the weekend. Praying everything will be alright.

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    • Hi, last night I came home from work and my Dobbie Piper had emptied her stomach onto my rug. No big deal, maybe she ate some grass. Woke up this am to zn alarming sight. Bile and vomit every where . Taking her to the vet Monday morning. She is coming on 8 years old. The end is near, even though she puts on a tough and fearless front. This dog has been my best friend my world for nearly 8 years. I gave her the best life possible. A fram to run on and love. An orchard to play in. She is the most beautiful girl. I will be devastated to see her go.

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    • Tony, my heart goes out to you. I had 2 doberman sisters; My lovely Sonya (red) who passed suddenly in her sleep on 2/8/22 and her sister my sweet Sasha just passed on 4/16/23. Sasha had a huge self contained cancerous tumor (bigger than a canteloupe) on her side; and one behind her leg , but because of an enlarged heart the vet would not operate. That was 3 years ago, 3 more years we had together. I asked when would I know the end was near and the vet told me when she stopped eating. She stopped eating 7 days before she died and previous to that she had cut her food intake down by 50%. The last 2 weeks, she spent outside in the beautiful weather, like she was truly enjoying her last days on earth. It wasn’t until the last 2 days that the look in her eyes were “I’m ready to go”. You do everything you can for these wonderful dogs. In March of 2022 Sasha could not stand up on her hind legs and I cleaned up after her several times a day. I questioned myself, was it time to let her go, but the look in her eyes was “I want to live”. About a month later, I came home from work and she was standing for about 20 seconds. The next day my miracle dog was walking around the house. I am so thankful for the extra year I had with her. And I am also so thankful she died in her sleep and the cancer did not get her. I told her each day before she died that Sonya was waiting for her. About 4 hours after she died, Sonya flashed before my eyes and she said “I found her Mom”. Sonya always looked out for Sasha. My heart was lifted knowing they were together again, as the tears of loss ran down my cheeks. I envision them as running free again, without the encumbrants of old age. My son has instructions to have them buried with me; of all the dogs I have had, they were the best and I thank God for letting me raise them from puppies and having the 12 and 13 years I had with them. I know I will meet them again – Sonya will find me and Sasha will be right behind her.

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  10. Reading the posts here is just a reminder of what a great breed Dobermans are. The stories are different but the sentiments are the same. We lost our first to lung cancer too soon but after a time of grieving got our second sweetheart. Just recently she too was diagnosed and we await the inevitable, whether a few weeks or months. With that said I offer a few observations. Apart from x-rays, labwork and biopsies, we took her to a cancer clinic for a CT. The diagnosis was an aggressive cancer and revealed that she had evidence on her spleen and some other organs including her lymph nodes but it is likely it occurred from her left front upper leg which was discovered from the first x-ray. Apparently the cancer had inflamed her lymph nodes which was the cause of her periodic limping. We thought initially she had strained a muscle but nothing was out of normal. For dobermans the bone cancer is likely to attack the upper bone or a lower joint (don’t know the terms). So the limping for her was due to painful inflamed nodes. The eventual outcome will be her lungs, the same outcome for our first. We are giving a modest chemo to reduce the swelling along with pain reduction. Whether radiation earlier would have worked we will never know but as already mentioned, as long as the good days outnumber the bad we will enjoy the time left. The clinic we attended is in Malvern PA and the skill far exceeds our (good) vet clinic. I wouldn’t trade our time together for anything even though it has been such a short 8 years but the end is something I even now have to steel myself for. What a faithful companion and as my youngest has termed a Velcro dog.

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  11. My Amazing best friend and soul mate Jade, a black and tan dobie, has a mast cell tumor in her throat (lymph node). It all started last year, she had always had a small lump on the edge of her tongue which did nothing. Vets said it was nothing to worry about so we didn’t. Then late last year the lump started to get bigger and spread, again vets doubted it would be cancer as the lump had been there all her life, she is now 10. However, after a couple rounds of antibiotics it did not clear up and we decided to have that part of her tongue removed, Tom who is her vet did an incredible job and the tongue was sent to the laboratory. Unfortunately, it was an aggressive mast cell tumor but the oncologist said it had all be taken with a 4mm border of healthy tissue. He recommended chemo just in case it had spread but I declined this as in my opinion I was not going to put my best friend through such a treatment if it was not necessary.

    We noticed a lump in Jade’s neck last sunday, 3 months after her tongue was removed, the mast cell cancer has now affected her left lymph node. Straight away I felt guilty but the vet said the cancer would have already spread so the chemo would not have helped. She keeps getting little grape like lumps suddenly come up out of nowhere. She has been given 4 months if we are lucky, After several discussions with our wonderful vet we decided to give Masivet a try to give her a better quality of life……. she is absolutely fine at the minute apart from sounding raspy when breathing and gulping sometimes but this tumor will eventually stop her from being able to eat. We don’t want her to suffer. The Masivet is a chemo that will only work on mast cell tumors of the c-kit mutation by shrinking it so hopefully she will not get to a stage where she cannot eat because of it.

    But are we doing the right thing, she is presently her normal self even on day two of the chemo. We have had a mixed reaction from family and friends, some say give chemo some say its better to let her live her days without chemo!!!!!! It is so confusing as it is very rare for a dog to get a mass cell tumor on the tongue which has now spread to the lymph node. The chemo will give her a few more months so it is a dilemma. Sometimes it is so difficult to know what to do for the best, yesterday my gut said no chemo and as it hasnt affected her today my gut said I am doing the right thing. Has anyone else been through this that could give me some guidance?

    Reading through all the sad stories on this site has made me realise that Dobermanns do get cancer and I wasn’t aware they were in the top 5. I can really relate to each and everyone of you that have told your stories and send you my love.

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    • Elaine, I’m so sorry for the bad news. I really think with dogs every case is slightly different. I think you and your vet are the best to judge where to go from here, even though others may give you their opinion. And still no one really knows how your dog will respond to chemo. Also financing it is something to consider. Maybe as a guide, when the bad days outnumber the good days it might be time to let our pets go.

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      • Jaki

        Thank you for your kind words, the chemo is working wonderfully with no side effects, she is happy and enjoying life albeit she prefers to be at home now and not out walking. Lots of cuddles and thankful for her still being with us.

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    • Elaine:

      I am so sorry to hear about your baby. It is truly heartbreaking. The decision to have my dobey, Luke, undergo chemo treatments was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. And like you, I get the WHAT reaction from people quite frequently. However, you must do what you feel is best for you and Jade. Personally, I had to give it chemo a try. While I am not familiar with Masivet, I have been very pleased with the chemo treatments Luke has received as he has shown no side effects after 8 weeks of treatment and his lymph nodes are smaller. My prayers are with you and Jade.

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      • Jamie,
        I am so happy to hear Luke is still doing well on the chemo!! I have been thinking about him. We miss our big boy so much, give yours a big hug for me. Good luck to you and I hope Luke can win the fight and get the years he so deserves!

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        • Hercules was the absolute worse puppy I have ever owned. He once ate $250 left on side table, had to wait till he used bathroom to get it and turn into the bank. Odd conversation with the tellar. He also faced a wicked neighbor wanting to put him down for nipping at them for banging on front door. I was on my way out of town with him in backseat when pound decided to allow quarentee to check for rabies instead of deadly route.

          We got through all that. He turned out to be my greatest friend in whole world. His personality will never be copied. Grew to be about 90 lbs. We lived like kings just the two of us guys. His first time to new house was exhausting because he just wouldn’t climb the darn steps at all. Scared out of his mind, I had to lift his front legs up a step then his back legs. This lasted for 45 mins till finally he was able to scale without thought.
          He would whine at end of bed every night till I lifted leg with covers so he could crawl under them, then he would spin pulling all of them off me. This literally happened every night, it was our ritual.
          He would whine in bed if I was in other room staying up until I would come to bed. His bark was something I thought I would never miss, I was terribly mistaken of course.

          Just about 4 years into his young life he developed a lump in throat around Christmas time 2018. Me not having quite alot of money tried everything I could. The masses then were on armpits and knees. Research put a time frame of about 6 weeks if worst happened. Of course with my luck, I lost my Hercules right around 8 weeks into diagnosis.
          I held on probably a week longer than I should have Stupidly selfish. Ill never forgive myself for my selfish need to hold on. We put him down and buried him amongst the other dogs in backyard. Hardest day of my life and I’ll never get over him. Never.
          Being almost a year later I still cry like it happened yesterday. I visit him several days a week. I’ll never own another dog, of course I say this everytime, but this time is different. We had a bond that is unmatchable. I would have taken a bullet for Hercules,certainly wished I could have taken the cancer away.
          I luckily have pictures and videos but I never can make it through them yet.
          I love ya Herc a Mur, I’ll be seeing ya one day, my shit-ass!

          Writing this actually was alot easier than I started. Tears dried enough to finish, thank you for having these sad but sincere stories to read. May God Bless All, including our four legged family.

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      • Jamie

        Thank you for your reply, I am pleased the chemo is working.

        Likewise, Jade has almost finished her second month on Masivet and her lymph nodes are of a normal size, she has not suffered any side effects and is happy in herself. I hope this good news continues for us both

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      • Jamie, it’s almost two years now since your post above on January 26, 2017. What finally happened to Luke following chemotherapy? Did it help and did he have quality of life? I am also wondering how old he was at diagnosis and how he tolerated it? My boy Eli is almost 9 years old right now. We will have a definitive diagnosis this week and will have to make decisions thereafter, but I am inclined to just continue the prednisone we got today and try to keep him happy and comfortable until it no longer works and quality of life is too diminished. We love him to the moon and back, but I knew when I got him that these guys don’t have long life spans. You just don’t realize in the beginning how fast that time will go. xoxo

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        • Lydia:
          First I want to say my heart is absolutely broken for you. I know the pain and confusion of it all too well. My prayers go out to you and Eli.

          This is Luke’s story –In November 2016, Luke was diagnosed with internal lymphoma in his rectum. At this time, he was just five years old. The oncologist we worked with laid out several different treatment plans. In hopes of giving Luke the best possible outcome, we decided to go with the most aggressive option, which took place over a five month period. This particular treatment plan consisted of five cycles of Vincristine, Cyclophosphamide, and Doxorubicin and a daily dose of Prednisone. He tolerated all the treatments extremely well with only minor side effects. His CBC levels were always good so treatments were never halted. Throughout it all, you never would have known he was sick. He went on daily car rides, chased squirrels, and played outside with his fur brother.

          Fast forward to April 2017 and Luke was officially in remission. I remember the vet giving him a green bandana that day to celebrate. Since remission was achieved, Luke was a candidate to receive the lymphoma vaccine. This vaccine was given over an eight week period and was to help stimulate the immune system to fight against the cancer he had developed. No side effects associated with this either.

          In early May, Luke went on a family vacation to the beach. For a whole week, he barked at birds, and took long walks on the beach, jumping in and out of the waves. And that summer he spent almost every weekend on the lake. He sat in the front of the boat, ears flopping in the wind, and guarding off other boats. And in October, he celebrated his sixth birthday surrounded by his family.

          However, in December, he started to show hind leg weakness and started squinting one eye, and it was discovered his lymphoma was no longer in remission. The hind leg weakness was probably caused by prolonged prednisone use. BUT Luke’s quality of life was still good. He was still able to get around good, just not as quick, so we were not ready to give up yet. The oncologist suggested oral chemotherapy – Chlorambucial paired with Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatments and a harness. He took to his harness and treatments well. However, in April 2018, his eye really started giving him problems. It was determined that the lymphoma had spread. His medicines were adjusted, prednisone eye drops were added to the daily routine, but for the first time, I could tell it was all starting to take a toll on him.

          Seemingly overnight, he took a turn for the worse, and on May 10, 2018, Luke let me know it was time. He stopped taking his medicine and eating. He put up one hell of a fight, but it was just simply too much. That night we slept in the living room floor as a family, and on May 11, our local vet made a housecall. It was the hardest goodbye of my life, but I know I made the right decision for him.

          All the treatments bought us extra time with him, but there was never going to be enough time. He took a part of my heart with him, but I am sooooo grateful for all the extra memories were we able to make with that time. The treatments were costly, but I had it to do all over again, I would not change a thing.

          I am sorry for such a long post, but I wanted to tell the whole story. Please let me know if you have any questions about anything. I am happy to help in anyway I can. May you come to peace with whatever decision must be made.

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          • Dear Jamie, thank you so much for sharing the story of your time with Luke and your experience with lymphoma. All of these stories are just so poignant and heartbreakingly beautiful in their own way. My boy Eli is declining so rapidly now that I’m not even sure we’ll make it to next Tuesday’s follow-up visit with our vet. She took biopsies the last time we were there and the labs came back inconclusive, so we were going to re-do them, but all the clinical signs indicate this is lymphoma of one variety or another. After being away from the house for about 2 hours yesterday, I came home to Eli limping and holding his left foot off the ground. He’s having a very hard time getting up and down now and has been wetting his bed the last few days because he’s so thirsty and urinating so much from the prednisone, combined with being arthritic and having a hard time getting up off the floor with his suddenly painful left leg. He’s only been on prednisone since last Tuesday, so I can’t blame the limping on the medicine, but he was already arthritic and creaky before all this happened and now he has a big hard lump on the inner thigh of the leg he’s favoring. If he was only 5 years old as your boy was, I’d try the chemo, too, but he’s almost 9 and has been getting lumpier and lumpier with fatty tumors for a couple of years now and his arthritis is worsening, so I really feel he’s at the end of his life’s journey. He will never have a beautiful adventure like your boy did, but his life has always been here at home with me and his two dog pound rescue pals, Heidi, a little black Lab mix, Suzy, a black & white pit bull mix, and our six cats (Yuri, Nikolai, Zoey, Jimmy Joe Johnson, Willoughby, and Serena) who’ve all grown up with him. Of that group, Jimmy Joe was a stray who has feline leukemia and is now declining rapidly, though he was doing pretty well until this last year. The youngest of the cats, Willoughby and Serena, were strays I took in a year ago. Serena was already infected with Feline Immunodeficiency Virus, but fortunately, her brother Willoughby does not have it. So it’s a motley crew around here with more than our share of incurable illnesses. One of my best friends from college passed away 4 months ago from MS and metastatic breast cancer just shy of her 68th birthday, so sometimes it seems the sadness seems unrelenting. But I know that this, too, shall pass and I will forever treasure the time I’ve had with my boy Eli, who I’ve had since he was 8 weeks old. I will let you know what happens. xoxo

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    • We lost our 3 year old Dobie, Raven, one month ago from osteosarcoma. I am so heartbroken. I cry everyday. She was just a baby. She was so funny, so smart, so sweet, so beautiful, and so goofy. She was almost always attached to me, followed by my son, then hubby. She started limping on a Friday. Her knee looked swollen to me, but my hubby thought it looked okay (I still don’t get why he thought that). I thought perhaps she hurt herself when going down the 3 steps to our backyard. By Monday, she was still limping, and she was due for her check-up, so I made her an appointment for the following day. When we got to her appointment, they said she had lost 9 pounds. She had been on a diet, so I figured that was a good thing. Then they said she had a fever, which was not normal. When the vet came in, she examined Raven’s leg. She agreed that it was swollen. Raven made the weirdest growl I had ever heard while the vet put pressure on it. The vet then shocked me to my core when she said it could be cancer. She took Raven back to be x-rayed. I remember being mad at the vet for putting something so horrible in my head before she knew for sure. Sadly, our vet has been at this for many years and knew what she was saying. My sweetpea had osteosarcoma. It was in the top of her back left tibia. Her lungs were not showing visible cancer in the x-ray, but she told me that since it’s micrometastatic and always ends up in the lungs, it was most likely there too since it’s an extremely aggressive cancer. She told me we could amputate her entire leg and then do several rounds of chemo, but her young age was going to actually work against her. She referred us to a cancer doctor. She didn’t bother with her vaccinations, she just sent us home with 3 medications for pain and inflammation, and told me to give her the maximum dosages. While waiting to get in to see the cancer doc, I did a ton of research. I read so much info from studies, veterinary universities, etc. All of them agreed that dobies as young as Raven didn’t fare well. The cancer doc wasn’t much help. He was fine with doing the surgery and chemo. He didn’t really have any answers for me or that he’d had success with younger dogs making it a year post surgery and chemo (which is considered a success – 2 years or more is considered “cured”). I went ahead and made the appointment to do it, but my husband and I agonized over that decision. I called our regular vet and she said it would take about a month for Raven to fully recover from the surgery, then she wouldn’t feel too well during the 4 to 5 rounds of chemo, then she may have a good month or two before the cancer rears its ugly head again. My husband and I made the decision the not do the surgery and to just treat her pain. We thought we’d have until it got into her lungs, 2-4 months maybe. We knew to look for labored breathing, her withdrawing from us, and crying more. She did cry more often, but the cancer nurse said it may be her reacting to the codeine. But, what we didn’t expect was only one month and 3 days after her diagnosis, her tumor started to slowly burst out of her leg. The first day it started, it looked like her fur was a little more separated. I thought maybe she was licking it too much, which she did sometimes. The next day, the skin was visibly pink. I called the cancer vet (our state was on full coronavirus lockdown at this point, which only added to the stress). I thought maybe she was still licking it too much or more likely, scraped it on one of the steps when going outside (besides the limp and her leg being really swollen, she was still acting like her happy, silly, playful, energetic puppy self (now on opiates), she just slept more and was more vocal at times (she was always a vocal pup, though). The nurse at the cancer vet said we need to consider her quality of life. She said nothing about the possibility of the tumor possibly being about to pop out of her skin, and that thought still didn’t enter my mind. I read nothing about that happening, either. The next day, Raven’s last day, I woke up to my happy puppy, bouncing and greeting me as I came out of my room (she always got up with her daddy), and giving me tons of kisses as usual. I then noticed her knee was bleeding, like constantly dripping blood. I looked at it close up and sure enough, the tumor had broken through her skin along with a blood vessel that was constantly dripping blood out of the new hole in her leg. I felt a sledgehammer hit me in my heart. We called our local vet who said to bring her in to see if there was anything they could do, but they said we needed to consider her quality of life. The tumor wasn’t going to stop growing. They wouldn’t be able to fix it. To save her from a painful trip to the vet, which more than likely would have been her last, we decided to have a vet come to our house to help her over the Rainbow Bridge in our home. I’m thankful I was able to find a vet willing to do that during the Covid-19 lockdown (we all wore masks). She looked at Raven’s leg and agreed that Raven was really suffering and it was the humane thing to do. This has torn my heart out, and writing this wasn’t easy, but our story, Raven’s story can help anyone out there…

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  12. I woke up a week ago Sunday to my baby girl Hailee Mary (black dob) having a seizure in bed next to me. At the time it was happening I thought she was having a heart attack. When she started coming out of it I quickly called the vet and got her into emergency. She stayed over night for monitoring/observation and suffered one more short seizure later that morning. Was told I could pick her up and bring her home with seizure meds but the diagnosis was most likely a brain tumor. Picked her up Monday morning only to see her not be able to walk (knuckling) and blind. Rushed to my vet where after a few hours I made the decision to lay her to rest. I loved her with all my heart and soul, she was my best friend. Miss her like no other and appreciate all the stories I read out here, that others feel the same way about their babies. Hailee would have been 11 in March of 2017.

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  13. My five year old red Dobie, Luke, was diagnosed with internal lymphoma yesterday. To say I am completely and utterly devastated would be an understatement. Luke is my “fur” baby and so much of my life revolves around him. The vet we are working with has been completely wonderful and has laid out many different treatment options including Prednisone & Vincristine. Does anyone have any recommendations or experience with these treatments? Does anyone regret doing chemo? Please comment, anything will help as I am desperately trying to make the best decision for Luke.

    Please pray for myself and Luke.

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    • Jamie my Dobe had lymphoma. I tried the prednisone treatment and it did extend her life. But I don’t know how hard the treatment was on her or if it was a good decision to do it for as long as we did (about a year). I like to think she was ok with it and I helped the medical team with their research.
      I think you’ll need to get a sense with your own dog how he’s doing. I’m sure every case is a bit different.
      This question might help your decision making. Is he having more good days than bad days? with or without the treatment. I put down another Dobe this summer for leg issues and decided when the bad days outnumbered the good days it was time to let her go.
      (And lastly it’s expensive, so take this into consideration also) I’m so sorry for the awful news, but feel some comfort knowing how lucky Luke is to have a caring owner like you.

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      • Jaki:
        Thank you for sharing. Luke has responded very well to Prednisone and takes a daily dose. We further opted for a full cycle of chemo treatments including Vincristine, Cyclophosphamide, and Doxorubicin. Luke is taking the treatments like the champ he is, and so far, he has not experienced any side effects. What makes it so difficult is that you would not know he is sick. He still eats well, chases squirrels daily, and is very playful. I am very fortunate that my job allows me to work from home 99.7% of the time, allowing me to keep a close eye on him, take extra bathroom outings, midday snuggles, etc., but one day I know my heart will break. The chemo treatments are pricey, and we must travel over an hour for them, but I would not trade these days with my boy for anything. Thank you again for sharing, I really appreciate your advice and I agree, when the bad days outnumber the good, Luke will join the other dobies in doggie heaven.

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    • Jamie,
      I am so sorry to hear about Luke. Our red dobie, Tank, was also diagnosed with stage 3 lymphoma this month. He turned 5 the week after his diagnosis. We were and are devastated! It took a few weeks to accept this as reality and it is still difficult knowing he does not have much time left with us. We did decide to treat him because of his age and he was not feeling sick when we brought him in, just swollen lymph nodes. So far he has had lasparaginase, vincristine, and cytoxan and he takes dexamethasone steroid everyday. The day after his first treatment his lymph nodes were back to normal size. He has done well so far, eating and playing, you wouldn’t know he was sick. We will not let him suffer though, so we are prepared to let him go if his bad days outnumber the good. I will keep you and Luke in my prayers, he has already been blessed to have you in his life.

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      • I felt I needed to update my post. The very next day we had to let Tank go. He had been having difficulty breathing when he was on his side but our vet thought it could be from the steroid. He had a perfect day but then during the night he began to hemorrhage from his nose and mouth so we took him to the emergency vet. It was obvious nothing could be done to save him. The lymphoma must have been throughout his body and we did not know. He never lost interest in anything during his last 3 weeks, he ate well, played, howled at sirens, went for rides, went to the office, barked at squirrels and played with our other dobe. He was happy even as he took his last breath. What a magnificent dog he was. I am glad we gave the chemo a try, I do not think it caused him any suffering and probably gave him a few extra good weeks for us to love and spoil him. My prayers are with all who are going through this aggressive cancer with their beloved pets.

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        • D:
          I am so sorry to hear about Tank. My heart breaks for you and your family. I found the Doberman Den forum email update in my junk email last night, but I think it was God’s timing. I had been getting overly hopeful with how well Luke was doing with his treatments and I feel this reminded me that even when things are seemly going well, I probably will not know when Luke’s last day will be. We decided on the most aggressive treatment plan for Luke which includes 5 cycles of Vincristine, Cyclophosphamide, and Doxorubicin and a daily dose of Prednisone. We have made it through the first cycle without any side effects and like you said, you never would know our babies were sick. He loves to eat, take car rides, chase squirrels, hog the bed, and play with his dobie/lab rescue brother. Sounds like Tank & Luke had a lot in common. So far his CBC levels are remaining good, his lymphnodes have decreased and he has actually gained a pound or two. I do not think I will regret giving chemo a try because I would not trade these precious weeks with my boy for anything. Thank you for sharing.

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          • I am reading all of these threads with my heart breaking. My black female Dobie named Athena is only 17 months old and I just learned today that she has Lymphoma carcinoma. She is the smartest, playful best friend I have ever had. She acts normal other than her Lymph Nodes are extremely swollen and she lost 10 lbs in 2 weeks. I am reading trying to see what others have experienced so that I will do the right thing for my baby. Thanks for your comments about your own babies.

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  14. We rescued a beautiful 5 year old Doberman “Zen”. At 8 years old, she had a large tumor removed from under her arm (was non cancerous). Check ups every six months. Finally at nearly 10, she was one week due for her 6 month check up and we noticed she had slowed down significantly. We took her in and found out she was covered in tumors. UN-treatable. Our vet told us that sometimes it is aggressive and happens almost overnight. We said goodbye two days later. This was May 25th of this year. Today, we woke up and are again tempted to get a Doberman. This time a puppy. Not sure why, except “Zen” was the greatest companion we have ever had. Dobermans are pure ROYALTY. And pure LOYALTY. I almost cried more when Zen passed away that I did for my own Father’s passing. What am I getting myself into?

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    • We just lost our dobe and you are saying exactly what we are thinking. We had no warnings, literally less than 12 hours. We never knew he even had cancer.

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  15. Cancer research? Good luck waiting for that to bear any fruit. Keep your dogs diet healthy and clean to stay cancer free and stay away from chemo, you will extend their life by doing no treatment than giving deadly treatments like chemo and radiation.

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  16. About 1 1/2 years ago my 22yr old son brought a Fawn Doberman , rare we were told . He paid a pretty penny for Rayo and was only feed the best food and had a special house built , with no limit on the cost, and he instantly became part of our family . My husband and son would take Rayo for walks only to receive stares and complements , he was about 3 1/2 – 4 feet so when my son would take him for a ride behind his truck he was often mistaken for a deer. We notice he started to lose weight , no physical activity and took him to vet , was diagnose with cancer and liver failure, took him for a second option and were told the same . My son decided to bring him home to rest his final day, however we saw he was weaker, no appetite , and losing weight quickly. My son decided to put Rayo to rest. With great sadness today at noon Rayo will be put to sleep however we will be forever greatful for the time we did shared with him and memories made with us. Rayo we love you and you will always have a special place in our heart ..🐶

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  17. Jasper will be 8 years old September 18, 2016, in March of this year he had some lipomas in his cheek removed and biopsied which were found to be noncancerous.
    Ever since his surgery though he hasn’t been the same. He has other lumps but none have been checked and all blood work comes back fine. He has lost 12 lbs and constantly vomits and goes through periods of not eating or drinking.
    He is having X-rays tomorrow so hopefully we find out what’s going on with him. He’s such a sweet guy and you’d never know if he was in pain but we know him and something is deffinatley wrong. Just need to find out what!!!

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    • Jasper is at the vet this morning for ultrasound and endoscopy as the barium series of X-rays showed nothing.
      He has continued to vomit and eats barely a cup of food each day. In the last 2 months he has lost 19lbs. He went from 110lbs to 91lbs as of this morning.
      We are hoping they find something today and can give us some answers. It’s awful watching him not eat and just all around look sad.

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      • Thanks for the update Tanya, hope the drs find out whats going on asap!! please keep us informed!! We just had bone core biopsies, bloodwork and chest x-ray done on our Bentley yesterday. Bloodwork and chest x-ray were normal now waiting to hear back on the biopsies. Really hoping his vet is wrong about bone cancer even though chances are very slim that its something entirely different and curable. Once we get those results back and will make a decision on treatment. Goodluck and hopefully your dobie gets back to acting like his old self soon! take care…

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        • Thank you Karen, I’ll post biopsy results as soon as they come back. It usually takes about a week the Dr. said.
          I hope everything turns out well for you. It’s so heartbreaking watching them in pain or suffering in silence. If only they could just tell US what’s wrong. Praying for you. Tanya

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      • Update on Jasper as of ultrasound yesterday. The ultrasound showed a distended gall bladder with anechoic bile.
        A segment of his small intestine had loss of normal layering and was thickened. That segment showed a gas shadowing which was immovable during the exam.
        Lymph nodes were mildly enlarged.
        Due to the finding in the small intestine and Jasper continuing to vomit and or not eat we were advised to take him to Tampa for exploratory surgery.
        The surgery was performed and that portion of his intestine was removed and we are waiting for biopsy. He is recovering and we will be able to pick him up from the hospital some time tomorrow.
        We are praying for good news for Jasper and for each of you on this site. I hope everyone has a wonderful day and thank you for your support.

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        • Bentley”s biopsy results came back and confirmed osteosarcoma (bone cancer) of his front leg. He is scheduled for an amputation Monday morning and hopefully we caught it early enough that it hasn’t already spread to other areas. The fact that his chest x-ray and bloodwork all looked good gives us hope! At least he will be pain free and hopefully have a normal life, even if we only are only able to give him an extra year, Without amputation he would be in pain and maybe only have up to 6 months and we just couldn’t accept that, this is hard enough as it is. Tanya, i am hoping for better news on your Dobie, please keep us updated. Take care….Karen

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          • Hi Karen, Jasper’s biopsy came back today and it’s carcinoma. He has an appointment Monday with the oncologist to see what our options are, but due to the fact that it’s a very aggressive cancer and may have already spread to other tissues I’m sure it’s just a matter of keeping him comfortable for now.
            I am so sorry to hear about Bentley, but I hope everything goes well with his treatment and I’ll post as soon as we talk to the Dr. on Monday.

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            • Tanya, Please keep me updated, you are in my thoughts and prayers, even though we don’t know each other this news breaks my heart…. I am so sorry to hear this. I hope there is some positive words from his oncologist and the you have more time with Jasper than first thought. I know when the time comes to let our precious guys go, it’s gonna be heartbreaking but knowing they are no longer suffering will help ease the pain. Bentley had his leg amputated 8 days ago and he’s doing pretty good, he’s even going up and down stairs. He doesn’t seem to be in pain thankfully. He goes back to the vet next week to have the staples removed and then we will discuss further treatment. His vet is saying we may have him another 6 months without further treatment and maybe a year with some form of chemo. But at least for now he is not in that excrutiating pain from the bone cancer. Please, please keep me updated on Jasper, prayers and hugs from a fellow dobie mom. <3

            • Hi Karen, well the oncologist appointment went as scheduled and we have the option to do chemo, but with this cancer it’s a matter of when it will come back and not if.
              This cancer is so rare (less than 10 percent) of dogs so there isn’t a definite survival time with or without chemo. the range we were given is 4-10 months give or take.
              Jasper is doing better since the adenocarcinoma has been removed, so for now we are just letting him be happy and enjoy eating and playing again.
              We have no plans at this time to do chemo as that will take a toll on him and make him feel worse. Our course of action as per our vet is just routine ultrasounds to see when the cancer returns and then proceed from there.
              I really thank you Karen for talking with me and I wish the best for Bentley. Jasper actually has a brother named Bentley who I believe lives in Sarasota Fl maybe I can’t remember his exact location.
              I will keep you all in my prayers and will continue to update his condition. My family thanks you and Jasper too 🙂 Love to all, Tanya

            • Hi Tanya,
              Your news seems so bittersweet. I’m relieved and happy to hear that Jasper is getting back to being himself. It makes me sad when we are given a timeline for how much longer we will have our best friends with us. I look at Bentley every day and think of how much he means to us. I just keep praying for more time! I’m on facebook if you’d like to be friends, if not i totally understand. My profile name is Karen Burr Pena. Please keep updating on Jasper and i will do the same on Bentley. Doberman’s are a special breed, i just wish they didn’t have issues with cancer, they don’t deserve that! Take care Tanya

  18. Denali was a rescue and I had him for three short years. I thought him to be around 5 or 6. The vet said he was around 10. The vet thought he had a couple of bad teeth that he should remove. It turned out to be Osteosarcoma of his nasal passage (bone cancer) only occuring in 1 percent of all dogs, it’s usually is in their limbs. The vet said there was nothing he could do. Everything I read about this cancer said the pain was excrutiating. It was already advanced and I couldn’t let him suffer. One more week, just one more. No! I will not be selfish and make him suffer I love him too much.I’m crying now and do everyday. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

    Reply
    • We just went through the same cancer story with dear Dobie Maya. She had bone cancer in the shoulder so bad we had to let her go. One very painful situation for the entire family. We miss her so much! Heartbroken, but not alone…:-(

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  19. I brought my girl to the vet yesterday because she was limping. I assumed she strained something jumping up to bark at the mailman. I was horrified to learn that she has a tumor on her left ‘ankle’. They believe it is osteosarcoma. I haven’t stopped crying in more than 24 hours. The options presented are: (1) Amputation followed by chemotherapy. About 50% of dogs (unknown ages) live past one year. (2) Palliative radiation, to reduce the pain. This option would not effect the growth or spreading of the cancer. More than 70% of dogs have decreased pain with this therapy and pain control usually lasts approximately 4 months.

    My baby will be 10 years old in October. Her favorite thing in the world is to go on runs around the lake with me. The thought of her waking up without a leg is absolutely killing me…but is it the “right” thing to do? Has anyone made the decision to amputate? How did your dog respond? Any insight/personal experience would be so greatly appreciated.

    Reply
    • I’m so sorry about the bad news. My 11yr old is also limping but from bad arthritis. I need to make a decision soon also. It’s hard to see our athletic Dobermans with failing bodies 🙁

      Reply
    • We took my 3 year fatgirl today thinking ahe had a broken or dislocated shoulder and they told us she has bone cancer with leg remove amd kimo ill 6 month at the longest so we going to keep her on meds and home with her family till she tells us ahe ready

      Reply
    • Debbie, We just found out today that our almost 8 year old Bentley has bone cancer. He had been limping for a few weeks and we thought maybe arthritis but then we noticed his ankle was starting to look swollen. We are weighing our options and trying to make this difficult decision. Our vet did say that amputating effects us humans alot more than it effects our pet, that they are not “attached” to their limbs like we are and adopt much easier than we do. But he also told us that in Bentleys case, amputating may not even prolong his life because it’s such a fast spreading cancer and may already be in his lungs. Our hearts are aching thinking of losing our best friend, he has been the perfect addition to our family and i can’t think about not having him here! He will be 8 in september and hopefully he will be up for a special birthday party! I just want more time!!! Please update on what decision you went with for your dobie and how she’s doing….thank you. Karen P

      Reply
    • Hi Debbie, I was just wondering how your Doberman is doing and what decision you went with in her treatment of her osteosarcoma diagnosis. We were faced with the same diagnosis in our almost 8 year old dobe and opted for amputation. He is doing very well but we know there’s very little chance that the cancer will not show up somewhere else soon. He is no longer suffering the severe pain of bone cancer and that’s all that is important now. Like our vet said, dogs are not attached to their limbs and adjust so much better than we humans. He’s happy and back to his old self, it’s been 6 weeks since his surgery and he gets around great, even going up and down stairs! Please let me know how your girl is doing, thank you. Karen P

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  20. I just lost my baby the day after Christmas due to Cancer! She was 5 yrs old! She had a perfect vet check then 3 days after her mouth was full of blood! Her name is Twix, a red doberman! I have never cried so much in my life! I knew she wouldn’t live forever but i least wanted more time with her! I miss her every day! I feel like my heart is broke! She was my best friend! I would sit up at night googling why this happened! I blamed myself! Reading everyones post has definatly made me feel that its not my fault! Im sorry for eveyones loss!

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  21. I had to have my 11 year old female Blue Doberman put down today due to cancer. It has helped to read these posts. She has always had a lot of lipomas but they have never been an issue. Last summer she developed what I thought was a fatty cyst on her right outside toe. I didn’t think much of it until about a month ago when it started to grow considerably and began to ulcerate. She has also had a cough now and again and sometimes sounded like she was gagging. She had a lipoma on her throat and I attributed it to that. Part of me feels so guilty for not taking her to the vet sooner; I wasn’t aware that Dobermans had a high incident rate of cancer. Another part of me thinks that it turned out for the best, because at her age, I would not have put her through chemotherapy. Two weeks ago, she became listless and I took her to the vet and they diagnosed the tumor on her paw as an aggressive cancer and thought the coughing was the cancer in her lungs. She was spunky at the vet’s office and they suggested I give her more time as long as she had quality of life. I got another 10 days with her for which I am forever grateful. This weekend, she was feeling poorly and I made the heart wrenching decision to have her put down today. I stayed with her through the whole thing and it was peaceful. Dobermans are such a loyal dog breed and she was always part of the family. She was both the sweetest dog I’ve ever had and the smartest. RIP Sweet Layla. My heart is broken.

    Reply
    • I’m so sorry to hear this Lisa. I’ve been through a lot in my life, but putting my dog down is still the hardest decision I ever made in life.
      Cherish your happy memories and find peace knowing that Layla was so lucky to have you as her owner 🙂

      Reply
    • The reason I came here or chanced upon here is because my 10 year old doberman, friend,pet, and companion died the other day.. I am so sad and actually, I did not know the reason on what could had been the cause for her untimely death. Reading all stories, and some facts and symptoms from this blog, now I know that it was from a tumor on her chest , where it all started it from. I wasnt aware about the cancer thing which the breed was notorious for. she didnt show anything, as in anything wrong for the past several months, shes just the plain old lively and energetic dog as she were,which rendered me unconcious about the situation, till this past 3 days before she go when she became lethargic. She would still eat, but not that much, and she would just spend most times of the day sleeping. I thought it was because of here old age of 10 going 11. She was very strong and she didnt even let me see her struggling as if she just want me to thik that everything is alright. Then one morning, folks in our house witnessed her final moments.. I was told that she left peacefully. I did not see her last, since I wasnt there, but that is what I want. I just want to remember all the good things and wonderful memories from her life. I love her and I will miss my dog, I m still so sad, but hopefully that sadness will soon be filled with joy knowing that my Chumper lived a happy life.
      Jay from MANILA , The Philippines

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    • going through this ourselves at the moment and completely understand what you are feeling. Today may be the day we lose our dobbie after being part of our family for 11 years. A rescue dog and has had a wonderful life but hurt seeing him failing now . a large lump now ulcerated and although still eating well the other signs are there that he is not happy. Feel for you..

      Reply
    • I am so sorry for your loss of Layla. I too have an 11-year-old female Blue Doberman, her name is Mia, today we found mammary tumors which led me to this page and your post struck home. With the exception of the fatty cyst on the toe, everything else sounds the same. Mia is a beautiful lumpy girl and recently started with this cough, like a honking, gag or Chewbacca sound., which was attributed to another tracheal issue, but after reading your post I will be taking her back in for further testing just to rule out lung cancer as well. Thank you for sharing your story. Once again I am so sorry for your loss.

      Reply
  22. I just had my Doberman put down last week. He started coughing about three weeks before Christmas – he tends to eat socks and stuff so thought it was just something trying to come up. Took him to the vets Xmas Eve when his coughing turned to gagging and he stopped eating and found out his lungs were full of cancer! He had lost a little weight, but other than that, only the occasional cough. I was shocked and before New Year’s he was coughing and breathing so poorly I couldn’t drag it out any longer. Broke my heart – best dog I ever had – my constant companion. They are such strong animals, they can hide when they’re in pain. I’ve seen that dog hit his head on a corner and not even break his stride – tough as nails. RIP dear Axel…..

    Reply
    • HI Karen,
      I just got back from my vets and an xray shows some white spots over his lungs and he is definitely breathing more heavy. I had an xray done 1 month ago that shows nothing and now this I have to take him to the specialist tomorrow and Im not sure what they are going to tell me.

      A very upset ! Dominic

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  23. My Beloved Dobermann ‘Ollie’- A Pal Loyal and True

    Yes, looking through all these heartbreaking comments I’m with you all the way, and it does seem the breed is particularly prone to cancer. We’ve just had to make exactly the same decision with our Dobermann bitch, Ollie, at the age of 10 and had to have her put to sleep a week ago. Needless to say we’re all absolutely heartbroken. She’s always been an extremely exuberant dog and hasn’t really ailed much, but about four months ago she had a seizure and then kept on having them.

    The seizures she had were all of classic grand mal variety, going through the three main stages and lasting no more than a few minutes each. During some of them she lost both urine and bowel control but not so in most cases. While she was having them I made her as comfortable as I could and spoke to her softly to give her the necessary reassurance. We had her to the vet early on in this pattern of seizures (right after the first one in fact) but on immediate examination he said he was unable to find anything significantly wrong with her, adopting a ‘do no initial harm/wait and see’ approach with a view to a further consultation if her condition further deteriorated. The vet then treated them by prescribing Epiphen and thought it might be a thyroid problem via the blood tests he’d done, but all along we (as did he I believe) feared the worst.

    The latter seizures she had following her first were all fairly close together and followed exactly the same pattern as her first, but following these later ones I noticed she was left with a slight drooping to her right eye, although this seemed to clear up after a few hours. Her condition became increasingly subdued and extremely confused, she lost all the exuberance which formerly defined her as the dog she had been and she started to whine intermittently. She was weak on her legs, bumped into things, paced a lot (especially round in circles) and seemed unduly alarmed by sudden noises which would normally be completely familiar to her. Her vision was affected by these seizures, although to what extent I wasn’t quite sure.

    The seizures kept leaving her in a worse and worse state with the drugs having little effect and it all came to a head last weekend when she had two of them in quick succession on the Friday night, and then again one during her walk on the Saturday night in all the rain while out my wife. I had to go out in the car to pick them both up and bring them home.

    This final series of seizures had left her blind, her hearing impaired (I think) and whining in a state of distress. The vet said she wasn’t in pain but totally confused about what was happening to her. I just don’t know how far her brain had been affected by the seizures, or whether it was just the combination of all the other effects, but her distress was clearly evident and the vet said that putting her to sleep was without doubt and absolutely the right thing to do – simply for the dog’s sake.

    I wouldn’t wish what we’ve been through in the last four or five months on my worst enemy; it’s an absolutely devastating thing to go through. Although it was unavoidable in the end, all of us feel about as bad and heartbroken as it’s possible to feel about what we’ve just had to do, since we’ve just lost our lovely ‘Dobie’ and one of our much-loved family members. But I suppose that’s the price we have to pay for the loyalty, love and affection these beautiful dogs give us during their lifetime. So cherish them while you’ve got them, because we just don’t always appreciate the full impact our beautiful four-legged friends have on our lives.

    Anyway, RIP Ollie, my beloved Dobie and best pal loyal and true. It’s all over now girl.

    Thoughts with you all at your loss as well as ours.
    XXX

    Heartbroken Keith and Family

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  24. my dobie has cancer and only has 0 – 4 months left . she is 7 and my other dobie will have it sometime because the cancer is hereditary . (the grandmother had cancer ) . but canver has affected all my dogs , cat and gerbil.

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  25. Our 1 year old Doberman Jax was diagnosed with a nasal tumor a week ago Friday. We saw a specialist yesterday and it was confirmed to be a sarcoma that’s already spread to his lymph nodes. The vet said with him being so young and the cancer being so aggressive radiation treatment probably wouldn’t do any good and surgery is not an option because the tumor has already perforated the soft palate in his mouth. He is still acting like his normal self so we are waiting for the signs to know the time is right to let him go. I never expected to lose a dog so young. He is a part of our family, we are devastated and our girls are very upset which makes this twice as hard.

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  26. Hello
    I feel the pain from each and everyone on this site.
    Nobody can measure another person pain from a beloved friend like there Dobberman. It terrible that this type of thing happens. I still hurt from the first one. I make sure they have the best and they come first but there is nothing we can do to stop these terrible things that happen to such a loyal and loving dog. I pray one day they do because each and everyone one of us have scares in our hearts from it.
    I lost my beloved kieser to liver failure little over a year ago. I spent my life savings tring to save him he was 2 years old. I rushed him to University of Missouri and did everything i could but i had to let him go 4 months later. I miss Him so mucb. Well the day i had to let him go i just thought for some reason dont know why something told me to Look on craigslist for dobermans. Well one picture showed up same dog three times. No other Dobermans I thought Kieser and God sent me this message. So i went and bought him they had to get rid of him for some reason. He was ornery. So i took him home. No he didnt replace my Kieser. But he is something elss. I Love him dearly. Its been a little over a year now. i cook him fresh chicken everday for snacks and fresh vegetables and and feed him good dog food. then he just stopped eating and drinking my heart dropped i took his temperature it was 103.8 and i took him to the vet the next day they looked at him and said here is some antibiotics i said no lab work. I made them do it . His lymphs are low 0.46k pct are low 0.11% Plt low 107k they tell me its nothing to worry about! Well im scared to death he is eating but not of his normal . Im so scared something is wrong bad. They act like its not a big deal
    I am going to drive to the University of Missouri school of veterinarian. Tomorrow and home to get a answer.
    I wish the best to everyone and every doberman out there.
    God bless

    Reply
  27. I am so sorry for your loss Pagi, my heart hurts for you and your beloved Bubba. Dobermans are the most loyal and loving! Take comfort in knowing that you gave him an awesome, loving home for his short time here. I so dread the day i lose my Bentley because i know it’s gonna hurt bad. Again, i’m sooo sorry. hugs…Karen

    Reply
    • I lost my 2 yr old Dobe to dog lymphoma in Aug 2015 – and it happened VERY quickly… it suddenly looked like I had quit feeding her – and then thinking back noticed she wanted to be in the house instead of running around outside like she used to. Took her to the vets and he felt a mass on her chest, lymph node above her tooth was swollen, and when she laid down saw 2 masses in her underbelly near the back. After the vet told me what it might be I looked it up on the internet and her symptoms were to the T and I knew in my heart it was in fact dog lymphoma. They called the next day and gave us the bad news. At this point I knew it was too late for her, and reading how chemo only extends their life by maybe weeks, I knew I had to put my feeling aside and do what was best for my sweet girl Q… kids had about 2 hours to process that we were going to lose her and then we traveled to the vet. we got another puppy but it will never replace her. I hope no one has to go through that, for she was our first Doberman and the most precious dog! We got a new puppy but it will never replace her. She watched over her ‘kids’ and our family and I knew when she was there, everything was safe at home. Hugs to those that have gone thru this too – its a terrible terrible thing!!

      Reply
      • My beautiful Daisy is going through cancer now and has very little time left. The vet tells me she is not in pain and we are so grateful for this. Daisy is only nine years old, too soon to leave us we love her so very much she is the third Doberman we have lost to this dreaded disease. For me another dog is not the answer as my heart says no more. She is so loyal and loving, I will miss her more than I can say and comparing another dog to her would be unfair I just want my Daisy

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  28. Yesterday I had to put my 3 year and 10 months old Black and tan doberman, Beau down. He was diagnosed with lymphoma 5 weeks ago. Beau would of been 4 on July 10th. I took him for what I thought was a basic eye infection and the Vet noticed that he had what appeared to be blood gathering in the bottom of his eye. Beau was the most loving, loyal, devoted protector I have ever had. He was unbelievably smart. I could train him to do anything. I am a realtor and he was trained to enter houses before me. I also showed him our property lines and taught him to patrol our 10 acres. He spent all his time loving and protecting us. He never failed me, ever! I am having the worst time with this. I feel like a part of my soul went with him. I was there the day he was born and picked him out! I took him home with me when he was 5 weeks old. Yesterday I held him in my arms like I have so many times before but this time whispering in his ear I love you, go see Jesus you are the most amazing bubba. I am devastated beyond words!

    Reply
    • I’m soo sorry Pagi 🙁
      Please feel some comfort knowing that your dobe was lucky to have such a wonderful owner and life with you.

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    • Reading everyones comments brings me comfort that I didn’t do anything to cause my sweet Lucy to have cancer. She is our 4th Dobie to have cancer. She is 7 years old. Our hearts are broken. We are treating her like a Queen. When we notice any pain or she is happy anymore, we will once again say goodbye to another loyal sweet Dobie.

      Reply
    • About 1 1/2 years ago my 22yr old son brought a Fawn Doberman , rare we were told , which he paid a pretty penny for, The whole family embrace Rayo with loving, open arms. He was part of the family and was feed only the best food, special house built, daily evening walk.and whenever he would be behind the bed of the truck , People would mistake him for a deer. My husband and son were proud to walk Rayo with all the stares and complements that were received , he was a tall (4 feet )well rounded ,Eye catching Doberman . He has now been diagnosed with cancer and has liver failure,he is weaker , losing weight fast, no physical movement, We have taken him to get a second option, but we were told the same thing. With great sadness we will be taking Rayo to be put to rest tomorrow ,with the greatest love we have for him, it hurts but we do not want him to suffer any longer. We will always have great memories of him. We love you Rayo.

      Reply
      • My heart breaks for you 🙁 I can even picture him prancing like a deer, Dobermans do have an elegant walk. Take care.

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  29. Our red doberman Bentley is 6years young. He has several “fatty tissue” tumors, one on his chest,one on his side and a rather large one in his front leg pit. I check him often for any other tumors but yesterday my kids asked if i saw the huge lump on his hind leg. I looked and was shocked, there’s no way i would’ve missed that! It looks like his leg muscle is severely swollen. Took Bentley to our vet today, first thing she says is she doesnt like this mass. I knew it wasn’t going to be another “fatty tissue tumor” because it feels very solid. She gave me a couple numbers to call because this is something she is not able to treat. I’m thankful for her honesty. What the future holds for our Bentley is unknown at this time but praying for the best outcome possible, he has been with us since he was 7 weeks old and can’t stand the thought of him being gone.

    Reply
    • Update on Bentley: We consulted with another area vet and he took biopsies of several of Bentley’s lumps, sent them away for testing and thankfully they came back as fatty tissue. We had 4 removed with no complications. He still has one on his side that we are keeping an eye on. I make sure to check him often for any unfamiliar lumps so we can catch anything as early as possible. We want to keep him as healthy as we possibly can, he is an important part of our family <3

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  30. We just had to put our wonderful Doberman Fred down yesterday. He was diagnosed with Hemangiosarcoma, a massive tumor of the liver and spleen. He wasn’t eating hardly at all, and had been suffering from severe diarrhea. We had an ultrasound performed yesterday, which revealed the massive tumor, that was also pushing on his stomach. With the high incidence of cancer with Dobies, I don’t know if I can do it again…..Fred was 8yrs old.

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  31. Although over 20 years have passed, at times I still get teary eyes when remembering Mr.T. My Doberman was my best friend. He developed cancer at around 10 years of age. To this day, I wonder if I was hasty in allowing the vet to send him to doggie heaven.
    Mr T developed a cyst on his side about the size of a pea. Our vet injected the cyst, did not take it out. Two weeks later the cyst had turned into the size of a golf ball.
    We had the tumor removed and things were back to normal for about three months. Then, I noticed another growth on the left side of his chest. The vet told me that there was nothing we could do and that eventually he would die from the tumor. At this time Mr. T was not showing any signs of sickness until later on when he started having issues getting up from the floor. Eventually he started to show symptoms of pain but only when standing up.
    Based on the vet’s suggestion we agreed to put him to sleep.
    I have never asked a vet for his/her opinion after that time but to this day, I regret not getting one before allowing my friend to be euthanized. I was 20 years old when Mr. T was put down. Now in my forties I still live with a sense of guilt.
    Forgive me my friend. I did not want you to suffer.

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  32. The hardest thing my husband ever endured was the loss of our Apollo; the perfect example of what a red male Doberman should look like. Loyal, loving, devoted and very protective. He was only 4 years old when I noticed two lumps under his throat. We took him to the vet and the vet wanted to keep him under observation and have a tissue sample sent to the university for verification. Apollo stayed at the vets for almost 2 weeks, they kept telling me don’t drive all the way here, he is fine, but I knew something was off. When we got there our baby was already yellow and only weighed a mere 50 pounds of his once massive 95 plus body. I immediately requested him to have some peace…… I regret not going sooner so he wouldn’t have had to suffer…. But, we had a close friend a K-9 officer that even after telling him not to, went out an bought us a black and mahogany 13 week old male pup. I didn’t want to love another, but that puppy had me within 2 hours, Gunner is now 4 years old now, weighs a whooping 94 lbs, is a massive boy with a personality like Apollo and my previous Zeus all rolled into one neat little ball. Gunner kept me from hurting so bad from Apollo.

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  33. I lost my much loved Third Gear to cancer. He was my daughter’s best friend as she was an only child. I was a single mom and he was my best friend. I got married and my husband adores his Zeus. He is his first Doberman. Zeus has a lump so we will be taking him to the vet. Yes I am fearful. We have put $1000’s in him for knee surgery and he is worth every penny spent. He is this retired couple’s baby.

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  34. I lost my baby boy early Saturday morning. He was a 6 yr old Blk/Tan Doberman named Vice.He was 110% himself all day friFriday and sat morning. I left for work and when I got home I knew before I was in the house something was wrong, he wasn’t whining at the door, I found him in my bedroom on my side of the bed where there is only maybe 2 1/2 ft from wall, his ears down, and wouldn’t come. I finally got him to living room with promise of a treat, which he wouldn’t eat. He never, ever turned down a treat. I checked him from head to toe, I noticed his gums were a little pale so I immediately called vet, had to take him to an ER Vet about an hour away. By the time I got there his gums were almost white, not even 10 min later the vet came out to inform me he had a tumor on his spleen that had ruptured and was bleeding internally. He mentioned surgery and I said Yes, didn’t even give him a chance to finish. He told me that he could see spots on other parts of him and that he had less than a 25% chance of making it out of surgery, and then at most 3 myths to Live if I put him on chemo. He informed me my baby had hemangiosarcoma. I could not and would not, have my baby in constant pain, and his quality of life low just so I could be selfish and have him a littlelonger. So I spent some time with my baby,my son, my best friend and then I held him as he took his last breath. I am beyond devastated, my world revolved around Vice. I had no idea that Dobermans were prone to cancer and so many different forms. I have read all the comments on this article and my heart broke a little more with each of your stories. people who aren’t Doberman ppl don’t get how we feel about this breed. I can’t even think about another dog right now, but I know that the only breed for me is Doberman’s , we have to figure out a way to save our breed.

    Reply
    • I’m soo sorry to hear your aweful news.
      Please take comfort in all the good memories and I ‘m sure if he could, he would thankyou for a great doggie life in your home and heart.

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  35. Tom: She is so young, hopefully she can be treated and you’ll get a few quality years with her. We feel so bad for you and sympathize with everyone who has lost their blessed friend.

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  36. Just found out yesterday our female black and tan Dobe “Jezebel” was diagnosed with Stage 5 Lymphoma, and also Pnewmonia. We also had no idea that they were in the top 5 for cancer.

    This baby is a real jock, she loves leaping up in the air and snagging balls, that at times bounced over my head. She was an excellent swimmer, jumped off docks after her ball, and very smart. Luckily I have some awesome pictures of her doing this.

    She loved all the kids in our neighborhood, and she would “sit and stay” for them while they hid her ball somewhere in the yard and when they released her, she would go and sniff it out. She truly loved games.

    We got her as a pup and she is only 5 1/2 years old. We were looking for many more years than this with her. She has such a sweet and loving spirit and it’s hard to see her so sick and not able to play.

    She went to a campground with us last weekend, swimming and chasing her ball, and the weekend before we were in Ohio and she had a glorious weekend out in the woods, swimming in streams, and chasing her ball.

    She had been treated for a couple of sprains in her front paws before, but we thought this was because of all her athletic activity. We had no idea this cancer was happening, until she started acting lethargic, depressed, and started this hacking cough on Sunday. We took her to the emergency room Monday morning, and got her results.

    Her prognosis is 1-2 weeks. Maybe 4-6 if we did chemo.

    We also like quality of life over quantity, and have decided to bring her home and treat her with L-asparaginase and prednizone. Hopefully this will give her a few quality days with us before we need to have her euthanized.

    Thanks for letting me share this with you. She was our second Dobe, and both were awesome friends, and companions.

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  37. Our dobie started acting strange at about 11 months. She turned 1 on May 13th. Yesterday I noticed a lump on her neck. Today she was diagnosed with Lymphoma.

    Sad sad day

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    • Dear Laurel. I read you email and wrote one of my own about my 6 yr old male Doberman. I am so sorry about your loss. I know how u feel. If u have time please read mine. Mike

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  38. My beloved Lola. 7,8yo doberman… Today I got this devastating news that she has cancer I was sure that she just pulled her muscle so the news are devastating …I just can’t live without her… She is my best friend, my shadow:), my baby… How can I watch her getting weaker and weaker…I just can’t stop crying…

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  39. I have a black and tan male Doberman named Noble with intestinal cancer. He is doing really great and has been for over a year now. We thought for sure he was going to die, he was skin and bones. Every time we went to the vet he said he didn’t know what was wrong with him and charged us $100. I went to another vet and he also took all kinds of test and couldn’t find anything wrong. Finally a friend of a friend who was an ultrasound specialist offered to look at him. She found something on the ultrasound that didn’t look right but wasn’t sure what it was. My vet said lets do an exploratory operation. We did and he gave us the bad news that there was so much cancer on his intestines that he closed him up and said there was nothing he could do. The ultrasound specialist said let me talk the internalist I do work for in North Carolina. He is the one who saved my dog. He is on Luekeran and prednisone. If you want to save your dog call Kevin Munce an internalist in North Carolina. He gave us 3 different options of medications, good, better, best, we went with the best. Unfortunately its also the most expensive. I wish we had insurance because we can barely afford it. But it is worth it to save Noble!

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  40. Hi my name is Jared. I’m currently giving my 3 year old Doberman prednisone to help keep his lymphoma swelling down. He was diagnosed February 3rd, 2014. Not having the financial stability to try chemo, I decided to treat him with prednisone. All I can do is continue to give him a great life and make him as happy as possible until it is his time. Its possibly the hardest nightmare ive been through in my life so far. Since I’ve gotten him at 8 weeks old he has been by my side almost 24 hours a day and I spent one full day away in the three and a half years he’s been in my life. I feel so much pain for anyone going through such bad times with their companions, it truly is heartbreaking!

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  41. I had no idea Dobermans were in the top 5 breeds for cancer. And I don’t know if that would have changed our minds about Gage. We adopted Gage from rescue about 18 months ago at roughly 18 mos of age. (We estimate he will be 3 in March 2014). And he was still in some bad shape. We had no idea he was “Blue” He looks Blk/Tan. But he chimed right in with our Italian Greyhounds and cats who love to groom him. He is our entertainer and goofball. He drools, belches, groans, and farts on a regular basis. And then crawls in your lap like the 2 IG’s. he has no concept of his 75 lbs. We have an 8lb cat that bosses him around. And everyone who meets him falls in love with him. We joke that the Greyhounds are Wine/Cheese and elegance and that Gage is Beer/ Pretzels and Monster Truck Rally’s. And not even a good beer, more like a pitcher of Pabst (no offense to anyone who likes Pabst). We recently got the diagnosis of liver cancer. And of course were dumbstruck. We have elected not to do the very expensive treatment not because he is not worth every penny but because there is no guarantee and it is hard on their bodies. So we have put him on Prednezone (sp). And are keeping an eye on him. Since the pred all his symptoms have seemed to disappear. And he is back to his energetic goofy self and eating up a storm. I spoke with my vet again and was told that the blood tests showed nothing, the fluid sample was inconclusive and the liver cytology was also inconclusive, but that they were sure it was liver cancer because during the ultra sound they saw nodules on the liver. He had also (being an indiscriminate eater) gorged himself on acorns just a few days before all this. So now I am wondering if we should get a second opinion at a different vet, or have the same vet test him again. I have also spoken to the Doberman group we adopted him through and was told that they had heard nothing about cancer being an issue in the breed. But obviously from what I have read from all of you it is.

    I am so sorry for all who have lost their beloved companions.

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  42. my red boy ,xavier just turned 4 on june 24th.2013 ya he even got a birthday card in the mail from his vpi inc. they send him one every yr. , just yesterday i took off my fireplace mantle. so sorry it landed in the trash now. but we all know you can not save everything. 2 weeks ago he was out under our lg.sapping pine trees ,i had thought he got a spider bite ,well at least it looked like one. so he was licking and so on ,he has aliergies every yr.at this time until early september ,but this morning i went to clip his nails this sm. lump was still there located on his upper left rear thigh. as soon as my vet openend at 9 i called i explained the situation it had gotten larger and was red. got him in at 10:30.we took an asperate and this appears not good to my vet or me.BLOOD VASCULAR ,dear god my vet admits she is an AHHA ACD. VET. but not a pathololigst .you would never guess by my spelling here,but yes i resurch and dabble in the sub. off and on since 1993.it appears to me to be (hemangiosarcoma) i pray i am wrong!it has to be one of the worst.very grim.he is the light of my life,and i do love him so much i would rather it be me.he had me at hello.this big sweetheart never chewed ,peed,he was always perfect.he lays with cats,he goes to va. centers,nursing homes and takes so to people that are sick and impaired.a sweet loving soul.he is going in on wed. july 17th. to have it removed.i dont know what to do next,that i will have to figure out .if you would like to see him and our family of pets go to his facebook page ,xavier smith,scranton pa. and my poor tiny blue seal point on the same page has inoperable breast cancer,they stamped a time date on her, but june has past and she is still alive and ok ,i am starving her cancer off with a very high protine diet.i love each and everyone of my pets.but that dobe stold my heart away ,and now he will break it in half.he is so loving to so many people that are old and sick and terminal themselves.sure hope i am wrong and my vet by the look in her eyes too. ps. must sign out crying.denise

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  43. Our Jackson was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma in September 2012. By October of 2012 his health had declined so much we set him free of his pain. He was 6 years young. We adopted him as an adult from a lady who had little history on him. We had him for 18 months before we set him free. We miss him everyday.

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  44. We lost our cherished Doberman, Princess, to bladder cancer in May, 2006. She had just turned 7 when she was diagnosed in December, 2005 and we said our final goodbye five months later. Our vet was very honest and told us that when cancer affects an organ, the disease is (or was at that time — 7 years ago) resistant to chemotherapy. Nevertheless, we took her to a specialty vet who recommended chemotherapy. We tried it, but it was unsuccessful for her and terrible for us. The weight fell off her and she got one bladder infection after another, all related to the cancer. She refused to eat, so I would lie on the floor with her and try to coax her with small pieces of chicken and beef. Finally, we made the heartbreaking decision to let her go. I’ll never forget that day, in fact not a day goes by that I don’t think about our beloved Doberangel. Her illness taught me much about selfishness — the chemo was for us. She suffered. I very much doubt I will ever try it on another dog. I pray that this terrible disease in humans and pets will be eradicated much sooner than any of us imagine.

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  45. I lost my beautiful Agis to lymphoma in December 22, 2012. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that when I took him to our vet in December 20 that would be his diagnosis. He breathing had been funny off and on for a couple of days. He was also acting strange. He wouldn’t sleep on his bed the night before I took him to the vet. He would come to the edge of my bed and lay his head in the side if the bed and stare at me while I was sleeping. This of course woke me up. Thinking he needed to go pee I would let him out. All the strange behavior and breathing, I decided it was best that he be checked out. Next day I took him to our vet, she of course realized immediately that something defintely was not right. Initial bloodworm showed that he was anemic but nothing major so we thought. X-rays showed a mass but she couldn’t tell if it was pneumonia or a large mass. We decided to go ahead and treat him for pneumonia with IV fluids and antibiotics. If it was pneumonia he would show signs of improvement as soon as the next day. She decided that he would need to stay overnight and in the meantime she would send bloodwork off to see exactly what was going on with him. By he next day he had improved some, he was up walking around some but would not eat for her. She wanted to keep him another night to continue with antibiotics and try to get his temperature up. She said I would be able to pick him up the next day and bring him home. I was overjoyed. I would be bringing my sweet boy back home. Saturday came and I was so excited that i would be bringing him home with antibiotics to treat pneumonia. When i got to the vet she had him laying in the office. She said that his test results came back and the diagnosis was not good. His white blood count was high and that he had lymphoma. It was in his chest cavity. When she said that it felt as if someone had just ripped out my heart. It was broken. My dream of bringing him home died there. I knew in my heart he wasn’t going to make it and he was too far gone. All I could do was sit in the floor and cradle his head and tell him how sorry I was that he was going through this. I made the decision to bring him home and try prednisone to treat the tumor so that I could have more time with him. I just wasn’t ready to let go. Once home, I only got a couple of hours with him. He refused to eat or move. He was trembling and his breathing was not improving. I think this was the hardest part. I had I make the decision then as to what was best for him and not me. That evening I had to say goodbye to a wonderful friend. He was my first “baby”. It’s been a month now and I can’t seem to get over losing him. The times that I have cried my 3 year old tells me that its going to be on because he is with baby Jesus now. He would have celebrated his 6th birthday this week.

    Reply
    • Your story breaks my heart as it reminded me of my Xena that also died of lymphoma. Your 3 year old couldn’t have said a more beautiful, comforting thing. I believe we will be reunited with our beloved pets one day. God created these wonderful creatures for our enjoyment here temporarily on earth but then for eternity in heaven 🙂

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  46. I lost my baby girl, a sweet black Dobe named Jinju, she was only three years old, she died on December 15, 2012. We were told it was brain cancer. I’m so disappointed in our vet and yet at the same time I know they gave her the best care through the 2 1/2 years we had her. When we got Jinju she had just been returned to her original mother and father because of her illness, they thought had something to do with some type of intestinal bug. This illness which would attack her intestines making her throw up and lose weight persisted at least twice a year. I had her on a special diet, I had her on supplements & enzymes, I had her on anti-inflammatory and anti-gas pills. The vet often thought her illness had something to don’t do with her lymes disease which she got at a very young age. So which time she was still there was a blood panel run trying to figure what was wrong with her. We had a cyst removed from her ear, at that point it seemed like a common cyst…..that was about a year ago, the vet warned if it came back it would probably be either in the same spot or somewhere on the outside of her skin. However they never told me she could likely die of it. At that point they made it sound like a harmless cyst. And since she had such a history of illness almost every six months of losing weight, going on antibiotics….when she started to lose weight in September no one raised the alarm at that point. It’s a long story but the vet who did her last checked up never called me on this issue…. As I said it was so long story but she had been dropped off for a weekend stay and they did a check up while we were gone. Since we picked her up on a Sunday there was no vet to consult us and no phone calls came after. I notice she started losing weight and I tried to beef her up again… By November I was getting worried she was going to get sick again. Her previous illness had been pretty bad. But the antibiotics always brought her back out of it and she always got healthy again. By December she started throwing up, we didn’t know she even had cancer. Took her into the doctor and once again put her on antibiotics, did another blood screen. After nursing her, I called to complain, her antibiotics weren’t working and in speaking with the doctors (at least 3) her last day, we were shocked when she started to hyperventilate & drool uncontrollably, becoming listless & feverish. We really had no idea that was her last day with us…. No idea at all. We rushed her into an emergency hospital that night, Where she was stabilized we were told, we were not allowed to be with her after she was admitted. We thought we could go get her in the morning and start her on a new type of antibiotic and she would be getting better. Had I known that was her last night being cognitive I would’ve wanted to take her home with me. In the morning we picked her up, It appeared she did not have any brain activity at that point, her pupils had reduced to a pin point and she was lifeless. We took her to her own vet and we were told she had a brain tumor….. We had no other choice but to put her to sleep. Just explain, our vet consists of six different doctors at least. The doctor spoke with the night before we took her to the hospital was probably the most competent one and I sincerely and truly regret not having met or worked with her prior to Jinu’s last night…. I feel I could strangle the doctor who did her last checkup (He never even called me back in September to alarm me about her weight loss) and I ran into this next time I took her in for her illness. I just want to strangle him. I can only surmise that he had no clue she had cancer. My baby had just turned three in October. We were not expecting cancer to be the end of her. She was so healthy otherwise, so vibrant. She was the love of my life. I love my family my husband my daughters but she was my baby my only baby she needed me nonstop. Even her last day when she was probably Sotol and not feeling well she never let on that she was in pain until the very end. I miss my baby so much! It is such a hard thing to talk about. I have talked about getting a new Dobe just to help me get over my loss with Jinju, we will hopefully look in 2013. But she will forever be in my heart….

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  47. We have an 11 year old Doberman Boxer mix who has been “lumpy” since he was 3 when he got his first cyst at the base of the back of his head. He still has that! He kept getting more tumours of various types: lypomas, cysts, and eventually a mast cell tumour on his flank when he was 7. It was sucessfully surgically treated. But our Dodger got very unhappy with the post surgical care, mostly the drainage shunt that had to be place to drain. They removed so much of his side flank. But they got clean margins. We said no more aggressive surgeries. Then at 9 he developed another one on his leg mixed in with the leg muscle. He only surgical option was amputation. That was a resounding no for us. And chemo odds weren’t good enough to put him through that. So we went the palliative care route and decided to keep him as comfortable as possible with a barrage of meds to manage swelling, infection control, appetite stimulation, etc. that was 2 years ago and he is still alive! We are so happy we chose the route we did. He has had a tough year this year and we thought we would lose him twice but he has pulled through with a smile on his face and a wag in his tail. This week he’s having trouble emptying his bladder. Poor dog had to be cathederized and his bladder was the size of a melon the vet said. I thought it was time to let him go after a valiant and brave fight. But we took him home on some muscle relaxants to ease bladder muscles and he’s pottying well again! This dog has cheated death so many times. He’s my role model for when I’m old and sick. I don’t know if it will be another week, month or more but when he goes, it will be surreal. I only mean that if I had a dollar for each time the vet gave me the pensive warning…..I’m amazed how much can be done with medical interventions to keep pets going comfortably even when there’s no curative treatment. I love my dogs very much as do all who have posted here. Good luck to you all. Just love them and do your best by them; they appreciate us. Dodger’s mom

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  48. My son’s female dobie was diagnosed with bone cancer in Nov 2012, right leg. We opted to have her put down rather than put her through the pain of chemo and drugs. She was only 6yrs old. Her male red pup is 3yrs old and been with her since birth. I hope we can help him through the grieving process with lots of love.

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  49. I am sitting here tonight with a heavy heart. MY DOBIE WAS DIAGNOSED PER X-RAY IN JUNE WITH BONE CANCER AFTER SHE BROKE HER LEG PLAYING IN THE BACKYARD. SHE IS AROUND 13 YEARS( WE ADOPTED HER…A RESCUE DOG SO AGE IS A ESTIMATE)WE HAVE HAD HER 10 YEARS AND SHE HAS BEEN A JOY. SHE HAS BEEN PAIN PAIN MEDS VERY LITTLE,HE HAS FELT WELL AND STILL EATS VERY WELL BUT NOW ITS BEEN 5 MONTHS…THO SHE EAts WELL SHE HAS A FORLORN LOOK, WOBBLES TO GET UP AND WE HAVE TO HELP HER GO OUTSIDE TO USE THE BATHROOM. ALL HAS COME ON IN THE LAST WEEK. she has no trouble breathing, still an appetite but i can see her growing more thin and frail with each day… I Gave her a sponge bath tonight, her rawhide treats and am trying to make the dreaded decision if tomorrow will be the day..if this week will be the week:( im heartbroken already but i promise my dogs no suffering and thats what i mean. 🙁

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  50. I have just recently lost my five an half year old brown male dobie to cancer he was always in good health up to a week ago wen he started peeing an drinking a lot so we done the vets and he sent us to a specialist the specialist done a scan and found he was completely riddled with cancer on all organs and in his chest he never showed any signs and died within 24 hrs of finding out that he had it he had a heart attack early in the evening obviously I’m devastated about losing him but at least he never had too much pain

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  51. I just lost my second dobie to cancer! Very sad 🙁

    My first dobie-gal, Stella, was a large red female and got osteo-sarcoma in her nasal passage (caused her face to distort as the cancer grew). This cancer is non-responsive to chemo. I put her down 3 months after diagnosis. She was 9 years old.

    My second dobie-boy, Bubba, another red dobie. He just had to be put down due to cancerous tumors in his intestine. Ultrasound showed multiple tumors, all bleeding into the intestine. He was severely anemic and stopped eating (even fresh cooked chicken and steak). He was also 9 years young. I LOVE dobies but this is getting really tough to have to put down so young….

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  52. 24 years ago, I rescued my first dobie. She only lived 3 years because she had been so abused. Her downfall was liver cancer which we believe was brought on by the abuse.
    14 years ago, I lost my beloved dobie Sam to a cancer tumor that destroyed his lung. We had no idea it was there until it was too late. Six years ago, I lost my wonderful Samson to bone cancer which started in his ankle. When he started limping, we x-rayed but found nothing. Less than a month later, his bones looked like swiss cheese. We had no choice but to relieve his pain. Now, my beautiful Bianca (age 13) has bone cancer in her front leg. Due to arthritis and age, there will be no choice. She is home with me until it is time and my heart is once again broken. Thankfully, Balboa (age 5) will be here to help my heart heal.

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  53. My wife and I had to make the tough decision March 24 2012 to put
    Our beloved Gunnar down due to osteosarcoma. He had broke his leg last
    October and wasn’t diagnosed until January with cancer. We decided against
    amputation due to him having wobblers also, so we treated him with pain
    meds and no chemo. We are advocates of quality not quantity. Gunnar lived
    His last 5 months in a leg cast on his front right. He lived up to his name Gunnar
    meaning brave warrior in German. He was such a great boy from the only
    breed for us. He was my second Dobe and my wife’s first. My wife was
    actually apprehensive at first but now she won’t have another breed. We have such
    a emptiness in our lives right which hopefully be filled soon. We put a
    deposit on another black. Gunnar will always have a special place in our heart
    that will never be replaced but we want to give another Dobe our love.

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  54. I lost my dog moriah to cancer in her cheek,I was not. Aware or ever informed this ways a dobie trait.the disfigured face it left her with was heartbreaking.she would look at you with a why can’t you help me look,can you stop this,and when she would lose her bladder,her look of sheer embarrasment broke your heart for her.I can only remember the sheer joy she brought our family in the 7 short years we had the pleasure of her company.she was a pistol.put a soup bone through my mothers hutch,loved to put the cats head all the way in her mouth for a joke.knew every word my mother said to her.l love dobermans.they look mean,but have hearts of gold.

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  55. It’s been over a year now since we lost our Ammo to osteosarcoma, Feb 2011. He was just shy of his 6 year birthday. Diagnosed in November of 2010, we opted not to amputate or do chemotherapy. We thought it was the best decision for Ammo. One of the hardest decisions we have made as a family. We treated with pain meds and acupuncture. He was given 3-5 months. He eventually fractured his leg and we put him to rest. A very sad day because Ammo was my baby boy, my first real baby:) I loved him so much and never thought I could love a dog more. I usually don’t call him a dog-I call him a kid, because he was truly amazing and so smart. He was my protector and the protector of our 2 girls. Our second daughter was born right before he was diagnosed and she was 4 months when he passed. I have not felt the same since he passed. I can barely type this without crying. Dogs in general hold a special place in our lives. I’m sure we all have/had an Ammo.
    With this being said, we will be proud parents of another red Dobe tomorrow. We are all so excited, especially our 4 year old!!

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  56. Our red girl will not see the spring…
    Kate will turn 3 in February. But the cancer that caused a toe to be amputated last spring has returned on another toe. We knew she was not completely cancer-free because her appetite was never the same and she throws up if she drinks more than a couple cups of water.
    We already miss her…

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  57. Our amazing 10-year-old black female Dobe Gimmel was diagnosed with osteosarcoma when her right front leg fractured while running in the back yard. Horrible day, but after 3rd and 4th opinions, we opted to amputate and were told she’d have 6-9 months before the metastasis in her lungs would mean the end. Well, she live 15 wonderful months… loss of the front leg made for much shorter and more tiring walks but she loved them to the last. I didn’t think I’d get another dog, but not having that dobie energy around the house was too much… after 4 months, I spotted the sweetest red-girl dobie face on Petfinders and now Jersey melts my heart. A very special breed.

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  58. Our six year old Dobie girl “Isis” (Ravenswood Starr of the Sea)….died from neurofibrosarcoma in her cheek. We did metronomic chemo, palliative radiation, cancer diet and holistic Chinese herbal therapy. We had her almost a year after diagnosis. We had to put her down as the tumor had encroached on her eye, and jaw, she was starting to suffer….something I vowed I would never tolerate.
    Sweet Isis, you will live in my heart forever….you were my “heart” dog and the bond of love we shared will always live in our hearts.
    We have since adopted two Dobies…..we just cannot be without a Doberman- they spoil you for any other breed.

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  59. My beautiful blue dobie, Eva, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma at only 4years old. She had the (front left) leg amputated and 4 cycles of chemotherapy. I was told the 12month survival rate with this treatment was 30%. My stoic, determined (read stubborn!) Eva lived til 11.5years old. Unfortunately she developed a new osteosarcoma in her back hip which fractured – not treatable and she was in a lot of pain her last 2 days so I had her put to sleep last year. It truly breaks your heart, they are with you through good and bad, everything. I miss her hugely.
    However I now have my 4th dobie – a beautiful black 6month female Helvi who is just such a joy – not a replacement, she’s special in her own way. It has helped with the loss of Eva too – not for everyone but it helped me :))

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  60. We lost our 6 year old boxer, Daisy, to lymphoma. She was totally misdiagnosed for the first 6 months, even though she had textbook symptoms. By the time it was caught, chemo would only have given her a couple of months. We decided to maintain quality, not quantity.

    We now have two dobermans. Hopefully, they will not be part of a statistic.

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  61. 2 DOBERMAN mis primeras perritas (imperiales)marrones, mis amores. Una de ellas contrajo tres tipos de cancer, lamentablemente el veterinario que inicialemente las atendía no les dio importancia a sus dolencias.
    Una de ellas comenzo con problemas en el caminar, la llevamos, le hicimos ecografías y cuando no podía hacer pis (el veterinario que siempre las atendió me abandono) me dijo que con 12 años ya era vieja y que todo lo que pasara de aca en adelante podía ser rapido para su muerte. Lamentablemente confie en este veterinario, cambié y cuando la lleve estaba agonizando ( se le habia estallado la vegiga), tuve que operarla de urgencia, lo peor es que cuando le sacamos la sondita detectamos una masa entre la vegiga y la pelvis. La operamos, pero su cuerpito no soporto y al otro día fallecio de un paro cardiaco.
    Me quedo su hermanita, pero la mala experiencia de haber confiado en un medico veterinario que no valia la pena.
    Cambie por su puesto de medico, pero nadie me devuelve a mi gordita.
    Alguien que me explique porque le dan un titulo a cualquiera…
    No se. Para mi todo lo que tiene vida, siente, sufre….es importante.

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  62. We lost our Atticus (blue Dobe) to cancer this week. He was only 7 years old. It seems so unfair that such an amazing breed is at such a high risk for cancer, but after having researched so much information online, I fear it must be true. Dobermans are my preferred breed, I’ve had two in my lifetime and even now I dream of having another Doberman in my home. I find no other canine so completely fills a home, protects and guards in quite the same fashion, or shares the rare blend of poise, grace, confidence and loving nature as does a Doberman. That being stated, after this profoundly sad experience, and with knowledge of the propensity for cancer in the breed, I don’t know if I have the room in my heart for another gamble on such an untimely death as was Atticus’. He was a soldier to the end. Just one more quality I love about the breed. Such an amazing breed.

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    • Veronica I am so so sorry for the loss of your Atticus. I hope all the wonderful memories he gave you brings some comfort to your heart. He was a lucky boy to have you as his owner/caretaker.

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  63. We lost our 10 year old black female doberman to bone cancer on November 12, 2010. We were not familiar with cancer in dogs until this happened and we have learned a lot since dealing with making Angel as comfortable as possible until the pain medications were no longer an option once her hip swelled up and her leg finally broke from the evil cancer cells eating away at the bone in her left hip.

    We finally had to make the difficult decision to put our beloved doberman to rest once we were no longer able to keep her comfortable. We got her when she was 3 years old right when we got a house and got married so she was part of our beginnings as a married couple, Amy and I. We saved her from the Detroit Humane Society. The previous owner was actually en route with Angel when we were asked about her and he turned around and brought her to us instead of DHS. Whew! That was close and we were lucky to have her. She represented the Doberman breed with class, sweetness, beauty and the proud looks of a sleek guard/family dog that only the Dobe can give!

    Some say “once a dog owner, always a dog owner” and we believe this to be true for most. We did not like our home without the presence of a dog and we searched for different breeds but the Doberman always seemed like the best breed for us. We got another black female on Dec. 5, 2010 and it has helped us overcome the sadness of losing Angel.

    The staff at the animal hospital where we take our new pup Jade say that they have been seeing more and more doberman pups coming in for ear croppings so the breed is making a comeback at least in the metro-Detroit area!!

    Live, love and share in the joy of the breed. Dobies are really great dogs.

    Reply

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