So if anyone has been wondering where I've been, the title of this thread may clue you in.

In March, I noticed Mishka's mouth was looking funny. Now as someone who doesn't always look in my dog's mouth and most often sees them from above, I never really noticed anything amiss up until this point. We went on a little "hike" with some friends and when editing the photos I really noticed how much this bump was protruding out of his mouth.



So we made a vet appointment a couple of weeks later went to see a veterinarian at MSAH in Metairie.

By this time Mishka's mouth had looked more like this.



That day we did a biopsy (2 punches and 2 teeth were sent in as the teeth were no longer attached) and x-rays. A few days later the biopsy results came back as "gingival hyperplasia" which isn't common in huskies. The vet suggested we just keep an eye on it and do a followup in 6 weeks (May). Everything stayed the same, so on our 6 week check up we were to just keep an out out for any changes.


This was May 10.



About a month after our check up, I noticed the growth was getting larger. So I scheduled an appointment with another veterinarian at MSAH who had experience with the "gingival hyperplasia" and wanted to get a second opinion. As soon as she saw him she said it wasn't GH.

We were then referred to a surgeon at MedVet to see Dr. Lang. Dr. Lang wanted to do a deeper biopsy and a CT scan before she could give us any possible surgical options. We scheduled the surgery for 2 weeks later.


July 19.




Our biopsy and CT scan was 2 weeks ago. It took more than the proposed 5-7 days to get the call. Dr. Lang called me yesterday with the news. The biopsy results came back as fibrosarcoma, which is a malignant cancer. They also found an enlarged lymph node on the CT scan. Our options are limited but she recommended us go see a radiation oncologist. We have an appointment scheduled Tuesday at LSU vet school.

The one good thing about all of this is that Mishka has been his normal self through all of this despite his outward appearance. He has maintained his appetite and energy, no weight loss.

So hopefully we will see how we will move forward with this.




August 16.



August 21.

It breaks my heart to read this, and see the pictures, Ashleigh. I am truly so very sorry you guys are going through this. Upon joining this forum, Mishka was instantly one of my favorite Huskies and the pics you capture of him always did him such justice. I am so sad right now, I have tears in my eyes. Please keep us updated and if you need anything, please let us know.

I don't know if you are on Instagram, Ashleigh, but there is an account there "iriesbucketlist" where I believe this Husky had the same cancer, only more to the side of the face. Her journey is well documented there and *may* help you to read it.

Thank you Jimmy! I got the call yesterday at work and as much as I tried to hold it back I ended up crying most of the day. I wish I could have just left to come home and spend it with my boy.

I do remember seeing her posts on FB but I'll definitely go look her instagram up.

Ugh, reading that and seeing the pictures is truly gut wrenching. Poor little baby

Fingers crossed for Mishka. So sorry you guys have to go through this.

Ashley, I am so sorry to hear this news. My heart goes out to you and Mishka.

I'm glad he's doing well despite what I would think would be difficult to eat around, but you both are troopers. Sending good vibes. Hope good news will come your way on this.

Wow, the pictures show the change in dramatic fashion. I’m so sorry you and Mishka are going through this. Thank you for sharing your story, and I wish the best for treatment and recovery.

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Very sorry this has happened.

Best wishes.

Another of those - I don't know what to say ... thoughts and prayers for all of you.

Ashleigh I’m so sorry to hear this. I can’t belive how quickly it grew. Poor Mishka, you guys are in my thoughts.

Ashleigh, I am so sorry Hugs and positive thoughts to you and Mishka. <3

Wow, to see the progression is so heart wrenching. I have seen the updates on FB but to see and hear more of what you have been going through my heart hurts so bad for you both. I have seen such an increase of cancer in huskies over the last year its shocking for a breed not known to have many cancer issues. Please keep us updated on what you can do for him, i am glad he is acting normal for now. Love every moment you get and keep him happy for as long as you can.

HUGS to you.

I thought about you guys all day today, Ashleigh, how did Mishka's appointment go?

i'm so sorry , sends hugs for everyone and positive energy and prayers for Mishka.

Always sorry to read about canine cancers. I lost Mylo, 8 yrs ago to it. Adobo, needed cancer removal surgery a few years back. Sorry to say this but Miska's looks quite aggressive, I wish you both well and remember quality of life when taking care of the pup.

Cancer
The mere mention of the word cancer is enough to frighten even the most steadfast dog lover. A study conducted by the British Small Animal Veterinary Association found that 31 percent of all Siberian husky deaths in the trial were from cancer. Huskies are particularly prone to basal cell tumors, sebaceous and anal gland tumors. Early detection is the best way to bust cancer, and you should run your hands over your dog frequently to check for unusual lumps. Cancer might seem like a life sentence, but with surgical removal and chemotherapy, your husky can live a longer, healthier life.

Thank you everyone. Sorry to the delay in responding - it's been a crazy week.

We went to LSU Tuesday and unfortunately our options are not good. I'm going to go ahead and copy/paste my post from FB so as not to have to retype it all.

-----

It's not the news I was hoping to get and have to share with everyone. We went to LSU veterinary teaching hospital Tuesday with a little bit of optimism. Unfortunately the prognosis is not good.

Mishka has what they call a high low fibrosarcoma. Clinically it is growing like a high grade tumor, but histopathically it is growing like a low grade (1 on the mitotic scale). These tumors are locally aggressive, though they typically do not metastasize to other organs or parts of the body (which basically means it doesn't usually spread to other parts of the body).

Our options are doing a round of palliative radiation therapy for 4 weeks, which may stall the growth of the tumor for 4-6 months before it starts again. Radiation itself has it's downsides between recovery time and side effects but there is also the cost and fact that I would have to travel 2 hours each way to Baton Rouge for a month twice a week at best.

The other option is to treat it medically with pain medications (acetam w/ codeine) and a NSAID (piroxicam), which is what we are currently going with. This option may only give him 2 months before the tumor overtakes his nasal passages enabling him to breathe as well as causing bone necrosis in the affected area.

As of right now, he does not seem to be in pain. He is bright, alert, active, eating, drinking, etc. - all normally. I was advised to soften his food so I started to soak his kibble in warm water and am supplementing with golden paste and fish oil.

I am looking into some holistic options as well. We are going back on a raw food diet and looking into some herbal remedies that may also help keep him comfortable.

As of right now I am at a loss. I do not know what the best option is and I know that only I can make this decision. The thought of losing my best friend so soon is crushing.

I appreciate everyone's thoughts and suggestions and help. <3

Ugh....I'm not sure if trying keto would work on this sort of thing or not. I know people have had great response in cancer and tumors on keto and several dogs have as well. There is a Facebook group for keto for dogs that have a lot of people who have turned to it and can help if it's something you are interested in trying.

Yeah I don't know either. He hasn't lost any weight and I don't want the high fat to make him gain. We're going to just start with PMR again and see how he does on that.

I had several people recommend it from the FB groups I've posted in but I just bought 80lbs of pre-made raw for him so I'm not letting that go to waste.

I hear ya. Just got a freezer clean out. Meat is basically gold when feeding raw.

Hey simplify!!!

I'm so sorry to hear about Mishka's prognosis, but am super stoked to see that what he's going through doesn't seem to be bothering him or affecting his spirits.  One thing I love about husky personalities, they can seem to make light of anything!

I'm 100% in favour of you going raw for him.  I think it will be easier for him to eat as well and keep his appetite strong as I have yet to see a dog turn their nose away from raw meat!  I don't know if you have access to any companies that prepare all the raw diets for you, but you might consider those as these are typically all ground up including the bones so Mishka has the proper bone content in his diet but doesn't have to chew it.  The ground up raw meat products also are super easy to add water to make it even more palatable.

As for a holistic pain remedy, might I suggest you start him on CBD oil/Hemp tincture?  It's a natural anti-inflammatory, improves overall anxiety and energy amongst other things.  While obviously not a cure, I think you might be able to cut out the more harsh long term pain medications, and keep his anxiety about what's going on down?  Definitely start with a low dose and then titrate up to effect.  =D.

Sending both of you some positive vibes and keep us updated with his progress!

I posted a couple days ago on this and it disappeared (?)

My second husky developed cancer (squamous cell) on her leg at age 9.
Our vet gave her six months and said the recommended treatment was amputation.
He didn't want to do that on a husky and sent us to a specialist.
The specialist recommended radiation and chemo.
Back to talk about quality of life issues, our vet had another idea.
He said perhaps he could do a severe, radical surgery that was very deep.
We opted to do that.
The recovery was tough and Tasha wore a bandage for nine months.
But she lived almost until 14 and didn't die of cancer.