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Rottweiler Health Foundation Mission Statementimage: Trotting Rottweiler

To raise money to fund critical research into the genetic, communicable and acquired diseases that plague our beloved breed, the Rottweiler.

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Winter 2008
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SHARED REAL STORIES
Photo: Roc

My Rottweiler 'Roc'
Dealing with Osteosarcoma

Submitted by Sherri Doerflein on 12/22/04


Back in early March 2004, my Rottweiler-mix Roc started limping. At the time I figured that he just injured it a bit while playing in the backyard. He used to fly off the back deck steps. As it turned out, he had developed osteosarcoma (bone cancer) in his front leg. The specialist that I took him to advised me to put him down, as this was a very aggressive form of cancer. She estimated that without surgery he would survive about three months.

Surgery was not an option after it was discovered that he also had a bad heart. Where that came from, no one knows.

I was devastated and cried for days. Then I gritted my teeth and started doing research about this cancer. What I discovered was pretty grim. Most dogs were lucky to last six months without the surgery (amputation of the leg) chemo and radiation. A recent study had been done on a Chinese herb called artimisinin that was successful in killing osteosaracoma.

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I also found that many people believed that commercial dog food was the root of this cancer. I formulated my plan of attack. Homemade whole foods for Roc along with two doses a day of artimisinin. No more commercial dog food. Roc started eating better than I did! Ground beef, chicken, veggies and cottage cheese just to name a few.

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Photo: Roc and buddy Gauley
Roc and buddy Gauley

I was a bit leery of doing such a switch on him and started looking for a holistic vet to help. I found an awesome vet in Harrison, Ohio. I believe that Dr. Gaston is the only holistic vet in the Cincinnati area. At our first appointment with Dr. Gaston I informed him of what I wanted to do and to accomplish. A healthy holistic alternative with quality of life for Roc.  Dr. Gaston added supplements along with spinal adjustments for Roc. We had a monthly appointment to get Roc "adjusted". This really helped down the road when Roc was worse.

In late July we had a real scare with Roc unable to support any weight on his bad leg. He rallied back and started getting around on three legs. But at that point we added Rimadyl (a pain med) to help him out.

By the fall, he was using his bad leg as a balance and "toe tapping" when he walked. The last weekend in October he actually started walking on all four legs and running! We went camping and he had a great time. Things were looking good going into our eighth month of cancer.

More bad news when Roc developed a weird hacking cough in November. His enlarged heart was getting worse along with a new tumor in his good front leg. Not good. His bad leg started swelling and I wrapped it in hot wet towels. By mid-November, Roc was getting winded and didn't walk around much. We had made it eight months and were going into the ninth and that was pretty impressive in itself.

Tuesday night, the 23rd, I laid on the floor with Roc and had a long talk with him. I told him what a good boy he was and that he was my best boy but that I hated seeing him going through so much. I told him that I would always be there for him but that I would be okay if he had to go. That night, I got up at 3:00 a.m. and Roc was wagging his tail and very happy to see me. I went back to bed, got up later to get ready for work. I came downstairs to let him out and he jumped right up, wagging his tail and happy as could be. Roc went outside to do his business and then laid down in the grass and died. It was horribly traumatic but I think that he was just waiting for me to let him go. I had Roc cremated and his ashes are being made, by a glass artist, into a glass pendent that I can wear close to my heart.

I miss my boy terribly and the house is very empty without him.

 Photo: Roc

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