My 10 yr old dog has had diarrhea for a while and then vomiting so we’ve been going to the vet to try and figure it all out. First they said it was food sensitivities and we tried a limited ingredient diet but she lost a lot of weight fast so we went back and they said kidney disease (they later said was probably dehydration that made blood work look like kidney disease). We had an abdominal ultrasound yesterday to rule out IBD but it shows masses along her intestines and enlarged lymph nodes. We have started her on prednisone and are waiting for a referral to an oncologist but would love support from anyone who has had similar experiences with their pets.

We lost our chihuahua mix this July and they said she had a huge mass in her abdomen which they missed during examinations. They were looking at other conditions such as her bad knees but her belly looked seriously bloated and we just thought she was fat until she went into multiple system failure. This is a vet that services low income individuals/families and I believed they did that with vet interns with head vet and volunteers but never thought their service would be less reliable than a regular vet clinic but with our last dog and this one how they misdiagnosed a couple of times I wonder if anyone thinks I should get another vet? I don’t think the outcome would have been different for Peanut who passed in July but because of her death we were watching Sheba more closely and kept bringing her to the vet until we got the right diagnosis. I don’t know if I’m just upset or being fair with my belief in the vet clinic. I still won’t believe the diagnosis until an oncologist reads the ultrasound.

This vet said that the possible cancers the ultrasound clinic mentioned were all malignant and she could live 6 months to 2 years depending on the type and treatment. To know for sure we need to get a sample during an ultrasound. I’m not sure if I should depending on if the type of cancer matters. If some of the cancers she could have would respond better to treatment and she could live a couple more years with chemo then I would do it. But if the only prognosis is 6 months and no hope to slowing or remission then I just couldn’t afford 3-4K without a better prognosis but that really sucks. I wish I could pay anything to get her better.
Any feedback is appreciated!