dog surgery

My 8 yo german shorthair had to have a rather large, fast growing tumor removed from his ear, right where the flap meets the head. Just done yesterday, so no lab results yet, but the doc believes it's likey malignant.
Hopefully, she got all the nasties out and he can enjoy an additional 8 or so years in the field.

Doc managed to save 'most' of his ear, though now it doesn't completely cover the ear canal. I'm concerned that ear will be prone to geting gunk, skank, mud, and other grunge in it, which is why I begged the Doc to try to save the ear flap. Naturally, very frequent cleaning and examination is in order.

So, what I'm wondering is if any of you have dealt with a similar situation and if so, what you did about it. Did you find or make some kind of ear cover for field work? Could you share designs and other info?

Also, I had him neutered at the same time. Have any of you found you dog's behavior or abilities to change afterward?

Thanks!

He apparently still likes me, won't leave my side. Go figure.
I was kinda secretly hoping he might accidentally find the drahthaar bitch down the road in heat, but it never happened. Could have made an interesting batch o pups. Oh well. At least now I won't get sued for a cross breed litter.

I guess I'll try not to worry about the open canal so much. Just keep an eye on it.

Buck, this is the best dog I've ever owned. I can't say I'm the best trainer he's ever had though. Here's hoping he fetches up my biggest rooster yet this season.

Well, thanks for your interest and comments, gentlemen. Got the lab results back today and it's not real encouraging. They call it a 'mast cell tumor, stage 3' and it has 'probably' migrated to vital organs. Doc says he probably has 6 months to a year, unless I can spend a fortune on tests, pokes, prods and chemotherapy . We might have got lucky, but not likely.

I guess I'll give him a good long bird season this year and when he shows signs of suffering I'll take a look at the tough choice.

damn (sorry mod, but I feel justified) shame. He's a fine dog.

Patocazador said:

Sorry to hear the bad news, splattergun.
Just to verify buck 460's post, floppy ears don't allow air to circulate well and contribute to fungus infections in dogs that spend time in water like retrievers. My dog has to be treated for a couple of infections yearly unless I'm diligent about trimming the inside ear hair and rinsing out the ears daily with an alcohol-based drying solution. Wild dogs and wolves all have erect ears and aren't prone to these problems.

Click to expand...

That all makes sense and for all that I suppose his ears will be ok. We live in an arid climate and have never had fungus or other ear problems before this tumor. I will be watchful and keep 'em clean, though.
As for the rest, I'll just have to wait and see and check out more information. Meanwhile, Dove season starts on Sept. 1, just days after he gets the stitches out and the cone can come off!