It seems that a beagle's lifespan is between 12 - 15 years and, having just turned an estimated age of 13, he’s probably going to die somewhere in the middle of that range.
If I were rich I would have Percy’s Cushing’s brought under full control, have his stomach tumor removed and aggressively treat his bladder cancer via chemotherapy (oral and intravenous) and radiation.
Beyond this, he has a suspicious spot on his lung, and enlarged adrenal gland and blood work indicating a possible tumor (malignant or benign) in his neck.
I believe what I am capable of doing is treating his bladder cancer through chemotherapy and provide enough Cushing’s medication to keep him relatively comfortable.
I can do this through my local vet without taking vacation days to treat him at Ryan's Veterinary Hospital in Philadelphia (although Ryan's gave him exceptional care and the removal of his diseased gall bladder probably bought him at least another six months because he was, literally (okay, "figuratively" for you English language purists :-) ), dead dog walking).
The end will probably come relatively quickly when it comes: either through a digestive tract blockage due to the stomach tumor or a urinary tract blockage due to his bladder cancer or through breathing difficulties from lung cancer.
At that point the most merciful thing to do will be to euthanize him while he is still largely pain-free.
Most merciful for him. Not sure it’s the most merciful for me. But it might be.
I feel bad that I don't have the financial resources to pursue a full-court press on treatment but, oddly enough, that might be the best for Percy.
He will, in all likelihood, be put to sleep due to the onset of acute symptoms of cancer and he will probably be fully alert and aware and affectionate at the time I will need to do that.
I don't think any amount of money could create a different outcome.
If I had a lot of money I could push back the timeline a bit but, in the end, at what cost to his quality of life?
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