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Ask the Veterinarian/Natural gas exposure

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Expert: - 8/25/2011


Question
Hi, about 5 months ago My dog and I were exposed to high levels of natural gas for about 8 hours. There was a leak in my townhome. At the time of the exposure my dog did not have any normal side effects (heavy breathing etc...) Then approximately 2 months after that incident he was diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma. He was completely healthy prior to his checkup. The timing just seems to be to coincidental for me to ignore. Has there been any research or information pertaining to natural gas exposure and cancer in animals? Thankyou for your time and would greatly appreciate any feedback.

Answer
Hi Tommy,
This is a hard diagnosis to swallow, I agree. But it takes longer than 2 months to get to stage 4 lymphoma. It can lie dormant for a long time before showing up in the form of swollen lymphs. I don't know of any connection but it would seem likely that your dog would develop respiratory issues before he would get any other disorder.

I don't know how you could not smell this gas for 8 hours or even survive that long? It's a miracle that you both lived!

You can certainly do a search for this information online but I have no resources for that. Cancer in dogs seems to be getting worse and worse. A lot of people blame it on food and since many feed really low quality foods I can lean toward that explanation myself. My pets eat Science Diet only and live about 5-8 years past their normal life span and in excellent health. I had one cat live to be 19, a dog to be 16 and my last cat to 15. None of my pets have ever gotten cancer.

So you might want to investigate his food source and see if there is a connection there. Some breeds might be more prone to this type of cancer as well. Dogs in smoking households also get cancer more frequently then in non-smoking households.

Let me know if you find anything online. You might want to call the nearest veterinary teaching college near you and inquire from them as well.

I hope that your dog does well on whatever treatment he is on.

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

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I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

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Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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