Beau's Three Legged Cancer Journey

Hi, my name is Molly O'Laughlin and I have a 7 year old Golden Retriever named Beau. In November of 2024 Beau started limping and that's when I noticed a ping-pong sized growth on the back of his ankle. We made a vet appointment the next day where we got imaging done as well as a biopsy on the growth. The first biopsy didn't show cancer but Beau was still limping so we went to a new vet to have a second biopsy preformed. The second biopsy had the same results as the first and Beau was not limping anymore so we thought we were in the clear.

Fast forward to January of 2025 and he started limping again. The growth was rapidly increasing in size which was now the size of a softball. This was now preventing Beau from playing and most importantly walking. Back to the vet we go where his primary care vet gave us a referral to VCA Aurora to meet with an orthopedic surgeon.

There we met with Dr. Peacock who informed us that Beau not only had cancer but a partial ACL tear in the same leg as the growth. Dr. Peacock let us know if he were to remove the cancerous tumor that it is highly likely for the cancer to grow back and if it did grow back it most likely would come back stronger. It is unlikely that Beau's leg would be able to recover from both an ACL repair and tumor removal.

The orthopedic surgeon said the smartest method to prevent the cancer from coming back and spreading is to preform an above the knee amputation. We have pet insurance but it does not cover the cost of surgery. The estimate of the amputation is between $7,000-$10,000 this does not include the cost of the three previous biopsies which totaled a little over $1,000. Beau brings my family and I so much joy and I can't imagine cancer cutting his life short. If you are able to donate it would mean the world to us. I know times are tough so if you aren't able to donate please share Beau's story

Here's to Beau's three legged journey. I might be biased but I know he will be the most handsome tri-pod dog out there.