Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
Tripawds is your home to learn how to care for a three legged dog or cat, with answers about dog leg amputation, and cat amputation recovery from many years of member experiences.
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Hello All! My little girl Simone has an appointment on January 2 to have her leg amputated. Last winter, she jumped out of my car onto an icy parking lot and broke her left leg. The vet recommended putting her in a cast to heal the break. The cast came off in June and there was a lot of muscle atrophy. At that time, I questioned wether or not I should have had the leg amputated. She seemed to do so much better on three legs . . .lifting her cast up and going up stairs and running, etc. As the leg healed, I realized she would always have a limp but seemed to be doing very well. Two weeks ago her leg went out going up the stairs. This resulted in another break. I have had her x-rayed and all three vets that I have asked for opinion on said that they would amputate the leg. They believe the initial break never healed. My concern is that Simone has VERY thin legs and is a 35 pound dog. I am going to work on getting her weight down but I am concerned that amputating the bum leg will put too much wear and tear on the other thin leg and it might go out as well. Does anyone have any experiences with this? How can I prevent her good leg from getting hurt as well? Should I reconsider the amputation?
Jennifer
Hi Jennifer!
If you browse through the forums a bit, you'll see other people with similar stories. My pup, Jack, is similar- 30 pounds and very delicate legs, and one of which was broken several years ago due to abuse. It healed somewhat, but never very well, and she had the leg amputated about 2 years after the original injury when it started to bother her.
Amputation brought Jack immediate relief and she's far happier without the pain. It sounds like Simone's leg is bothering her a great deal right now, is that true? Getting her weight down will definitely help, as will being careful about what activities she's allowed to do. I've cut back on a lot of the things Jack used to do in order to protect her remaining front leg- jumping off furniture and from the car doesn't happen any more, she doesn't run off leash very often and we limit the length of her walks.
What do the vets say? If she's coped well so far, I don't think having the leg gone will make much of a difference.
Awwww, sorry Simone is still javing problems.
Good advice fro Jack's mom. Sure, it's manpjor surgery and, just like with humans, every surgery has risks. But as far as doing well on three legs.....three lain free legs...that should not be an issue!
Recovery is no picnic for about two weeks and Simone will benon pain meds and must just rest and go out to potty and very short walks..no jumping..no stairs, etc.
There are all sorts of links here to ways to build core muscles and exercises ro strengthen the remaining legs. These are to be done slowly and gradually after fully recovering.
If your vets think Simone is a good candidate, then there really is no reason not to proceed. She needs to have that painful leg gone. Actually, we see a lot of dogs here who have had tonhave an amputation because a fracture never healed properly, or a knee repair became infected, etc. It sounds like this is really the inly choice to ensure Simonq will jave a quality pain free life.
We've had senior dogs with with bad arthritis, bad hips, etc. who have done very well on just three legs.
Stay connected to us! We all understand the turmoil and fear involved in makingnthis decision. But we also understand the joy and relief when we see how well our dogs adjust and hap p ynthey are!!
Would love to see somenpics!!!
Sendingnhugs and extra treats for Simone.....she can start her diet"next year"!!!!!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle too!
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
A friend of mine went through something similar with her dog but it was a rear leg. After months of surgery with pins and plates, nothing worked and the leg came off. The dog was SO much happier after getting the amputation. I guess the leg hurt a lot more than we realized.
A front leg amputation is a little harder because 60% of the weight is carried in the front. You will want to do physical therapy to reduce the risk of injury. There is going to be a tripawd specific online PT course in February and I can't find the link to it. I hope Jerry sees this post and will provide the link. Plus the ebooks can be a big help for you too:
Simone and family, welcome. Sorry I just now saw your post. Yep, we've had quite a few members join us for similar reasons. I know it's hard but try not to worry. Sounds like you've done your homework and have some good opinions on which to base a decision. The thing is to keep in mind that it's not her legs that will keep her strong and injury but her core muscles, and you can help her get there by doing fun fitness and conditioning games and activities. Here is the online course that Nixon's Mom described:
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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Hi,
It's been ages since I popped in here. So, let me tell you about my pup. Cora is 2 now (can you believe it!!). She had her right front leg amputated when she was just 2 months old. But the thing is, Cora is a very special girl. Cora suffered something really horrible at birth or in the womb. As well as her deformed front leg she is blind and has brain damage that makes her clumsy and gives her other challenges. Cora's body also seems kind of big for her legs. And of course, she has had a puppy's energy and craziness.
Cora is doing great. No broken legs or other problems. She does fall a lot because of all her issues. Typically she just gives a growl to the world and pops right back up. Dogs do great on 3 legs. It's we humans who get hung up on how we think things should be. And if the leg has been causing pain, the dog can be much happier without it.
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