Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi Everyone
I was writing another Post for my blog and as normal my mind flew off into a totally different place, and I began wondering if there is a difference in the Guilt Aspect of Leg removal ( Maybe guilt is the wrong word ) but I wondered if there is a difference in how the owner of the pet feel's about the choice of amputation when the choice is out of their hands, eg with an accident ? or when you have to actually decide to remove the limb due to cancer. So I thought I'd pose the question to the people who are in the know in other word's all of YOU !!
*** I don't know if when your pet loses a leg to an accident, then it's sort of out of your hand's and not something that you had actually elected to do to your pet. But when your pet has Cancer, the decision to remove the leg is your's totally ....... I don't know if this is somehow worse ?? I think this could be a good article, so if any of you have had a Pet injured in an accident and they then had a limb removed ... or if like me and Fizz, her leg was removed because of Cancer, If you could message in your views on the subject and whether you feel there is a difference ?? ***
So here I am asking all of you as this question is rolling around my lil brain and I thought it would be a good conversation piece or maybe I'm totally wrong, but then I haven't been doing this Blog thing long so it's all new to me
Thank you for reading my lil question, and I hope to hear from some of you , and what your feeling's about this question are 
?
take care zena and Fizz in Spirit xox
interesting question - i dont really know if i can help much but heres our story - Kayla shattered her right front leg at 3 months old - we could have had it fixed at a price of over $4000 but the was no gaurantee it would work so we decided to amputate as we didnt have thee finances to try to fix it. if we had have had the money would we had fixed it? I dont know but we certainly felt alot of guilt that we couldnt afford to fix it and also that the accident happened in the first place but looking back now it was the better option to amputate as she has bounced back amazingly and it hasnt slowed her down alot.
Wookie had his leg amputate for osteosarcoma. I had no hesitation about the decision and feel no guilt about having his leg amputated. I DO feel guilty that I should have diagnosed it sooner, but that's another issue, I suppose.
I could not stand seeing Wookie in pain and could not get the leg off quick enough once the cancer diagnosis was made.
Right hind limb amputated 7/3/12 for OSA, started on alternating cycles of Carboplatin and Doxorubicin and oral Palladia. Single lung met 9/1. Met in the neck muscle removed 9/30. Large mass in sublumbar lymph node 10/2. Rescue chemo with ifosfamide 10/6. Mets to the rib and axillary lymph node 10/21. Started Leukeran and Pred 10/25. Wookie left this Earth for a far better place on 12/4/12. I miss you, Boo, you were my heart.
My Grayson lost his back leg due to an accident and the guilt has been unbearable on so many levels. Guilt that I rescued him but didn't do my job of protecting him. Guilt that I didn't have $3000 to take him to an orthopedist specialist to try and fix his leg. Guilt that the only 2 viable options I felt I had were to either put him down or have his leg amputated. I physically made myself sick over it all.
Would I have felt guilty for having his leg amputated because of cancer? I don't know for sure and i hope I never find out but I don't think I would have felt as guilty because it wasnt an accident and the cancer wouldn't have been caused by my negligence. I put my Joe down in June and while it hurt like crazy I didn't feel guilty because i knew his severe spine degeneration wasnt my fault and i knew I had exhausted every option he had available.
Now that's interesting to think about.
Seems to me that when it comes to amputation, it's pretty much in the human's hands whether the leg removal is because of an accident or cancer. Either way, the human has to decide whether to remove the source of pain, or possibly euthanize. Based on what I've seen from the humans here, the guilt is just as bad no matter what path is taken, especially during recovery when there are all sorts of doubts and scary episodes.
I think that perhaps the biggest guilt someone might feel is when they choose amputation for something like a birth defect in a young dog, which isn't causing pain right away, but could later on down the road. That's a huge leap of faith and pretty scary I think.
But then I'm no human, just a dog who doesn't even know what this thing called guilt is! 
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I have figured since I started this conversation, I would like to answer all of you individually as you have been kind enough to try a answer this query that I had running through my lil brain
To Sarah and Kayla
Thank you for your help with my pondering question, I am sure if I was in the same position as you with Kayla, I think I could honestly say that at 3 month's old I would have gone with the same route as you.
I would have chosen amputation, as at 3 months old they seem immune to any loss and just continue life on 3 legs with as much zest for life as they did on 4 
Not just for the financial aspect, but because the effected leg can cause problems though out their life with cause pain for a lifetime with Arthritis and other problems, that could have led to an amputation in later life.
I had a similar case but it was not an amputation but a puppy of mine had a serious accident and financially I couldn't afford the operation needed, but I had a miracle and the specialist I was sent to, decided to do the operation in his word's " This ones ..... On Me " so amazingly our Milly is still with us and causing chaos everywhere she goes !!
But unfortunately there are not many specialists with this big of heart 
Thankyou for your help with my question and I will talk to you soon zena and Fizz in spirit xox
Hi Kelly and wookie
I picked the amputation of Fizzly's leg as quickly as you and I also felt no guilt in the decision and Fizz honoured the act with her incredible courage and zeal
I also felt totally guilty like you of not finding the cancer sooner and I actually asked my vet about the IF ONLY ??
But Sian our vet claimed that if we had x~rayed Fizz a few month's before the cancer wouldn't have shown up and then we all would have thought it was just arthritis ..... so her symptom's would have been put down to Arthritis instead of cancer and Fizz would have been much worse, and the cancer would then have moved on to her lungs before we had known what was truly wrong with her.
So actually leaving it a bit longer mean't in the long run that I had my Fizzly for longer than I would have, had we x~rayed her sooner
Thank you so much for your help with my question
love zena and Fizz in Spirit xoxox
Hi Grayson's Mommy
I have one question for you ....... if a friend of yours had a puppy and someone tripped over that puppy and broke its leg, and the vet suggested that for the comfort and well being of that puppy, it was better have an amputation and it would make his suffering end and they promised that the dog would go on in leap's and bound's and do it in style 
Would you say that they were right in their self doubt and guilt ???
or would you say accident's are called accidents because they happen from no malice or cruel intention, they are just one of those things that happen and it's not their fault ???
I know that My Milly is not a Tripawd she is actually more of a Darth Vader !!! but I think reading her story will help you realise that things occur to the most careful of owner's ( Even Me and I'm obviously Perfect 
) But I think you will realise that accident's are accidental injuries and no~one
( Especially if you are not even there when the accident occurred ) is to blame
So please check out Milly's Miracle Story ( It comes in 3 parts as it's a long story !!) The story can be found on my other blog http://zenas-do.....pot.co.uk/
As I hope that this will show you that only the truly amazing dog's have life threatening injuries or illnesses. If you ask anyone on this amazing site, about how inspirational all the animals on this site are,
Then you will begin to realise how lucky you are to have such an amazing dog like Grayson, who couldn't give two hoot's to having only 3 leg's, what's a leg when you have such an amazing Mommy in You
Take care and thank you for helping me answer my query
love to you and Grayson
love zena and Fizz in Spirit xoxox
Hi Jerry
Well I started this conversation on a whim and if I'm honest I don't know what I expected the answers to be
What I have learn't that there are a whole lot of incredible dogs out there with some wonderful owners by their side
I think Guilt is too strong a word, and for me personally I feel that people who do nothing to ease their dog's suffering, are the only one's who maybe should hold some guilt ??
I know that no~one I have read about or spoke to should feel any less than Proud at how the love for their pet is shown and is obvious for any person to see.
These people are doing everything they can to help and love their pet's without question and I am overwhelmed by the power of how strong this family of 2 legged people and 3 legged animals are and they should all be an example to a whole lot of other Site's that can be found out in the computer world ???
I want to congratulate you and everyone on this site for making everyone who come's here, feel totally at ease and loved in what must be some of the darkest of times,
Thank you and keep up the good work
love zena and Fizz in Spirit xoxox
My response is exactly the same as Wookie's. Osteosarcoma was the reason for amputation. I also had no hesitation and no guilt about removing the leg and also couldn't get it off quick enough.
Like Wookie my guilt is also around not diagnosing it sooner. And if Magnum had lost her leg to an accident I have no doubt my guilt would have been around how I could have/should have avoided it. I know I would have been blaming myself even though I know that sometimes accidents happen and people make mistakes.
Zena, I agree, there is no question that everyone who comes to this site does so because of the great love they have for their dogs. Everything we do for them we do out of love. If we make our decisions based on love then we should have no guilt. Easier said than done!
Magnum: 30th May 2002 to 5th May 2012. Lost her back left leg to osteosarcoma on 5th Sep 2011. Lung mets found on 20th Mar 2012 but it was bone mets in the hip that ended her brave battle. Magnum's motto - "Dream as if you'll live for ever, live as if you'll die today" (James Dean). Loyal, loving, courageous and spirited to the end. My beloved heart dog, see her memoirs from Rainbow Bridge ...... http://princess.....pawds.com/
Hi Princess
thank you so much for helping me ponder my question and I know with Fizz like your Magnum was a true Gladiator among dogs and dealt with this awful disease as gallantly and they lived life 
I know that I felt guiltier over the accidental injury of my puppy Milly who though still 4 legged she is s true survivor and I don't know if I can put her story on this site on my Fizzles page as she still has 4 legs ??? But I will ask Jerry and see what he says and otherwise I will put a link on maybe ???
But her story I feel would help people feeling guilty over accidents with their pets, because there for the grace of god go I ? I have had loads of dogs and loads of puppies and I'm sure I have stood on more than my fair share of puppies so I believe I could have squashed quite a few legs over the years
well I will start my article about this " Guilt " issue, I mean there's so many things to feel guilty for Survivor Guilt, Accidental Guilt the list could continue
I feel that maybe I should change it to No Guilt is Needed as all of these wonderful dogs and wonderful owners have absolutely No Need For Guilt as they have stepped over every hurdle that has come into their dog's life path and they have done it with no thought for themselves and all in the name of LOVE !!
Guilt 
............ hero's is the more important word we should be talking about
Thank you for all your help
talk to you all soon
zena and fizzles in spirit xoxox
My opinion isn't one that's first hand.
Dante was already a tripawd (a new one) when we adopted him. We had no choice or say in the matter, except whether or not we wanted to take him home.
But I can say as someone who owns a tripawd, and someone who has lost a dog to disease (we're not entirely sure what, there were likely many things at play) I absolutely would have removed anything possible, if it took his pain away and saved his life. Especially now owning a tripawd and seeing how capable they are...if one of our other dogs ever ends up with the devastating C word, and removing a limb will buy them some time or spare a life...we won't hesitate.
I can't look at my happy, playful, healthy boy and ever imagine anyone feeling guilt for giving that to their dogs (though I do understand why some do!), accident or otherwise. He knows no different, and he has gotten on just fine without his spare. It's more a human problem, than a dog problem. They are so much more resilient than we are, and so much more...dog. We mourn the loss, feel guilty about what we have taken from them - they celebrate the relief and look to the future.
Zena,
Good question. Any quilt I had about removing Jake's leg disappeared quickly after amputation when he was thriving. I totally agree with Wookie and Princess and would make the decision again.
Well I actually feel guilt for not doing it SOONER. My baby got osteosarcoma on her toe and had her toe amputated and they found clean margins. Her lung X-rays were clear and this was something so rare (OSA on a toe in a kitty) that everyone we consulted but INE oncologist suggested we leave her alone and just keep an eye on her especially with the clean margins and because she was never in any pain, the tumor appeared on the outside. Six months later she developed a cyst in the same leg that turned out to be a met and she just had her leg amputated on 12/12. I feel this terrible guilt that I didn't listen to that one oncologist six months ago and I let cancer spread through my baby's body for six months when we could've gotten rid of it. Her lungs are still clear but now I'm petrified that waiting the six months will lead to it spreading more. So to cut to the chase haha no I didn't even blink to make the decision this second time I was faced with the decision!
Jill is a 9-year-old tuxedo kitty. She was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in June 2012 on her toe in her right hind leg. Her leg was amputated on 12/12/12 and she completed four rounds of chemo (2 of Carbo, 2 of Doxy) in April 2013. "Like" Jill's facebook page: https://www.fac.....tty?ref=hl Proud member of the WINTER WARRIORS!!!! Her blog can be read at http://jillsjou.....ipawds.com. xoxo
When I look at this question, the difference to me is that one injured in an accident or one amputated because of a birth defect doesn't carry the added stress (to the human) of the facing the 'cancer statistics'.
I think any time the human has to make the decision, there is some element of guilt until we see how quickly they adapt, and until we finally come to the conclusion we have given them more days of productive, happy life.
When you are making the cancer decision, you basically are deciding to allow their remaining days be pain free (once the recovery is over). Once I embraced this concept, with the help of an awesome vet, and saw a happy well adapted senior dog, there was no guilt. I had given us both happy time together.
When Trouble hopped out to us after her surgery, I could tell she was looking for acceptance with her new look. When we greeted her and showed her how happy we were, she never looked back. She was a happy dog until we had to let her go. There was clearly no reason in her mind for me to be guilty.
Shanna & Spirit Trouble ~ Trouble gained her wings 3/16/2011, a 27 1/2 month cancer survivor, tail wagging. RIP sweetheart, you are my heart and soul. Run free at Rainbow Bridge.
The November Five - Spirits Max, Cherry, Tika, Trouble & Nova. 11/2008 - 3/2013 An era ends as Queen Nova crossed the Bridge.
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