Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Introducing our 5 month old fur baby Yuki. Yuki is a rescue fur baby from a puppy mill auction so we are not positive as to what happened. We are thinking her front paw was severed off at birth. My concern at this point is now that she is becoming much more active she is getting sores on her stump. I am looking at what I can do to protect it when she starts going outside and when I start working on leash training. Yuki is a 4 pound Maltese so her foot is extremely small. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You
Hi and welcome! Yuki is a lucky girl to find her way to you!
I'm no vet, but based on those I've talked to, I'm thinking she could be a perfect candidate for a prosthesis. Have you seen our posts about prosthetics for dogs? It's definitely worth looking into, as many people have experienced the same issues with their dog's stump not healing and developing sores (when just the paw is missing). It's an extremely difficult area to heal and grow tough skin onto. I would definitely consult with an orthopedic surgeon who can guide you through the prosthetics process, if you're willing to dedicate the training time and money into getting one.
If a prosthetic is not in your budget, that's OK too. You can try protecting it with a boot, a no-slip sock or other covers like that (although I have a feeling that they may all be too large for her. See our posts about traction for Tripawds for ideas.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hello and welcome.
Geeze, I thought I had a small Tripawd- but Elly is a 15 pound monster compared to your girl!
Congrats on your recent addition, Yuki looks like a real cutie in your avatar.
Elly lost her right back leg after being hit by a car at 7 months old. She just turned 3 and can do pretty much anything a dog her age and size can do.
As far a protecting the leg- a couple other things that Jerry didn't measure. You could look at DogLeggs- they make custom support and coverage items. They even have a support for front leg amps- it is specifically for elbow issues with a full front leg amp but I bet they would work with you to make something for Yuki's leg.
Another site to look at is Handicappedpets.com. They have a variety of things that you might be able to make work.
We've seen some pups here with partial limbs end up needing an amputation because the limb kept getting injured. Not all though! I hope you can find or make something to protect that leg!
Karen and the Spirit Pug Girls
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
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