Tripawds Three Legged Dog & Cat Forum Archives

Lucy has been a tripod for 10 years now. She is a chihuahua mix (we say mixed with lab!) and weighs 17 pounds. She lost her left rear leg in a car accident when she was about 3 years old and after her initial recovery, did just fine. She even learned to climb stairs when we moved two years later. We have hardwood floors with throw rugs and she used to drag herself along on the hardwood but stood completely up to walk on carpet and outside. She loves to run and now that we have moved to the country, she has lots more opportunities, especially with the rabbits out back. Just lately though she has begun to drag herself everywhere in the house (sliding along by working her two front legs and her back leg crossed under her butt), even on carpet. She has steps to get on the couch and we put her on to the bed but she usually jumps off.

She doesn't act like she is in any pain but the sliding everywhere has me worried about whether we are letting her do too much. She is very high spirited and, although she gets plenty of nap time, still wants to go and do as much as any dog her age. Our porch has just three steps and even though she barks to be helped more often, we encourage her to make the climb anyway. I would appreciate any advice about whether to try to restrict her activities or any extra help we should be giving her.