Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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We were shopping at Petco before Ginger's surgery and picked up this orthopedic bed . Now that she's down a leg, is this still a good option? I saw a list of recommended beds on here but most of them aren't available or won't ship to Alaska- Petco Orthopedic Bed
This is just from my experience. Tripawds need a bed firm enough so that when they stand, the bed won't "squish" around wjen tney try to get up. It needs to be firm enough to support their joints, yet enough "give" to cradle them.
Not sure how much your sweet Ginger weighs, but this is a "first-hand" recommendation IF she's a larger dog, or medium. I realize those adjectives aren't very specific 🙂
The Big Barker Bed is an "investment" to say the least. I got one for my Happy Hannah rear leg tripawd, 125 lb Bull Mastiff. I've had it over three years now and it has not shifted, sagged or become misshapen in any way. It's basically the Tempurpedic of dog beds.
They make them only for medium, large and extra large dogs.
All that said, the bed you jave for Ginger looks like a good one!!
Anyway, that's just one suggestion for you. Others will chime in!
Hugs to that sweet girl!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie 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!
Looks comfy. Please see all our best recommended dog beds for Tripawds in the Gear blog .
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
We also love the Big Barker beds - we had 3, the first one purchased when Otis was diagnosed with arthritis in his hips.
The best way to test your new bed, however, is to see if Ginger uses it and if she can get to a standing position easily once her staples come out.
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016. Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016. Lung mets August 25, 2016. Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016. Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma.
Wherever they are, they are together.
Eurydice has a couple of memory foam mattresses and they are just like Sally described, they are firm, adapt to their shape and last forever 👍🏼
I wander if we have an English version of the US Big Barker beds ...
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
We bought a memory foam bed from dogbed4less for our 70 pound (post amp) guy. He never liked it as much as his old bed, but it had its pros. Number one pro (probably only appreciated by other cancer pawrents) was how comfortable it was for ME to lay on during those final weeks of his life when I'd hear him struggling at night and wanted to join him. No hip pointers for me when sleeping curled up around him. It was also great for getting him stretched out for massage. Big, flat, smooth and soft.
Until the end he preferred his old school bed which was a bolster that wrapped 2/3 of the way around with a separate pillow in the middle. But he also tended to trip over the edge alot as a tripawd, and stumble around getting settled.
He typically slept at the foot of our bed 70% of the time before amputation. He still did some after amputation but he really struggled rolling over and getting up from our bed. I did build a giant platform step to help him up and down from our bed. It was a sheet of plywood with 4 short legs screwed in and a piece of scrap carpet on top. I found his breathing was much worse on my bed than his. I was torn. He wanted to be there, but he wasn't really comfortable for long periods.
Back to your original question, it's hard to say. It doesn't appear to have the same tripping hazards as our pre-amp bed, but is possibly a bit soft and trickier to navigate than a memory foam. But if Ginger is like Milo, she may prefer her old bed regardless of what others think is best for her. And it looks like it might work great for you, too!
Peace,
Jenifer & Milo
Yeah Jennifer, good point about the "dog bed" getting "five stars" because it's comfortable for us humans!
I actually bought a second Big Barker Bed at first to sleep with Happy Hannah on hers when it became clear she wasn't going to be avle to climb upstairs (old house steep stairs). I then bought a third Big Barker Bed (large) for tripawd Frankie!! As mentioned earlier, quite an investment, but I can't imagine them ever wearing out! Keep in mind these are for larger dogs because of their firmish support.
I think Christine, Michelle and I need to vuy stock innthe Company! Michelle has two...or maybe three also!
I added cozy blankets and pillows for Hannah to snuggle up with, but that didn't interfere with the firm supports she needed to get up.
Jennifer, I love that Milo wanted his comfy bed and didn't care if he stumbled or not as he settled in! Sometimes it comes down to whatever our dogs THINK is best for them...it is!
Jennifer, your Milo knew exactly what he was doing when he picked you to travel by his side on his earthly journey. He knew you woukd leave no stone unturned when it came to his care.....And he knew you would let him sleep in his bolster bed! He loved being loved by you
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!
For what it is worth, Gator really couldn't care less about any of the dogs beds, and won't even consider the big orthopedic ones. He seems most comfortable on an old comforter on the floor.
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016. Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016. Lung mets August 25, 2016. Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016. Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma.
Wherever they are, they are together.
I absolutely LOVE the Go Pet Orthopedic Bed I got for Izzy ahead of her knee surgery. It's comfy enough for me to lay on and she LOVES it! It's 4" thick so has plenty of padding but is "firm" enough for her to get up easily ... even with just three legs (or two and a half, since the third is still healing). I bought mine on Amazon ... I would hope they ship to you!
Hope this helps!
Amy & Izzy (shown on her bed below)
Momma to the world's most beautiful American Bulldog, Izzy!! Lost her front leg to OSA 9/18/15. Diagnosed w MCT in June 2016. Celebrated her 1 year ampuversary with knee surgery on 9/18/16! MCT recurrence in Dec 2016. Happy & hungry til nearly 14, earning her wings on 7/31/17.
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