Tripawds Three Legged Dog & Cat Forum Archives
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Does anyone have experience training paw/shake with a front leg amp? I was wondering if you have any tips on the best way to do it--not sure if her needing to shift her weight all the way to back legs requires a different approah besides saying "paw" and taking her paw in my hand and saying "good girl!"
Any help is much appreciated!
we were front leg amps...never went for the handshake - gayle was always very good at giving a nod though..
Life is good, so very, very good!!! Gayle enjoyed each and every moment of each and every wonderful day (naps included). She left this world December 12, 2011 – off on a new adventure.
Love Never Ends
We made a point to never teach any of dogs to do a handshake because Comet couldn't do it because her front leg was deformed. We didn't want her to feel left out. But she could lay down and roll over!
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
With Abby, she already knew how as a quadpaw. I'm going to be lazy and just copy what I wrote on my blog that day that she first "shook" (that doesn't sound right, does it...) as a Tripawd. I was so proud!
"We found out the other day that Abby can still "shake"! After her surgery, I figured she wouldn't be able to do that anymore. Abby knows very few 'commands': Sit, Leave it! (had to use this one about 3000 times when we'd go on walks when she was a little puppy), Down, and Shake. (She also hears "Off!" a lot, but either doesn't know it or chooses to ignore it. I'm thinking it's the latter...) So, with really only knowing four commands, I was bummed that she wouldn't be able to shake anymore--figured that was a 25% drop in her vocabulary! But the other day we had some folks over, and I made her sit to get a treat, and then said, "I guess it was a waste of time teaching her to shake!" and when she heard the word, she sat up and held out her paw. So cute! And it's the "wrong" paw, so she figured out to offer the only front paw she had left. So smart!"
So, I don't really have advice on how to go about it with a Tripawd, but it's possible! They just need to be able to balance up on their back legs. (Our previous quadpawd would do that when we'd say "Sit Pretty." So maybe you could start by teaching her to "sit pretty" or sit up, and then move on to adding in the shake from there.)
Jackie, angel Abby's proud mom
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
Prior to Rocky's amp, he taught himself to lay his right paw on our leg when he wanted attention. We'd pick it up and say "shake a paw".
After his right leg was removed, he still tried to shake with the paw that was no longer there, so we'd say "shake a nub" (his nub actually moved slightly up and down).
Eventually he taught himself to sit up and offer his left paw to shake. I can't take any of the credit for this, it was all Rocky's idea, and he was so very proud of himself too.
This might give you some idea of the position your girl might need to get in - it's kind of a balancing act. Maybe try holding a treat above her head until she sits up a bit and then quickly shake her paw. She might get the idea and come up with her own way of doing it. Good luck!
"shake a nub"
OMD, so cute! And look how proud he is of himself.
Jackie
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
Lucy is a front amp too and after a month or two I decided to ask for a "shake" and to our surprise she easily sat up and shook with me!! She loves to do it but I don't ask too much. She Is still pretty hyper and has gotten a little wobbly when attempting to shake and excited! They sure are amazing!
Lucy's Mom
Lucy's front right leg was amputated 12/19/11. Thankfully there was no tumor, but her nerves were found to be degenerative. Life as a tripawd is Lucy's new adventure!!
Yup, levi could shake before he lost his front leg. And to my surprise he could shake afterward too. He can also still "whap" at the door to be let out! I didn't think he would be able to do either of those things!
Levi was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma 7-7-11
Ampuversary 10-14-11
Lung Mets Discovered 1-4-12. Chemo seemed to not be working so we switched to Artemisinin and other supplements. In May, Levi developed a sinus infection and started having seizures. The cancer had moved to his brain. We let him go 6-26-12.
Mine is a front leg amputation. He surprised the heck out of me a week after surgery when he placed his foot in my hand. I wasn't expecting it at all and it brought tears to my eyes. He does it all the time now.
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