Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
Tripawds is your home to learn how to care for a three legged dog or cat, with answers about dog leg amputation, and cat amputation recovery from many years of member experiences.
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I have a 9 year old boxer mix that has a mast cell tumor in her right hind leg. She's already had two surgeries to remove the tumor, but it keeps coming back. Our vet has said it's deep in the muscle tissue, and now our best option is amputation. I'm supposed to call later this week to schedule her surgery, and I'm really worried.
I'm worried about her surviving the surgery, and if she'll keep trying after surgery. I'm also worried my emotions are going to affect her negatively, and I don't want that. How do I get both her and my family and I through this? People keep telling me I'm doing this for her, not to her...but I don't know if she'll realize that. I want what's best for my girl, and any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Hey guys I am in the Tripawds Chat room if you want to talk.
I'm sorry abut the diagnosis, mast cell cancer is such a tough one to treat. But it sounds like your vet is really on top of things and your friends are good support network too, that's terrific!
Have you listened our Tripawd Talk Radio show about Mast Cell Cancer? Also check out Jerry's Required Reading List and the Tripawds e-books , you'll find that your feelings are totally normal and you CAN get through this, but first you have to breathe and remember our dogs are much, much more resilient than we give them credit for.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Sounds like you have some nice supportive people around you and I really like that advice - you are doing it "for" her and not "to" her. Nothing could be more true!
My cat needed an amputation recently, I realize we are talking about a dog this time, but Jerry is right. Pets are so, so resilient! As I type this, my cat (who is 15) is sneaking up to my Boxer and will no doubt swat at his legs, then take off running. Yes, running. On three legs. He is so happy and could seriously care less that a leg is missing. He runs down the stairs every morning, can jump up on whatever he wants. His purr is so loud you can hear it from across the room. When my vet said my cat would adapt quickly...he knew what he was talking about. Within days of being home he was up on top of the fridge, just chilling.
Chances are, your dog will be so grateful for being relieved of the pain. Try your best to have a positive outlook and treat her the same - she will vibe off you.
The nice people on here who have gone through this with dogs will obviously know better what to expect time-line wise, for a dog having had an amputation. But I see many, many success stories and photos of dogs having a great time in life despite being a three-legger!
Good luck to you and your girl!
Hattie & Jerry
Hugs,
Hattie and Jerry Cat (right front leg and scapula amputation due to chondrosarcoma at age 14, lived 2 1/2 years post amputation, succumbed suddenly to suspected lymphoma at age 16)
10/2001 - 10/9/2017 R.I.P ~ Love you always
My pug Maggie lost a rear leg to a mast cell tumor, it was in the tissue around her knee and was not removable any other way.
My biggest fear was that Maggie would not be able to adapt and she proved me right....for a few weeks! Maggie was as stubborn as they come and not at all good with changes to her routine. If she could adapt then I think just about any pup can! We had some bumps but Mag hopped happily through life for almost 4 years. You can read her story and about her amp and treatment if you are interested, the links are in my signature below.
Any you should read a little about Roxy- she is a boxer who has kicked mass cell's butt for more than 5 years after her front amp.
I did not do well with my emotions after Maggie's surgery, she was unhappy and I was unhappy it did not help her recovery. This is a big shock! For us there was no pain associated with the tumor like OSA, I couldn't believe that amputation was what I needed to do. Then when she was so stubbornly unhappy, well I thought I had made a huge mistake by doing the surgery. It's hard, but I did learn from that how much my emotions affect my dogs.
What grade was the tumor when it was removed before? Did they give you the mitotic index? These things would help to know how aggressive the cancer might be. Will they be doing some pre-surgery tests to check for spread? We did an abdominal ultrasound, bloodwork, and needle biopsies of near lymph nodes. I think there was something else...I don't remember.
Since the tumor has come back twice it's not likely anything short of amputation will slow it or stop it. If she is a good candidate for amputation then you are giving her a chance at more quality time with you and your family.
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
Dogs live in the today. She will keep trying after surgery. They take their new normal and live it today. Our furfaces are so remarkably resilient. I asked our vet before our Max had surgery if he ever had a dog that wouldn't / couldn't get up after surgery and he told me no. Our big guy took about 3 days before he got his "sea legs" but once he did it was amazing. One thing I did learn thanks to all my friends here is he did indeed feed off my feelings and panic. If I stayed calm he stayed calm. I had to become a strong pack leader for him. Plus if I worried about all the tomorrows and what might come I robbed myself of all the progress we made each today. One thing we found helped us enormously was the Ruff Wear Harness by Webmaster we got off the site here. It allowed us piece of mind that we could quickly grab the handle at the top if we felt Max needed help getting up or if we felt he needed the support while already up. This journey is like no other. I won't tell you the first week is easy because it can be rough. But you are here now and we will all help you stay calm and get you through it. You've come to the best place in the world for love and support. Try to relax and take one step at a time and not look to the whole overwhelming picture at one time. You CAN do this. We've got your back. Hugs!
Linda & Max
She'll know you did it for her because you will show her you still love her! She doesn't really care if she has three legs or four, as long as she is surrounded by those who love her and she loves in return. She'll do almost everything she does now, maybe a bit slower or a bit less intense, but her life will still be complete with you at her side. As humans, we think they must mourn their 4-leggedness and their old life. But I don't think that really happens. They just get on with it. There are walks to take and squirrels to chase and belly rubs to be had. Who has time to worry about that ol' rotten leg?
But as Linda says, we're not going to tell you it is a cakewalk, because it isn't, especially in those first weeks. And of course any surgery carries some risk, but if she's in good health try not to worry about things that probably won't happen. I know it is hard. It is major surgery and of course we all hold our breath on amp-day. You can channel some of that worry into getting the house ready (non-slip flooring) and having a quiet place for her to recuperate. You can get a harness, which many folks find useful and figure out a way to elevate her food and water bowls. Try to rearrange your schedules so that someone can be with her, at least the first couple of days. They can be a rollercoaster for sure---the bigger guys/gals can take a bit longer to regain their spark but she'll make a little progress everyday and that is what you should focus on.
Denise, Bill and Angel Ellie.
Active 10+ Pyr mix suddenly came up lame with ACL tear in left rear leg. Scheduled for a TPLO but final pre-op x-rays indicated a small suspicious area, possibly OSA, which could have caused the ACL tear. Surgeon opened the knee for TPLO but found soft bone. Biopsy came back positive for OSA. Became a Tripawd 9/18/14. Carbo6 with Cerenia and Fluids. Pain free and living in the moment. Crossed the Bridge on 7/12/15 after probable spread of cancer to her cervical spine. A whole lifetime of memories squeezed into 10 months. Here's her story: Eloise
Thank you everyone for your words of encouragement, support, and advice!! Everyone I've talked to or that has posted on here have been a huge help, I feel really blessed to have found this site, and all of you wonderful people who understand that pets are family, and how it feels to be going through this with Bree. Thanks again!!
Tanya and Bree
I'm a newbie here too but wanted to chime in that my baby Barkley has already survived Mast Cell tumor on his side so luckily it was easy to get a full, clean margin. After his surgery I understand first-hand how large an area they have to take to have a successful clean margin. The tumor was only the size of a very tiny petite pea but a very aggressive one and the size of the area involved in removal was so much more. With the return of that evil crud 2x already, it really does seem like the best choice to do. I'm sorry your baby has this but be confident that you are doing the best thing for her.
Now, fast forward about 7 years to present moment......my Barkley has another bout of carcinoma (completely different kind) in his foot pad and, like your baby, has already had a surgery to remove what they could but they were not able to get it all due to its location in hs foot. 6 months later it is back, bigger and angrier than before and a second surgery is not something we are ready to do only to have it return again. We decided that if we were going to have another surgery for Barkley then we would eliminate the source instead of just taking bits and pieces again. Luckily there has been no spreading so we are going to have this taken from our sweet boy. We are actually going in this morning.
I wish you both the best of luck!!!!!!
Linda & Barkley
Tanya and Bree....just now catching up! Clearly you've gotten great insight from those of us who can relate soooo well to the stress of this journey!
You may have posted elsewhere, vut what's an update?
Hugs to you and your adorable Bree
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!
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