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Kylie is having a rough go lately & not sure if Tramadol is helping or not?
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12 July 2017 - 6:16 pm
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Thanks everyone. You are right. I was emotionally exhausted, we all were. Today is a better day, as hoped. She is more alert and herself and even eating better. Thank you all for being the voice of reason. I'm not the most patient person blushI want my girl better NOW

So I need to learn to take things one day at a time. Kevin & I were talking today about my worries and he reassured me & reminded me of some of the things the Oncologist said Monday. Gabapentin WILL make her drowsy the next few days, so this is to be expected. It may also affect her appetite. (Trust me the appetite is not back yet the way I want it) but if she has to live on milk bones, a few bites of dry dog food and some peanut butter for a while, so be it. Its better than totally wasting away. I hate feeling her spine! She used to have a little layer of fat there, its gone. She is not getting nearly enough calories a day. But she is turning her nose up to most things so we have to continue to rotate things she liked before and try new things. Surely she cannot live out the rest of her days being this finicky.... can she???

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12 July 2017 - 6:41 pm
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Glad to hear today is a better day.  Just stock up on peanut butter and liver and whatever else she wants. smiley  I think the rules are now, what Kylie wants, Kylie gets.   

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.

Virginia







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12 July 2017 - 7:17 pm
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BAM!!!!! BINGO!!!! BANGO!!!! WOOF, WOOF!!!!!!!! YAY!!! YOU GOT IT!!!!!! YOU GOT IT!!!! ONE OF THE LIFE LESSONS SUPER KYLIE IS HERE TO TEACH YOU!!!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

You know what it is, right???

Actually, there's another one she's got on the front burner for you too!!!!! That Kylie is an extraordinary Teacher!!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Okay.....I'll keep checking back to see if you know the lessons!

Hugs!

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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13 July 2017 - 8:24 am
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To Be More Dog ? To live in the moment? To be more patient? To listen to Vet's advice? To listen to my husband more? lol

Schofield, WI
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13 July 2017 - 9:05 am
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Yup sure sounds like you're getting ALL the lessons down pat!  I'm just going to share my Ollies story here.  At 15 we noticed we could feel a mass in his abdomen.  Vets said it was probably cancer of some sort but at 15 we weren't about to subject him to a major surgery or a bunch of tests,so on we went with life.  Ollie lived to just short of 17 when we finally had to give him that final gift because of pain from arthritis.  So one never knows for sure how things may play out.  Sending you and Super Kylie lots of love and hugs!

Virginia







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13 July 2017 - 9:21 am
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superkylie said
To Be More Dog ? To live in the moment? To be more patient? To listen to Vet's advice? To listen to my husband more? lol  

Kylie has such a good student!!! 🙂 🙂

HAHA!! Listening to MR VOICE OF REASON is certainly ine of her lessons for yiu!! 🙂 The lesson is PATIENCE!!!! CLEARLY Kykie is giving the lessoon of patience and she's gonna make SURE her Mom gets it!!!

Obviously Be More Dog and LIVE IN THE MOMENT are right up there in Kylie's lesson plan!

The other lesson of Kylie's? If you are going to ask yourself questions.....only ask those that EMPOWER you 🙂 A "question" about how she can live by eating so little has to put you in a state of mind that cannot make yiu feel empowered and strong and confident for you and Kylie. It takes you out of the present with Kylie. It has to be an "emotional downer".

Okay, this may be a vit of a stretch, vut I'm just trying to make a point abut not giving yiurself negative questions....so here we go: Perhaps a better question would be, "Isn't it amazing that Kylie is doing an excellent job of being an "energy-efficient machine" and is avle to fuel her body with far less calories than she used to need?" OR, "Isn't it great that Kylie is still eating small amounts of food several times a day?" Okay, maybe not the best examples, vut you get my point.

Really, really, really give yourself credit for keeping your sanity during this challenging part of the journey!! It is EXTREMELY hard but you are doing a brilliant job of holding it together for Kylie!!

And one of the best lessons Kylie is teaching you is THE POWER OF LOVE!!! YOUR LOVE FOR KYLIE IS SOOOOO STRONG YOU WILL BE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO SAVOR EVERY MOMENT WITHOUT INTERFERENCE!!! KYLIE KNOWS YOU ARE STRONG ENOUGH TO SEE HER THOUGH THIS PART OF THE JOURNEY BECAUSE YOUR LOVE FOR HER IS IMPENETRABLE!!!! 🙂

You're doing a really good job of ACCEPTANCE OF THE NEW NORMAL!! 🙂 You've been through this enough now to know that the "new normal" is about good days and less good days....it is about more naps....it is about she will eat what she wants and when she wants.....and when you accept that it .akes it soooo much easier to flow through your days effortlessly with SUPERKYLIE! 🙂

Okay, I've rambled making no sense enough!!! We all care so much and SUPERKYLIE and will ccontinue to cheer for her! She has such great humans!! 🙂

Lots and lots of love

Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!

PS. Milk Bone Peanut Butter Sandwiches are a good thing!

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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13 July 2017 - 10:51 am
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OK ok, I do get it now and no I don't think that was rambling! I got it all. I see your point. Try not to dwell on whats not going right and stay positive and encourage the things that ARE going well. Thank you. Its hard to remember that during this type of situation. I'm usually a very optimistic, strong and positive person. This scenario has shaken that in me. Its made me start to grieve her before she is even gone. I don't like that about myself and I need to snap out of it. I am so desperately missing the dog I used to know and love. Watching her like this sometimes just makes me cry. I am not yet used to this new normal just yet. I start to be ok with it then the lack of eating and her weakness & wobbly new gait from the tumour set me back. I get so sad and feel defeated. The healthy Kylie I had for 9yrs before this used to be so lively and strong and such a pig of an eater. But i have to accept that dog I knew is gone. I have to remember that she is doing the best she can. She is hopped up on so many meds & she probably feels like shit. She is eating from the options I am giving her. She is trying. I am just so mad at this cancer. I am so sad it took away my girl. There is very little left that I see from the good old days, it discourages me. Sometimes I just want to lay with her and kiss her and cry. But I know that's not good for either of us. So then I talk to her and get all positive and perky again so her spirits keep up too.  Kevin keeps saying give her a week for her system to get used to everything, the new pain med regime. My patience, although I'm trying, is not great.

Thanks for saying I'm doing a good job. I'm doing everything I can think of during the day to help her, feed her & make her comfortable. Today she was laying in her favourite spot on the sofa, with the heating pad on low and the fan pointed at her on medium and eating peanut butter banana cookies I made her, still warm from the oven that I was hand feeding her. laughing She ate 2 of those. That's all she has eaten today though. Maybe a couple bones. I will keep trying other stuff. I am 'saving' the liver to fry up later for her once I think she has an appetite again. I am just so scared of her getting too skinny & weak. She starts Palladia tomorrow and I have no idea how that is going to react with her.

Sorry to be such a Debbie Downer. I think my mind knows we are nearing the end and my heart is having a really hard time with that.

Virginia







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13 July 2017 - 11:39 am
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I'm so glad you share your feelings here! That takes a lot of the "right stuff" And courage to be so self aware and honest. And you are not alone at all in your feelings! I KNOW you are also helping others who are havi g similar challenges by being so open.heart

Trust us, you hzvd EARNED the right to have ALL those feelings! You've gone tbrough hell and have come out of the other side and still standing! So take that ya' piece of crap disease!!! You're not Devvie Downer at all!! You continue to bounce back!! It's sorta like Kylie....good days and less good days sometimes!

You jave nooooo idea how strong you are! What you are observing with Kylie is NOT easy, not at all!!!

Just "tweaking" the self talk you have with yourself may help you staying "perky" like Kylie! SuperPerkyKylie!

As long as Kylie is by your side, you have not "lost" her....she is just evolving and becoming more of a couch potato than you are used too. She's sort of fast forwarded to being a senior dog with sorta' senior issues...wobbly and weakness, etc.

.MR VOICE OF REASON has a good plan....give things a bit of time to work through her system.....maybe even ask the Vet about reducing the Gaba dose if you feel like the sedation is continuing.

Yes, the definition of quality during this part of the journey. changes as do some of her "personality traits." If there is ever a time you feel quality is no longer there jn even a redefined for and that she can no longer be Kylie, even in a "senior, slowed down form", yiu and Kevin can revisit decision.

STAY CONNECTED!!! Hopefully just knowing we are all here for you and with you can help you get through the rough spots....And cheer with you for every tail wag and tummy rub!

Lots lf hugs a d lpve!

Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!

PS
Did the Onco discuss pepcid or anything similar to go with the Palladia?

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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13 July 2017 - 1:20 pm
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Nope no discussion about pepcid for her. Its very tough today. She sleeps all the time and when she does get up she just drinks and drinks. Or she paces around deliberating on the best way to get comfy. When she IS walking around, she is wobbly and if you even lightly touch her back end, she collapses. She needs assistance with even one step up. She is refusing food more and more. Usually she starts to perk up and be more 'herself' near the end of the Tramadol dose (I remember this because we always question if maybe we should extend it because she's finally her, then she zonks out for 2+hrs after Tramadol) Today she hasn't perked up & she is due for Tram in another hour or so. There is also a small "window" where she will have appetite and actually gobbles food down. Haven't seen that window today, other than the 2 cookies, guess maybe that was it.   I will just keep trying. Its all very discouraging.

I think Kevin wants to hold on. I think we need to discuss "quality of life" because I see very little signs of that more and more. Perhaps its a 'down day' and she will have a better day tomorrow. But truth is, this is a very aggressive cancer and the Oncologist said the tumour is already "quite large." The Palladia "might" shrink or slow the growth down, but it may also not. It will take 5 weeks to find this out. If it doesn't work in that time, he said it won't and we can stop it. Guess where I'm going with that is, does she even have 5 weeks left?? I'm just trying to be real. crying

Well since I was crying as I was typing this, Kevin came in to ask if I was ok or wanted to talk. We did talk. I told him my thoughts on all of the above. He agreed we would not keep her longer than her time but we owe it to her to try the path we chose & paid for. The Vet DID say it would take about a week for hepatic regulation (her liver to get used to the new Gabapentin med) and she would be drowsy & may lose appetite but then all that reverses and she's fine. So we will at least wait to see if that's the case. Basically we will know more in a week so be patient and hang in there! Hopefully it will let her by more herself and she can eat too. He doesn't think she's in pain, he thinks she's tired, weak and drugged up., there is a difference. I guess he's right. I always assume since she's not her usual run around and play, self, that she must be in pain if she is laying there sleeping.

I swear she knew I was upset because she just came to get me & looked more alert lol  We went outside and I filled her kiddie pool and she enjoyed putting her feet in and drinking it! She even walked around the yard a bit. Sometimes I swear she is just bored. She was looking at me & "smiling" at one point and I just hugged her. I told her she better know how much I love her & we're trying to make her feel better. That's all I can do. Then I asked if she was "hungry?" and I got the ears up and head tilt! So we went inside and she didn't want anything I offered lol Liver, hamburger, chicken (all cold mind you) and hamburger helper (heated up) didn't want that either. Made her toast & peanut butter, nope. Though she will lick the peanut butter off the knife. She did have a milk bone but just 1 and no longer interested in my homemade cookies. sigh. Oh well, still drinking alot so that's good. and she's back to napping, snoring actually lol. I bet that wore her out.sleepy

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13 July 2017 - 1:23 pm
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I think Rocky and I are in pretty much the same boat as y'all and Kylie. It's tough and absolutely exhausting, but hang in there. 

One thing I'm curious about is your oncologist saying it takes five weeks to know if the Palladia is working or not. Rocky started it last night, but we're planning to give it two weeks to see if it shrinks (or at least holds at bay) his tumors. Sounds like I may have another questions for my oncologist. 

David and Rocky (and Baxter now too!)

Rocky had his right front leg amputated on Valentine's Day 2017 after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma.

He joined the September Saints on September 3, 2017.

He is the toughest, bravest, sweetest and best friend I'll ever know. 

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13 July 2017 - 1:30 pm
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Hi Rocky's Dad, I'm not sure. Definitely a good question to ask your Oncologist. I would love if we knew in 2 weeks if its working, instead of waiting 5. Let me know what he/she says about that. Is Rocky on similar pain meds too? Tramadol & Gabapentin, or other ones? Its nice to know we're not alone in this. By the way, Rocky's avatar is absolutely adorable! What a sweet face & "smile" heart

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13 July 2017 - 1:46 pm
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I'll definitely ask her when we go back in two weeks. He just started the Palladia last night. He's had a rough week, so he's back on Tramadol now too. He was on it, Deramaxx and an antibiotic after his surgery in February.

Sorry you all are having to go through this too. 

David and Rocky (and Baxter now too!)

Rocky had his right front leg amputated on Valentine's Day 2017 after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma.

He joined the September Saints on September 3, 2017.

He is the toughest, bravest, sweetest and best friend I'll ever know. 

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13 July 2017 - 3:54 pm
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Sending loving thoughts your way.  The medication can be thought to navigate through.  Hang in there

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13 July 2017 - 6:37 pm
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Kylie has been on Tramadol for a couple weeks now, we were playing with the dose from every 12hrs to every 8hr, which is where she remains. She started Gabapentin just on Monday night. Then Palladia tomorrow. I'm sorry Rocky is having such a rough go already and his surgery was just in February, that doesn't seem so long ago!

Thanks Brenda, we are still figuring it all out and what works best. I feel like we're starting to get in a groove here now.

Kylie perked up this afternoon and also began taking some food. My mother in law showed up with some different milk bones which she always gobbles up so that was good. Then when she was out, we handed her some of ours (which she had just refused from my husband haha) and she ate those too. Probably had about 10 small sized milk bones. They're only 18 calories each but its better than nothing. I just fried up some liver for her, its cooling now, we'll see how that goes. Finger crossed!

I'm slowly learning to live in the moment and make the most of each day and not dwell/think/worry about what lays ahead in the coming days/weeks.

Where ever my car goes


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13 July 2017 - 7:57 pm
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Hi everyone, 

First off, my experience with dogs is nil and my medical knowledge is even less.  But while researching phantom limb pain for cats, I stumbled across a site which said that they had recently found that Tramadol was not as effective as they thought in some dogs due to the absence of certain receptors.  I do not pretend to have a clue what that really means, know if the site is reputable, nor am I sure this is the right place to bring it up, but ... I figured I would at least mention it and provide the link as if correct it might be significant.

http://www.best.....ation-101/

http://todaysve.....questions/

My heart goes out to all those wrestling with issues and if I can help, even if only to be a venting source, please do not hesitate to ask.

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