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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All of your posts have been so helpful and so appreciated - thank you. We are still waiting for the biopsy results and yesterday Izzy's leg looked swollen to me and the lump much larger. We think the biopsy wound site is infected (she was licking it a lot) so our regular vet prescribed an antibiotic for her. I think it looks smaller, but could also be wishful thinking. She still seems to be doing ok....running, playing, eating, begging for treats.....although I do see her taking weight off the leg at times. So as long as she still seems to be pain-free, I can keep going until tough decisions have to be made.
Betsy, how much time did you have with Eddy after the amputation and how old was he when he had the surgery?
Awww more treats for that sweet Izzy, spoil that pretty pup rotten!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Geez....just catching up on your ppsts! Sorry you have to be here but, as you've already seen, there is no better place to be under the circumstances!
I see that Eddy's mom is offline right now, but I think I can answr some questions. First of all, Eddy is feeling good, has had a rough time with some of his chemo [not Carboplatin,but Doxocubin].
Eddy is a seven yr. sweet Golden who had his leg amputated in first week of August. Mets were discovered in mid Nov. And overal is feeling lretty darn good and enjoying all the loving and spoiling that is being bestowed on him!!
My "fluffy" Bull Mastiff Happy Hannah had her leg amputated Feb. 2013. It was just myself trying to make the decision and before I joined this site. I felt like I was stuck in a nightmare and could not stop crying! I went from absolutely not...to okay...to not...many t i mes over. When it became apparent the pain was starting to worsen quick l y [osteosarcoma] and a "decison" must be made to amoutate or else I would not have her with me i n a matter of weeks...if that.
First three weeks....thought I'd made a HORRIBLE decision! Recovery was rought! Then her sparkle started coming back bigger and brighter than before!!! BEST DECISION EVER! Happy Hannah and I had THE most gloriously one year and two months I could ever have imagined possible! We consider ourselves so fortunate for our time together and for this community!
Remember,Izzy isn't worrying about a thing...not tomorrow...not statistics...not this piece of crap disease....Izzy is loving in the moment...in the now....and THAT, along with QUALITY, is what this whole journey is about!!!
And yeah, the biopsy can be very painful and angry looking. Sounds like overall though Izzy is feeling pretty darn good! Izzy stil l has a zest for life and appears ready for battle if it comes to that! You are a wonderful advocate for her!
Stay connected...you are not alone...we all understand this journey and the difficult decisions like no others can even begin to understand. You're doing your research...you'll make a decision out of love and that wil l be the right decision!
Oh...and stock up on chocolate...really load up...it helps!!!
Sending hugs to all!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle 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!
I never got a chance to try K9 immunity with my tri-pug Maggie, but Mag's little sister, quad-pug Tani takes it. Tani also has mast cell cancer (the cancer that led to Mag's amp), she has had it for almost 8 years. I don't know if the K9 Immunity Plus I give her has helped with her cancer, but it definitely gives her more energy and endurance. We took her off of it for a bit as we experimented with some herbs and I noticed an almost immediate decline.
Would I have done the surgery if there was mets? Well, I always told myself that I would not have done the surgery if the cancer was in her lymph nodes, liver or spleen, because that is where mast cell tends to go and if it is in those places time is generally short. All of her pre-surgery tests came back clean so we went ahead. Tests after the surgery showed the cancer in her lymph system- she was given 6 to 9 months with chemo. Maggie lived almost 4 years after her surgery and did not pass from the mast cell cancer. So... if I had known it was in her lymph system I would probably not done the surgery and most probably she would not have lived nearly as long. So in hindsight I am glad I went ahead- I realized that I had given her a chance and it worked out for us.
I think it would depend also on the type of cancer and where the mets are found. Also if the tumor is causing pain and if there is a chance that the tumor could ulcerate.
Keep a close eye on Eddy, chances are that if he is favoring the leg just a little that there is more pain than you realize. I'm sure you know him well. Maggie was quite a drama queen so I am certain the tumor in her knee was not causing her pain, no limping or yelping, no favoring, no carrying. But another of my quad pugs, Obie, is very stoic. I did not realize he was favoring a bad knee for months, until I noticed the muscle mass loss in his hip. He never limped, or yelped, but he had a badly luxating patella and a torn CCL.
Still hoping for the best possible news from your vet.
Karen and Spirit Maggie
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
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