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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Goah...Pam said it all so well...DITTO!
There are NO mistakes when the decision is made out of love!! We second guess, we beat ourselves up, that's what we humans do. If you are loke most kf us, you would even beat yourself up even more if you didn't try!!!
Tn days is still early in recovery...especially for older fellas! I was actually tapering my Happy Hannah off her pain meds going into the two week mark, but had to put her back on a low dose for the third week. Every dog is different...every recovery is different. This IS major surgery! Heck, humans woukd be in the hospital for weeks and with a morphine drip!
Couple of wuestions. How's his water intake? His food intake? Have you been able to check for fever? How are his gums? Peeing and pooping okay? Sometimes dogs have ro go back in for fluids ro help perk them up. What does your vet say? Perhaps double check for infection or dehydration just for reassurance
Two or three days after surgery he still had hospital meds in him. They start wearing off at rhat point and then the challenge comes trying to balance pain meds. I second guessed myself for the first two weeks as my Happy Hannah just wasn't "bouncing back". Ten hours in between pain meds may be too much time in between. Sometimes dogs need smaller doses every sis ro eight hours.
The "camatose" could be from fear of movement causing pain, or merely stil l trying to figure out how to navigate on three legs. Perhaps a really good massage and gentle stretching before you get him up could hell greatly!!!!
Anyway, jist throwing some things out there. One more suggestion, sometimes at this point in the recovery they just need some different stimulation...some upbeat excited energy. Perhaps some good friend could come by and bring him some chicken or a special gooey goody!
Stay connected. Recovery is no picnic. We understand like no others can. It's really hard for others to understand. REMEMBER...you did this FOR Rudy! You took away the bonenpain which would have only gotten unbearable in a very short time! You gave Rudy a chance and everything about his attitude told you he wanted that chance!
Please keep us updated when you can. It's soooo hard to be patient right now.
Sending lots and lots of hugs and love!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle
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!
My little pug Maggie lost her left rear leg to a mast cell tumor when she was 7.5. It was 6 WEEKS before she acted anywhere close to normal. I was sure each day of those 6 weeks I had made a huge mistake. Maggie was not adaptable to change, and it turned out she just needed more time than most to get used to her new normal.
A few thoughts:
We have seen often here that the older pups take longer to adapt. 10 days post-op is pretty early.
Just because Rudy is at the end or beginning of f his dosing schedule doesn't mean there aren't meds still in his system. What meds is Rudy on? I gave Maggie a half dose of tramadol once (she could have a full dose every 8 hours) and she was awake and agitated for 12 hours. Dogs react differently to pain meds- some get quite, Maggie saw pink elephants.
Your attitude around Rudy is really important. I made that mistake with Maggie- I was down because she was down, and she feed off me being down.... It is hard to be optimistic when our pups aren't themselves- but they need us to be strong pack leaders and show them things are normal.
Can you have someone come visit Rudy? Maggie always perked up when my dad came over.
Keep your vet informed of how Rudy is doing. Maybe changing pain meds would help.
Hang in there and don't doubt yourself. You are doing your best for Rudy.
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
Just checking in for an update . . .???
Harmony became a Tripawd on 10/21/14 (MCT). She left us way too soon on 11/1/14.
"We miss you so much; our love, our heart, our Harmony."
- Pam, Ron and Melody, Meesha, Doublestuff and Mariah Carey
We took Rudy to the vet on Friday and the doctor said it seems like Rudy hurt his back. He must of slipped or tweaked his back either hopping around or maybe when we were gone? Not sure. He is an old dog and has arthritis, so that just adds to everything. The vet gave him some meds to take, along with fluids and Rudy was great over the weekend! Back to normal....however, he is back to the same again. Doesn't want to move; trembling....I am still giving him his meds, but ugh....not sure. The vet is supposed to call me so we will see. Maybe there is more to it that meets the eye?
I was thinking about you today, too. Thanks for the update so we can keep up with your brave old fella.
Murphy is definitely not as old as Rudy, but he has had some back problems over the last two years. Physical therapy, acupuncture and laser therapy worked wonders along with anti-inflammatory drugs and an occasional pain killer when he was really hurting. Core muscle building exercises worked once he was back on his feet. These guys sure to keep us on our toes!
Kathi and Murohy
Murphy is a five year old Lab/Chessie cross. He was hit by a car on 10/29/12 and became a Tripawd on 11/24/12. On 2/5/13, he had a total hip replacement on his remaining back leg. He has absolutely no idea that he has only three legs!
UPDATE: Murphy lived his life to the fullest, right up until an aggressive bone lesion took him across the Rainbow Bridge on April 9, 2015 and he gained his membership in the April Angels. Run free, my love. You deserve it!
Okay, y o u saw some good improvement after fluids and meds...that's really good news!!! Back tweaks can happen so easily when they are first recovering, adjusting muscles, joints, etc. It sounds like Rudy felt really good for sooooo early in recovery and then, tweaked something...then felt better again...and now may have even over done it again! Very possible.
I KNOW it's hard to be patient during recovery. You are exhausted...emotionally and physically...worried and fearful. Try and focus on the improvement is has shown a d mnow that he will continue to get better! He is starting to feel better, even if it's just in spurts right now.
Sending you hugs!
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!
Well, we had to run to the Vet ER on Monday night. I knew Rudy was still "off". His wound was leaking, no literally pouring, out puss and blood. There was so much of it! At first I thought it was bloody urine! He couldn't stand up. He was majorly stressed. He had an abscess. The vet at the ER gave me her plan of action, which was roughly 1800!! She hinted toward putting him down because he was in pain, which I knew. I ended up taking him home that night after spending five hours at the ER. And we took him to his local vet the next morning. They drained the abscess and left tubes in for the drainage to continue. They also sent out a culture to the lab. But I think there is more going on still. He hasn't been able to stand up since Monday. His back leg is not working right. He has to pee on himself because he cannot stand up. I am taking him in once again this morning to see what is going on. If it ends up he has lost mobility or coordination/control of his other back leg, I have no choice but to put him down.
I feel so awful about the situation. I feel we have made him lose all his dignity. He was such a playful, energetic, crazy dog and I want to remember him like that. Not like this....completely immobile, depressed, not eating/drinking. Every day I ask myself why I chose to do this and pray it will get better. However, it has been one obstacle after another.
Well we took Rudy to the vet. He has a blood clot in his other back leg now. That is why he is unable to move it. We have him on some aspirin and doing a little bit of massage therapy. I am hoping it will break apart. He is trying so so hard to stand up. It hurts to watch him! The vet cannot use heparin because he has two tubes in his surgery area because of the abscess. I am not sure what else could happen now!
Well...I'm going with nothing else BAD can happen, okay? Let's stick with that!!!
Goodness gracious, Rudy has certainly had "challenges"! HOWEVER, you are uncovering the causes with great determination, diligence and love for Rudy!
Abscesses are nasty and not all that uncommon. But you saw the signs and you are getting that taken care of. It WILL clear up...sometimes slowly...but surely!
And what a relief to discover the cause of his pain in his leg. Sure, sorry it's happening but now you know the cause and you can treat it!!
It's so hard when you have these "extra" challenges in addition to the surgery recovery, so try and stay positive. And please, please, please, do not waste one second of your time together with Rudy beating yourself up! We say around here that everyday sfter surgery is a bonus day so do NOT waste it!! Your Rudy showed you before the surgery he was NOT ready to "go". Had you not given him this chance, you would have regretted that decision. You ARE giving him a chance and you and Rudy ARE addressing every hurdle thrown his way!
Hang in there and hang onto us! We understand like no others can. Rudy is a fighter and clearly a very strong fella'! STAY IN THE MOMENT. STAY POSITIVE AND CO FIDENT FOR RUDY! AND LOVE AND SPOIL LIKE CRAZY!!! I bet he's enjoying all the massaging. That's a great time to practice a calm and peaceful energy a d to visualize healing.
We are all cheering for you! On top of everything else, it's still early in recovery! You two are an incredible team.
Sending you lots of hugs and love!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle
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!
Ohhhhh man I'm just now catching up and I am so very sorry about all of the struggles. I know you feel so awful, everyone here can relate, but as Sally said, stay pawsitive, be present with Rudy, and know that he is getting GREAT care that will help him beat these obstacles. It's not at all unusual for members to deal with these tough situations and as difficult as it is to picture a day when things will get better, it can happen. This is just one of those times when you have to take things day by day, hour by hour, and stay as strong as possible so Rudy knows that you believe he will be better.
Meanwhile, remember you can help him stand with the aid of a belly sling. Use a canvas grocery bag like this to help him.
We are thinking of your boy and you and sending all our love for a fast recovery from this setback. I know it's so hard, I wish we could do more. If you want to chat come to the chat room this evening OK? You'll usually find folks in there after work hours.
{{{{hugs}}}}
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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