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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On Monday my 10.5 year old mixed breed 60lb shorthair whatever (got as 3mo old rescue from when I lived in the ATL) had an x-ray from my regular vet showing pretty clear signs of osteosarcoma in left foreleg above ankle. She had been on and off mildly lame for a couple months, but never really was able with my vet to pin down to which leg and where the pain was. Finally noticed a mild swelling on left front last week and brought her back to my vet for exam- 11/21. Could even be this was unrelated to her earlier lameness or was new- she has had some mild arthritis here and there past two years.
I can't say how sick I feel that this is happening. She is so active and health still. She is my wife and I first baby.
Got an appointment with a veterinary oncology specialist nearby in Malvern PA on 11/23, who confirmed the diagnosis from radiography sent by my primary vet. Took additional films, ran more tests and concluded:
a) Yeah, it's pretty much most likely bone cancer and pretty significant lysis and bone weakening. Did not recommend biopsy. She was surprised her lameness was as mild as it was- said most people coming in had much worse. Not sure if this means we caught quickly or if my baby just has higher pain tolerance.
b) Radiation treatment as alternative to amputation (SRS) not an option- too much bone loss already and the radiation would probably result in fracture soon.
c) BUT... no sign of metathesis from chest x-ray series, and there is one blood marker they looked at as being somewhat predictive that was very good (cant remember specifics)
d) Also- confirmed Nellie is extremely fit, otherwise in perfect healthy, perfect bloodwork, and a great candidate for amputation with followup Chemo (6 rounds carboplatin I think, pretty standard I'm gathering)
So I am pretty much just trying to keep sane while my wife and I host family for thanksgiving. We have a surgical consult for Friday 11/25 and are terrified. On one had we want to give Nellie a chance, but on the other... we're just sick at cutting off a whole leg especially when she doesn't seem to be in much pain yet.
There are other details I can add in later I guess but thats our story. Options seem to be either take off the leg and get a shot at another 12 months or so with her (or maybe more, and of course maybe less) or put her down once the leg pain gets to bad for meds- which might be 1-2 months I'm gathering.
Will post more once I get the surgical consult. Biggest things going through our minds now is (1) Why us?!?! and (2) What do we do now and how?
I've grazed through much of the online guides and FAQs. Appreciate them. The oncology vet was very much trying to encourage us that the dogs are less bothered by being on 3 legs than we are at seeing them that way... but it still doesn't quiet the sickening ball in my gut about this. And about doing this to my baby.
So there's the gut dump. An initial practical question (there will be more later I'm sure):
1) How do you decide where to locate your dog post surgery once you come home? We have a couple choices, and would move a mattress there to be with her at night (she is used to sleeping with us in bed). We live in a 60's split with lots of short flights of stairs and hardwoods everywhere. How quickly can an amputee navigate them with help? I already built a ramp up to her favorite lying down spot on a ledge for our front bay windows (great view of road, trees, squirrels, and occasional groundhog)- would be a 18 inch leap up and down without the ramp. She made that leap constantly for years, but put ramp in today to help keep the impact off her front legs.
Is it better for the new amputee to be with people on the main floor (open floor plan with kitchen, livingroom, and dining room all together- we can keep an eye on here easily as we do our thing) and in their favorite spots where they like to normally hang out, but with having to navigate a few (3) stairs to get outside, or is it better to confine to our carpeted finished daylight basement that is kind of dark and mostly used for storage- and she'd really not have contact with us unless we stayed down there. Would be kind of like being in isolated cave... but no steps to go outside and go potty.
Thanks, I'm sure much more to come.
Welcome to you and Nellie, your future posts will not have to wait for approval.
I'm sorry you are dealing with cancer and possible amputation, it is all overwhelming.
I understand your feelings about amputation. When I took my pug Maggie to the vet to look at a lump in her knee I was prepared for the vet to say 'cancer' (she had a tumor removed from her side 6 months earlier) but I was stunned and devastated when she said 'amputation'. In fact I don't think I heard another word she said that day. Mag had mast cell cancer and the tumor was not causing her pain, it was impossible at first to understand how amputation could be the solution to her cancer.
Even though Nellie does not seem to be outwardly in pain remember that dogs are really good at hiding their pain- a left over from life in the wild where if you showed weakness you didn't last long. And as drastic as amputation seems it is the only way to get and keep your girl out of pain. It's great that the vet thinks she is a good candidate and she sounds like she is still full of life.
Maggie was a stubborn pug and set in her ways, she hated changes to her routine. She took longer than most to get used to her new normal. But she did and hopped happily through life for almost 4 years, her prognosis was 6 to 9 months.
I would keep things as normal as possible. With a sling you should be able to help her navigate the 3 stairs. The vet might give you a sling or you can make one out of a cloth shopping bag- rip the side seams out and the handles are built in. You should make her a small recovery area with gates or x-pens. Slippery floors need to be covered with throw rugs or yoga mats. Keep her away from stairs (unsupervised) and furniture, you don't want her jumping up or down.
Remember that the 'sickening ball in your gut' belongs to you (and maybe your wife). Dogs are remarkably resilient. After recovery they just want to chase a ball, watch out the window, have a full belly and maybe a lap (pugs!). They don't worry about how they look or that things are different, they live in the moment. If the moment is good then they are happy.
Keep us posted on your consult.
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
Yep, dogs are really great at hiding their pain - Murphy starting limping in the middle of October 2013, had x-rays on Halloween that we were told were fine, he would walk on his leg as long as he was on pain meds ... by Thanksgiving he finished his meds & was limping again, so got a refill on his meds ... in January once again, but worse, he would yelp and refused to eat or go outside, so we got a referral to the orthopedic specialist, which of course took weeks to get in to. In February 2014, I had the floor drop out from under me when the specialist told me that it could be cancer. What?!? I thought for sure that it had to be a fracture that had been missed in the original x-rays. After all, Murphy would walk & even run as long as he was taking pain medications....if it was cancer he should have been in so much more pain, right? But I saw the x-rays, and I saw how the tumor was eating away at the bone. And Murphy was hiding that pain with the help of medication.
Karen already gave you some really great advice. We live in a ranch-style house, and we already had carpeting, so that part was easy for us. But you'll want runners, rugs or yoga mats on your floors. You can eventually get the Webmaster Ruffwear harness found on the home page under gear. It has a handle on the top which is a great help for getting in & out of the car. Murphy weighs about 50lbs and I can lift him 1 handed with this harness. We didn't keep him separated from our other dogs, he mostly laid in the family room, which is the room closest to the door outside.
Murphy spent 1 night at the hospital after surgery, some come home the same day - that's harder. I was shocked that he hopped all the way out to the car by himself. I think he just wanted to get home! lol Make sure to discuss what pain medications they'll give Nellie. Murphy came home on Tramadol, Rimadyl & Gabapentin .. some come home with a Fentanyl patch & some with antibiotics. But, some don't come home with enough medications. Make sure to space them out - don't give everything at the same time - if you give her something every couple of hours, then she will have more adequate pain control.
Donna
Donna, Glenn & Murphy
Murphy had his right front leg amputated due to histiocytic sarcoma at 7 years old. He survived 4 years, 2 months & 1 week, only to be taken by hemangiosarcoma at 11 1/2 years 6/12/17
Read about Murphy's Life on Three Legs
I am so sorry you have this tough news to digest and difficult decisions to make, but glad you have found this place. The support and knowledge here are invaluable.
Others have said and I will echo, the pain is likely greater than you know and even if it isn't so bad, it is going to get worse; my dog was far more stoic than I could have imagined. Amputation generally is the most effective way to greatly reduce and even eliminate pain.
I lost my boy one month ago to recurrence of his cancer (soft tissue sarcoma), but we had nearly 6 months where the pain no longer dominated his life and he had a wonderful, wonderful summer. He was 11.5 at the time of amputation and he adapted quickly - on a fairly epic scale in fact; Pofi did spend two nights in the hospital (surgery was the very last on that day), but even though I was fully prepared to spend the night downstairs with him, he insisted on going to our bedroom on the 2nd floor the night he came home. The only, ONLY regret is his cancer wasn't detected earlier so we would have had better long term prognosis.
This forum topic has videos of many dogs and cats before and after surgery - Pofi's are on page 5: Before and After Surgery.
Very, very best thoughts for your Nellie.
Lisa, Minneapolis
On October 27, 2016, nearly 6 months after amputation, and 18 months since his cancer likely started, we lost Pofi to a recurrence of Soft Tissue Sarcoma in his spine quite suddenly. His canine sister also succumbed to cancer on March 1, 2019 - we lavished her with our love in the interim, but life was never quite the same without her only real canine friend. Cliff kitty had to leave us, too, suddenly, in August 2019. Lucia kitty grieved all these losses, but helped us welcome two new Lurchers into our home and our lives, Shae and Barley.
You've gotten some great advice here already so just wanted to say welcome and so sorry you find yourself here. Our big 110# GS did really well after surgery. Dogs are so amazingly resilient. They just seem glad their pain from osteo is gone and they get back to living life full on really quickly. It's quite amazing to watch as they figure out their new normal. For us the decision to amputate came down to could we live with ourselves if we didn't try? We weren't ready to say goodby to our happy boy so we proceeded. Max didn't get as long as many here do but we still wouldn't have changed anything we did. We got some really great pain free times after amp. Nellie actually has her age going for her. It seems the younger the pup is the faster it spreads. Much like humans I guess. Our Max was 6 1/2 so pretty young. This journey taught me so much. It taught me how to take and love life each and every day and not to worry about what tomorrow will bring lest I lose the happiness of each today. We call that living like dog. Truly dogs know how to live life the best way possible. They never worry about tomorrow's they just live each day fully. Please keep us posted on your sweet Nellie. You are among friends who know what you are feeling now. We get it! Hugs to Nellie and your family.
We just came home with our 13-year-old lab yesterday. She had a two-night stay after a rear-leg amputation. When I tell everyone she's 13, they give me shocked responses. And, I still don't know if we did the right thing. But, before her injury/diagnosis Dolly had yet to act her elderly age, and aside from arthritis, her bloodwork is equivalent to a middle-aged dog. We had a rough few months beginning with a partial ACL tear in August and in the same knee where the tumor was found less than a month ago. We worked so hard to rehab the ACL, and I desperately wanted her to get better. Then, the rug came out from under us during a routine acupuncture treatment right after Halloween when our vet discovered the cancer through an xray. Still, we gave her gobs of pain meds while we worked through our appointments and decisions. During this time, she still followed us around the house, ate well, refused to potty anywhere but her spot in the yard which required her to navigate four fairly awkward steps down our deck. So, we felt like she wasn't ready to give up.
We've been up and down since. We've gotten mixed reviews from the oncologists and vets we talked to, but our vet was confident she would survive on three legs. Now that she's home, I'm grateful she had two nights in 24-hour care. My husband is having a difficult time seeing her in the pain she's in three/four days out and I'm right there with him. I feel like I needed a little more preparation, and I'm finding it here on these forums. On the phone, the surgical tech and doctors told me she was doing well, but that's relative to having her leg amputated. There's been some whining and few really heart-piercing yelps, but the last few hours have been restful. I think it's because I followed the advice here to space out her pain meds more. My vet also recommended that we give her trazodone if she's restless.
I don't think we ever really came to terms with our decision to amputate, but I went through the steps to get there and it just seemed to fall into place. Thanks for sharing your story. You are not alone!
Hi and welcome. I am so sorry you're in this situation, lots of us have been there and can relate. I believe I know the clinic you're working with, is it Hope Veterinary Specialists? Or Mid-Atlantic Vet Specialists? Either way, both are great places. I hope that helps you feel better.
Meanwhile, I'll echo what Karen suggested: Keep things as normal as possible. Wherever your dog has always seemed happiest is the place to make a good, confined recovery space. Although many people sleep on the floor with their dogs for a while, we don't recommend it as vets have told us that this just confuses the pup because it's not normal. I know how tempting it is though. Just do what feels right for your pack, and you can't go wrong.
If your stairs are slick, you'll want your pup to use those supervised and with caution. Most dogs are getting around on their own after a couple of weeks, but if you have slick stairs, you'll want to make sure they get traction added to them.
Let us know how the vet consult went OK? And remember, you're not doing this to her, you're doing it for her to help get rid of that awful pain.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thanks all for the good wishes. Consult for surgery specialist went well, and we scheduled for next Thursday (Dec 1st). Surgeon had done a lot of amputations and was great about answering all our questions. Interestingly her main concern was that Nellie would be more active too quickly on 3-legs and was recommending crating her as much as possible until sutures come out. Her thought was that it is more likely that Nellie would be trying to run around and jump on furniture before the sutures heal than she'd be unable to cope with walking on 3 legs. She (the surgeon) also talked about her own dog who also had a front leg amputation around same age as Nellie- first sign of problems for her was a fracture after a week of lameness, which turned out to also be cancer. Her pup lasted another 2 years. Good to know the person doing the work has been through the same thing.
Plan will be for us move down to main floor (not basement) for sleeping and during day confine her to her favorite spot on the bay window shelf as much as possible, and have crate as backup. We'll move down there because if we don't, and she's not crated on main floor all night alone (total change in routine and likely stressful) she will probably try to come upstairs to be with us as is currently normal. We'll see what works to keep her calm as we go through this.
Jerry- yes procedure will be at Hope VC, she'll be there two nights under close observation before she comes home. Seems like a great place. Our regular vet recommended VRC or Hope and Hope had a larger staff and an oncologist appointment 2 days after initial x-ray so we went there. No complaints so far.
Still scared as hell about this and know it's not going to be easy, but can't really stomach not giving her the chance to have more time when everything else is basically normal. Even if it's just another 6 months of good quality of live I owe it to her. Will have lots more to post I'm sure as time goes by, and we approach 'the day'.
love hope and prayers for your journey.
How I always explained it.. you are giving your girl the "tools" to fight, the chance to live, the rest will be up to her and God!!
Angel Neka
7/4/2003-4/5/2016
2.5yr 3x cancer warrior survivor
Hello, and welcome to the family....my Dobe, Nitro, had his right front leg amputated 2 1/2 yrs ago at the age of 8 1/2 due to osteosaroma. He is still with us, and lovin' life on 3 legs. We also were stunned to hear the diagnosis, but weren't ready to say good bye to our active, athletic dog. His recovery was a little ruff at first, others seem to sail through recovery - every dog is different.
We also highly recommend the Ruffwear harness by webmaster. Our bed is pretty high (dogs also sleep with us) so we put the mattress on the floor - where it still is today. Runners cover our tile floors, the futon mattress is on the floor in the living room - sort of like a large dog bed.....my house is definetly set up for his comfort and convenience!
This journey can be scary, but fear not - WE ARE HERE FOR YOU! Dogs are incredibly resilient, and Nellie will most likely deal with this far better than you. We like to say here at Tripawds "Be More Dog "....live in the moment - Nellie will.
The Live Chat is a great place to interact with others who've been exactly where you are now, and have felt exactly like you do now. Also, the Helpline is there to talk to a live body. Good luck, lean on us....we're family now.
Paula and Nitro
Nitro 11 1/2 yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms. Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"
"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior
You've gotten GREAT advice, so DITTO everyone!
We all understand how difficult getting to this point is! You are emotionally and physically exhausted! Yoir stress level is off the charts! You are uncertain a dd fearful!
And Nellie isn't worried about a thing!! So take her lead and Be More Dog !! She isn't worried about days on a calendar a d isn't worried about any ole' diagnosis! Nellie certainly does NOT have a timeframe stamped anywhere on her butt!!
Yes, like any sjrgery, it has risk. But we are put into a position with a dog like Nellie thst we must TRY!
We are right here with you and Nellie the whole way! Recovery is no picnic so lean on us and let us know how we can help!!
Now go take some pictures and let us see this sweet girl!!
Hugs ro all!
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!
Oh awesome, I'm so happy to hear you had a good consult with the oncologist. Who is the surgeon? I'd love to interview her for Tripawd Talk Radio . It's got to be so comforting to know she went through the same situation. And I would agree, overactivity immediately after surgery is the bigger issue for many dogs.
Hope is an awesome facility. I know we have other Tripawds members in the area. Maybe when Nellie is better you can have a little Tripawds gathering?!
Keep us posted and holler if you have any questions OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Sounds like you have a great surgeon and are on the right track. The first 2 weeks will be intense, but most dogs perk up a lot after the staples are removed, about day 10. Remember that dogs do not think of themselves as disabled. Nellie will not sit around wondering what happened to her leg. Once she recovers, she will just figure out how to do whatever she wants to do. My Otis took shorter walks, but he could chase cats and squirrels, get up on the sofa, do the stairs to our second story, steal food off the kitchen counter tops, and all his other normal dog stuff. And we had great time together post-amputation! I don't regret it for a minute.
We are also big fans of the Ruffwear WebmasterPlus harness - you can see it in the gear blog.
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.
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