Welcome and good luck on friday. You will find a lot of wonderful people here who will not only offer their advice and experiences but open their hearts to you and your boy. I know it's very hard playing the waiting game but we are all one big family here and will be here for you anytime.

Best wishes and sending lots of good juju your way

Corey and Ryder

Welcome to you and Winston. I'm sorry you had to find us here, but you won't be sorry you did.

It's true that amp is not considered as being a "treatment" for the cancer – but it will remove the pain. We have had other big dogs here who do very well and since your boy is not overweight, he should do okay too.

I know how hard it is when you first get the diagnosis. Our pup was also young (only 15 months). We had another 15 months with her and it was a wonderful amazing time. I know it's hard to see beyond the bad news right now, but there can still be good times ahead with Winston.

Hang in there. We're here if you need answers to questions or just need some support!
Jackie, Angel Abby's mom

Hi Amanda,

Welcome to the site.  Sorry to hear about Winston.  I can give you some insight to giant breed tripawds.  My Irish Wolfhound, Fergus, was 5 years old and 130 pounds prior to his rear leg amputation.  His recovery did take longer then the average on this site.  I think it was because of the pressure of that much weight and strength on the incision.  But, he eventually was all healed and doing well as a tripawd.  Unfortunately, he developed a second OSA tumor in a front leg and we had to say goodbye (which is very rare).

I think the main differences for a giant breed is the strength of the remaining limbs and the difficulty of helping them immediately post amp.  You should be confident his remaining legs can handle the stress.  Also, as mentioned above, you will need some help in the beginning.  You can't just pick up a giant breed and put him in the car or carry him outside.  I was very frustrated on how to help Fergus in the beginning, but we worked it out quickly.  I used a beach towel as a sling to help him the first few days (the cloth grocery bag was not large enough) and I constructed a ramp off of our back deck to help him get outside.

Once you make a decision regarding Winston, please use this site for guidance and support.  We can try to guide you through the process of being a tripawd mom.  Although we lost Fergus quickly, he was happy as a tripawd.

Good luck and I'm thinking positive thoughts for you and Winston,

Tara & Spirit Fergus

Welcome Amanda and Winston,

Sorry to read about Winston, but he is 5 yrs young. Is you vet not comfortable doing amps? (Mine admits that he would rather not) Is there another vet you can get a 2nd opinion from? Whatever your decision, we are all here for you!