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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My 15 year old terrier was hit last Monday (12/12) and on Wednesday her front left leg was amputated. She came home on Friday. Yesterday I had to take her back to the vet because she had severe infection in the amputation site. Some antibiotics and clean up and it looks much better. She is trying so hard! I see improvements everyday. She now wiggles off her mat, and tries to squat to potty. She has not had a bowel movement, but the vet is not concerned because she did while hospitalized. She tries desperately to get up. She has made little to no progress. Slings do not help. She just sits back down. I know her age and already arthritic bones do not help progress, but 8 days of no movement has me worried. She is very stiff. I exercise her legs daily. She barked for the first time yesterday. She gets frustrated too. Her spirit is good though! Wags her tail often and is so excited for company. Any advice? I'm feeling very defeated. And it breaks me to see her like this!
Hello and welcome, your future posts will not have to wait for approval.
I'm sorry to hear about Gracie's accident- is that her name?
How is the traction around where she is trying to get up? What meds is she on and is she showing any signs of being in pain? Is she able to pee? If you help her up is she able to stand at all? Was there any other injuries from being hit by the car? Is she eating?
Sorry for all the questions but those are the things that come to mind when you say she isn't moving. The older pups here do seem to take a little more time to heal, and the infection probably really set her back. Most pups get back to something close to normal in 2 or 3 weeks, Gracie is still early in the recovery phase.
It's good that she likes company!
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
Hi, Graciemama:
Posting this here in case you did not see my comment in chat - the gear blog is great for helping figure out which harness might be right.
Glad we were able to talk.
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.
First of all, thank you. I've been reading on the site since we first came home and it has been a wealth of information that has eased my heart and mind many times. I've already gotten some good advice over in the chat area as well.
Yes her name is Emma Grace, Gracie for short. I currently have her in my basement area, with a large area rug and concrete per the vet's advice. He said tile and hard wood floors were a bad idea. She prefers the concrete...but often wiggles to the rug to rest. I think her pain is improving every day. She is currently taking 50 mg of tramadol and 25 mg of carprofen 2 times per day. She is peeing a lot but only one time a day. I honestly think she is trying to not make a mess! She is not able to stand at all, not with my help or a sling. There were some minor injuries other than the fracture. Internal bleeding was minimal, bruised lungs and they shaved all her hair and she had lots of visible bruising on her skin. Gracie is deaf- we learned this several years ago, but she still reacts, probably to my crazy facial expressions when I talk to her! She is eating like a pro- lots of home cooked goodies, rice and chicken and if you put dog food in front of her she actually takes her right front leg and pushes it away. I have noticed that she drinks excessively. She won't stop drinking until I take it from her. Not sure what that is about.
I will do what ever it takes to get my Gracie girl up again!
Thank you Hester! As soon as these pesky staples come out and I can get a good girth measurement then I will order this! Glad you were online! I was having a really bad night!
Gracie is probably still in pain. I wonder if adding some Gabapentin to her medication regimen would help? By now she should be walking, at least to go outside & go potty. Having been hit by a car, I would imagine that her whole body was achy. Poor thing! It's good that you're exercising her legs for her.
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
Thank you Donna. Hester had suggested Gabapentin as well. She goes back to the vet Thursday and I will talk to him then about adding this. Max looks like my Gracie. The resemblence is uncanny! Very cute pack!
I absolutely agree on the harness! We used the Ruffwear Webmaster Plus, but on a smaller dog there might be better options. The Gear blog is a great place to go. It is a unusual for her not to be up more by day 8, but not unheard of. Older dogs sometimes take more time. And the accident and her deafness put other issues in play (just think of how vulnerable she must feel). For many dogs, you start to see improvement once the staples come out, about day 10 but could be longer for Gracie due to the infection. I also stronger recommend putting something down for traction , even on the concrete. Your can buy attractive indoor/outdoor area rugs and runners, industrial door mats (Home Depot carries them) or even a path of yoga mats. And very normal that she is refusing her kibble - not the first tripawd to do so in favor of home cooked yummies. Give her a week or so and then start doing kibble mix ins. Mention the drinking to the vet however, so he or she can rule out something accident related.
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.
Thank you! I have a large area rug down for her. About 80% of the floor is covered, but she actually prefers to scoot over to the concrete. Since the amputation she frequently rolled to the amputation site and not been able to get off it without help. This morning, she was laying on it and when she saw me, she twisted around and got on her other side! So that is definitely an improvement. We are 7 days post-op today, 9 days since the accident. I took her outside to potty, but no luck. She kind of freaks out. As soon as we came back in I laid her on the rug, she scooted her tail off of it and peed on the concrete. She is all cleaned up now, had her medicine and a small breakfast. She wasn't very interested in eating and I didn't bring much because she needs to start eating kibble again. Do I leave food and water right beside her, or move a couple feet away to see if she will try to feed herself?
Online
EMMA GRACE IS ADORABLE!!!! What a cutie!!!
Gosh, it's just hard ro say what's going on since this involves whatever issues the accident caused in addition to the amputation!! Poor sweetie!
Many dogs here are already "somewhat" used ro walking on three legs for awhile because this journey starts out as an undiagnosed limp.
Gracie is quite....er.....mature to start with. She had no preliminary "practice" walking on three legs prior to the surgery. And it is MAJOR surgery! In addition, I would think every muscle in her little cute body tensed up like crazy at the time of the accident. She must be soooooo sore! Has the Vet eliminated any other issues...back..neck, discs, etc?
She is a senior, she became an instant tripawd with no "practice",she just jad major surgery and she's on pain meds..,....yeah...It may take her a bit longer to get jer sea legs!! So hang in tnere, it'll happen!!
Does she jzve feeling in her paws, legs, if you give a tiny pinch?
You may try very gentle massage of her neck , shoulders, back area. Also, before you start the massage, maybe place a warm towel out of the dryer over her first ro help loosen her up.
The concrete is cool and a lot of dogs recy seem to seek out cooler spots.
Havr accidents in the house is not uncommon at first. And she IS peeing so that's great!!! When you take her into the Vet, let him know about the thrst. He may want to check kidneys. And even though she's drinking a lot, he may even give her fluids to perk up jer appetite.
As far as food, I woukd give her anything she will eat! Chicken, cheeseburger, scrambled eggs, etc! I wouldn't worry to much about the kibble right now. And probably kthers will disagree, bjt for now...this early in recovery...I would DEFINITELY bring the food and water to her. This is still cery early in recovery, especially for a senior gal!!
And YAAAAAAAAY for twisting off the amp side on her own !!!! That REALLY is IMPROVING!!!!! It needs to be celebrated because that is HUGE!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Keep js updated! You're doing great!!!
Love and 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!
Gracie is a living doll! So terrible this happened to her in her golden years :(. And how very stressful for you. I'm sure the accident is playing into the fact that she is slower to recover than the dogs here who have osteo. Who knows what other injuries she has that can't be seen on an xray? I'm glad you're going back to the vet. Her inability to stand is concerning.
If going outside stresses here, how about using puppy pads and setting up a potty area for her in the basement? I wouldn't worry about her eating her kibble. She's 15 and a brand new tripawd. She should have whatever she will eat! Kitten food often works well in small amounts spread on something else. Since she is not walking yet, absolutely bring her food and water to her. She needs the nutrition to heal. The tramadol can constipate them. You can ask your vet if you should add some miralax or something similar to her food to help loosen things up. The drinking a lot I would run by your vet. My Fionn drank a fair amount, but he's a big dog and panted A LOT. I second asking about gabapentin. It makes a huge difference in many dogs.
You found the right place to come for support! Let us know how she's doing ok?
hugs from Fionn and Nancy
Nancy- mom to the FABULOUS Fionn. He rescued me in 2015 when he was 6.
Right front leg amputation at age 7 for osteosarcoma 10/6/16. Taken too soon 6/12/17. Read about our journey here:
http://fionnsjo.....pawds.com/
Poor Gracie! As Sally said, many of the dogs here "eased" into being a tripawd by starting out limping and relying more and more on their 3 good legs. My guy even got to spend a half hour in a velpeaux sling to see if his opposite shoulder would manage. Gracie went straight into the fire.
On the drinking, my guy drank incredible amounts after his surgery, but only wanted water from the Gulpy, a hand held bottle. He would drink the entire bottle at once whenever offered. Then he would pee.....and pee....and pee! We all took to counting. 40+ seconds became the norm, and one time he peed for over 50 seconds straight! (We sound like a bunch of country bumpkins counting and comparing pees! If the shoe fits....?) This lasted for a few weeks, then he returned to his 20ish second pees, and he also started drinking from his bowl again.
While Gracie's start isn't textbook, know that there are a zillion paths to recovery, and not many dogs do textbook. Even the ones with the easy recoveries seem to do at least one thing unusual to keep their parents worrying. It's what we do! And it's why people here will listen to all your worries. It's what we do.
Peace,
Jenifer & Milo
I agree with Sally. I would feed her whatever she will eat right now. Kibble Schkibble. Meg loved chicken, minced lamb, paté, greek yoghurt. Spoil her rotten, that's my advice. She may also have a sore throat from the tube they use during surgery, which would make hard kibble painful to eat.
Also, just occurred to me, you're not mixing the tramadol with her food, are you? It has a really bitter taste. I didn't realise and mixed it with Meg's food and she just spat it out, wouldn't eat a thing. You need to just smother the capsule in paté (or whatever) and shove it down whole.
It is great that she is now turning over. That's a big deal 
Good courage. Keep us updated. We're with you.
Meg, Clare and Elsie Pie xxx
Ruby, Staffy, born June 2022, became a Tripawd, 23 November 2023, adopted 12 January 2024.
Also Angel Tripawd Meg (aka The Megastar), who died in April 2023, aged 14, after seven glorious years on three, and Angel Staffies Pie and Bille. In the pawprints of giants...
I'm sorry if I am repeating myself. I wrote a long post earlier but do not see it now 🙁
Gracie has had a good day- she spent several hours alone while I took my daughter to the doctor and had a little accident. Still no poo. She literally spat all the pumpkin out and I am quite certain, I didn't manage a tbs as suggested but I tried. And I will try again tomorrow. After being cleaned up (2 sponge baths a day is wearing us both out) I cleaned her incision site with gauze and saline and the drainage is minimal. It looks like those antibiotics are working! She is resting now after having a full tummy of two packages of pepperoni as that has become her favorite treat. The only reason I would like for her to start back on kibble is because I have spent aroun 120$ on fresh meats and foods for her and after my whopping vet bill which completely wiped my savings account out I need to be budget conscious unfortunately...but as long as she is eating I will feed her whatever she wants! She has good feeling in all her paws. She is still peeing excessively, and although I do not count her pees, I did get a good laugh from Jenifer! And who knows, I may be joining the club soon.
Her frustration is growing about not getting up. I desperately need the harness, not that I can't carry her, but to help her with balance and strength. There are so many options, I fear I will pick the wrong one!
We go to the vet at 2pm tomorrow and I have a list of things to discuss thanks to you all! I greatly appreciate all the support from the site and I will update as soon as I can. I started a blog and flooded the wall with posts (sorry I didn't know it would do that!) so you all can see current pics of Gracie.
http://emmagrac.....pawds.com/
praying for good news tomorrow. Fairly certain staples will come out and hoping he can help me get my tripaw up and at it again!
Don't worry about "flooding" the vlogs. When we have a tripawd as cute as Gracie, we can never get enough!
I losted after I saw the blog with the video. Is it that she can't seem to pull nerself up with her front leg....or can't pull herself up with her back legs...or both? Not sure I'm making any sense.
I'm glad she had a better day today! YAY FOR EMMA GRACE!!
A d don't worry about maki g the "wrong decision". A whole lot of what we do is trial and error. One harness may be lerfect for one dog, and just not good for another dog.
I know this recovery is scary but you eally are ddoing a good job! You are stronger than you realize!!
A d come on Gracie, we canw wait to do a happy 
dance!!
Love and 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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