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Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat

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My new tripawd Brody
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Member Since:
14 August 2016
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14 August 2016 - 9:42 am
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Hello to all!

I just wanted to share my story about my 1 year old pup, Brody. He is a Black Lab who we picked up when he was 10 weeks old. he has brought us many joyful and trying times this last year (thought it would be a good idea to chew on our newly installed baseboard about 6 months ago :))

Now for the painful part... about a month ago he had missed the step to our trailer right before we headed out for a 4 day camping trip. He didn't yelp our whine about it just sorta took it in stride, but we noticed he did have a tiny limp. his limp seemed to get better s the trip went on. We took him to the Vet just to make sure he was good to go. That's when we were slapped with the bad news...Osteosarcoma in he left hind leg. The Vet said it was extremely rare in a dog so young so they wanted to make sure with a bone biopsy.

A week later Brody went in for his biopsy. The Dr. said that he wanted to take some follow up xrays to see if it had spread through more of the bone to which I agreed to. Those xrays showed the cancer spreading very aggressively. The Dr. suggested amputation right away due to the aggressive nature. Brody went in for the surgery on 8/10/16 and it was a success with a couple post op issues such as oozing from the staples, and some excessive swelling. We pick up Brody tomorrow 8/15 after I get off work!!!

What can I expect as far as the rest of recovery? His mood? His life from here on out?

The Vet gave us an average of 10-12 months after surgery for his life expectancy, is this what most are seeing? longer time? Shorter time?

Thank you for reading my story and any advice you can give!

Livermore, CA




Member Since:
18 October 2009
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14 August 2016 - 10:04 am
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Hi and welcome, your future posts will not have to wait for approval.

We do have a few young pups like Brody here- such a devastating diagnosis at any age!

So he's been at the vet for 5 days?  That's longer than most- the good news is that his pain meds should be well balanced and the surgery meds should be out of his system.

You might look through Jerry's Required Reading List or download one or more ebooks from the Tripawds library. Both have lots of info on what to expect with amputation and recovery.

Traction is very important for Tripawds so be sure any slippery floors are covered with throw rugs or yoga mats.  And rest is also very important, sometimes it's hard to keep the youngsters calm. Our surgeon said only leashed potty walks for the first two weeks following surgery.

Are you going to do chemo with Brody?

Lots more input coming your way!

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

 

              Maggie's Story                  Amputation and Chemo


Member Since:
14 August 2016
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14 August 2016 - 11:42 am
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he has been there for 5 days. There was some excessive swelling and more seepage than normal. We could have brought him home on Friday but with having another dog and with him being so young and energized the Vet said that it might be better for him to stay a couple more nights. We were hesitant at first but we figured it would be the best course of action for the healing process.

Chemo has been kicked around. But with such a dismal average of life, even after the amputation with such a cancer we are sort of on the fence about putting Brody through Chemo. As of right now we have more questions than answers about chemo and the pros and cons of it. We just don't want him to be feeling like crap while hes doing chemo when he might only have 10 months left with us. Its such a hard decision with so few answers, but I am sure the vet and the people on this forum will help get some of those questions answered

Minneapolis, MN
Member Since:
23 April 2016
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14 August 2016 - 11:54 am
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So sorry for the shock of cancer in your very young dog. 

The good news is that painful leg is gone.  And with his extended stay in the clinic, the meds should be figured out as Karen pointed out above.  That is also excellent news.

In terms of getting around and adjusting, he has his youth and vitality on his side. 

My own Tripawd has a different cancer where IV chemo is not considered particularly effective (radiation therapy is the more effective procedure for soft tissue sarcoma).  So we did not do IV chemo, but are doing low dose oral chemo.  It is such a personal choice, but many of the dogs here with Osteo have done chemo and you will find most do very well with it.  It seems, in general, to have less negative impact on canines compared to what humans feel with it.  And remember  - you can start treatment and decide to suspend if he does have a hard time with it.  The quality of life issue is certainly one that needs to be considered.

There will be more along to talk to chemo and osteo. 

Wishing Brody healing and much more time with you.

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.

Blog: Pofi, Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Amputation

SW OK
Member Since:
21 July 2016
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14 August 2016 - 2:35 pm
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First, I'm so sorry. What a horrible shock. ((((((Hug))))))) 

My own tripawd, Mikey, is almost 6 months, but a rescue in the truest sense on the word. He was horribly abused and neglected. Because of that he had his left rear leg taken at only about 3.5 months. He came to us a couple of weeks after surgery as a foster, but we all know he isn't leaving. 😉

I wish I knew what to say about your upcoming choices and your own furbaby. I don't know the stats, the risks or how chemo would effect him. But I will say a prayer and I hope that whatever your decisions, you have a peace about them. 

God bless,

Jo & Mikey

Mikey, 2/14/16, came to us as a foster the end of June, 2wks after rear left amp. Now, at 6mo, he's doing awesome! Perfect, except for wanting to play with 9yo kitty Pumpkin, who isn't interested.  At all.  

Love to all! Jo, Mikey and, reluctantly, Pumpkin.



Member Since:
21 May 2016
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19 August 2016 - 10:07 am
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Ho Brody and family heart

My girl Eurydice is a Great Dane who lost her front leg to osteosarcoma 3 1/2 months ago.

She did 5 sessions of chemo to date (every 3 weeks) and will go for her last one in a couple of weeks.

Zero side effects so far.

Chemo for dogs is totally different from chemo for people, the majority sails through it really well with no or minor side effects, the only thing they take is nausea pills for 3 days after chemo plus one the day of chemo.

Also, they do a blood test before each chemo and if there are any issues chemo is generally postponed for a little while.

Eurydice is back to being her old self, enjoying life and being a happy dog, she can do virtually everything she did before (apart from going up and down stairs) albeit at a much slower pace.

The fact she weighs 150 pounds and is a front leg amputee make it more difficult for her to hop around than lighter, smaller dogs like Brody. 

But this being said, she hops quite confidently!

The first couple of weeks until stitches came out were very challenging for both of us but since that benchmark was achieved she got better and better every day. 

Ah, the life expectancy question ... 

We were also given 10-12 months but from what we learnt here statistics are just numbers.

A lot of dogs here have lived much, much longer lives whilst others didn't get near the 10 month mark.

You MUST try not to think about it, enjoy your boy everyday and pamper him to oblivia!

You can only do so much to "control" osteosarcoma, it will do what  it wants, but you must remember your cutie has no idea what that word means, all he cares about is being with you and make you happy. 

I will post a few videos so you can witness how well our 3 legged best friends can do!

Sending you a big hug and cuddles to your sweetie heart

Oh, forgot to ask. Does he have a good harness? We have a ruff wear harness which is just fantastic as it has a handle which helps getting her in and out of the car if she is tired. I know they make a model for back legs amputees, maybe Jerry can guide you there.

Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-) 



Member Since:
21 May 2016
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19 August 2016 - 10:15 am
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Take a look at Tank 

https://youtu.b.....KlnoDPQWOc

Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-) 



Member Since:
21 May 2016
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19 August 2016 - 10:21 am
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Meet Sadie 

Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-) 



Member Since:
21 May 2016
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19 August 2016 - 10:25 am
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Meet my girl Eurydice and her friend Luna

Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-) 

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