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Greetings from Senegal!
A week ago, my husband and I adopted a beautiful puppy who we have named Bandit (because he has a black mask!).
Our precious pup is only 4 months old and he was picked up by the only animal charity in the city after some evil excuse for a human being decided to hack one of his front legs off. He had an emergency amputation that evening, stayed with a foster family for a week and now he is home with us.
We have access to 2 decent vets here but the facilities are nothing like they are in the UK and there are a few language problems we have come up against such as the amount of antibiotics and pain relief to give him. The first day we had him, he seemed surprisingly well given the trauma he had suffered but the next day he was vomiting non stop and couldn't even keep water down. We whisked him back to the vet and were told it was a reaction to the high dose of antibiotics and to the pain relief which apparently was toxic to dogs. I had no idea and still feel terribly guilty.
After a couple of days of no medication and daily wound care, he is doing brilliantly and will be having his stitches removed this week.
He joins 4 cats and a little Havanese who thinks she is a Rottweiler! At around 18lbs, Bandit already dwarfs them all and still has a lot of growing to do.
I had never met a tripod dog before but a video came up on my Facebook feed of this shivering puppy with the most horrendous wound and I knew he had to come to us. All my husband and I were concerned with was getting him to safety but now he is recovering from his surgery, it's quite overwhelming at times. Our house is all tiled floors and he has slipped a few times. I've searched for grips to stop rugs sliding around but have had no joy so far. So if anyone has any DIY methods, they would be greatly appreciated! Also the roads are all sand and rocks which I worry will be difficult for him to navigate once he is allowed to go outside.
Bandit has the most beautiful nature which makes what happened to him seem so much worse and he is a young pup so he wants to race around and do puppy things but I'm so worried he will hurt another leg while he is doing it.
I am trying to get passed this anger I have but every time I see him struggle, I just want to burst into tears. That or go to the neighbourhood where he was found with a machete of my own!
Unfortunately, animals don't have much value in Senegal so there is no rehab or physiotherapy available for him. I've read that strengthening his core muscles would be helpful so I'm going to have a hunt around the site and see how I can do this.
Any input on how I can make things easier for him would be greatly received!
6:38 pm
Team Tripawds
Administrators
25 September 2009
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liefie said
...there is no rehab or physiotherapy available for him. I've read that strengthening his core muscles would be helpful so I'm going to have a hunt around the site and see how I can do this.
FYI: Loving Life On Three Legs is filled with professional tips, articles and how to videos for strengthening exercises, core conditioning, stretching, massage and other techniques you can do at home to keep Tripawds fit and strong!
While you wait for comments from others, use the Advanced Search above to refine your forum search results with specific phrases, and you're sure to find lots of helpful feedback. You can also search all blogs here .
What is your beautiful pup's name? Please keep us posted...your future forum posts will not require moderation.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi and welcome!
I totally understand your situation - my dog is a Sierra Leonean street dog. She didn't have the amputation until we moved back to the US, but she did have to recuperate from her injury and navigate the world on three legs while she was healing from the original break.
I would definitely suggest the resources mentioned above - that will give you some ideas for exercises and basic information that's useful to know. Second, please don't feel guilty - it is so hard to know what to do when you don't have the same veterinary resources. I had the same problems. You've found the right place and you can come here with any questions and we'll try to help you out. Also worth knowing, people will mention equipment, supplements, etc that you probably won't be able to find - those aren't the most important things for him to have to heal and be strong. Simple lifestyle changes make the biggest difference and you'll be able to do that where you are.
As for rugs, can you find old yoga mats? Maybe ask around the embassy crowd - people often leave them behind when moving back and you can build up a collection over time. Even just a couple will help him have traction in a few places around your house and he'll quickly figure out how useful they are.
Second, your intuition is right. Keeping him from injuring a remaining leg is tricky since he has so much energy. Search the forums for older posts on puzzle games - keeping his brain occupied is half the battle. You can teach him the shell game, waiting for treats, scent games, search games like hiding treats in a balled up towel, how to dig with his remaining front leg, etc. A good thing to start on now, too, is training him to be okay with his paws being handled and his nails clipped. Keeping his nails short is important and it's good to start young and with simple practice. <a href="