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Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat

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Member Since:
20 November 2015
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27 November 2015 - 4:38 pm
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Hi Tripawds Community!

Riley, my 11-year-old lab mix, recently had his left rear leg amputated.In a nutshell, here are the details of our past 3 weeks.

Riley had developed a very fast growing tumor on his left rear leg. The vet thought that he could remove the tumor and almost 3 weeks ago he had surgery on a Monday to have it removed. It turned out that the tumor was malignant (I do not know exactly what kind of tumor it was.) and inoperable. He was closed back up and the vet said that his only chance was to have his leg amputated. He wanted to give Riley some time to recover from the anesthesia so the amputation was scheduled for the following week. 

Last week on Wednesday, he had his left rear leg amputated partially up his femur. He had to spend the first night following surgery in the hospital. The next day he spent at the vet and we took him home that evening. The following weekend thing seemed to be going well. He was eating and drinking more and seemed to be moving better. I have been supporting him with a sling but he seemed to be getting stronger and more coordinated. On Sunday evening, there started to be more serosanguineous fluid seeping from his incision site. I took him back to the vet. His pac cell volume had fallen from 27 to 21. He spent Monday and Tuesday at the vet receiving IV fluids and antibiotics and coming home at night. Tuesday night his condition worsened. I stayed up with him all night and met the vet first thing in the morning. We decided that he needed another surgery to see what was going on to cause the increased and take care of anything that was causing a problem.

In the third surgery, the vet removed the remainder of his femur and debrided a great deal of dying tissue. There were no bleeders and no seroma . Riley came home Wednesday evening. We met the vet yesterday, Thanksgiving, to check Riley's bandages and make sure things were going okay. When the first bandage was removed he began to seep more fluid again. We went back for another check today and the vet said that everything looks good, his vitals are all good, but that he is still concerned about the seeping. He said it is still more than he would like to see. We will be going back tomorrow for another post-op check.

Outside of this, Riley has been much livelier and alert today. For example, when he saw another dog on the ride home from the vet, he barked at him. He has peed and pooped every day. He ate and drank more yesterday and today than he has since the first surgery. He is taking Cephalexin, Tramadol, and Rimadyl.

I am still concerned about the fluid loss. Has anyone else experienced the same thing? Is it to be expected or totally out of the ordinary? I have taken care of people after many, many big surgeries but it was nothing like this. This has been much harder and I want to be sure he is okay.

Thanks for any help and advice you have to give and for everyone who has shared so much on this site. I have read lots and lots and it has helped me gain a better understanding of these past few weeks.

On The Road


Member Since:
24 September 2009
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27 November 2015 - 4:51 pm
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Welcome, and best wishes for Riley's speedy recovery! Your future forum posts will not require moderation.

Riley will likely be better off in the long run with the full amputation, unless you were considering prosthetics .

Post-op seeping or drainage is normal, and you will find many blog posts and forum topics about a seromas and other common complications . Jerry only had to have his seroma drained once. The fluid should be clear or milky, perhaps light pink, but never red nor foul smelling.

Please bookmark Jerry's Required Reading List for lots of helpful links. Or consider downloading the Tripawds e-books for fast answers to most common concerns. Search these forums above for any specific concerns. Use the Advanced Search link to fine tune your results as most questions have been answered in thousands of topics. You can also search all blogs here . And feel feel free to call the toll-free Helpline anytime! If you ever feel overwhelmed, start here.

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet


Member Since:
20 November 2015
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27 November 2015 - 6:46 pm
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Thanks for the reply and welcome Jerry. I'm so sorry for re-asking a common question. I know it does not sound like it but I did read through Jerry's Required Reading, material from Dr. Wiltzius, and a number of other threads and articles. I've been cruising around on the site since finding it about 2 weeks ago. It's all been very helpful and made me feel a little more at ease about the revision surgery since I had read about what others have gone through. I will keep looking.

I guess what is concerning me is why Riley is seeping fluid when the vet did not see any seroma when he did the revision surgery 2 days ago and his concern that this is more fluid than he would like to see at this point. Perhaps it is more common though. Right now the fluid is light pink and smells okay. Before the revision surgery it had become redder and foul smelling which was a huge factor in prompting the revision.

Is there a typical duration for the seeping? Can there be seeping without a seroma ? Also, how long do they typically need to stay bandaged?

Thanks again for the help and advice!

Livermore, CA




Member Since:
18 October 2009
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27 November 2015 - 7:53 pm
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It sounds to me that the amount of seepage might be a bit out of the norm.  My pug Maggie was a rear amp and came home without any bandage at all, in fact most rear amps I have seen here do not have a bandage.

Have they done any kind of culture to make sure there is no infection?  The dying tissue would concern me, was the tumor anywhere near where the original incision was?  It would also help to know what kind of tumor/cancer.

Does the vet have any idea what is going on?

When you say the first amp took part of the femur, how much was left?  Was it called a mid-femoral amp?  That is what Maggie had, but really there was only a small part of the femur left.  There was a little stump but you couldn't really see it.  My new adopted rear amp pup has no femur left.

My other suggestion would be to post in our 'Ask A Vet' forum.  Dr. Pam might have some insight for you.

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

Michigan
Member Since:
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27 November 2015 - 10:26 pm
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How much experience does your vet have doing this type of surgery?  I'm just wondering why he left part of the femur with the 2nd surgery?  I think most often they take the whole leg, because otherwise the dogs will tend to try to walk on the stump which causes more trouble later on.

Sometimes there is some seepage, but it shouldn't be much.  It could last a couple of weeks.  You only want to clean with water, no peroxide.  You can boil water, then let it cool down to room temperature. 

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

Donna.png

Virginia







Member Since:
22 February 2013
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27 November 2015 - 11:01 pm
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Ask all the questions you want and as many times and as in many different ways you want! That's why we are all here!

You and Riley have really been through the ringer. So sorry you've had so many "challenges". You mjst be mentally and physically exhausted. I'm sure your stress level has been off the charts. But you are such a good advocate for Riley, that's very clear! And you are so strong! Recovery is no picnic. Recovery with hurdles stinks! It happens though.

You've fotten good advice from everyone and some thi gs to follow up on just for your own piece of mind.

I know it's hard to see now, but complete recovery DOES take place and Riley's sparkle will co e back bigger and brighter than ever! Oh yes it will!

Stay connected and update when you can. Hang in there! You're doing great!! Oh, and we'd love ro see pictures. Riley looks stunning with his red bowtie in the avatar pic.

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!

On The Road


Member Since:
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28 November 2015 - 11:07 am
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Oh Riley you are one adorable and handsome pup! And yep, ask any questions you'd like, we're always hoppy to try to ease your Momma's worries.

I'd agree with everyone else's feedback, especially about getting a culture on the fluid, just for a precaution. We hope today's trip goes well, let us know OK?

Donna, just a little insight for you on leaving more of the leg....until recently (I'm talking oh, the last couple of years really) vets were taught to take the whole leg exactly for the reasons you mention. Another reason why some vets would leave some is because it's an easier and faster surgery to do a partial than a full amp (which is why a lot of rescue dogs and cats have more stump, it's more cost-effective). We've seen those kinds of issues you describe, dogs trying to use it, stump getting banged around, etc. Well, now vets are being encouraged to leave as much of the leg as possible if there are clean margins when cancer involved, and if there is a chance that a prosthetic is in the dog's future. They feel the benefits of leaving the stup are worth the risk of potential issues. I'm not sure why Riley's vet left more of the leg, but just thought I'd let you know what we've learned recently about this subject. Interesting eh?

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet

Schofield, WI
Member Since:
13 August 2015
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30 November 2015 - 4:47 pm
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Just catching up with your post.  Poor Riley has been through a lot hasn't he?  He's lucky he has such a great pawrent as you to help him!  Our Max had quite a bit of discharge for a few days too.  It did subside and get less and less during the course of a week.  Hope your latest vet visit was uneventful and he's now on the road to recovery.  Welcome and keep us posted on Riley.

Linda & Max

Livermore, CA




Member Since:
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30 November 2015 - 7:28 pm
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Checking back and looking for an update....

Karen

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

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