Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat

Today is Rocky's special day, please celebrate with us.

For those of you who don't know Rocky, I'll give you a brief background.

Rocky is an almost 10 year old lab mix who lost his right foreleg to Osteosarcoma. We chose not to do chemo and thought we would be lucky to have him for 6 months. But here it is, 1 year later and we feel so blessed to still have him in our lives.

He had a bumpy start post amp due to horrible sores that developed on his mouth, and remaining legs. But he pushed through, and has been a wonderful inspiration to our family and to those who meet him.

He has been doing really, really well this past year. He is on Synflex and Power Mushrooms which I think is a good combination for him. While I think his vet thinks I'm a little strange giving him mushrooms, I truly believe they work and are part of the reason he is still as happy and healthy as he is.

He did pay a visit to his vet yesterday though, because lately I feel as if his activity level isn't what it should be. I thought he might be having joint issues. I didn't for a minute believe it was cancer related and his vet agrees with me. She said his weight is right where it should be at 85 lb. and his heart and lungs sound good. She noticed a small reaction from him when manipulating his lower spine and right hip, but feels as if it is a touch of arthritis setting in. I am to give him 2- 100mg Rimadyl 2X per day for 5 days. and see if there is an improvement in his mobility, if so, I will switch over to Metacam and use on an as needed basis. (I had a 1/2 bottle of Rimadyl here at the house I wanted to use up, but will switch to Metacam due the fact I can get it for $4 at Walmart).

If I see no improvement, the next step would be to get him back in for some x-rays to see what's going on.

Because of the threat of severe weather today, we celebrated his ampuversary yesterday. I took him down to the lake to run around and play in the water and while he tired quickly, he had a great time – it's one of his favorite places to go. Later that evening I grilled him up a steak and he looked at me like I had lost my mind! You see, I never give my animals table scraps or people food (except for carrots and apples for treats). It was really funny, he would look at the steak in his bowl and look at me, then back at the steak. I told him it's OK Rocky, it's for you, special guy! Then he gobbled it right up!!

Because of Rocky's sensitive stomach issues, I would never risk giving him ice cream, but maybe his fellow tripawd friends could have some today in his honor.

While I don't post very often, I am on the tripawds site daily and try to keep up with all of the stories of celebration, sorrow and the wealth of information that our members share with each other. This site is invaluable to me and I appreciate each and every one here.

Michelle and Rocky