TRIPAWDS: Home to 22974 Members and 2152 Blogs.
HOME » NEWS » BLOGS » FORUMS » CHAT » YOUR PRIVACY » RANDOM BLOG

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.

JUMP TO FORUMS

Join The Tripawds Community

Learn how to help three legged dogs and cats in the forums below. Browse and search as a guest or register for free and get full member benefits:

Instant post approval.

Private messages to members.

Subscribe to favorite topics.

Live Chat and much more!

Please consider registering
Guest
Search
Forum Scope


Match



Forum Options



Minimum search word length is 3 characters - maximum search word length is 84 characters
Register Lost password?
sp_Feed sp_PrintTopic sp_TopicIcon-c
12 yo 100 lb Mastweiler with front right shoulder CSA, should we amputate?
sp_NewTopic Add Topic
Member Since:
14 February 2016
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
121
2 May 2017 - 4:47 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

What a great update, and wonderful photos!  So glad he is doing this well after the difficult recovery.  Perhaps he feels that the sod is too 'special' to poop on?  For what it's worth, all of my dogs - Otis, Tess and now Gator - hide behind bushes to poop.  They will not do it if they believe I can see them.  So, turn your back and give the boy his privacy?

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.

Member Since:
20 March 2017
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
122
2 May 2017 - 6:14 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

My main concern now is his lack of mobility. About a month into his front leg lameness he seemed to lose a lot of the mobility in his rear legs. The local vet consulted and ortho and they said that most likely he had spinal cord swelling from an ongoing Anaplasma/Ehrlichia infection which he was being treated for with Doxycycline so they added a steroid (Prednisolone) but there was little or no sustained improvement and his liver was reacting poorly to the steroid so after quite a few weeks he was taken off of it.

He really only walks a few steps with the occasional 10 meter walk a couple times a day. Here are a couple short videos that I managed to shoot before he stopped walking.

View My Video

View My Video

Virginia







Member Since:
22 February 2013
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
123
10 May 2017 - 9:05 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Just checking in for update on sweet Bruno when you get a chance.

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!

Member Since:
20 March 2017
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
124
11 May 2017 - 10:23 pm
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Sorry for the delayed posting. Bruno has been getting better with his potty situation and is now at the point where he is almost pooping each time we go outside for our morning and evening garden time. He does not poop on the new grass but he has peed on it once or twice, mostly he lays on the grass looking around at the birds and watching the neighborhood people go by and then he gets up and crosses the road to the overgrown lot and poops over there. At least his potty is normal now.

We went for his 30 day follow up with oncology (8am) and surgery (9am) on Wednesday which was a local holiday but they made the appointments a month ago and said the hospital would be open as usual. Well, as it turned out, the oncology department was closed but the receptionist never mentioned that and sent us to the waiting room with a queue number 7. They started calling out numbers and after 6 jumped to 8 and then 9 so I grabbed an intern and asked what was going on and she then told me oncology was closed. Not what I wanted to hear after 3 hours in the car leaving home at 4am to get there for this appointment.

By then it was 9am so I went to the surgery department and found the doctor who did his amputation to see what was going on. The intern had already told her the situation so she said lets do the surgical follow up and she would try to find someone from oncology who was doing clinic duty. So she checked his wound and I recapped all of the complications that we had. She was very happy with his wound and then got to the biopsy results for the humerus mass and the 2 lymph nodes that were removed during the amputation. The biopsy on the humerus mass was osteosarcoma vs chondrosarcoma that was indicated on the first biopsy before his surgery. Also the lymph nodes both indicated metastatic osteosarcoma. The doctor said that Bruno looked well and that she was sorry about the biopsy and then sent me down to the clinic to meet the oncologist.

This oncologist was a new face to me, I had not seen here in Oncology during any of the previous visits. She went over the biopsy results again and did a quick exam of Bruno. She did not say much so I started asking how the first biopsy was positive for chondrosarcoma but now they are saying osteosarcoma and she said that it definitely was osteosarcoma so I started asking about Carboplatin chemo as it was an option with the OSA but not with CSA and she said that it would probably prolong his survival by 3 months give or take. I asked about metronomic therapy and she said they can do that too and the results are about the same as conventional chemo but without the side effects. Without further treatment she gave him about 6 months survival as he has it confirmed in the lymph nodes, his vertebra and left scapula had lytic lesions on the CT scan and most likely the lung nodules are mets too.

She started the blood work to prepare for metronomic therapy starting on Tuesday next week and apparently it is all tablet based so I would administer it to him myself at home. At least that was a good thing to add to the no chemo side effects.

Since Wednesday I have been PM-ing with Dr Pam and she does not think that the metronomic or chemo therapy would help much at this point so I just made the decision to not do chemo or metronomic therapies and do my best to keep him comfortable until the bone mets become painful or the lung mets start to affect him.

Sorry that I did not have a better update for you all.

Virginia







Member Since:
22 February 2013
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
125
11 May 2017 - 10:52 pm
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

It is sooooo good to hear from you! I can tell you right off the bat that you and Bruno have developed your very Bruno Fan Club over here in the States!!! His spunk and your devotion have earned out utmost respect!

And I tell ya' what, you and Bruno have the patience of Saints! To deal with that appointment the other day....the appointment that almost didn't happen....and not blow your cool was quite impressive!!

And I'm not blowing smoke, okay? But we have many members here who did NOT do chemo and had mets and/or lymph node involvement and far surpassed any statistics the Vets threw out.

Bruno didn't hear a word of it. Days on a calendar don't mean squat to him. Bruno does care about all the loving and spoiling he's getting from you...And goodness knows he's getting plenty!!

The best part of this whole post is that Bruno is enjoying his jungle and that his mobility is better! I love that he doesn't think of it as his lpttynplace, but rather his lovely garden where he can enjoy being outside with his BFF and all the joys of nature!

Hang in there Rob! Bruno is one tough cookie and is certainly not a statistic!! And there certainly seemed to be some vagueness and some "most likely"....so not everything was with absolute certainty.

And you know we have to have more pictures!!! The visual of Bruno enjoying his garden puts a bit smile on my face! 🙂 🙂 And knowing Bruno is enjoyi g pooping in the overgrown field I stead of his garden is a beautiful vision! 🙂

Hugs to that sweet boy!

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!

Member Since:
14 February 2016
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
126
12 May 2017 - 2:54 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Sorry you didn't get better news, but totally understand your decision to just stop with the meds.  Whatever time he has left, he can spend it just being a dog and doing doggie stuff!  Loving also the image of him not wanting to dirty the new grass with business.  😀

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.

Germany
Member Since:
14 December 2016
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
127
12 May 2017 - 4:15 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Sally, what do you mean by "in the States"??? Huh? This is a world-wide thing now! International Bruno Fan Club!

Rob,

I am very sorry. I am sure this is devastating. I hope you know that it was still a good decision to go through with the amputation and that Bruno is at last starting to enjoy life again-for however long, but he gets to spend this good time with you, who did everything possible up to creating a garden inside and out of the house!

Make memories Rob. That's what I've been doing as well and Bruno will love you even more for it. What am I saying. There is no better pawrent than you. I know that already. As does Bruno.

Please keep posting updates if can and share pictures if you're up to it. We're all rooting for you guys.

And can I just ask why Dr. Pam recommend against chemo? ´we have x-rays today and just in case they don't turn out well I would like to be prepared. Thank you!!

Hugs

tina & Manni

Guardian of Manni the Wonderdog. -Or was it the other way around?
Osteo and amputation in Dec 2015. Second, inoperable, primary osteosarcoma found in June 2017.
The end of our adventures came Dec 10, 2017. 2 years to the day.

Manni's blog -dogblog-

Virginia







Member Since:
22 February 2013
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
128
12 May 2017 - 9:46 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Tina! Thanks for the correction!! You are exactly right! BRUNO's FAN CLUB IS JNTERNATIONAL 🙂 🙂 🙂

As far as the chemo, I'm just interjecting my own thoughts here. If it meant a six hour round trip car ride for my Happy Hannah to get the treatment, I think I would have declined, regardless of whether it may, or may not, be "effective" for a "possibility" of a little extended time.

Rob, I don't know if you have access to any type of Holistic treatments,but others have found some of those protocols to be quite helpful. It may be that you could even get a phone consult with someone in the States (OR INTERNATIONALLY TOO :-)) and have some products shipped to you.

Continue to make EVERYDAY BRUNO DAY...just like you have every day this sweet boy has been by your side! Bruno lives in the moment and each of his moments with you are filled with a lifetime of joy and love:-)

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!

Member Since:
20 March 2017
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
129
12 May 2017 - 10:24 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Thanks everyone for your kind words and support.

Dr Pam said that Carboplatin really just delays the onset of mets but it would not do anything to shrink the existing tumors. She also told me that average survival once in the lungs is 3-6 months and his CT saw nodules in his lungs a month ago so I don't think chemo or metronomics will turn back the clock and I just know that he will not be one of these symptom free cases that I have read about.

It may just be my imagination but he really seems to be struggling a lot more to get up since our trip to the hospital on Wednesday. Will take him to the nicer beach an hour and a half south of here on Sunday and see how he does.

Will post some pics after the weekend. Thanks again for all the support from the International Bruno Fan Club

On The Road


Member Since:
24 September 2009
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
130
12 May 2017 - 10:59 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Rob and Bruno said
...he really seems to be struggling a lot more to get up since our trip to the hospital on Wednesday. Will take him to the nicer beach an hour and a half south of here on Sunday...

Bruno is likely overdoing it. Running around on the beach can certainly do that. We know from experience.

What kind of exercise is Bruno getting? Remember, walks do not build strength, only stamina. Be sure to work in core conditioning, balance work, and strength building exercises and cut the walks short if Bruno is tiring quickly. Here are various starter exercises to consider, or download Loving Life On Three Legs for many more tips.

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

Member Since:
2 December 2016
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
131
12 May 2017 - 11:09 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Carboplatin is not designed to shrink the existing tumors per se but will address the underlying disease process that allows the tumors to grow (per the Vet School Oncology Department). There are other options to address the existing possible mets. However, this is an individual decision that you alone must make: we ALL totally understand and SUPPORT that. (If your vet school is not accessible, many on the site have consulted with the CSU Vet School for a small donation.Would you be interested in this option?) But, again: this is totally your decision and ALL of us understand that. Bruno is such a lion hearted dog who is so obviously well loved by you and whom loves you to pieces; and, he is very popular with his International Fan Club! And he, himself, is not thinking of any of this. Just wanted to mention that there may be other avenues as well if you are interested in exploring those. Best wishes and know that we are all fans of Bruno and wish nothing but the best for you both. 

Virginia







Member Since:
22 February 2013
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
132
12 May 2017 - 11:48 am
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

And yet another thought. I have no doubt that the Vet trip did, indeed, have an effect on Bruno. I'm sure his muscles"tensed up" in that three hiur carride with every turn, every start and every stop, every bump! That in itself is enough to give him some stiffness and soreness for a couple of days.

Just continue with the gentle massages and maybe a warm towel out of the dryer over his back and neck for a few minutes while messaging him.

I think a day at the beach in the sun will do wonders! For both of you!! Ad we know Bruno won't be "running around on the beach", but maybe he would enjoy a gentle swim being supported by you.....or just floating in the water being supported by you.

And yet ANOTHER thought! Bruno IS a senior! And for a big boy 12 yrs young is quite remarkable. So part of what you may be seeing is just the natural "aging" process accelerating a little bit as he approaches 13 yrs young.

Can't wait to see the Beach photos!! 🙂 🙂

Hugs and extra treats!

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!

Schofield, WI
Member Since:
13 August 2015
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
133
12 May 2017 - 2:02 pm
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Rob sometimes there is comfort in knowing you've done what you can and now it's time to let Bruno relax and enjoy his loving life with you.  Bruno being somewhat more "mature" may have that going for him.  Slower metabolism may mean slower growing cancer too.   I know everyday is Bruno day at your home so enjoy your beach day and make memories.  Hoping your boy will and can surprise us all.  Hugs to you both!

Member Since:
20 March 2017
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
134
12 May 2017 - 6:51 pm
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Yeah there is no "running around" going on here. At most he takes 5-10 hops on his own or with me helping him with the mobility harness he can double that.

We really have not been able to do any strength building exercises as just the basic movements have been a challenge. I will try to get him to do puppy push ups as a starter and see how that goes. When he has been in the pool he has only done a few 20 seconds expeditions from one side to the other with lots of assistance. The beach was mostly just laying in 6 inches of water and playing with his tennis ball.

Member Since:
20 March 2017
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline
135
16 May 2017 - 9:04 pm
sp_Permalink sp_Print sp_QuotePost

Weekend update, rainy season is starting here but we managed to get some sunny breaks.

Here is Bruno with our downstairs neighbor in the gardenIMG_20170510_174446.jpgImage Enlarger

Having a pee in the jungle big-grinIMG_20170513_091429.jpgImage Enlarger

and laying around eating grass

IMG_20170513_091535.jpgImage Enlarger

Forum Timezone: America/Denver
Most Users Ever Online: 946
Currently Online: Edward_1, antonia
Guest(s) 245
Currently Browsing this Page:
1 Guest(s)
Member Stats:
Guest Posters: 1268
Members: 17736
Moderators: 6
Admins: 3
Forum Stats:
Groups: 4
Forums: 24
Topics: 18610
Posts: 256809
Administrators: admin, jerry, Tripawds
Tripawds is brought to you by Tripawds.
HOME » NEWS » BLOGS » FORUMS » CHAT » YOUR PRIVACY » RANDOM BLOG