Tripawds Three Legged Dog & Cat Forum Archives
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10:10 pm
28 December 2022
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Our 11+ year old lab mix, Finn, was recently diagnosed with bone cancer in his left rear leg. Quite sizable, not a lot of bone left. Just took chest X-rays and those appeared clean although we recognize it’s likely to appear down the road as aggressive as osteosarcoma is. That said, he’s been an active and, otherwise, healthy dog at a good weight. So headed toward a likely amputation next week. Uncertain what we’ll do for followup treatment. Right now, we just want to avoid an inevitable break and how horrific that would be. And relieve his pain. Fact is, he’s older and we just want quality of life.
I’ve been reading a lot of the forum/posts which has been a great learning experience and affirmation of much of what our vet has said. Our house is one level but all wood and tile flooring. Looking at getting a harness, yoga mats to span between area rugs, and maybe putting a temporary ramp for the two steps out into our carport and the yard (the first and last steps are separated by a landing and shorter drops than normal so it’s already pretty friendly). His bed is about three inches in height, canvas like material covering solid foam. So not fluffy.
Complicating things (as if Finn needs more challenges) is our one year old lab, his best friend, and our daughter’s two year old golden retriever (doesn’t live with us but visits weekends). Finn helped raise the two of them, role playing etc. And he absolutely loves playing with them. So we will have to skip visits with the golden and try to figure out how to limit the one year olds interaction with Finn till he’s well on the mend.
Any suggestions on any of the above and is there anything else I should be getting ready beforehand? Thanks for your time.
Hi Dave - I'm sorry you and Finn are joining this club, it's membership no one wants.
It sounds like you've really thought through all the ways you can support and keep Finn safe during this time - I strongly endorse the yoga mats between area rugs; as we were preparing for Boone's amputation, I did the same (he ended up going with SRT; he has degenerative discs in his c-spine, and has osteosarcoma in his front leg... and he's a lean 170lbs). You can also order a sling-style harness to help; we went with the help'em up model (front and back harness), and even though we didn't go with amputation, it's been very useful when he's doped up following vet visits/chemo. A friend of mine also trained her pupper to walk with booties that had grip (not a tripawd; an IVDD case with muscle wasting) and that's been helpful for traction outside of yoga matts/carpets.
Something that appeared to really helped Boone was diet change; lowering his carbs, and upping his fats and protein. It might be something worth considering. Supplements can also be useful - Boone takes digestive enzymes, probiotics, IP6, and mushroom powders with his meals (chaga, reishi, turkeytail, cordyceps, and lionsmane).
3:28 pm
28 December 2022
Offline
Thanks for the additional suggestions. I feel like we're getting off light as Finn is about 75 pounds, pre-surgery. I'd never had to lift him and so lifting him into the backseat of my truck these past few vet visits has been a challenge. I suspect we'll be transporting him in our car moving forward, a lower transition which I should be able to manage. I can't imagine lifting Boone, even with a harness. We're set to go to an out-of-state teaching hospital next week (we don't have a teaching hospital in-state). They'll evaluate him and, hopefully, give the green light to go ahead that same week with the procedure. Between now and then we're just prepping ourselves and our home as much as we can. I'm sure we (Finn and the whole fam) will be learning on the fly.
Finn's been on a basic kibble diet his whole life. And the only supplement he's taken has been Fish Oil and Dasuquin. We'll have to make some changes for sure and I appreciate your sharing the supplements you're using with Boone.
4:55 pm
Team Tripawds
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26 April 2007
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Hi Dave, Finn, and furmily, welcome to the club nopawdy wants to join. We are glad you found us though, and hope to make the journey to three and beyond easier for all of you. Good move to act quickly and avoid that horrific fracture break situation. It's happened to others here and it's awful.
Here's my feedback based on your comments:
Looking at getting a harness, yoga mats to span between area rugs, and maybe putting a temporary ramp for the two steps out into our carport and the yard
Yep, highly recommend the Ruffwear Webmaster or Flagline harness for a rear leg amputee. The handle on top makes it so easy to lift a dog in and out of the car. As you already know, traction is super important. As for the ramp, I'd say hold off on that. Most dogs hate them, and two steps is not a big deal for a larger Tripawd, and if it makes you feel better put down some no-slip tape on them to make the surface safer.
So we will have to skip visits with the golden and try to figure out how to limit the one year olds interaction with Finn till he’s well on the mend.
For sure. There's no reason why he can't do well playing with his buddies, although you may need to manage his activity more by making him take play breaks while they visit. Definitely wait until stitches are out. A baby gate or two in your home is super helpful.
is there anything else I should be getting ready beforehand?
Check out the Tripawds Recovery Shopping List in case you missed anything (raised feeder bowls are very helpful). Also see our What to Expect articles to prepare yourself mentally and others in the family too.
We’re set to go to an out-of-state teaching hospital next week
Pawesome! Which one?
We’ll have to make some changes for sure
That's something we all do when our dog is diagnosed, and diet changes can be helpful. Just don't make any major moves until you decide if you're doing chemotherapy or not. Oncologists prefer that their patients don't have any major dietary changes during treatment, just in case side effects happen. If they do, they know it's the chemo and not the diet change. Our favorite book to guide diet changes is The Dog Cancer Survival Guide , you might want to check it out.
We hope this helps! Ask any questions you'd like and keep us posted on how he's doing (and you!).
1:29 pm
28 December 2022
Offline
Thanks for responding. I’ve read through what you linked to except the survival guide. I need to order the pdf of that and the other pdf shortly. The fastest place we could get in to is Kansas State. Private and the other teaching hospital, Iowa State, were farther out. Our vet is part of an animal hospital but not board certified and suggested the others. He made calls to all of them and I think that helped, at least with KSU. When I called they knew right away who I was and what I was calling for. They had it all set up. Our vets been great. Met with us at length and talked with us on the phone.
Hey Dave,
Looks like we are in similar situations and within general vicinity of each other 🙂 Max went to ISU for his jaw cancer surgery (5 years ago) and I spoke to both ISU and KSU for this amputation - however we have a really great orthopedic surgeon in my city and I prefer that over 3+ hr drive to either university hospital. Either are great options for surgery. I wish one was closer to me.
Since I am only 4 weeks in I can still name the things that were important (and already in all the docs you've read). I did most before this since Max has had some other issues with his hind legs (ACL, arthritis) but these are in my opinion crucial for large dog hind leg amputation.
- Cover all floor surfaces with something, an area rug or yoga mats. If Max steps ONE foot off the path he falls. As time goes on he gets better but we don't want to add injury to this situation. Jerry pointed out to me you can buy yoga mat in a roll and cut to your length. I got mine $5/each from 5 Below and not sure the cost difference but a roll would have been better since he can still manage to get one paw between the mats then slide.
- Non slip grip on stairs. <a href="