Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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My name is Mozi and I had my right read leg amputated almost 4 weeks ago. I have been on pain killers the whole time and my mom hates giving them and has tried cutting back to almost none over that past 2 days. I had terrible phantom pain for a few days but that has gone away. Ihave wanted to walk a lot but mom has limited me. I started limping a few days ago, seemed like my front right leg or paw was hurting and mom figured it was due to my wanting to walk alot and maybe overdoing it. The last 2 days I am not hungry and the past 2 days have had a tough time standing and putting wieght on the front right paw. Is this a combination of the pain killers wearing off and my muscles being sore? I have not been hungry much since the begining of all this but the last 2 days not even interested, is that normal? Mom is always worried and I can't tell her how I feel so she is always guessing and hoping for the best....
Hi Mozi. Welcome to the forum
It is entirely possible that she has just overdone it and that is causing the front leg pain. They need to use their muscles differently now and it takes a while for them to build up strengthe for this. Radar (front leg amputee) pulled a rear leg tendon a couple weeks after surgery. The vet felt he may have over extended it trying to catch his balance. He limped and cried terribly until we started treating the pulled tendon. Also check Mozi's paw pads to see if they are sore and could be the source of the limping. I agree about limiting Mozi's activity. Rest is the best medicine.
As for the appetite - many dogs have had problems with appetite while on the pain meds. They can really mess up the stomach. There have been lots of great ideas posted in the forum about treats that might get Mozi to eat. Recently Jerry's fast was broken by some stinky cat food - you might try that, or you can mix eggs or gravy into Mozi's regular food and see if that is tempting.
We hope you are feeling better soon. Please keep us posted on Mozi's progress.
Hugs
Connie & Radar
Oh Mozi, we are so sorry to hear about your recovery difficulties. Have you seen your vet about them? You could just be sore from learning to use your front leg muscles in new ways, but that sorness, in combination with the appetite loss, would make my Mom just nervous enough to go to the vet if it were me feeling so bad. It's probably not a big deal, you're just needing more recovery time, but better safe than sorry, right?
Good luck. Please keep us posted OK?
Your friend,
Jerry
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
As Connie & Radar mentioned, some pain meds are terribly hard on a dog's stomach. There have been stories about the anti-inflammatories being especially bad. If I recall correctly, Jerry did very well on Metacam and I know my little miniature poodle, Blazer, handled Metacam very well, as well. Rimadyl is the one that's being talked about so much as being very hard on a dog's tummy. It would probably be best to talk to your vet and see what they think, especially with the other leg acting up. We will be praying for you that everything will be OK, Mozi. The recovery from this procedure is always hard, but the benefits are amazing. You hang in there, now! Love, Blazer, Kitty Kimber & Mom (Vicki)
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