Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello everyone! I'll try to keep my story as short as possible! My boyfriend and I moved from Massachusetts to Southern California back in February, and we were lucky enough to adopt the sweetest, happiest Poodle/Havanese mix named Mona in May. The rescue believed that she was about two years old. About a month after we adopted her, we noticed Mona began limping and favoring her front left leg. After spending over $400 on X-Rays alone out here in California, we reached back out to the rescue for advice. They recommended a vet in Mexico that they use for all of their dogs - Vet Playas Veterinarian Clinic. I was obviously hesitant, so I asked people in the area about the vet and did plenty of research. Almost all of the feedback was positive, and the price difference between doing the surgery in California versus in Mexico is really what convinced us to give it a shot.
Neither my boyfriend nor I have our passports, so we have been lucky enough to have someone from the rescue work with us in transporting Mona to the vet. She has been there since Saturday (which breaks my heart because I cannot imagine what she must be thinking while she is staying there), and they have done various X-rays and tests since then. They determined that she has bone cancer, but luckily, it has not spread to her chest. I was told that amputating her leg is the best solution for getting rid of the cancer. I quickly agreed, and I believe she is getting her surgery done tomorrow.
Unfortunately, my boyfriend is away on a business trip, and we do not have any family or friends on the West Coast to help us out. I will be caring for Mona by myself for the first few days and am extremely nervous about what to expect. She was in a lot of pain before she left for her "vacation" to Mexico, so I am hoping that there will be a sense of relief once the leg is amputated. Just wondering if anyone has any tips or advice on what to expect the first few days post-op. Thanks!
Welcome to your new familq! YOU ARE NOT ALONE, okay? We are here eith you every step of the way!!
So STAY CONNECTED tonis! We also jave a TRIPAWDS HELPLINE. ( 844) TRIPAWDS for support.
Thos will be a lottle short right now, but just to give yiu some reassurance about what you can expect, okay?
Usually Vets keep dogs overnight if it's a 24'hr clinic. Mona should be sent home with Tramadol, Rimadyl and Gabapentin, as well as an a antibiotic. Recovery is no picnic for about two weeks! 'It is major surgery and it hurts!! Sometimes it takes a bit of tweaking to get the pain med doses and spacing just right.
The first two weeks, especially the first week...rest, rest, rest! Short leashed potty breaks then more rest! No jumping, no stairs. Non slip scatter rugs if you have hardwood floors.
Mk a may not feel like eating much at first and she may not poop for a few days...all normal. Drinking and peeing are imlrortant though.
She WILL feel better with that painful leg gone....it's just that the surgery will be a bit painful at first sonyiu won't see her relief right at first.
And YAY and lung xrays are clear!! The main reason for amputation is to remove the pai ful ket and give the dogs and cats their quality back! Thisnis a nsaty disease vut no dogs have a timeframe stamped on their vutts!!
The most important thing is to make every day count!! SPOIL AND LOVE AND SPOIL AND LOVE and stsy fully present with Mona!!
I DO hope the rescuenis helping with the expense. You've had her such a short time! Im sooooo glad she has such a loving forever home!! You are her HERO....and we love human heroes around bere!!
Whe. You go to pick Mona up, just ig ore her incision! 'She will be soooo bappy to know she's going HOME and not being left at a shelter!! Be a strong and confident pakmleader and that will help here heal.
Just wanted to give you a quick dose of reassurance that we are here and can help you and Mina through this! Grab some CHOCOLATE and stay connected!!!! And we would @ooooove to have pictures of sweet Mona! 🙂 She sou ds ADORABLE!! 🙂
Lots of 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!
Thank you so much for your post! I've been really nervous thinking about having to take her home and care for her alone for the first few days. However, it's been very reassuring getting some insight on what I should be expecting. I'm definitely going to go out today and buy some rugs to cover up our hardwood floors. It's also good to know that she might not eat or poop at first; I'm sure I would be freaking out wondering what's wrong without that tip! We have only had Mona for a short two months, but we love her so much and want to do anything we can to make sure she is happy, healthy, and comfortable. She should be getting her surgery done today, and all I can do is hope that everything goes smoothly!
Here are some pictures of our sweet Mona! In the last one you can really see the bump on her front left leg. Hopefully she will be happy and playing again soon enough once she recovers from her surgery!
Awe hugs to both you and Mona! We'll be standing by once you get her home so lean on us and if you have questions we'll be right here ready to help you! Will be keeping Miss Mona in my thoughts and prayers on surgery day!
Hi and welcome. Thanks for registering as a member, your future posts won't require approval so post away. Here's a post about adding images to the Forums. Please let us know if you'd like assistance, we'd love to see your girl.
Sally's suggestions are spot on. Two other recommendations.
1) Have an emergency vet clinic number ready just in case. Hopefully you won't need it but if you haven't already set up a relationship with a vet for her in SoCal, you should at least know who you can call should you need help at 3 am. Most times people don't, so don't panic with this tip OK?
2) Please make sure she comes home with at the very least, Tramadol, a NSAID like Rimadyl or Metacam, and Gabapentin. It's been my experience that vet clinics in Mexico skimp on pain medication. If you need help communicating this to the clinic, ask the rescue that told you to go there.
My last recommendation is to read Jerry's Required Reading List , we have lots of post-op tips there too.
We're sending you our best for a speedy recovery! Keep us posted OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Yoga mats are also great for slippery floors! You also will probably need to ice the incision area a few times a day if swelling starts. I did about 15 minutes 3x per day for 3-4 days and it went down significantly when I brought my tripawd home. I just used a regular hot/cold pack and would lie down with her and gently rest the pack on the incision area. Make sure to wrap it in a towel to avoid direct contact, and just hold it in place, don't put pressure on it. This covered most of the incision but there was part of it that came up by her tail that was harder to ice. We found that freezing a clean damp washcloth worked great for that area since it was easily shaped to fit around that area.
i bought a few baby gates to keep her confined to one floor of the house and really decluttered the areas she would be in so she would have as much of a clear path as possible. This was also nice because the cone gets in the way a lot.
Making sure you have enough pain meds is important! Also, weening them off when the time is right is also key as they can crash if you were giving a high does and then stop completely. Basically they act like they are depressed 🙁
Another helpful thing was texting pictures of the incision area to my vet. I did this when the swelling started and he was able to tell me it looked fine and just needed to be iced. That was very helpful not having to load her in the car and take her to the vet a few days after her surgery and putting her through the stress.
Good luck and keep the questions and progress coming on how you both are doing! In the end you won't regret it, I know that since my Doxie became a tripawd and going through all of this together has made us even closer and I didn't really think that was possible. So again this will be great bonding time for both of you and stay strong, there will be tough days and days you question if you should have done it but it will be worth it!
Doxie the Italian Mastiff lost her right rear leg to osteosarcoma on 3/9/2017 and has been hopping happily since!
Thank you all so much for your posts!! Her surgery was today, and they said it was a success! She will be spending a night at the vet and will be able to come home tomorrow. I am still waiting to hear back regarding what medications she will be taking once she is home, but thank you for the advice on which ones I should ask for! I will keep that in mind. I also went out today and purchased two more area rugs! I never thought of that being a problem, so thank you for the tip. I am so relieved that her surgery went well and am looking forward to having her home soon! 
That's awesome news! Keep us posted, we're thinking of you and sending lots of healing thoughts.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
YAAAAAAAAAY!!! SURGERY IS DONE!!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Now and try and get some rest tonight! It may be a few rough sleepless nights ahead!
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!
Not sure if this is good or bad news, but Mona is actually staying at the vet until Monday! They wanted to keep her an extra night, but finding someone to pick her up in Mexico over the weekend was pretty impossible. I guess I can have peace of mind knowing that she is in good hands, and if any issues may arise, she is in the best place to get help. I do get teary eyed every time I think about what might be going through her head and how confused she must be 
I miss her like crazy, but I'm glad she is in good hands. Another pro is that my boyfriend will be back when Mona comes home! Yay! I'm looking forward to having someone with me to care for her when she finally comes home. I'll keep you guys updated!!
Glad to hear things are going along well. The first few days after surgery are tough, so it's probably not a bad thing for Mona to be where she can have the best pain management and care. I brought my girl Izzy home the same day as her surgery (the only way I could afford to do it) and can tell you that, even though we survived, it was no picnic.
Mona might be a bit wobbly at first, and not just because of the adjustment to three legs. The pain meds are no joke and very much needed, but she may stumble some. Izzy fell DIRECTLY ON HER INCISION more than once ... I nearly had a heart attack ... but she got right back up and kept going. She is a front amp too, so I've been down this very road.
Izzy wore a t-shirt during recovery, which kept her incision a bit protected from dirt and human eyes. The incision and sutures are a bit Frankenpup like, and my fiance and his son were in my house at that point ... boys are big babies, so we kept it covered. haha
You've gotten LOTS of good pointers here to far. I would suggest staggering pain meds so they aren't all wearing off at the same time. Other than that, I think most of the basics have been covered!! You'll have tons of questions ... we'll be here to answer.
Good luck and keep us in the loop!
Amy (& Izzy, too)
Momma to the world's most beautiful American Bulldog, Izzy!! Lost her front leg to OSA 9/18/15. Diagnosed w MCT in June 2016. Celebrated her 1 year ampuversary with knee surgery on 9/18/16! MCT recurrence in Dec 2016. Happy & hungry til nearly 14, earning her wings on 7/31/17.
Mk a is pretty heavily drigged, so she's probably not to worried where she's spending the night! She just kniws there are a few pink elephants flying around in her head!
That's good that there will ve two of you to help care for her when she comes home. You can each rotate nap times!
She is gping to be soooo much happier with that leg gone! 🙂
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!
Thank you guys for the advice and kind words! Putting a T-shirt on her actually sounds like a great way to protect the incision. Did you just use one of your T-shirts or one fitted for a dog? Thanks for the recommendation of staggering the pain meds as well!!
Any old t-shirt will do the trick!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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