A few of my tripawd friends’ parents have written to me, asking me if I’ve ever acted like my missing leg was still there.
For an updated version of this topic, please see:
Best Pain Relief Tips for Tripawd Dogs and Cats
They call this “Phantom Limb Pain” in humans. For dogs, this means that a dog may start licking their missing leg area like crazy, or maybe have lots of muscle twitching.
Calpurnia, my new tripod friend, has a great human named TC, who has written a wonderful paper about Phantom Limb Pain. TC writes about the way she has treated Calpurnia’s pain, and also sent in news about a new harness that was made just for this beautiful snow bunny (uh, I mean dog).
Dowload PDF: Phantom Limb Pain in Dogs Post Amputation
Hi! I just adopted a one year tripawd rescue a month ago. I don’t think she has pain where her right rear amputated leg is because she has never yelped, barked, or nipped at it, but rather she twitches her stump all the time. She will stop what she’s doing, round her spine as if she is going to poo, move her head so that it’s close to the amputated area, then wiggles the leftover muscle back and forth. When I scratch the right side of her body (ear/shoulder), she will wiggle her muscle like crazy.
I haven’t found anything online describing this behavior. I don’t think she’s in pain. I think she’s just got an itch that her phantom foot can’t scratch. But she doesn’t go up to objects to scratch that side of body, she’ll just be standing in the middle of the room in a curled pose wiggling her nub. Since it’s so often, I want to make sure I’m not ignoring any discomfort that could be treated.
Thank you for your help!
Sure sounds like phantom limb pain symptoms. Review some of the many links above for helpful tips, or check out all our phantom pain posts.
Hey! My four year old dog does a similar thing and will especially twitch when I scratch the right spot on her neck/ear/back. It’s possible they might need some help with scratches!
My foster dog (2 or 3 year old island dog) came to be with me in mid September. In July, she had a right hind amputation (and her owner didn’t want her back). I live on a boat, and she’s been adapting wonderfully. Better than most 4 legged dogs! However, in October we had a day of “episodes”. By “episode”, I mean she screams/yelps for a few seconds intensely (it sounds like she’s dying), and tries to “get away” from (??) basically nothing. Nothing is touching her when these episodes hit. She’s usually resting, but not asleep. She then looks distressed, doesn’t want cuddles, and doesn’t offer kisses (very unlike her). She never licks or points towards her amputated limb (or anything else). So, the day in October, she had like 4 episodes in a day. For 24 hours after that, she slept on our bed, looking depressed. Then, she was fine. Now, today (12/4/20), she had one more completely random episode. I called her back to our bed, and she climbed onto it by herself and wedged herself between our pillows. She spent the rest of the day there and only came down to get her dinner. She’s giving me kisses again, but she’s not her happy, tail wagging self. I have no idea if this is phantom limb pain or not, but I’m starting to think it could be.
Nik it absolutely does sound like phantom pain. I’m so sorry. Please post in our Discussion Forums so we can better help you and even locate a pain specialist if you’d like help. Your pup is lucky to have you!
Aloha, my four year old Pomeranian sheltie mix had his tail amputated just over a month ago. He has been obsessed with licking it. We have tried several types of cones and tubes And he finds a way. Currently the one he has is working to keep him from it but the second I take it off for him to eat, he sneaks in licks/nibbles again and it is back to raw bleeding skin. I don’t know what to do.. the next step would be numbing the nerves with the vet and I’m trying to avoid that! Any help is greatly appreciated!
Flora, that definitely sounds like untreated pain, and hopefully it’s very treatable. Have you received a second opinion from a pain management specialist? Please reach out to a vet credentialed with the IVAPM and have them assess your pom before you do anything else. Good luck and keep us posted!
Hi Flora. My dog is the same, he had his tail amputated in June this year following an infection. All he does now is “chase his tail” and will spin and spin until we have to calm him down (which takes a long time and he doesnt stay calm for long) he has a neck brace to stop him getting at it but we are concerned for his wellbeing as all he does is spin around. Any advice would be much appreciated.
Hi Leah. We are so sorry about your dog. Any time a body part is amputated there is a risk of phantom pain. I would recommend searching for a veterinarian pain specialist who can do dry needling acupuncture, which is one of the most helpful ways to decrease the pain and stop it from happening. If you’d like help finding one let us know, otherwise search the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management for a provider near you.
My puppy is about to get her stitches in two days, she has been doing really well and has been going longer without her meds. Here today she was sleeping and out of nowhere jumped up yelping. She calmed down and even though she wasn’t due for her pain pill for 30 more minutes I went ahead and gave it to her. Is this phantom pain or could it be something else?
Sudden outbursts are a common sign of phantom limb pain. Check this post, and many others here for lots of helpful care tips.
Hello, I am writing to find answers for my dog. She had an amputation almost two years ago, and as of about 3 weeks ago she started having some episodes. And what I mean by episodes is, she will all of the sudden start to have a high pitched whine and whimper and yelp. She cannot get comfortable she is up and down and back and forth. She wants to crawl up in my lap and she tries to bite her missing limb. She holds up her nub and it just shakes uncontrollably.
I was told that phantom pain is un-treatable, I refuse to believe that.
Please help.
Cami
Cami you are correct. There are MANY things you can do to eliminate phantom pain in Tripawds. See Dr. Petty’s blog post. Then make an appointment with a certified rehab therapist and the Tripawds Foundation will even pay for your first visit if the clinic qualifies. Best wishes to you and your pup. Come to the Forums where you can get lots of support from folks that get it.
Hello. My yellow lab had his leg amputated Thanksgiving 2017 due to being caught in a coyote trap. He is having the same issues. Was only at night, but now all the time. High pitch scream, yelp and whining. I Call the vet and they said there was nothing they could do a I’m at a loss I just don’t want him to hurt.
There is plenty you can do! Start by seeking a second opinion from a vet who understands the facts behind phantom pain. You will also find many more helpful articles, podcasts and veterinarian interview videos about how to identify and treat pain in pets, and much more by searching all Tripawds blogs and forums and/or downloading the Tripawds e-books. Don’t miss the many other helpful pain management articles and feel free to call the toll-free Helpline anytime. Start here for help finding the many Tripawds Resources.
Hi there,
I have a 6 year old Pomeranian that I rescued a year ago in February of 2015. He needed to have his back left limb amputated, which we had done a week after I adopted him (figured he would be happier to recover at my puppy free house rather than the foster home he was currently staying, where there was ton of pups). He did very well after surgery, except for when I walked him outside, he was not happy with me; I think it was because he still had his stiches. Anyways, it’s over a year later after his surgery and every once in a while he does what I can only describe as, “pterodactyl calls” for a cry…if I would habe to guess I think it’s due to phamtom pain syndrome. Since it is his back leg that was amputated I think it would be difficult for me to find cloths to wrap around him, but when he’s hanging out I wrap him up in his warm blankets and always rub his stump. Are there any specific message techniques that you could recommend I should use while he is having one of his episodes?
Thank you,
Erica
Hi Erica, glad to hear your dog is doing well otherwise. It does sound like he’s having some kind of pain. We recommend a visit with a certified rehab therapist to assess his pain levels and demonstrate things you can do to help. A therapist can also alleviate pain with things like dry needling acupuncture and gentle massage. In the meantime see this Tripawds information about pain management.
My 10 month old pup had an amputation 12 days ago. She was doing great the first 4 days. Then she started hiding in the closets. It’s progressed to shrill screams and cries. I’ve taken her to the vet twice since her surgery. She was on Onsior and tramadol. The Onsior is now changed to Robaxin. She isn’t esting much but drinking suffiently.
I called the vet emergency services just now and she’s increased her tramadol to 3 times a day. She wants to admit her tomorrow to get her ?pain under control if she doesn’t improve. I’m at 4500.00 vet bill. In addition to 168.00 from two days ago. Any advice ?
Advice? Yes, lots! Ask about Gabapentin. Seek a second opinion. Consider using Farabloc. See these posts about pain management. Best wishes for your pup!
Hi. I just adopted a 1.5 year old German Shepherd mix that had a fractured scapula. Intra-op, the nerves were too damaged so they amputated the limb. She did great for the first three days but after that, she is intermittently yelping and whining. It has now been two weeks since her surgery but the episodes have not resolved. She has been on Gabapentin for about a week now. It seems to help but she is still in pain. I am going to try and start exercising her now that her incision has healed, I would also like to try the wrap. Does anyone have any experience with trying Acupuncture for this situation?
Best wishes for your pup Claudia! Please post in the forums for much more feedback than you will receive in comments here. Don’t miss these tips for managing phantom limb pain in dogs and consider downloading Loving Life on Three Legs for lots of professional tips and recommendations and how-to videos about exercises, stretching and massage for Tripawds.
I am unable to open the link can you help..
Hi Tracy,
I’m so sorry you are having trouble. It’s a PDF download and opens for me on my laptop. Drop us a line and we’ll try to figure out what’s going on.
Hi
I have a 4 year old pappilon dog that I adopted 3 years ago (shortly after amputation of one of her front legs) for the past 18 months she has been on gabapentin for what I think is phantom limb pain, but is it normal to go on so long term? She starts to pant/shake and frantically lick the amputation site and can sometimes yelp and scream (can last a few minutes and up to an hour on and off). The vet had checked the site and there’s nothing wrong there and agreed its phantom limb. The gabapentin had certainly made a vast improvement in this, but it seems to be getting more regular again. Any advice please?
Lynzi
Thanks for asking. You will likely get much more feedback by posting in the forums where many more members will see your question.
We have heard of dogs being on Gabapentin for more than a year, but we are not veterinarians. Please consult your vet with medical concerns.
I will be speaking with the vet, just wondered if anyone had any other advice/similar issues.
It’s just awful when it happens and there’s little/nothing I can do to help. Although, because she’s tiny, picking her up seems to help.
Thanks
My coon hound Bogart is 7 years old and he started chewing on his tail several months ago. He had been to the vet and they found no problems with his skin or any parasitic issues. He was put in an elizabethan collar but still managed to chew the last third of his tail to the bone.He had his tail amputated and now has a tail like a Boxer. His tail healed and he has been in the cone for about 2 months now. I have been unsuccessful at letting him be out of the cone as he will go right back to chewing his tail. He has reopened his wound on 2 occasions. He is going crazy with spinning, barking and yelping at his tail. I have restarted him on pain medications and they helped a little initially but are not working now. I do not know if your group has any experience with tail issues! I am going to call my vet and see if I can get Bogart started on Gapapentin or a similar medication.
You may want to search the forums Kathryn, we have had members discuss tail amputations. It sounds, however, like Bogart’s issues are more behavioral than physical. Please consider consulting with a certified animal behaviorist.
My dog had a rear leg amputated but I had a similar problem. She wanted to chew at it every chance she got. I gave her Benadryl. 1 capsule per 50 lbs. If he is itching, this will help.
Hi Everyone!
So I believe I just decided that my boy Nesta is having phantom leg pain, poor fella. When he is lying down, all a sudden he will jump up and out of his bed or wherever he happens to be and run away only to find another place to lay right back down. He seems pretty agitated when he jumps up, like something scared him or was bothering him. This is something he started doing about a month ago, which was about one month after he had his leg amputated. My boyfriend and I decided phantom leg pain is what he is experiencing. I’m so glad I checked Tripawds, because now I see this is common. Thanks for posting the tips and the article on phantom pain. I can’t imagine how this must feel to him, and I’m glad I’m aware of it now so I can start helping him the best way I know how.
Tripawds is so awesome, whenever I Google search a dog-related question, and Tripawds pops up, I feel a sense of calm and relief wash over me – You guys remind me that everything is going to be okay!
Thanks for the kind comments! Don’t miss Dr. Pam’s video discussing phantom pain and other common post amputation complications too.
My 2 yr. old dog had to have a rear leg amuutated 1 year ago after she was hit by a car. Now, for some strange reason, she is terrified of thunderstorms. We had a mild fall & winter & a very dry spring. Her leg, phantom pains? is all I can come up with. Any ideas?
Carolyn, we’re not vets but usually phantom limb pain presents itself shortly after surgery. Have you talked to a behaviorist about this? I would look into thunderstorm phobia in dogs (it’s pretty common) and our behaviorist/trainer friends at MySmartPuppy.com may also be able to help. Good luck!
I’ll look into thunderstorm phobia but I’ve had dogs who were scared of thunderstorms before. This dog is tough. She let out a little yelp when she was hit & not a sound after that. No yelping, moaning, etc. She may have had phantom pains all along but I couldn’t tell. Thanks.
I’m so glad I found this site! I recently adopted a tripawd Chihuahua named Lt. Dan from my vet. He was brought in as a stray with an untreated broken leg and the doctors were unable to save it. Poor little guy is only 8-10 months old. He’s had several “screaming” episodes, usually when he gets up and the worst one was yesterday. Fortunately, my vet has prescribed gabapentin for him so hopefully he won’t have any more pain.
Hi everyone,
I’m posting here because I’m extremely frustrated right now. For the past 24 hours-ish, Lucky’s been having the same “screaming” episodes that people are describing on tripawds forums. I’ve been trying to get his doctors to prescribe him gabapentin, but none of the specialists are in on weekends and the ER docs who are at the hospitals refuse to prescribe it for him because they don’t know about phantom limb pain in dogs. As you all know, watching Lucky have these episodes is excruciating, and I am really hoping to be able to find someone to prescribe him gabapentin today. We are in San Diego. Does anybody have any recommendations for good places in San Diego that have experience with this and will prescribe gabapentin?
Thank you so much!
Sorry to hear about the issues you’re having getting a prescription for Lucky.
Get in touch with the wonderful folks at Veterinary Cancer Group. They have a facility in San Diego, and you can watch the video interviews from our tour of VCG in Orange County in the Tripawds News Blog. Thanks for asking and good luck! Please post in the forums for more advice or suggestions from others.
My 10 year old greyhound/lurcher had his front leg amputated 4 weeks ago for osteosarcoma and had his first dose of chemotherapy (carboplatin) 2 weeks ago and things were going well (although his appetite has decreased, he is now excercising well ) but about 4 days ago he yellped loudly as if in pain and shot out of the room, this has happened regularly since ( about between 2-4 times a day and for no apparent reason) we took him to a vet who checked him out and could find no obvious cause – we are now wondering wether this could be phantom pain even thogh it has started nearly 4 weeks post surgery and would love some advise eg gabapentin ? etc etc
thank you
Exactly how much exercise is he getting? Four weeks is still very early for him to be doing too much. It does sound like it could be phantom pain which can present itself for up to a couple months, it’s rare but we’ve heard of it happening. Gabapentin has proven to be very effective, as are the other tips in the download available in this post.
Thanks for asking and est wishes. You’ll get much more advice from many others in the discussion forums!
my dog had amputation of front limb just last wenesday,and after the doctor took off her bandage yesterday she’s been crying when her muscle on amputated limb is twitching,very often(every 15 min) pleace tell me what i can do for her…
Anna, we’re so sorry. I know that it’s hard to cope with, but things will get better. There are lots of great suggestions for helping dogs to feel better when they’re experiencing phantom leg pain after amputation. Come over to the Discussion Forums and search for “phantom pain,” you will find tons of suggestions there (asking your doc to prescribe Gabapentin is a good start). Good luck, hope to see you there.
Dozer had phantom limb pain to the extent that he had to take tramadol for a time. It was then replaced by Proxicam, an analgesic which has anti-cancer properties. He’s to stay on the Proxicam (for bone cancer) so we may not know when the phantom limb pain subsides. Bone cancer dog owners may want to ask their vets about Proxicam.
Calpurnia has celebrated her two year ampuversary! Check out her latest guest blog post from 11/04/09, “Three Paws, Two Years, No Problem!”
Vanessa, you are a saint for saving that puppy. Thank you so much for being such a great human. We’d love to hear more about him; drop us a line in the forums and share his story when you can. Tripawds rule!
I rescued a puppy that was only a couple of weeks old off the side of the road.
his back leg was so badly broken and infected that we had to amputate it.
I am proud to report that he is doing fabulous months later.
Julie, have you talked to the vet about it?
I nursed a little dog that had just had her right leg amputated.The first week was pretty bad but she has healed so well. It has been 1 month and she often will cry out in pain. I find that if I hold her chest wall when she cries it seems to help her. i will often try to take her mind off of it by talking her through it. I hope this pain will subside for her as it is so difficult to listen to her yelping in pain
Julie,
Our dog had his right front leg amputated on Monday, June 21 2010 and is having phantom pain. It is the hardest thing to watch and hear. I will try your suggestions. Please share more. We both need lots of support.
Thanks, Kim
After reading more about Phantom pain, I learned that distraction, pressure, and heat can be very helpful. How long on average can this last after the surgery?
Kim, it really depends on the dog, but most aren’t affected by it after a few weeks. It hasn’t been very long for your pup (although I know it seems like a million years). Hang in there, it’ll pass. Good luck.
Jerry,
Thank you for your quick reply. My vet forwarded your web page to me. I appreciate all the information. I will work on updating my blog after I figure out how to. Plus I would like to help donate so when things calm down you can count on a donation from me. Thank you for your hard work and amazing information.
Kim
Every dog is different, some never experience phantom pain at all. Others, off and on, but we’ve never heard of it lasting more than a few weeks. Ask in the forums for much more feedback from others and be sure to check out Jerry’s review for Bella’s hot/cold pain pack for dogs.
PS: If you need help getting started with your blog, review the tutorial videos on the help page, or search/ask in the Tech Support forum.
That’s great TC. If you can make a movie of Cali in action, post it to the Tripawds YouTube Page! Or send it to us and we will.
The new harness is working great and Cali is getting the hang of things to the point where we (TC and Cali) are going to enter a Canicross race next weekend. Canicross is human running, canine pulling in harness. Definately the weak link is the human in this case. But we are excited to show off what a tripod can do to all the folks who will be at the race – running and spectating!!
Hi, I would love more info on the harness (or any info, tips and advice) that you had made for Cali. i have a 6 month old siberian husky that just went through a right front amputation due to trauma (dog bite). As we have 9 other siberians, i know he cant wear the regular harness.
Hi Eros, you can PM Calpurnia’s Mom TC via the Forums, she’s so helpful & generous with info, she can tell you more about that particular harness. Meanwhile are you sure he can’t wear the Webmaster? We’ve only met one or two small dogs who can’t because they have odd body types, but I’m pretty sure that your dog will be able to. Check out:
http://gear.tripawds.com/shop/#harness
So sorry about the amputation. We are here to help however we can so hop on over to the Forums, we’re waiting. Good luck to you both.
I have phantom sensation quite alot, and sometimes pain too. When I get the “bug” as Sasha calls it, she distracts me by running ahead of me, and then I forget it. When I do get cramps, we use a puppy heat pad, but please don’t tell anyone I use puppy accessories. Massage helps alot too. Dreaming about Jerry helps too…
Please keep us posted on how Calpurnia is doing with eliminating the phantom pain. Very interesting article….. if I go through this after my surgery, my mom shouldn’t freak out. (She loves me soooo much that sometimes I worry about how much she can worry!) From one dog to another ….your mom rocks with the help she’s given my mom and for writing this article!! Keep it Cool, Cali girl!! ~ Eisen
Our friend Tacoma’s Dad, Glenn, recently mentioned this about post-op wound management:
———————
“No one wrote any books for providing care for our 3 legged friends during their recovery from surgery. If anyone has experience, this is the place to post them.
Here’s a hint for post op management:
Take a old Baseball 3/4 length sleeve shirt and cut off one sleeve. then cut it up the side, all the way to the neck.
Take your tripawd’s remaining leg and put it thru the remaining sleeve, then wrap the rest of the shirt around your buddy’s body. Secure with baby diaper safety pins.
This keeps your friend from messing with his/her stitches or wound.
Tacoma had some pretty bad bedsores and the sleeve kept him from developing a major hotspot on his other front leg.
This worked great on a front leg amputation, don’t know how it would work on a back leg.”