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.
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I GOT A LITTLE MISTY EYED TOO!! The way you have recounted the ways Huckleberry is becoming more and more trusting and more and more loving touches my heart.
It is such a privilege to follow Huckleberry in this journey.
You and David are absolutely masterful in the way you work with Huckleberry and understand him. And Andy and Oscar are excellent teachers for Huck too! I just love reading about the way Huck is growing leaps and bounds!
We all learn so much as Huckleberry makes his conversion from "wild to tame"! Every animal deserves to know what love feels like
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!
Schmuckel, Kissy Face Bumpkins.... !!!??? 
REALLY Jackie?! I think even Huckleberry gave you a look on that one! 
You were that proud, I know! 😜
I am soooooo happy for you and David both! What a glorious gift your Prince gave you! I can well imagine how that made your heart feel so good! 
What a beautiful relationship you are growing together!
Andy and Oscar new that Huckleberry was coming, they’ve been ready for his arrival and are working as an excellent team, teaching Huckleberry how to live the life of Luxury! After all, the Egyptian cats had this figured out Centuries ago! 
I love that Hucklebery was hiding behind his box! He really was quite chuffed about his new found secret hideout! 😎
You save the snuggles for yourselves for a while, they’re pretty sacred! But lots of head rubs and sandpaper kisses to your incredible Pride! ❤️
Remember...“live in the moment!“ 
You deserved that Jackie what purrfect timing for Huckleberry, no magic, I don’t think the supplement would work that quick but don’t know either. I think it is just time & your patience, guidance and healing ! Oscar & Andy’s assistance, all of it falling into place, you will keep having those moments those are 🎁look how far he has come in such short time!
I agree Sally every animal deserves to know what love feels like, Huckleberry is just realizing how very lucky he is!
Enjoy the weekend with David, Huckleberry & the Pride Destress!
Hugs,
Holly & Purrkins❤️
Awwww... timing is SO everything. You guys are wonderful, thank you for your friendship. And I mean that sincerely.
Holly, my best friend gave me a St. Francis guardian before she passed. She was my entrance door into working with animals. My St. Francis is made out of clay. He is almost 20 years old, all cracked and chipped, and he sits in my garden by my fish. As soon as I saw that precious picture I thought of Connie. Thank you 🤗🤗
Yeah Hucks gave me the look😐 he's a tough guy, I dont care, I'm mama 😋 I can do what I want, lol in my dreams ,😂
I'm gonna try and get some good smoochie Huckle pictures.
Hugs ❤❤
Hugs,
Jackie, Bo, Andy, Oscar, Phoebe, and the coolest feral tripawd kitty Huckleberry 
Good morning!
Mr. Huckles was in great form yesterday after my day of running all over the place with appointments. When I went upstairs to see him this is what I walked in to.
So I had to video it:
Hugs,
Jackie, Bo, Andy, Oscar, Phoebe, and the coolest feral tripawd kitty Huckleberry
Huckleberry, you are so blomin’ handsome!!! You’re learning buddy... On TOP of is much better than INSIDE!!!
i have a VERY SLOW satellite speed this am, so I have to come back and watch the video later... thanks Jackie. These pictures of out Prince are heartwarming!
DANG! I lost half of my post, must have made a boo boo, said I didn't have permission and then it cut my post in half. Where was I? (I need more coffee)
While I was cleaning his "man cave" this is what my boy was doing.. Huckleberry used to run as soon as I started tearing apart his sacred space:
He didn't take off until I proceeded with the scraping of the cat box, lol.. that was just a little too much for him to bear close up. But instead of the normal panic, here he is now:
He has come so far. His surgical site is looking almost 100% healed, I will get another picture for anybody going through this for the first time so they can see the progress.
I forgot to mention that he let me rub his "bump" (I HATE the word stump) .. going to have to find a better nickname.. anyhow the first time it was quivering at first. I massaged it and his arms and the quivering stopped. I have gotten to massage it another time also and he is a little apprehensive at first but once my whole hand is on him he actually seems to enjoy it. I have not felt the quiver again either. The gabapentin came in, grrr.... finally. I think I am going to just hang with the Zylkene supplement for now. He seems to be doing well on it. You can purchase it on Amazon for the same price or a couple bucks less:
Vetoquinol Zylkene Calming Supplement 75mg (Amazon)
Vetoquinol Zylkene 75mg (Amazon UK)
Vetoquinol Zylkene 75mg (Amazon Canada)
I have set my smile.amazon.com to help Tripawds with every purchase I make 
SPEAKING of Gabapentin... Holly, was it you that mentioned weaning him off?? I have a printout of instructions that came from that pharmacy. I need to be able to put that somewhere here on the site for ALL to see. I think most of our doctors do not mention weaning off, Huck ran out three times, remember? OMC they can seize if you take them off of it cold turkey.. I am going to copy the page or type it out.. we NEED to share this for anybody using the drug. Veterinarians should be telling their clients this regardless of how small the chances are!
Big hugs, head butts, and kitty cuddles
Hugs,
Jackie, Bo, Andy, Oscar, Phoebe, and the coolest feral tripawd kitty Huckleberry
Hi Jackie and Huckleberry
Yes, Gabapentin is an Anti-seizure drug for humans. They are starting to use it for nerve pain and vet practices have started to discover the benefits to our amputees! BUT... THEY DONT WARN US PROPERLY ABOUT COMING OFF GABAPENTIN!!! IT CAN CAUSE SEIZURES WHEN TAKEN IN LARGE DOSES AND THEN STOPPED!
Thankfully (also unfortunately) I knew about the hazards as I was up to 1200mg per day! Talk about a walking zombie!!!
Huckleberry you are sooooo sweet for letting Mum massage ‘bump’! It feels so nice doesn’t it sweet prince?! And in the same breath, I see your scrappy ear.... you’re one tough boy!
Loving cuddles to you all!
Petra and her beautiful Clan!
I’m glad St.Francis brought Connie to mind! I do not believe that is any coincidence!
Old cracked & chipped makes it even more special!
I like the idea Huckleberry is on top of the crate he is feeling more secure and getting some height. Also might be trying to see who is Alpha kitty.
I have read several times that you are to taper off yes & I mentioned that to you in our PM. Does your print out have instructions to taper off? You can take a picture with your phone and load to your blog to post . Be easier then typing out the paper. Would be nice to have those instructions on the site!
We were not told to taper off Gabapentin, I do not know if it was because we were on it for a short time 14 days or lack of knowledge what? We did not taper off and we didn't have any issue. Again why? Not sure. Purrkins was on 100 mg every 8 hours.
We took Purrkins for acupuncture while he was still on his pain meds & Gabapentin. Our holistic Vet thought it would help Purrkins with all aspects of getting off pain meds and healing. It absolutely did. Could be why we didn't have issues?
Here are some links I could find on Gaba I’m sure others can be more specific on what to do if your going to start Huck on it again.
All About Gabapentin for Tripawd Dogs and Cats
There is a lot more info and links on the site I just gave you a couple 🙂 I did not want to overwhelm you!
Glad to hear & see things are going well
paws120 said
I have set my smile.amazon.com to help Tripawds with every purchase I make...
Thank you for your support! Every little bit helps.
Huckles has come a long way because of you Jackie (and David of course). He's learned about love, healing touch and companionship. His new siblings have taught him how to join the family and kitty rules.
It's been mentioned many times on the Tripawd site to wean the cats and dogs off the gabapentin. Some vets tell the patients but I think many don't. I understand it's important to taper off the dosage for long-term usage but not so much for short-term. Have a look at the topic http://tripawds.....abapentin/ where our vet expert Pam said there is no reason to taper off if the pet was on short-term other than to see if the phantom pain came back at lower dosages. I always wonder what is the definition of short-term?
It's always worth bringing it to people's attention and including your printout. That way everyone can decide what is best for their situation or they can discuss it with their vet.
Scratches for all the kitties,
Kerren and Tripawd Kitty Mona
Tripawds Foundation said
paws120 said
I have set my smile.amazon.com to help Tripawds......Every little bit helps.
Yes, thank you. 
Every little bit* does indeed help keep this community online!
*While purchases made via Amazon Smile do help, the commissions that the Smile program pays (0.5±%) are much smaller than those from the Amazon affiliate links (5-10±%) found throughout all the Tripawds Blogs . Go figure...
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I've read different things about tapering off of gabapentin, I did some research on it a few years ago because quad-pug Tani was on it for her arthritis and she also had epilepsy so I was worried about the implications for inducing seizures.
One of the things I read (of course I can't find it now!) is that when gaba is used for pain it is usually at relatively low doses so some vets don't think you need to taper off. When it is used for seizure control the dose is much higher and then tapering is required.
From my experience with several orthopedic surgeries as well as all the surgeries my pups have had it just makes sense to taper off any pain meds. For one thing you can judge if your pet is ready to do without the meds, or maybe can be comfortable at a lower dose. It's much easier to keep pain under control than to try and get it back under control when you stop meds too soon.
But- Huckster! You look awesome on top of the crate- the view is much better and it's easier for your staff to wait on you!
And how about 'nub'? Maggie had a little stump left from her rear amp with muscle covering it. I actually started calling it her saddle bag because of the way it hung down.
Karen and the Spirit Pug Girls
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
admin said
*While purchases made via Amazon Smile do help, the commissions that the Smile program pays (0.5±%) are much smaller than those from the Amazon affiliate links (5-10±%) found throughout all the Tripawds Blogs . Go figure...
We DID NOT know that
Whats the point of Amazon Smile thenSo search here, if we find it do not use Amazon Smile ?
Purrkins said
Whats the point of Amazon Smile then...
The Smile program provides the warm fuzzy feeling to Amazon customers that a (small) portion of proceeds from their purchases will be donated to an certified 501c3 nonprofit organization, like the Tripawds Foundation 501c3 public charity, for instance.
...if we find it do not use Amazon Smile ?
When shopping Amazon, please use whichever Amazon program you prefer. Any support is greatly appreciated! We will start another topic with more information and technical details for anyone interested.
The Gist: Amazon Smile purchases deliver 0.5-1±% proceeds directly to the Tripawds Foundation . Amazon affiliate links found throughout these sites provide 5-10±% of sales to Tripawds (.com).
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