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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Hi everyone! This is my first post here, and I am still processing that my kitten will need an amputation, but I am ready to support him as best as I can!
He is about 9 months old and has been through a lot in his life already, from a stomach surgery to a dental surgery to now cancer. He was diagnosed with a sarcoma cancer through a biopsy. They are unsure what type of sarcoma but the leading prediction is osteosarcoma. We received the diagnosis earlier this week and were given two options: amputate the limb or euthanize. It has been a hard decision because we don't know the specific type of cancer or life expectancy, and the amputation through our animal hospital is $3800. My boyfriend and I have been going back and forth but today decided that we are going to amputate the limb instead of putting him down. While it is obvious that his paw is causing him pain (he has been limping/not using that paw), he is a very happy cat and with him being so young we feel pretty good about him adjusting to life with three legs as we continue to navigate this cancer.
The procedure is a week from today, and I have been reading blogs/posts on here, as well as watching YouTube videos. We want to support him as best as we can! We believe he will stay with the animal hospital for at least one night (maybe two) and he will receive medication. We have a cone in case he will need it, as well as a smaller space to keep him in when he gets home with his litter box, food/water bowls and bed.
I would love to hear any and all advice/tips that you wish you knew ahead of time. Also, do any of you have experience with sarcoma/osteosarcoma cancer in kittens? Did your kitten/cat need chemotherapy afterward and did you go through with the chemo?
Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!
Hi and welcome! Your future posts won't need to wait for approval so post away. I'm so sorry you had to join us though, your kitty is so young! What's his name? He sounds like a fighter, and has every chance in the world to bounce back from amputation. And as you know, cats do exceptionally well beating osteosarcoma, much more so than dogs.
You have done excellent homework! Have you also seen our e-book, Cool Tips for Tripawd Cats ? We have many great things like What to Expect articles and other suggestions about traction , raised feeders, and getting through recovery night.
I would love to hear any and all advice/tips that you wish you knew ahead of time.
Our biggest suggestion is to be very clear on what post-op pain medications your vet will prescribe, and for how long your cat will get them. The biggest obstacle we see to an easy recovery is poor pain management . Good pain control makes a huge difference!
Also, do any of you have experience with sarcoma/osteosarcoma cancer in kittens? Did your kitten/cat need chemotherapy afterward and did you go through with the chemo?
Here's a good forum topic to check out: https://tripawd.....in-cats/
and these Forum Search Results for osteosarcoma in cats: https://tripawd.....;include=2
Also check out Jill's Journey. It's one of the most comprehensive blogs about the osteosarcoma journey in a cat, and she did at-home metronomic chemotherapy too. Jill beat the odds and went out to live a great life, passing from something else entirely.
Is the vet who did the other surgeries on your kitty the same one who will do the amputation?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Your little kitty won the Kitty Lottery by fi di g such a .moving and caring home with you. What's the sweet boy's name??
We k ow ot was a hard decision on so many levels, but good for you for doing your research and moving forwa6 with amputation. We always say our dogs and cats do care about days on a cal6 and don't have a ti reframe stamped anywhere on their butts! They DO care about having a pain free quaility life for of loving and spoiling and that is exactly whatnyou are providing your kitty!
Recovery is no picnic for a couple of weeks. As Jerry said, pain mana is jmportant. You'll want to make the kitty litter box easily accessible.
Is this an overnight fully staffed clinic where he can spend the first night? That's ideal, but if not, you will want to take him home rather than leave him unattended overnight.
We are here right by your side, okay? And we can't wait to hear how his sparkle comes back bigger and br than before!! You've got this!!!!
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 to you both for your kind words. It has been a stressful week, and your words mean more to me than you know!! My kitten's name is Fuji. I am considering making him a blog or Instagram to document his recovery and will post it here if anyone wants to follow his journey!
I appreciate all the links and resources. I'm going to spend the next couple of days looking through everything. I am so glad to have found this incredible community with SO much information. It is incredible.
Good tip on keeping the litter box close! I will move things closer to his bed when we set up his stuff in a smaller space so it's easier for him to get around. Also I appreciate the information about pain management ! Something really important to keep in mind.
Is the vet who did the other surgeries on your kitty the same one who will do the amputation?
The vet who is doing the amputation is not the same one who has done the other procedures, but she is the one who did the biopsy. We are also incredibly lucky to have our regular vet by our side through everything. They have answered countless questions from us without any issues and have recommended vets in the area based on Fuji's condition at the time.
Is this an overnight fully staffed clinic where he can spend the first night?
Yes, it is! This was very important to us and luckily they are open 24-hours.
Aww the name Fuji is adorable! We do hope you'll start a Tripawds blog, Trikitty stories are so inspawrational 🙂
Sounds like everything is set and Fuji is getting the best care possible. If you have any questions at all just let us know.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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