Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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NOPE, not a coincidence! Petunia had a fantastic appointment and all the massages, etc loosened her up and restored some of her flexibility.
Everything the vet told you about the tight muscles, little bit of arthritis, some soreness, reduced hip extension Etc Etc makes perfectly good sense.
It sounds like you're really hit the lottery with this rehab special. She listened to you and she observed petunia and it seem to be very tuned into what she needed. And yes, we'd love to do all of the therapies that are offered but most of us just do a couple and go with those due to financial restraints. Don't feel like you have to do everything all at once. Right now, everything she did today seems to have made a positive difference. Don't be surprised if she's a little sore tomorrow and maybe needs to rest more. This had to be quite an exhausting day for her.
Hahaha I love that she was willing to jump into the carrier and say let's go home!
I can `hear` the excitement in your voice and how pleased you are with how well everything went today. We are just as pleased👍
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!
Thanks for the response Sally!!! That makes me happy that you can “hear” my excitement!
I am impressed with this place and what they offer, but also question the cost of this consultation. I don’t know what average consultation costs are and how long they are (mine was just under 2 hrs), but I am so glad they waived the acupuncture cost (which is annotated on the receipt) cause $280 for this consult seemed steep, so the acupuncture made it worth it. Jerry, maybe you might have a good idea of the costs for consultations?
Also, Jerry, I saw somewhere on the site that there might be a lack of insight of rehab for cats … if that’s still the case, I’ll be happy to provide as much info on Petunia’s experience. I feel like I failed a bit during the consult with videos cause I was just so into the conversations that were had, that I kept forgetting. But, since I plan to continue rehab, I am happy to document better. Is there anything that would really benefit that I can provide in the rehab testimony for Petunia that you would love to see? You all have helped me SO MUCH this last month that it’s the least I can do to provide more support to this AMAZING site!
The Tripawds foundation reimburses up to $200 for the first consult. I think that’s generally because that’s the cost of the first appointment. I think the first appointment is usually a little longer than an hour and then they run about an hour after that.
. FWIW I would think you could get by with once a week as opposed to twice a week. Or maybe do one more week with the two visits and then revert back to the one.Also, there are things that you should be able to do at home as far as some of the massaging stretching etc.
Jerry and others can chime in with more input
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!
I do know they cover up to $200. I am kinda curious if their rates of dogs vs cats are the same. I feel like dogs, who are mostly bigger than cats, would be more expensive. I might bring this concern up to them. It did kinda feel like she added acupuncture to fill up the time and perhaps justify the pricing. I don’t know though without a baseline. I’ve never brought a cat through rehab.
They way I think is do the appts close together over a few weeks to get the best results, instead of once a week that could take months to see progress because there is so much time between appts … if that makes sense.
feel like dogs, who are mostly bigger than cats, would be more expensive
Very valid point👍 It seems like there should be some distinction in the pricing between dogs and cats.
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!
Certainly looks like she’s relaxed and resting comfortably…… Until somebody woke her up!!!😉😉😉
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!
Haha, that last one definitely got her muscle to spasm, but she was super chill after it! And although she normally is a chill kitty, when she’s out of the home, there’s lots of exploring with meows and she wasn’t doing that during acupuncture.
What. a. GREAT. visit!!!! 
Wow sounds like you both got sooo much out of the rehab evaluation. You absolutely didn't fail at anything as far as documenting it, we appreciate anything you can share!
Can I ask the name of the practice? You can also feel free to put a write up in our Veterinary Specialists Forum too.
I am impressed with this place and what they offer, but also question the cost of this consultation.
Of course you are wondering, since you have no baseline for comparison. If it's any consolation, I have seen the prices for dogs and cats range from what you paid ($280) to as low as $125. We see a LOT of reimbursements go through the Foundation and what you paid is not out of the ordinary. Cost really depends on where you are located (cities on the west and east coast are the most costly), and what is involved in the visit and whether or not your visit is with a vet rehab specialist or the rehab technician team only. As you mentioned you got "free" acupuncture but essentially that was included in the price. Although it is on the high end, it really does sound like you got more than average as far as expertise and education.
I saw somewhere on the site that there might be a lack of insight of rehab for cats … if that’s still the case, I’ll be happy to provide as much info on Petunia’s experience.
You are correct! The field was started for dogs, and cats are slowly being incorporated into therapy centers. The more you share the more we learn so THANK YOU. You can even start a new topic in Hopping Around if you'd like, just to document the experience (Which I will probably turn into a blog post at some point to share with even more people).
I am kinda curious if their rates of dogs vs cats are the same. I feel like dogs, who are mostly bigger than cats, would be more expensive.
The hard costs like medication and supplies would generally be less when it comes to cats versus dogs, and the cost of pet parenting a cat is lower generally speaking. But when it comes to therapists, look at it like this; vets and vet techs don't go to rehab school for one species. They learn the whole gamut, and the cost for that education is the same. What you are paying for in a situation like a rehab therapy evaluation is the cost of having a specialist give you tools and insight that a general practice vet isn't able to do. So that expertise time and insight cost is the same no matter what the size or species.
I hope that makes sense.
They way I think is do the appts close together over a few weeks to get the best results, instead of once a week that could take months to see progress because there is so much time between appts … if that makes sense.
Absolutely! You nailed it!
Great job on getting her to the therapy center, and great job absorbing everything you learned. We can't wait to learn more along with you!
And she looks SOOOOO good in those videos! Glad that she's still progressing too.
Good insight Jerry. Thanks for elaborating.
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!
I was excited to get here and see how things went for Petunia YAAAAY,
Cold laser therapy has some contradictions, who you ask, it seems. Our Integrative Vet has said the same as your rehab did; according to him, the latest research suggests it is safe if it's not active c. Did you hear back from your Vet on that?
You will see benefits, and Petunia will enjoy her sessions and feel so much better. I can see in your typing and sound of this post the relief and hope you now have. YAY, information and tools are priceless. 👏🏻
Purrkins goes for acupuncture and chiropractic adjustments at an Integrative Vet, and as Jerry pointed out, there is no difference in cost per the type of animal at our practice. It's the same service and takes the same amount of time. Our recheck acupuncture costs 110, and recheck spinal manipulation is 60. It is more for your first visit as they take more time and evaluation. Purrkins goes every six weeks for tune-ups and sometimes every eight weeks, depending on what we find and how things are going. To give you an idea on those services for a cat in Michigan . Purrkins went every week for four weeks for acupuncture after his surgery then we went to what our Vet calls tune-ups 🙂
Good girl, Petunia, you did terrific. Who hooo! You show them who cats are, im so happy for you both that you could do this with the help of Tripawds. Im glad they confirmed a lot for you; it makes all the difference & explains all we are seeing.
Do you have exercises to do at home? Homework?
You are welcome and happy to share, and yes, keep the information for insurance. I can only speak for our cat hospital and the 360% difference it has been. We adore our Vet and the team. We liked our past Vet, but the care is NO. COMPARISON! I WISH we ALL had our Vet. She is a gem!
So HAPPY for you guys things will continue to get better and better.
Scatches to Petunia and Possum, please
Hugs
Purrkins said
Cold laser therapy has some contradictions, who you ask, it seems. Our Integrative Vet has said the same as your rehab did; according to him, the latest research suggests it is safe if it's not active c. Did you hear back from your Vet on that?
Ditto! That is what we have been told as well. Thanks for addressing it.
So I can’t believe it’s been a WEEK since I posted here!!! Life has been kinda busy. Tuni had her second rehab appt today since her consult. Monday they did 15 mins laser therapy and 15 mins massage, and today they did 15 mins laser and 15 mins therapeutic exercise. The exercises were SO HELPFUL! I plan to do a little everyday to help with her walking. She’s still struggling a lot, but I’m hopeful we will get where she needs to be. I have the full report from her consult, so I plan to submit my “essay” in the next few days.
Jerry, thank you for that insight! It makes a lot of sense with the pricing, especially location and certifications the specialists have. I needed to hear that the cost for this location isn’t too far fetched, and that you’ve seen a large range. The place I go to is called Companion Animal Rehab and Athletics in Westmont, IL. It’s a really nice place and the people there are SO NICE! I’ve always had the “ask a million questions” personality (I probably drove my Mom crazy when I was little 😂) cause I love to get the full picture of what’s going on, so I don’t think I’ve annoyed them too much. Haha! The consult was actually with a rehab specialist and a tech. The tech had a tripod kitty, so I loved hearing that. They are so sweet with my Petunia and not a minute goes by when they aren’t saying that to her.
Holly, that’s great that Purrkins gets tune-ups! He is a very lucky kitty! And thanks for sharing what you see on pricing! I actually saw that they offer spinal manipulation (at least something spinal), and I was curious if that would be good for Petunia.
All-in-all, after talking with the rehab specialist tonight, I’m feeling more at ease that this truly will take time, but Tuni will get where she needs to be! I think having some exercises I can do at home makes me hopeful!
This wasn’t her “best” repetition (this might have been her 3rd or 4th one), but essentially she was having Tuni stand up and walk forward from sitting on an elevated mat.
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