Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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He ate pretty well tonight. 1/2 English muffin with peanut butter ( it is funny the lengths I will go to to get some food any food into his tummy.) he ate 3 hamburgers small ones and drank 1/2 can of puppy goats milk. Someone on her suggested the goat milk and I will be getting some more. I still have to hand feed him but... He is panting when he goes out but I feel he is out of shape from laying around. The vet is leaving meds the same until blood panel comes back. All of his regular bloodwork was put perfect. He is on 2 pretty potent antibiotics , Doxycycline and zeaglin. We dropped his Rymadyl down a bit. I am thinking ironically that it is the carafate. He lays around for hours with jello like drool running from his mouth. I am thinking of skipping it tomorrow just to see what happens. He also seems to have a swelling, kind of like a fluid buildup on his amp. Shoulder. Feels about baseball size. I first noticed it while he was in hospital. Maybe where all the IV fluids went. He never had any swelling post op. It does not seem onto hurt him. I mentioned it while we were visiting him in hospital but no one seemed too worried. I of course am envisioning it growing into his throat and choking him. I don't think it is another tumor, as it had to be there 5 days ago when he had all of his scans. Does anyone else see.this on their tripaweds. Maybe I don't really know what it should look like. Worry,worry,worry. He took my shoe tonight:
TY GUY, Best Black Lab ever! Diagnosed and had amp in January, 2014. Kicked MRSA's butt. Earned his angel wings on April 16, 2014. Run Free my boy and don't forget a shoe. Ty is a proud member of the " April Angels". Ty sent us Daryl, a Tripawd rescue in Sept. of 2016. Daryl is 5 +or -. We are also Pawrents to Chandler, a Border Collie mix who is 15 and 1/2, Lucy, a Corgi who is 7, 2 minis, 2 horses, and a feisty cat named Zoe. Zoe had a non skeletal Osteosarcoma removed in July 2015. No Chemo, she was at least 16. She is going strong although she is now completely blind. She is now close to 20 and her hobbies are eating and sleeping in front of her personal heater.
Gosh, ditto what everyone else has said. And one huge ditto...Ty IS improving!! He's earng some...he's showing bits f perkiness...that IS improvemdnt.
AND HE TOOK YOUR SHOE!! That is a big YAAAAAY improvement!
zeverytime yo remindnus it's only been five weeks...compound that with everything he's been through now, as well as prior to surgery...OMD! Humans would still be in the hospital probably being force fed because they'd feel so lousy!!
Bonnie asked a great question...is it possible that steroid was taintedZ?? Get in toich with the vet who origially gave Ty the injection and see what you can find out.
And I REALY thinkyou've hit the nail n the head with the meds. The sooner you can get him off, the better I think he will feel.
Dn't know about the fluid build up...but MAKE the vet give you an answerZ! Everthing with Ty needs to be checked out now and dots need to be connected.
And know sill goose.....kt's not gong to grow and choke him!!
There is room for optimism tonight. Step into that feeling and try and relax some. Ty IS improving! And YOU are an incredibly strong and brave woman! What a wonderful advocate for Ty!! Keep fighting..he is!z,
Love and hugs!
Sally and Happy Hannah
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!
He took your shoe!!!! That is grounds for a celebration all on it's own 
Ty is eating.....drinking and taking shoes....sounds like he is on the road to recovery.
Ty has had a rough time with lots of ups and downs in his recovery....but I see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Give him lots of tummy rubs - keep feeding him whatever he will tolerate - and as Sally often says - don't forget to treat yourself too.
Keep posting - we are all here for you.
Linda and Tucker
Does the swelling feel hard or soft? If it's soft, it could be a seroma (click on the link for info), just post-op fluid buildup and very normal.
Before you skip any meds do check with your vet.
These do sound like great signs!
Here's to a great day today, keep us posted.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I was thinking the same thing, Jerry! Ty may have a seroma , which is pretty common around here, esp for front amps. If it is, the fluid will go away. It takes time. I know carafate is a pretty common med and lots of folks swear by it. You should probably run it past your vet that you want to discontinue it, although I suspect they'll agree and no problems with it. As for his panting when he's outside, yep, I think he's just exhausted! So long as when he's resting his breathing is back to normal, I think you're OK. It's so easy during this process to take something fairly routine and wonder if it's the next big sign of something bad. Take a step back and breathe. He took your shoe! He's still eating! His temp is down! He's HOME! He wags his tail a little! He rests comfortably! He's with his people! Baby steps. Baby steps. Until he's all better, those antibiotics may just keep him in a stupor. If he needs them and it's not long term....ok, so Ty's gonna be a lump on the floor or couch. That's OK!!! He's getting there. Baby steps. Baby steps.
~ Katy & Jackson
ACL tear in right hind leg 12/5/12 and scheduled ACL repair surgery 12/21/12. Pre-op xrays revealed osteosarcoma. Amputation 12/28/12. Chemo (carboplatin) started Jan 10, 2013 and ended on April 5, for a total of 5 doses. He handled carbo like a champ! No side effects. We started metronomic therapy at his third chemo and have been also doing some holistic treatments. He's a lively, playful 10 year old huskie-boarder collie and a very proud member of the Winter Warriors! Our love. Our funny little guy!
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