Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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We are snowed in here and I have a small home. My puppies don't want to go outside but they are bored inside. Does anyone have any suggestions on games or activities that I can do with my puppies to keep them from turning on each other, or me?
Thanks for any ideas you may have,
Elizabeth and Sir Sammy
Diagnosed with osteosarcoma in the right front leg 8/23/10,
leg fractured 8/27/10,
leg amputated 8/30/10
http://sammyand.....pawds.com/
I couldn't begin to say how special Sammy is to us. Living and laughing with and loving this wonderful boy is priceless.
Got all kinds! If you like to train 😉 Rally-O behaviors(http://www.apdt.com), Wag It shadow skills behaviors( http://www.wagitinc.com) , fun tricks to train like "sit pretty", shake, etc. And then there's all kinds of PT stuff you could do that is actually fun 🙂
Are you familiar with clicker training? Shaping games are fun! 101 Things to do with a Box for instance 🙂
If you are interested in PT work, you can go to my blog for video's on some of those behaviors I do with Maggie.
There are also some puzzles that I've seen for dogs, although I have no experience with them. You can check out http://www.cleanrun.com for those and all kinds of training books.
Tracy, Maggie's Mom
Maggie was amputated for soft tissue sarcoma 10-20-09
Maggie lost her battle with kidney disease on 8-24-13
Oooh I keep hearing about your weather, I'm so sorry! We are sure glad we got away just in time! 😉
Maggie's queen of doggie entertainment games, I would check those out. Also, check out this Gear Blog Post about keeping dogs entertained during recovery, there might be some things in there for your pups. Good luck!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Why didn't I think of training?! I have been wanting to find the time to teach all of them stuff. Doh! Thanks very much Maggie, I am going to be all over this.
Jerry and crew,
you guys really did beat if out of here in the nick of time. You must have that Colorado instinct my husband has. He can always tell me more accurately than listening to the weather channel what to expect for weather.
I was hoping you made it over the passes okay. I haven't seen any postings for the California get together yet so I was wondering. I am glad you are safe!
Elizabeth and the bored ones
Diagnosed with osteosarcoma in the right front leg 8/23/10,
leg fractured 8/27/10,
leg amputated 8/30/10
http://sammyand.....pawds.com/
I couldn't begin to say how special Sammy is to us. Living and laughing with and loving this wonderful boy is priceless.
I stole this from Gayle:
Take a Nap.
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
Diagnosed with osteosarcoma in the right front leg 8/23/10,
leg fractured 8/27/10,
leg amputated 8/30/10
http://sammyand.....pawds.com/
I couldn't begin to say how special Sammy is to us. Living and laughing with and loving this wonderful boy is priceless.
You're welcome! I really can't say enough about a little 'mental' stimulation or PT work for our pups! A little goes a LONG ways and keeps my two content at night. They both anxiously wait for their PT work and/or training sessions at night after supper. And really I don't work them long at all...Maybe a half hour tops between the two of them. After that, they are konked out 🙂
But I will say my two have really good "off switches" in the house and will just "chill out" and snooze most any other time...
But if you can work on some tricks or shaping games or doing some PT work, really, I think both you and your pups will have fun and be satisified. It's winter here too now,,,unfortunately! Snow on the ground and COLD. So nightly sessions with my two are a must in their eyes with the lack of outside time now.
Tracy, Maggie's Mom
Maggie was amputated for soft tissue sarcoma 10-20-09
Maggie lost her battle with kidney disease on 8-24-13
Some of Tazzie's favorite indoor activities:
Emptying the trash
Carrying old pizza boxes and licorice spice tea bags into the living room before having them for lunch
Playing cat and mouse with the cat
Sitting on the sofa to watch everyone out the window and barking and leaping like a crazed madman when anyone came to the door (crazily happily).
Is it possible to have too much snow for a dog to want to go outside?
Hi Sammy and bored family!
And when they are mentally tired from PT training, you can try these Everlasting Treat Balls!!! It took Chloe a while to figure out that they were super delicious… I had to give her the insert by itself a few times, but after she gobbled those up, she decided she could still chew them with the everlasting rubber blue casing!
By having the inserts in the toy, it takes so much longer to go through them! For example, insert by itself only 45min for the avid chewer, insert in toy about 6 hours. And she really gets into it! Even my parent's dog figured them out (more quickly than Chloe) and she joined in on the fun when we bought a second one! Here is a video of them chewing in concert. Kept them busy for a good 2 hours, still lots of insert left to chew! And of course they switched. The medium is for Rocket the large is for Chloe… Oh and they have 2 flavors chicken and liver. The liver stains light colored carpet…so I stick with the chicken…
And as for you, knit or crochet (crochet is easier and faster) and make Christmas presents! I did that last year. I made matching scarves and gloves. Or you can watch them chew and laugh at how much they get into chewing the toy. Chloe likes to stand and get her whole body into the chewing process. Rocket likes to flip it over a few times with her paws and then continue chewing. The funniest thing ever.
Stay warm!
Chloe's mom
P.S. You can check out the Tripawds Gear Blog to see other toys to keep them entertained for hours (the link goes right to that blog post!). And of course you can buy these at Petco or Petsmart. Not really a difference in price in either place. Of course I bought my Large one for Chloe on sale since they are $24.99 full price. They do come with one insert! And then you buy refills! If you want to be really creative, you can put in two inserts (the toy can accomodate 2). ENDLESS FUN! Just keep in mind that they are calories if you are watching their weight.
Chloe became a rear amp tripawd on 7-29-10. Another tumor was removed on front leg 2-20-14. Found 3rd tumor on neck 2-2015, but she's still kicking cancer's butt at age 14. Chloe's blog
Mattie likes to play Nina Ottosson games.
I have seen videos of other dogs playing these games and they use their paws. Mattie mostly uses her nose, so I think they would even work for front leg ampawtees.
This is my first attempt at video. Dark room so poor quality, but you can see she has fun with this stuff. She is very food-motivated.
We have been stuck inside the house for three days due to constant freezing rain. All state, federal, and borough offices, as well as many private offices/stores have been closed since Monday because of dangerous road conditions. Today, some kids were ice skating on the road. No lie, hockey skates and all. UGH. Winter temps should never go above 20F. Anyway, Mattie and we definitely have cabin fever.
Thanks for the suggestions from all the others. I am definitely getting some of those Everlasting Treat Balls!
- Spirit Opie's and Earthly Mattie's Mom
Maddie is growing so fast! I may need to get Duke some game toys to give him a challenge.
Shanna & Spirit Trouble ~ Trouble gained her wings 3/16/2011, a 27 1/2 month cancer survivor, tail wagging. RIP sweetheart, you are my heart and soul. Run free at Rainbow Bridge.
The November Five - Spirits Max, Cherry, Tika, Trouble & Nova. 11/2008 - 3/2013 An era ends as Queen Nova crossed the Bridge.
Chloe's mom,
I love that idea. I got my guys the kong and filled it but no one likes peanut butter apparently so it just sat there. I tried again with their favorite treat but it was too small and just fell out. This looks like more of a challenge!
I love knitting and crotcheting, I do both. I also quilt. I am not worried about my entertainment, I would just love to get some time to do what I like too. My furry kids are circling me like sharks every 10 minutes or so. They need some mental stimulation and some physical activity or they are going to end up in a fight. I will at a later date get some of these, I hear it is going to be a tough winter.
I did teach Titan how to high 5 yesterday. He already knew how to shake so it wasn't too hard to teach him to raise his paws higher for high 5's. He liked the learning of something new.
Mattie's mom,
Awwww, she is so cute! She is so well behaved. I wouldn't be able to put something the pups were interested in on the ground and keep them waiting while I finished setting it up. Thanks for the video's, you did good! I think the one game that is the circle with the spinning inside would be good. I have never tried to get my puppies anything like this, I don't know if they would understand it. Maybe I will start by taking lids of pop bottles and see how they do.
THanks so much for the ideas. Keep them coming! We are snowed in for Thanksgiving so another day of dog entertainment is commencing..
Diagnosed with osteosarcoma in the right front leg 8/23/10,
leg fractured 8/27/10,
leg amputated 8/30/10
http://sammyand.....pawds.com/
I couldn't begin to say how special Sammy is to us. Living and laughing with and loving this wonderful boy is priceless.
These are all great suggestions, especially the Everlasting Treat balls. We use those ourselves. And for when the dogs are driving you nuts but all you want to do is sit on the couch and relax, I have just two words for you - "LASER POINTER." My puppy Bernie will chase the evil red dot all over the house and never get tired of it. Hours of entertainment with minimum effort on your part.
I got my guys the kong and filled it but no one likes peanut butter apparently so it just sat there. I tried again with their favorite treat but it was too small and just fell out. This looks like more of a challenge!
Chloe became a rear amp tripawd on 7-29-10. Another tumor was removed on front leg 2-20-14. Found 3rd tumor on neck 2-2015, but she's still kicking cancer's butt at age 14. Chloe's blog
If you can get a copy of this month's Dog Fancy magazine, there is an article about indoor entertainment. They suggest a lot of what's been already said, like training and tricks. You can teach them how to pick which hand a treat is hiding in and then hide treats around the house and have an "Easter egg hunt" They suggested hide and seek, and some puzzle games. Since you're snowed in, maybe it's available on line.
Sadie is my 9yr old Rott/Shepherd mix. Diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her right scapula 1/28/10. Our brave girl had her amputation 2/13/10 and her last chemotherapy on 6/6/10. Unfortunately, a tumor appeared in her back right leg and on 10/7/2010 Sadie's earthly journey came to an end. On 10/24/2010 we adopted Ranger, a handsome Rott/Lab mix tripawd (got hit by a car) I think Sadie sent him to us.
http://ranger.t.....pawds.com/
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