Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi,
I posted this in a general forum last week but given the lack of progress with healing, I am trying the Ask a Vet site.
My 5 yo. 125 pound Irish Wolfhound had his right rear leg amputated on 9/22/11 after being diagnosed with OSA. We have had an on-going issue getting the incision to close all the way. Last week, my vet went back in to try to move things along. He opend the 3 inch area where there were still staples, repositioned the muscles over the bone stub and closed him back up. He said there were 3 layers of internal stitches and one external layer of staples and said everything was dry. When I picked him up that evening, he must have slipped in the back and was leaking from the site. Now, the staples have torn and the incision is about an inch and a half and leaking. I can also see one of the stitches inside. I tried calling the vet over the weekend, but due to power outages in our area, I can't reach him. I am going to try him again today.
He believes the issue is the force of a giant breed hopping is placing too much pressure on the incision. Do you have any suggestions on how to correct this problem. I am going to tell him no more staples. They aren't wide enough and don't hold the site closed. Each time my puts them in, they separate within a day or 2. Have you found a better way to keep the incision closed. Any suggestions would be most welcomed. This has been going on for almost 6 weeks and poor Fergus would like some freedom to run around the yard and be a dog again!!
Thank you,
Tara & Fergus
Tara, I'm sorry this is still happening.
Dr. Pam usually replies right away, so hang in there. You may also want to PM her. This situation doesn't sound good at all. Have you considered a second opinion from another vet?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi,
I am getting to that point. I feel as though I have given him many chances. I think I will try another vet today and get his opinion. I am not sure if he is open though. The power outages are extensive from the snow storm over the weekend. Thankfully we were only out for 24 hours. With 3 dogs, no one wants to invite us over!!
Thanks
Tara, I'm so sorry this is still going on and it must be even more trying given the lack of response due to the weather. I'm not sure where you are in Mass but our surgeon was at Mass Vet Referral Hospital and she did an amazing job with Sam (large breed) if you're looking for someone to talk to - we were impressed with the care. We're just outside of Boston and would be happy to open our home to you and your pups, if you need it! It's too cold to be without power and I know many towns are not expected to be back up before Thursday/Friday! xo Sue and Sammy
Sue and Sammy,
Thank you very much!! Thankfully we were only out for 24 hours but many people in our town and the surrounding towns are still out.
The kids don't have school for the second day in a row. This is already their third "snow" day for the year! The first day of school was cancelled due to Hurrican Irene power outages. I made an appointment with another vet for Thursday morning. I'll will see what their opinion is and then go from there. I am going to try putting some butterflies on it myself today and see if that works. I just want him to be able to run and enjoy himself and this is making me hold him back which isn't fair.
Thank you again for offering your home to me and my 350 pounds of dogs.
Take care,
Tara & Fergus
Our pleasure -- we have 200 pounds of dog so I always figure anything after that is a wash - the more the merrier!
It must be frustrating to hold him back from the incision. Good luck with the butterflies - we'lll keep our fingers crossed! Hang in!
How long is the stump? I do like to leave a little bone behind but with the giant breeds I take more bone and leave more muscle as a pad. I prefer sutures to staples especially if you had to do a re-suture of the wound. Placing a drain can help and if he is not on antibiotics then that may also be advised.
Your dog is cute!
Pam
Hi Pam,
Your making Fergus blush!
His stump is minimal. The doctor didn't want to impact the hip, so he said he took as much as possible. I am done with staples. I am going to request sutures from now on. Does the dog have to be anestesized for sutures? He was on cephalexin for the longest time but is currently only on flagyll because he had some tummy issues last week. I am also going to request additional antibiotics until this is closed up.
I am going to see another vet on Thursday morning for a second opinion and then he is schedule to stay with my regular vet Thurs thru Mon. I was going to suggest putting steri strips over the sutures next time. Anything to keep everything together. We have gone from a very long incision down to just a 1-1/2 inch hole, but we need it all closed. Fergus has been extremely patient but I think he is getting depressed dealing with the limitations imposed by the wound care.
Thank you for your feedback,
Tara & Fergus
Just wanted to say that when Gerry had tummy issues from cephalexin it made him really uncomfortable and took some time to get over - so if he is feeling depressed, you may see that ease for him as his tummy gets better. Hope so! Best wishes with the rest, which I know almost nothing about. 
Gerry has been a tripawd since 12/16/2009.
He was a shelter dog with a mysterious past and an irrepairable knee injury.
Videos and pics of Gerry's pawesomeness can be found at: http://gerry.tripawds.com
If the hole is small they may be able to resuture using only a local block but it depends on the dog. Some dogs just won't sit still for something like that so a short-acting sedative or anesthetic might be needed.
Pam
Pam, is there ever a situation where there just isn't enough tissue to re-suture? What happens if a lot of tissue falls apart around the incision? Then what?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Well, went for a second opinion today. The new doctor said we have 2 options. The first is leave it alone and the site will eventually close on its own. She said to keep him on antibiotics for the duration and it will take some time. The second option is to open it up, AGAIN. Clean out the side which is now granulated (the skin is no longer pliable because it is healing on its own but not closing). Once the granulated side is cleaned out, overlap the skin and suture this time. No staples. At this point, I don't know what we are going to do. I am waiting for a call from our regular vet to discuss my second opinion. I really don't want to pay a second vet for the repair work when I think we should have been done with this weeks ago!! The frustration level is getting high all around
.
We'll have a sit down tonight and decide the next step for Fergus. He is as happy as always and just had his meds with some Pill Pockets which are always appreciated. He has been enjoying the early New England snow the last few days but it is almost melted now.
Have a good night all,
Tara & Fergus
Jerry sometimes there is not enough tissue and then you just have to wait for it to granulate in which just takes a lot more time. Depending on how big a hole we are talking about here it might be worth it to anesthetize him and start over since in the long run it should heal faster. If it is a small hole then I would wait it out. Tazzie had a quarter-sized piece of skin that fell off and left a small hole in the center of her incision but I just kept her on antibiotics and used a bandage until it healed. That is a lot easier with a forelimb amp but it is very hard to place a supportive wrap on a rear amp dog especially a giant like Fergus!
Pam
That's good to know Pam, thank you. So it's not always a bad thing to wait it out...wow, I had no idea that it was safe to do this. I'll chill out on my paranoia now.
You rock!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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