I already own one tripad Animal, my dog Jake. I got him from the Animal Shelter two days after his leg amputation. Unbeknownst to me at the time, my cat Samo may face a very similar future. On Monday I found him several hours after he got his back leg caught between two wooden fence slats. He was hanging upside down for up to six hours by his back right leg.  My vet did an x-ray and there was nothing broken and he does have some nerves are working in his knee. But below the knee it’s still swollen and he’s not using it at all. I am at a wait-and-see time for him before I have to decide on amputation or not. Finances for me are already slim but I am fortunate that there is an organization in my city that will help defray some of the cost. I am hoping for the best for him at the same time as I plan for the worst.

My question to any veterinarians out there or other owners is what are the chances that he recovers versus him ending up with his leg being amputated?

There is still a lot of swelling from where his leg got caught down. When he walks the part of his leg below the knee and the lower part of the leg just drags.  He has good blood flow as his paw is as warm as the other paws but I don’t know about the nerves working. If the cost ends up to high I will have to make the tough choice and put him down. This would break my heart as I bottle fed him, his brother Davie-whom I still have and two sisters who I found homes for, from the time they were a week old. He is such a wonderful cat and I cannot imagine losing him at this point in his life. I can handle him being a tripawd I just don’t know about the veterinarian bill. Is there anything I can do as I wait for the swelling to go down that might encourage the nerves to wake up? I know Jake seems to be handling his back leg having been amputated with no problem and runs and plays as much as my four legged dogs. Any information on nerve damage due to constriction of a limb for up to 6 hours would be much appreciated. 

Thanks,

Gloria