Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi there, our Abby is 3 weeks post rear leg amputation for osteosarcoma. She's been doing amazing and getting around like nobody's business but today her left back leg seems a bit almost weak and stumbly...is this normal during recovery or should I be worried? She's not falling or anything but she just seems to be struggling a bit today. Thanks for any input.
Hi Abby and family! That's terrific that things have been going so well. It's always good to hear about a Tripawd making such a good recovery.
I'm not a vet but I suspect that she's been getting too much activity. What does her day look like right now? How much walking and play time is she getting? At three weeks out, it's sill very early in recovery and you should still be making sure she takes things slow. I know that's super hard with some dogs, but it's important to build up stamina little by little. When a dog loses a rear leg, they lose half the propulsion to move forward so her remaining leg is doing twice as much work. She is probably very, very tired at this point.
Try massaging her hips and lower back, and inner thigh, to see if she's sore anywhere. You can also try a heat and ice therapy treatment on the area where she seems sore.
While it's not unusual for new Tripawds to do too much too soon, it's also something that we need to be careful to avoid. Learning to manage her activity is a process, and soon you will be able to know when she's about to get too much of it. But for now I would recommend scaling way, way back on whatever it is that makes her so tired.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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Glad to hear how well she's doing overall!
Ditto Jerry about slowing her down about as she probably has overdone it and tweaked something.
Try and get a consult with a Certified Rehabilitation Specialist to make sure she hasn't done a y damage to her knee and surrounding ligaments. They can tell by doing range of motion exercises. The Tropawds Foundation will pay for the first consult. They really are a great source for jow to keep your tripawd healthy and fit. They can give you some simple exercises to do at home.
Talk with your Vet about putting him on some Rimadyl or something similar if the Bet thinks an antiinflmmatory will help if she tweaked something.
Let us know how she is doing, okay?
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!
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