Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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My dog started hopping hunched back today. She is a 7 year old Rottweiler that had her front right leg amputated 11 days ago due to bone cancer that was detected. There were no signs of the cancer having spread. She had her sutures removed yesterday and after that I dropped her off to doggie daycare (that she use to go to 3 x week) just to get something that was normal to her again in her life. She did not do much because she only stayed outside for 30 minutes (mostly lying down) and then she went into the barn and layed on a bed(she gets tired very quickly). I don't think that she hurt herself there because she did not do anything and they watched her while she was outside very closely. She has gone to that daycare since she was 12 weeks old. I hate seeing her just laying around looking depressed and don't know what to do to help her.
I have contacted Dr. Loop and he is sending me remedies today for homeopathic treatment. I have a consultation with an oncologist on Thursday but I am not sure if I will do chemotherapy treatment until after I speak with them (I just want her quality of life to be good). I will call about Physical Therapy and Acupuncture tomorrow. I am at my wit's end worried and don't know what else to do. I have purchased the harness already and she wears the toe grips because we have tile floor. I have pet insurance so I am thankful for that because that will help a lot.
If there is any advice that you can give me about what to expect as far as recovery time, I would so appreciate it. I want to make sure I am not pushing her too much. I think I will feel better after I can get her in to see a physical therapist. Has anyone ever heard of a dog walking hunched back when trying to walk after a front leg amputation.
Thanks
Hello and welcome, your future posts will not have to wait for approval.
Is there a way you can post a video of your girl? What is her name?
Is she taking any meds at this point?
Our surgeon said only short, leashed potty breaks for the first two weeks after surgery, and Maggie was on pain meds for 14 days although we were tapering down the last couple of days.
I'm thinking that daycare, even if she was pretty quiet, was a little too much at this point. Did she start the 'hunchback' after daycare? It is really easy for Tripawds, especially new ones, to tweak a neck or shoulder just getting around. I assume the first 10 days she was pretty quiet so the amount of activity involved in going to the vet and then to day care was a lot by comparison.
There were several times in and out of your car today- do you help her in and out?
Can you pinpoint a sore spot on her back, neck, shoulder or leg?
I have not tried the toe grips so I don't know how well they work- but I do know that traction is critical for Tripawds. If she seems at all hesitant on the tile you may need to get some rugs or yoga mats for her to be confident. What was the traction like for her at day care?
Good for you for exploring both traditional and holistic avenues of treatment!!! I've dealt with 3 cancers in two dogs- once I did chemo and twice I chose a more holistic route. I am happy with my choices all three times- you chose what works best for you and your girl.
It's also good to hear you are planning a rehab visit- do you know that Tripawds might reimburse you for your first visit?
Hang in there- you are clearly trying your best! She might just need a little more time to gain some strength and ramp up her activity level a bit more slowly.
Karen and the Spirit Pug Girls
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
You've already been through the roughtst part. You've made a decision to get rid of a painful leg and give your sweet Rottie a chance st quality life!
DITTO Karen. It is soooo easy for a dog to tweak a muscle this early on. As Karen said, the first two weeks are all abput rest, rest and short potty breaks and more rest. Your pup os recovering from MAJOR SURGERY and returning to Day Care this soon .ay be too much.
Learning ro walk on three legs, especially for vigger dogs, is exhausting at first. It takes soooo much energy just to recover from the surgery, much less adapting to three legs!
Most dogs stay on pain meds for about two weeks, many for three weeks or longer, in a reduced form. Not a Vet and not giving Vet advice, but he does soiund like she has tweaked a back or neck muscle and she is experiencing pain. A pinched nerve could also be a possibility.
Try massage up and down her back, his neck, his shoulder and xee of he shows any tenderness. Extend the rest time a little longer before he goes back to daycare. She's not "bored"...she's recovering.
As Karen said,continue to curtail her activity and give her lots of tummy rubs and snuggles.
And YOU get some rest roo!! 🙂 This is not only exhausting for your pup, it's exhausting for you! 🙂
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!
Thank you for your replies to my post. I have been sick since I last posted and had to go to Centra Care today because I felt so bad. No flu thank God but the doc gave me antibiotics. Monday I took Diamond to the oncologist for her to be assessed for chemotherapy and ask questions and found out after being there for a couple hours that the pathologist did not find any cancer, only advanced lesions that may have been caused by a blood clot in the bone. The oncologist said that she could see how the vet may have thought it was osteosarcoma but the good news was that Diamond was not in any pain.
Of course I felt really guilty at the time for having her leg amputated but the vet did not force me to do this and I know I did not want a biopsy because sometimes doing a biopsy can disturb things and possibly help spread the cancer if it is there. I also asked the Vet if he would do a biopsy if it was his dog and he told me he would not and I trust him.
This vet is someone I have a lot of confidence in so I called him and asked him about the pathology report. The vet told me that in his 28 years doing this he had never been wrong reading the X-ray for an osteosarcoma and that he was going to call the radiologist and the oncologist to talk about it.
The vet called me back the next day and told me the radiologist agreed with him and that the oncologist agreed to do the Chemotherapy if I wanted to do that. The vet said he sent a pretty big piece of bone to the pathologist and did not know why he could not find cancer.
My dilemma is that if the cancer is there but so microscopic that it was not seen or the pathologist made a mistake and a couple months down the road Diamond starts showing symptoms I will be furious because I could have done something to prolong her life and did not because of what I was told.
I decided to go ahead with chemotherapy so Diamond has her first treatment on Monday and she has her first physical therapy treatment on Thursday. I had to do worse case scenario and worse case scenario is if I do nothing and the cancer is there. Because I know the protocol for chemotherapy is to prolong life and not to cure the dog, most dogs do not get sick like they use to and if your dog does have a negative reaction to a drug the oncologist will not use that drug again so that made my decision easier.
Diamond also started her remedies from Dr. Loop today so I am hoping in a week I will see more energy in her step/hop. I just wanted to update you on what is going on now. Diamond is on her 16th day post op now and she is doing much better. No more hunch back. I am sure that day at daycare was just too much.
I am typing on my IPad and as soon as I figure out how to attach a picture with it I will send picture lol. I am not the most technologically advanced 🙂. If someone can help and tell me how to attach a picture I will Attach a picture of Diamond that I just took. Thanks!
Hi Denise, my cat Mona is also a front leg amputee. Front leg amputees are carrying a lot of weight on the one remaining front leg. I took Mona for some chiropractic sessions, which she loved, and they helped her hop much less hunched. I also learned some stretches for her to keep the range of motion in the other legs. Cats seem to do them naturally, I'm not sure about dogs. In time you might want to consider rehab for Diamond.
All the best in his recovery.
Kerren and Tripawd Kitty Mona
First of all, I'm glad Diamond is doing better! It sounds like too .uch activity may, indeed, have been the cause of the "hunched" back. This early on, what seems like just a little bit of doggy care "activity" can be too much.
AND, really glad to hear you didn't have one of those bad flus! Ugh! Really hooe you are on the mend now and getting yiur e ergy back.
WOW!! You have really been on quite a roller coaster ride! For whatever it's worth, pathology reports can sometimes be inaccurate for a variety of reasons. Obviously, sometimes the reading of the xrays can also be inaccurate. Again, for whatever it's worth, if a trusted exerienced Vet and a Radiologist thpught they saw signs of osteo, we all would jave proceeded as you jave.....and as you are.
Reading your "thought process" as you move forward shows what a powerful advocate you are for sweet Diamond! You've been given "mixed messages" about the "official" diagnosis. The reasons you have outlined to proceed with chemo (although there are no guarantees with or without chemo) are very well thought out!!! Good job of analyzing your situation! . And yes, if Diamond did have bad side effects (rare, but it does happen), you absolutely can stop! My Happy Hannah sailed through four rounds of Carboplatin with no issues at all!
Keep us uptaed and let us know how Diamond is doing! Here's a link for adding photos adding images
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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