Hello!  My Fiona isn't an amputee, but she is functionally a tripawd.  (She was hit by a truck when she was a young stray and her left hind leg was shattered.  Instead of removing it, the vet chose to let it heal in a sling, so the bones fused together and she has no knee joint there anymore.  The leg is stuck in a permanently bent position.)  After nine years of her good leg having to do extra work, it has gotten weak and wobbly.  First she started having trouble getting up steps and now, she's having trouble just walking.  We took her to the vet yesterday, who suggested she could be experiencing back pain because her spine is crooked due to her having to center her good hind leg when she walked for so many years and prescribed her Rimadyl.  (She's only had two doses so far, so it's not yet known if that will help her or not.)   Arthritis seems likely since she's probably around 11 years old now.  I noticed today that her front legs seemed a little shaky, too, but since she's not able to favor either of them, it's hard to really see what might be going on with them.  She doesn't look like she's in pain, though.  She otherwise seems like her usual, happy self.

So now I'm looking for the right harness for her.  I want something comfortable (of course) that I can attach a leash to and let her walk normally when she's feeling up to it, but that would also enable us to give her support when she needs it.  I read about the Ruffwear Webmaster and it seems like it might be what I want, but would it still be okay if she is having back problems?  Is there something else you'd recommend?

Thanks in advance and here's a pic of Fiona!

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