Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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What is your opinion about using a life jacket for your Tripawds? If the dog has always been a very strong swimmer, does that make a difference? Murphy's physical therapist says he is a way better three legged swimmer than a lot of four legged ones. We would mainly be swimming him in calm water (pools or lakes)' but didn't know whether we should buy him a floatations device until after he tries it out on his own...with our close supervision.
Murphy is a five year old Lab/Chessie cross. He was hit by a car on 10/29/12 and became a Tripawd on 11/24/12. On 2/5/13, he had a total hip replacement on his remaining back leg. He has absolutely no idea that he has only three legs!
UPDATE: Murphy lived his life to the fullest, right up until an aggressive bone lesion took him across the Rainbow Bridge on April 9, 2015 and he gained his membership in the April Angels. Run free, my love. You deserve it!
Hi Murphsmom! I just took Libby's off after a dip in the pool this morning (you can see her wearing it in my avatar). She is a chocolate lab, so she is a natural born swimmer. She can do it for hours. BUT...the idea of the vest is not so much to keep her from drowning but to keep her mouth above the water so she doesn't ingest too much. Libby is a front amp. I don't know if it makes a difference if it's a rear amp, but without the vest, she bobs more and she takes in more water. Hope this helps.
Liberty (Libby) was diagnosed with OSA on 1-22-13. Right front amputation on 1-31-13. No IV Chemo. Metronomic Therapy started 2-19-13 along with supplements and some home cooking. Lungs clear until 1-06-14. She's still her happy, hoppy, bossy self. Living the dog life to the fullest and a proud Winter Warrior. :) RIP my Libby 4-21-03 to 3-19-14
I would use the jacket because it has a handle on top that you can grab if he suddenly gets tired...and the extra buoyancy will give you more time to get to him if he DOES get in trouble.
Simply better to be safe than sorry.
Libby's people and Dharma are exactly right, couldn't agree more. We saw a major difference in how well I could swim once we started using one. Here are some blog posts about why we think a Float Coat is a great investment even for dogs who are good swimmers:
http://gear.tri.....-swimmers/
http://gear.tri.....-features/
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thanks for the input. I have just ordered a large yellow Float Coat for Murphy.
Murphy is a five year old Lab/Chessie cross. He was hit by a car on 10/29/12 and became a Tripawd on 11/24/12. On 2/5/13, he had a total hip replacement on his remaining back leg. He has absolutely no idea that he has only three legs!
UPDATE: Murphy lived his life to the fullest, right up until an aggressive bone lesion took him across the Rainbow Bridge on April 9, 2015 and he gained his membership in the April Angels. Run free, my love. You deserve it!
murphsmom said
I have just ordered a large yellow Float Coat for Murphy.
Hmmm... did you find one at a local retailer?
We haven't received any Ruff Wear Float Coat orders yet today, so if you purchased it from the Tripawds Gear Shop the transaction must not have been completed for some reason. Let us know if you did so we can look into it.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
No, I went through the link on the Tripawds site to Amazon. Local dealers are few and far between where we live...the boonies.
Murphy is a five year old Lab/Chessie cross. He was hit by a car on 10/29/12 and became a Tripawd on 11/24/12. On 2/5/13, he had a total hip replacement on his remaining back leg. He has absolutely no idea that he has only three legs!
UPDATE: Murphy lived his life to the fullest, right up until an aggressive bone lesion took him across the Rainbow Bridge on April 9, 2015 and he gained his membership in the April Angels. Run free, my love. You deserve it!
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