Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
Tripawds is your home to learn how to care for a three legged dog or cat, with answers about dog leg amputation, and cat amputation recovery from many years of member experiences.
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Wahoo for great care! That's great!
Yeah, her confidence may rock back and forth over these days and weeks ahead. Keep positive with her and celebrate like crazy when she does something! Give her the chance to try things, but within reason. I held Jackson back from the stairs for awhile, but when finally allowed to do all 12...he did them slowly and with care. When he got to the top and bottom by himself, he was practically beaming with excitement! I was freaked out, too, when J's stump twitched all over the place. It looked weird, kinda painful with all that swelling, and alien. It's normal! When J's stump was bothering him, I'd gently place my hand on it. As swelling and healing continued, I'd cup the stump. It gave his nerves (and mind) something to focus on. Try it! Now, Jackson LOVES to have his stump rubbed.
Keep the updates rolling. Best of luck! Speedy recovery, Noah!
~Katy
ACL tear in right hind leg 12/5/12 and scheduled ACL repair surgery 12/21/12. Pre-op xrays revealed osteosarcoma. Amputation 12/28/12. Chemo (carboplatin) started Jan 10, 2013 and ended on April 5, for a total of 5 doses. He handled carbo like a champ! No side effects. We started metronomic therapy at his third chemo and have been also doing some holistic treatments. He's a lively, playful 10 year old huskie-boarder collie and a very proud member of the Winter Warriors! Our love. Our funny little guy!
I'm hoppy that she's home! Good thing you guys were there for her when she took her spill. That's all part of the process, it's not unusual. In fact my old nickname was Mister Stumbles after I lost my leg!
VCA sounds terrific. If you feel like giving them a shout out in our Vet Referrals Discussion, please do so.
Give her a big smooch from all of us, we're glad the pack is back together.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
A bit of dark humor from the pickup yesterday...
We noticed on the itemized bill that there was a $20 FedEx charge for shipping of a "sample" to Cornell University for a biopsy. As we were walking out, the FedEx guy was there and when Norah hopped by he gasped in horror at her gnarly scar. Both me and my wife laughed at him because he had no idea that the package he picked up on Monday had her leg in it. I'm sure he would have been much more horrified by that.
On a brighter note, our 19 month old son who loves Norah, leaned down and checked out her incision. Without a care, he petted her back and gave a hug!
Norah is an 8 year old Alaskan Husky. She was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her right hind leg on 3/26/12. She had her amputation on 4/1/13. Chemotherapy (Carboplatin) started on 4/16/13 and she has completed three rounds.
Only home a day and doing this great??! Celebration time!
Yeah, when I take Happy Hannah into the vet, she loves to go over and give tail wags and sloppy kisses to anyone willing......and they are petting her, all smiles and then....DA DA DA DUM....they "notice". It's so funny to watch! Some sort of pull back and ray to act like they have to get on there cell phone or something.........most just keep on petting her though!!! Your precious son is a role model for all humanity!
There's a lot of confusion at first for some as they try to adjust to their new normal--while still trying to do things the way they used to.
May still experience some pain and discomfort for awhile and it can be are to watch the ones we love hurt but this too shall pass...or may not even happen!
Please keep us posted on all the victories as they continue to emerge.
So happy for you and sweet Norah! Sally and Happy Hannah
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!
This is all such great news!!! and SO hilarious about the FedEx guy! Are you by any chance working with one of the oncologists Dr. Intile there? I read her columbs on petmd and think she has some great things to say and writes some really thoughtful things. She also sent my Jill a get well postcard from DC (see: http://jillsjou.....-our-goal/) so she scores some points in my book!
Jill is a 9-year-old tuxedo kitty. She was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in June 2012 on her toe in her right hind leg. Her leg was amputated on 12/12/12 and she completed four rounds of chemo (2 of Carbo, 2 of Doxy) in April 2013. "Like" Jill's facebook page: https://www.fac.....tty?ref=hl Proud member of the WINTER WARRIORS!!!! Her blog can be read at http://jillsjou.....ipawds.com. xoxo
Rica-
I think I've seen her around in my two times there. We had Dr. Hershenson, who is fantastic.
Norah is an 8 year old Alaskan Husky. She was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her right hind leg on 3/26/12. She had her amputation on 4/1/13. Chemotherapy (Carboplatin) started on 4/16/13 and she has completed three rounds.
Hi all-
Tomorrow, Norah will be one week post amputation and she is doing well. The incision is healing, and her confidence increases daily. Our house is single story, but she does have a few steps to negotiate to go in and out. It seems that if she can get to a trot and not think about it, the steps are no big deal. If she stops and thinks about it, she gets nervous about hopping up them and gets unsure of her footing.
Her appetite is slowly returning, despite the tramadol and gabipentin. We have had one bout of phantom pain , and she freaked out about it a little, but for the most part, she's doing great. It's fascinating to watch her figure out the best positioning of her three remaining legs to establish a stable base when she's doing different things... eat, climb steps, go to the bathroom, etc. All in all, we are amazed at her progress.
I also want to thank Jerry and his pack for the postcard that came with Norah's Tripawds bandanna! Thanks, guys! We'll have some pics soon.
Norah is an 8 year old Alaskan Husky. She was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her right hind leg on 3/26/12. She had her amputation on 4/1/13. Chemotherapy (Carboplatin) started on 4/16/13 and she has completed three rounds.
Great job Norah and Dad.....and it only gets better and her happiness and joy will continue to multiply!
So thrilled for you! Sally and Happy Hannah
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!
Sounds like Norah is doing great and that is always the news we like to hear! Keep moving forward Norah!
Spirit Shooter was a Miniature Australian Shepherd who was diagnosed with a MCT and had a LF amp 1/28/13 at 13-1/2 years old.
Shooter crossed the Bridge on 8/28/13, his 7 month ampuversary and two weeks from his 14th birthday.
Well ain't that a great report for just one week out! Yipee! Norah's really doing great, we are really hoppy to hear how well she's getting around.
I love how your son reacted to Norah's incision, by hardly reacting at all! What difference between a child's point of view and the FedEx guy. Grown-ups can sure learn a lot by following the lead of kids and dogs.
We can't wait to see Norah in her bandanna! Glad you got it so soon. Thank you for your support!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Awesome progress, Norah! Whoop whoop!
ACL tear in right hind leg 12/5/12 and scheduled ACL repair surgery 12/21/12. Pre-op xrays revealed osteosarcoma. Amputation 12/28/12. Chemo (carboplatin) started Jan 10, 2013 and ended on April 5, for a total of 5 doses. He handled carbo like a champ! No side effects. We started metronomic therapy at his third chemo and have been also doing some holistic treatments. He's a lively, playful 10 year old huskie-boarder collie and a very proud member of the Winter Warriors! Our love. Our funny little guy!
Norah update:
She is now 15 days post-amp and she got the staples out today. Everything looks good from the vet's perspective. Conveniently, the oncologist is in the same building, so we say down and talked for a while about chemo options and her biopsy results. We got a confirmation of osteosarcoma, and we're still waiting on the lymph node results. They had an opening, so Norah went straight in to her first round of chemo! We decided on Carboplatin.
Norah is an 8 year old Alaskan Husky. She was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her right hind leg on 3/26/12. She had her amputation on 4/1/13. Chemotherapy (Carboplatin) started on 4/16/13 and she has completed three rounds.
rica55 said
This is all such great news!!! and SO hilarious about the FedEx guy! Are you by any chance working with one of the oncologists Dr. Intile there? I read her columbs on petmd and think she has some great things to say and writes some really thoughtful things. She also sent my Jill a get well postcard from DC (see: http://jillsjou.....-our-goal/) so she scores some points in my book!
Rica-
Dr. Intile is Norah's oncologist! She is fantastic. I need to get off my butt and write a review for VCA and the great veterinarians that have taken care of Norah.
Her vet tech mentioned you and the postcards for Jill, as well as Tripawds.com, because she noticed Norah was rocking her "Tripawds Rule!" bandana. 
Norah is an 8 year old Alaskan Husky. She was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her right hind leg on 3/26/12. She had her amputation on 4/1/13. Chemotherapy (Carboplatin) started on 4/16/13 and she has completed three rounds.
That is TOO TOO funny! They actually sent me two postcards from VCA, one from DC and one from Maryland! I love reading Dr. Intile's column every week. I can tell you, if I still lived in DC, I would be taking Jill there FOR SURE! You are lucky to have such a great team! Next time you go, tell her Jill says MEOW!
Norah should do great on the Carbo - Jill had Carbo and Doxorubicin and she did wonderfully besides some low white blood cells/neutrophils which is totally normal. So glad to hear how great she is doing!
Jill is a 9-year-old tuxedo kitty. She was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in June 2012 on her toe in her right hind leg. Her leg was amputated on 12/12/12 and she completed four rounds of chemo (2 of Carbo, 2 of Doxy) in April 2013. "Like" Jill's facebook page: https://www.fac.....tty?ref=hl Proud member of the WINTER WARRIORS!!!! Her blog can be read at http://jillsjou.....ipawds.com. xoxo
Good job Norah and family! It's really great that she's having such a great recovery..
You are lucky to have such a great medical team...she deserves the best
How do you celebrate Norah? Cookies? Ice cream? Well, we'll just eat both on your behalf to cover all bases!! Celebrate!!:-)
Sally and Happy Happy Hannah
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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