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.
Join The Tripawds Community
Learn how to help three legged dogs and cats in the forums below. Browse and search as a guest or register for free and get full member benefits:
Instant post approval.
Private messages to members.
Subscribe to favorite topics.
Live Chat and much more!
Register
Log In
Members
Add Topic
Offline
I don't know if I am hyper aware of bone cancer due to this forum, or if I have a horrible gut feeling for a reason and it IS something to worry about.
Coda has been licking her wrist joint on her right front leg for a few weeks now. I can't find anything visibly wrong with it, no rashes, lumps, bumps, cuts, scrapes, etc. She's not limping, no swelling, no tenderness. She's still as active and bright as usual.
Coda is fairly young at 5 years old, but she wasn't a well bred dog. She looks good breed wise, but she has hip dysplasia, has had bladder stones, infections, food allergies. She's had a lot of problems for a young dog. I also know beagles aren't prone to bone cancer as much as other breeds, but it's also not impossible.
She's been licking enough that it has stained her fur red and I catch her a few times a day licking. It's not obsessive licking and chewing like when her allergies flare up. It's not mindless licking, and it doesn't last long. If I leave her to it, she'll lick for 30 seconds or so. She licks every so gingerly and gently around her wrist...like it's bothering her. She's been doing it enough that she's stained the fur red from all the licking.
Coda is the type who does not ever show pain. Even with her bladder stones, they were missed for so long because she had no symptoms. A few days prior to her surgery she was leaking bloody urine constantly with little sharp pokey stones coming out. She showed nothing at all. She was 100% her normal self behavior and energy wise.
I know there are probably many other things it could be, but since my first thought was it could be cancer, I wanted to ask opinions of those who are knowledgeable with the subject.
We will be taking her to the vet soon. We would've done it sooner, but we thought she'd stopped licking and that she must've hurt it briefly or had a bug bite or something that we missed - but turns out we just hadn't seen her licking for a little while.
Honestly I just think I am paranoid. Something is obviously going on with her leg, though. But having lost our old guy only 4 months ago and now being so aware of this, I just can't get my mind away from the C word. Coda is my 'first born' and my baby through and through. Her loss whenever it happens (hopefully 10+ years from now!) will likely be the most devastating one for me - so these things really get to me.
Munko, not sure I can help but I can understand your anxiety about cancer since we are still dealing with it Gus, but when I read some of these forums where people find out their dog has cancer and they weren't limping or showing signs of pain, I wonder what made them take the dog to the vet in the first place. Gus didn't have a lump or any outward signs on his leg, he just started limping, and we took him in and the vet thought he had pulled a muscle or something like that. After two weeks on rimidyl and no change we did the x-ray and found a suspicious spot on the leg, and that began our journey down this illustrious road. So I can understand where you are coming from, I guess if it was me, I'd have an x-ray since when I first went in and he suggested that, I asked if it would show any musclle damage, and since it wouldn't I said why spend the $75, silly me, I wish I would have done it, thats 2 weeks we lost in addressing the real problem. Good luck, Gus and Dan
My buddy Gus had a left front amputation on April 7, 2010 and lived a great life until July 26,2010
Can't blame you at all for being worried. Licking can mean any number of things, but usually indicates that something is amiss. Don't panic, it could be any number of non-cancerous things, like maybe a foxtail got stuck up in there? That happened to me once.
I hope that's all it is. Keep us posted OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thanks Dan & Jerry. I'm sure hoping it something minor. I'm the type who always expects the worst and hopes for the best.
I can't see anything stuck in her leg, and I can't think of anything that could be, but maybe the vet can get a better look. Her fur is so short on her legs that I can see down to the skin pretty easily, and I don't see anything, not even any redness or irritation anywhere to give me a more general idea of where the exact problem is. Hopefully the vet will have a better idea. I am going to ask for an X-ray right off the bat if he can't see anything, whether it's offered or not. I don't want to play the waiting game anymore than we already have. If they come back A OK, atleast it will ease my mine even if it doesn't give us an answer.
Dante needs some meds from the vet this week anyways (always something with those two puppies!), so may as well make her appointment and get the meds at the same time.
Foxtails can work their way in between the toes and move up from there. Look between those little piggies and see if there's anything there.
Good for you for being a pawesome advocate. Let us know what happens OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Poor Coda already seems to have a mess of problems so I can appreciate your anxiety. The simplest fix to alleviate your fears is to get Coda checked out by your vet. You can't put a price on peace of mind! Maybe it's allergies or stress or boredom. This is perhaps a dumb suggestion but maybe also check Coda's opposite leg - Catie used to worry and lick her left wrist incessantly a few months before she started limping and the vet found nothing wrong (the problem actually was in her right leg/shoulder and had nothing to do with her left).
Try not to stress too much! Fingers and paws crossed that it's nothing at all to worry about.
Catie -
Birthday – November 4 2003
Amputation – January 13 2010
Crossed the Bridge – June 2 2011
Checked between the tosies, nothing there (that I can see anyways). Will be calling the vet this morning. Unfortunately Mina appears to have an eye infection now. Since we adopted these pups there hasn't been a month where we haven't been at the vet at least once. This will be visit #2 for Mina this month, we were there not even two weeks ago. Dante needs antibiotics because he also has an infection and the rinse the vet did last time didn't make it go away.
I think at this point, we may as well just move into the vets office. Soon these guys are going to have their own monogrammed crates and beds at the office!
I can see why you would be so worried after what you've been through. My 2 year old Golden incessantly licks his paw (not his wrist though) and my vet said it's due to allergies. Allergies tend to show up in the strangest ways too. He actually gets an allergy shot every 2 - 3 months or so. But like everyone said, taking Mina to the vet will bring you much relief....I can totally relate about moving into the vet's office with monogrammed crates and beds (LOL) - we are one of those customers too! I tell you in my next life I'm going to become a vet specialist... 
Good luck!
Kami (Mackenzie's Mom)
My sweet golden Mackenzie. She became my angel on Dec 29, 2010 at the age of 8 1/2 although she was always my angel from the time we brought her home. She was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in Sept 2009 and officially became a tripawd (front leg) on Nov 5, 2009. She will be forever in my heart and now she's running free with all of our other tripawd heroes. I love you Mackenzie!
Mina is my other pup! LOL. Dante has a sheath infection, Mina looks to have an eye infection, and Coda is licking her wrist.
My vet calls the two puppies (Mina and Dante) his problem children, LOL. Thankfully it's been nothing major (well, aside from Dante's surgery) for those two, just little things like infections and mange. But, they are only 6 months old, too!
Thankfully our vet is great and is far from a money grubber like some past vets we've seen. We'd be broke if he was. I would be surprised if he hasn't lost money on us - they have a soft spot for Dante and Mina, so they often don't charge us for most of the things they do, and the things they do charge us for, they discount.
Anyways, thanks for all of the advice! I'm hoping it's allergies, since she does have allergies. Although it's not manifesting in the same way, she chews and chews at her paws when she's allergic to something...but who knows!
1 Guest(s)
