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 what I’m doing here. I’ve never never used a forum before so I’m not sure if I’m doing this right, but I need help. My 10 year old golden retriever just had surgery two days ago and is now home. WHAT do I do to help him. He’s eating and drinking fine but I think he he needs to go poop but can’t manage it. Hold a sling didn’t work it just makes him scared. He seems to do better walking without it. Please give any advise on the first few days home. In all honesty, I’m so scared I did the wrong thing. My heart is breaking.
Hello and welcome, your future posts will not have to wait for approval.
OK- take a deep breath. Did he have an amp due to cancer? You did the right thing for him, Cooper is his name?
One more question- did he lose a front or rear leg?
Eating and drinking fine are excellent at this point! Many pups don't poop for several days since the pain meds are constipating. If he can balance without the sling then I would let him try and go on his own- but keep him on leash so he doesn't go to far, and you are close if he does need help.
This is a big surgery and the recovery can be bumpy. I think we all were sure at one point during recovery that we did the wrong thing- you are in good company in that regard. And you are in good company here too- we've been through it and we will help you get there too.
If you have time you can look through the Required Reading List for lots of tips on dealing with amputation and recovery.
Another thing- you need to stay strong and positive around Cooper. You need to be a strong pack leader and show him everything is OK. I made that mistake when my Pug Maggie was recovering from her rear amp- I was grumpy, she was grumpy we fed of each other and it didn't help either of us. Bring your worries and doubts here.
You did the right thing for your boy- keep track of every little victory (like eating and drinking) and soon he will have is sparkle back.
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
Online
Ditto everything Karen said!!
YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!! You have a team now here to help you get through each step of the recovery.
We all know how scary this whole ordeal is getting to this point. Surgery is done and that's a relief! Recovery has started and you are trying to navigate through all the uncertainty of what to do, right? Well you have definitely come to the right place for support and information from those of us who understand what you're going through. And we can all tell you recovery doesn't last furever!-
Yes, as Karen said, YOJ DID THE RIGHT THING!!! It hard to see that roght now though. One of our "mantras" that we all say arounnd here is to remember uou did this FOR your dog, not TO her!! This is MAJOR surgery, Cooper is on some good pain meds and probably a bit wobbly, all while adjust to three legs! Most humans would still be in the hospital on a morphine drip!!
Eating and drinking and peeing......great news!!! 😀And mobile too? 😀 Great news! And yes, pooping may take several days due to the meds. My Happy Hannah would basically freeze when I tried to help her with a towel aling. Cooper clearly wants to do things his way!
I joined this community on day six after amputation. My "title was something like "It's six days after surgery and I fear I've made a HORRIBLE decision!! This great community threw me a ,lifeline and pulled me back from the edge! Once they educated me on what to expect and what was "normal", I settled down, stayed connected and gained the confidence needed to know I could handle this.
Every dog is different; every recovery is different. Generally though, most dogs take about two weeks to recover from the surgery itself and about one month to adjust to their new fait snd new way of balancing on three.
TRY and get some rest yourself, okay? We know how stressful getting to this point is. Continue to take deep breaths.....and eat lots of chocolate!!
Update when you can snd definitely stay connected!!
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. I didn't even know what a "forum" was, mich less how to use a tavlet. And as uoh xan alr4ady tell, I can't type worth crap!
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!
Hi Coopers mom -
You found the right place - these people are awesome!
It. Will. Get. Better. The first 3 weeks were the worst for us ... but just today, Grover a 10 yo Great Dane with a forelimb amp went hiking for 1.5 miles and then spent the evening playing tug, fetch and kill the (stuffed) dragon.
It may take several days to start pooping again - sometimes feeding canned pumpkin can help, but the anesthesia can slow down their GI tract for a bit.
What medications is Cooper on after surgery? Good pain management is really helpful to smooth out this recovery period.
Thinking of you guys!
Jamie
Thank you all for your advise. It really has helped already. I think I am starting to breathe finally.
A little background on Cooper as I guess I left a lot out. Cooper is our 10 year old Golden Retriever with the sweetest most loving personality you could ever imagine. He loves people more than anything (except maybe food). He has been working as a Therapy dog for the last 5 years, and he loves his “job”. 6 days ago life was normal....now I guess it’s a new normal. He was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in his right front leg last Monday and we made the agonizing decision to amputate his leg by Wednesday. Thursday he had surgery and Saturday he came home. It was all so fast, we didn’t have much of a chance to process it all. For medications, he is currently on Piroxicam, Gabapentin, DHA and Tramadol if he needs some extra.
We had a pretty good night last night, all considering. He moved around a bit during the night and this morning seemed a bit more himself. The big surprise came when I went into the kitchen to get him some food. The next thing I knew he was behind me waiting to eat. It’s a pretty big deal because he walked without hesitation from our family room up two steps and into the kitchen, then he ate and walked down the two steps and went outside to pee and poop ( just a little) before coming back in to lay down.
So although this is so hard I did see improvement in the last 24 hours. I’m glad I reached out. If you have any more advise I am ready willing and able to listen.
Thanks so much
Marlene (Cooper’s mom)
Welcome to the club nopawdy ever wants to join! For the first time using forums, you posted perfectly! And your future forum posts will not require moderation.
It is still early, and all dogs will have a hard time doing their doody for the first few days due to pain medication. As Jerry's doc told us, when they need to go, they'll go. If it lasts more than 3-4 days, please call your vet. You can get things going with a little olive oil, but be careful what you ask for!
If you ever need help finding the many Tripawds Resources, start here . The most important thing is to Be More Dog , and that is not just some silly saying. Cooper needs you to be strong now. Best wishes for a speedy recovery! Please keep us posted.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Marlene how is Cooper doing today? We are thinking of you!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
1 Guest(s)
