Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello,
Parker, my 7 yr old Pit Mix, was diagnosed last Thursday and had another scan yesterday showing NO CANCER in his lungs (yet)!! We have Left front amputation scheduled this Saturday. I'm wondering if this is worth it if we do not proceed with further treatment such as chemo or radiation. Financially, I'm unable to. But will make it work for amputation because I can't bear to see him get worse and watch his pain increase (which seems to daily). Has anyone had any success stories with amputation only?
My vet seems to not think amputation is a good idea with him being 85 lbs and 7 yrs old. He has arthritis in his bad, left leg, but not the good right one and I've read so many success stories with dogs quickly acclimating to being 3 legged.
But most of all concerned that I'm only slightly delaying the inevitable if we aren't going through with further treatment amputation.
Feeling extremely guilty...
From what I've read, it seems chemo is necessary with the amputation.
Any advice is greatly appreciated.
Hello Aurelie and Parker, welcome. Your future posts won't need to wait for approval so post away.
The best thing anyone can do when facing this diagnosis is to take care of that pain as soon as possible. Whether or not you decide to do chemo is completely optional. Statistically it does give a dog a better chance at beating the prognosis, but honestly we have seen it go all sorts of directions. Some dogs live a long time and they didn't do chemo. Others do chemo and they only live a month. It's hard to predict. Remember, your Parker is his own dog, and those stats don't take into account his own personal health situation.
Many dogs have gone on to live incredible lives on three legs after an osteosarcoma diagnosis, and some have chemo, some don't. It's about a 50/50 split around here. Our own dog Jerry lived two amazing years after amputation for osteosarcoma, and we didn't do chemo. Other dogs have gone even longer.
If paying for chemo is going to stress you out, then don't do it. Parker doesn't want you to be stressed about paying for his treatments. The best medicine is for him to know that the pack is together, happy, and not feeling pressure to work extra long hours to pay for chemo. Remember, dogs mirror our emotions, they sense them before we do sometimes. Your stress will not do him any favors, and you won't be a bad pet parent if you opt out.
We will support you no matter what you decide.
As for your vet feeling like he's not a good candidate...get a second opinion from a veterinary surgeon who does many amputations in a year. Some vets doubt that larger dogs can be good candidates because they just don't have enough Tripawds in their patient roster. Talk to vets who work with them all the time, like vet surgeons. At 85 pounds, that is not really all that large for a Tripawd, we've had many weigh well over 100 and still do great. Ask your vet for a specialist referral. If they can't refer you to any let us know and we can help.
Stay tuned for feedback from others!
Parker is a very lucky boy to have you as his advocate. Clearly you adore him, and I'm sure he feels the same avout you.
TW. YAAAY for clear xrays!!! Great news!!
Can only ditto everything Jerry said. It really is sort of a crap shoot when it comes to chemo. We have a member here now who, after three chemo treatments mets were discovered. Jist mentioning that because it just goes to show there are no guarantees one way or another. AMD that's not fluff.....it's really true from what we've seen on this site from real life experiences of members here.
As Jerry said, for now put that decision aside, keep things chunked down and focus on surgery and recovery.
But will make it work for amputation because I can't bear to see him get worse and watch his pain increase (which seems to daily).
Ypu are already doing THE most important thing on this journey and that's taking his pain away and restoring his quality. Not having to fight pain all the time is therapeutic in itself.
Couple of quick questions. Is the Bet doing the surgery an Orthopedic Surgeon and will he be staying overnight (at least one night) at a fully staffed clinic?
And absolutely we have had dogs mich larger than Parker. My Happy Hannah between 125 and 130 lbs. We've had Great Danes weight in at excess of 170 lbs. We have a Saint and we have a "mix" weighing in excess of 130 lbs.
Remember, your Parker does not have a time frame stamped anywhere on his Pittie-mix butt AND he doesn't count days on a calendar. Parker lives in the NOW. He has no thoughts about yesterday and has no concerns about the tomorrows. What he does do is make the best of each moment he has together with you and that is all he cares about.
THE greatest l9fe lesson thos joirney gives us thrpugh our dogs is to Be More Dog ! Live in the present and waste no time worrying about....well....about all the things this journey makes us hoomans worry about. Read Jerry's book.....Be More Dog .
STAY CONNECTED We are here to help in anyway we can. And remember, recover doesnt last furever!
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
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!
Hiiii!
Gosh this community is overwhelmingly wonderful to be a part of. I'm very thankful I found it and appreciate your replies so much!!
Parker has his surgery tomorrow and after reading your replies a couple days ago, I felt 100% certain that I was doing the right thing which is a huge relief. I can confidently lead him in and take him home knowing this is the best option for him.
No matter how much time we have left with him, this is worth it to relieve his pain. And after reading all these stories, I know he'll be ok after becoming a tripawd 🙂
To reply to those questions, unfortunately there is not an option to keep him overnight. The only reason they would go this route would be if he needed extra fluids, there were some complications during surgery, or the surgeon thought it was needed, but that is not normal protocol.
He will be coming home not too long after which I'm nervous about, but have read enough stories that have said the same things and they're ok.
After work I'm going to Trader Joe's to get a canvas bag to do the DIY dog sling I saw on this website! I also have wood floors, so I need to get some rugs or something to put down. I also thought maybe booties? But I wouldn't want to traumatize him further since he has never worn them before.
Aurelie
I can talk about boots. Not all dogs like wearing boots (my tripawd is not a fan). Boots also aren't well suited for long-term wear (ie: all day around the house) because they don't breathe well and if they don't fit properly they may cause sores (just like if your shoes didn't fit right). Ok, that's the negative part out of the way.
I've tried lots of different things with my tripawd for traction . We tried Dr. Buzby's Toe Grips, which she promptly and diligently pulled off. I've tried slipper socks (I like these). Loki hates these the least of the various options I've tried. I wish I had ordered a size down so they were a little snugger. I the socks feel less weird than boots. I've also bought cheap boots and fancy RuffWear boots. Loki tolerates boots to a point, but tends to have a panic attack if I so much as turn my back on her while wearing them. Unfortunately, she's a very anxious dog and things touching her feet are a big trigger. I can't say I blame her. My quad-pawd doesn't have very good tolerance for standing in snow, so she's had these basic silicone boots for years and does well in them. She can run on ice in them and takes years off my life every time!
Loki does well getting around my house, but she faces traction challenges when we're out and about. My vet's office has slippery tile floors that she struggles with. I'm also hoping to compete with her in nosework, like I do with my older dog, but traction and anxiety are currently standing in our way. I'm trying to slowly build Loki's tolerance to wearing boots. We work one paw at a time for a few minutes, then take it off. I try to remember to rotate through her paws. My dog is a rear amputee and getting a back boot on her is very challenging, so we work that one the least often. The slipper socks go on and off easily, so I work with those the most.
If you want to train boots, my best suggestion is to do something with your dog once you have one or more boots on. Short walk. Basic obedience. Lots of cookies. Don't just sit and watch TV and ignore your dog while he's wearing boots. That's the fast track to boot destruction. You want your dog to focus on something other than the boots.
I hope that wasn't overwhelming... good luck and if you have more boot questions, I'll be here!
Hey Aurelie! I hope the surgery went great. It’s a good idea to have them keep your baby overnight. That’s how it went for me as well and I’m glad they did that. Mine is an 11 yr old pittie. I put down a bunch of yoga mats in hardwood and kitchen tile areas that he travels. He does well with those and does pretty well on the hardwood if he goes slow enough. Check out Kota’s Story and maybe that’ll help you with any questions you may have. But as always, we are here to support you and answer any questions you may have. We also love pics and vids of your baby too!
Aurelie,
My Ellie was 97 pounds at the time of her forelimb amputation and has adjusted to 3 legs superbly!
I get if it's not possible to have them stay over night, you will be able to handle it! I would suggest being as prepared as possible. A big reason dogs stay the night is because they don't feel so great from the anesthesia and they can easily receive fluids, IV meds to help with nausea and pain. There will also probably be a lot of weeping from the incision, that mostly clears up in that first 12ish hours.
I would read up and try to be prepared for that. Will he have a drain you will need to work with, what is the long term pain management (often times it's a fentanyl patch or a injected pain killer at the incision site), make sure you have anti-nausea medication and sufficient pain medication.
sounds like you have it well under control for making sure he won't have any slippery floors. I haven't messed around with boots, I ended up getting Ellie these stickers that stick to her paw pads. They work well, and she doesn't mind them, they just don't last all that long... I use them for vet appointments, or our trips to home depot where I know we will be on a lot of slippery stuff.
Lastly, make sure you give yourself grace. Every single one of us have thought "omg what have I done to my dog", that first night will probably be a little rough and you are going to feel awful for him, he's not going to seem like himself he probably won't want to eat, or go potty, he's going to be all whacked out because of the meds. When you start thinking that remind yourself that you did this for him, you got rid of a really deep painful chronic pain, yes he has acute pain, but it is temporary.
Edit- I just saw the date on this and realized he already had his surgery! How did it go??
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