Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Shadow, a golden retreiver mix came to us through the humane society so I don’t know his true age. When we first got him 10 years ago the Vet thought he was at least 2 at that time, making him 12+ at this time. This past Wednesday he was diagnosed with cancer in the femur, just above the knee. He has had some mild arthritis in the hips in the past, but is in excellent health otherwise, sight is good and so is hearing. The Vet says the ony solution is to remove the left rear leg at the hip and go through chemo. His lungs show clear and his blood values are all within normal values. I am very concerned how well an old dog with mild arthritis of the R hip will be able to cope with only one rear leg. Prior to this we walked a mile a day, which I doubt he could do and he will also have to deal with steps. Will he be able to balance well enough to urinate and defecate on his own? Is there anyone out there who has gone through this with an old dog losing a rear leg who can help me? ADDITION: Does anyone have anything good to say about K-9 immunity http://www.dogcancer.net/
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Hi Shadow and pawrent,
Welcome to Tripawds - we're glad you found us and we are really glad to have you on board; it's a rough ride, but it does get easier, I assure you, especially when you have good friends and Shadow's resilience, which will come as a big, inspiring surprise. He will feel alot better after surgery and will be grateful not to have that nasty pain. You might want to consider getting a Ruffwear harness after awhile to help you with the steps; he'll regain his sense of balance soon enough. You are worth every ounce of admiration, and you should give yourself a large dose of kudos for the effort you're making to guarantee Shadow's golden years are as healthy and as happy as possible.
All luck and love.
Hi Shadow!
Check out the Size and Age Matters forum for more discussion about amputation in larger and older dogs. Your relative health and fitness matters more than age.
If the arthritis is mild, but you are still strong, you should be just fine after a brief recuperation. Best wishes and thanks for asking!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Shadow and welcome. I have seen many posts for dogs on this site who are diagnosed in their older years. In fact it's more of a surprise and shock when a young dog is diagnosed with cancer. If shadow is otherwise healthy he should adjust fairly easily but each dog is unique and does things at their own pace.
I have a dog here named Shadow too and have met a couple others. Seems it takes a very special dog to earn that name. Our Shadow is my husbands buddy and heart dog. He also is a silly imp and gives full tooth smiles. Hang in there and be positive - these are really special guys.
Here is a big grin from our Shadow to yours to help brighten your day.
Hugs
Connie & Radar
Hi Shadow,
Every situation is different, but I did want to pass on that the prognosis is actually better when dogs are older when they are diagnosed. It's helpful that you are in good shape- if you go forward with the amputation, that will stand you in good stead. In whatever case, it's obvious that your people love you and have loved you well, and are doing everything they can to try to figure out how best to care for you right now.
A couple of other thoughts to throw out... amputation and chemo are for many pawrents two separate choices- some decide to do the amputation but not the chemo, some both. Also, I know that Jerry's folks used k-9 immunity and thought it really helped. I'd also be interested to hear additional thoughts on this...
You and your family are in our thoughts and prayers!
Sophie and Christine
Hi Shadow - you have come to the right place for support, understanding and a wealth of information. Get all the facts that you can and then try to absorb them all...it will take a day or two and then my advice simply is to listen to your heart. Spend some quiet time with Shadow and talk it through with him - he may show you the answer.
Love and prayers,
Heather and Zeus
Heather and Spirit Zeus - Our life changing journey…from the earth to the heavens…one day at a time…always together
I have spent quite some time on this site since finding it and doing
our original post. While I may have missed something, it appears that
in almost all cases the people with succesful amputation stories and
pictures are front leg amputations. Is there anyone out there with good
result rear leg amputation stories on old dogs?
SHADOW said:
...anyone out there with good result rear leg amputation stories on old dogs?
Search for rear leg amputees in the forums here or check the blog for other stories like my dog date with Sami, an elderly rear leg tripawd who will have her one year ampuversary in January.
FYI: Dogs carry 70% of their body weight up front. Many believe its often easier on dogs with one leg in back. But all stories are different.
Thanks for asking!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
. Is there anyone out there with good
result rear leg amputation stories on old dogs?
Hi Shadow,
You can also look on bonecancerdogs (bonecancerdogs.com, although for some reason it doesn't always come up) and can select to view dogs & their stories by amputation site. Not all of the dogs have stories, and much of the info there is much less current (e.g. you may find a story that was written several years ago) but it might give you some more info, (in addition to following Jerry's suggestion here!).
I've also heard that for many dogs rear leg amputation is easier, as each rear leg only carries 20% of a dog's leg whereas each front leg carries 30%. So with a front leg amputee, the remaining front leg is carrying 60% of the dog's weight, whereas with a rear leg amputee, the remaining leg is carrying 40% of the dog's weight- much more even distribution.
Good luck, and please keep us posted! We know whatever course your people decide upon, they will care for you well.
Christine & Sophie
Hi again,
It's actually bonecancerdogs.com. Here is a link to a page which lists dogs by location of tumor (rear leg tumors are near the bottom of the page), if you click on most, the dog's story is shared. You can probably figure out which are the older dogs by looking at the pictures, and then read some of their experiences
http://www.bone.....orlocation
Good luck.
Christine & Sophie
Thanks to Sophiesmom for the bonecancerdogs tumor by location URL, it had some very informative stories and information.
<>An update on Shadow. He was seen at Michigan State University
Oncology last Friday and had many tests. He is now scheduled for
amputation of his LR leg this Thursday followed by alternating
treatments of carboplatin and doxorubicin starting 10 to 14 days later.
Good luck Shadow. You are definitely in good hands there. We will be thinking of you and send our love and healing thoughts your way. The first few weeks will be a challenge, but hang in there, it'll get easier. Let us know if there's anything we can do to help.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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