Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello everyone. I just want to introduce my good pal Lucy.
Lucy (almost 15 yo) just got a diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma on back leg after biopsy result this is after a couple of weeks of other tests which came back normal. She has had a sore on back left leg that we thought was a hot spot that she didn’t stop licking. It hasn’t bothered her too much until the last 2 weeks when she started loosing her appetite.
She got an e- tube last week and the feeding has been difficult because I have to go really slow and it doesn’t help going to all the vet appointments where she has to be sedated, so basically a maddening stressful situation trying to get her calories .
In todays’s appointment the vet told me that biopsy confirms s.c.c and the 2 options are euthanasia and amputation. I have been reading this site and am encouraged that animals often do better after the bad limb is removed.
The vet believes that the anorexia is due to the cancer, and we have not found anything else, so I am hoping that amputation will be a good solution for at least a year or 2 more with my good friend. The vet mentioned that something else could possibly be causing the anorexia and we still have pancreatitis results pending. I should mention Lucy is also a diabetic but it has been well managed. Of course irregular eating doesn’t help. She does not have a very good quality of life right now.
I hope to get in to contact with others on this forum. I am pretty stressed and nervous about this.
Hi Alan and Lucy, welcome. I'm so sorry you are facing this situation, we are here to help however we can.
It sounds like Lucy is a good candidate for surgery? What kind of dog breed type is she? If your vet thinks she can do well on three that is awesome.
And yep, for most dogs, when that bad leg is off, they get their sparkle back once recovery is over. Senior dogs may take longer to make a full recovery so if you move forward with surgery that's something to be aware of. Just try not to compare and remember she is on her own timeline, and that will make recovery easier.
What is your house like? Do you have slippery floors? You'll want to put down traction so she doesn't slip. See our Tripawds Recovery Shopping List , Jerry's Required Reading List , and our What to Expect articles to get a feel for post-amputation recovery. Our e-books library also has helpful information too.
Let us know how the next few days go and what the lab reports say. Ask any questions you'd like, we are here for you!
P.S. Your future posts won't need approval so post away.
Thanks for all the links Jerry. I must apologize I never mentioned the species. Lucy is a cat a domestic short hair mostly black. I will post a pic when I get more familiar with how to. We are scheduled for surgery on Tuesday. The main question is if anything else is wrong but so far nothing else on lab results.
The challenge now is getting calories in her through the feeding tube which can be a challenge and Lucy having to recover from the ketamine/ace sedation they put her on for each examinations.
Thanks for your response. I will look at the links and I never even though of my slippery floors.
-Alsn
Ohhhh! Well glad you mentioned it but cat or dog we are equally supportive! Now the feeding tube makes more sense. Cats can be really hard to get food into when they aren't well, way harder than dogs. Hang in there with all that, it's not easy. You can do it!!
Did you see our posts about amputation on an older cat?
https://tripawd.....y-old-cat/
This is how adding images to the forums works. They have to be hosted on a photo sharing site like Imgur.com or your own Tripawds blog. Upload there, copy the pic and return here to paste. Let me know if your like help.
Lucy is having trouble keeping her food down (vomited some but not all this afternoon) and is very tired and week. I really hope she can make it to surgery on Tuesday and this is the right answer. Will (constantly) reassess if this is just her time to go.
Alan I'm sorry she isn't doing well. That's got to be so tough for all of you. We hope she can make it to Tuesday as well.
Everyone reassesses their decision at first, we all doubt that we did the best thing for our cat or dog. Over time though, when their sparkle returns, we understand what the Tripawds slogan really means when we say "Better to hop on three than to limp on four."
We send all our love for healing and a good recovery.
Thank you Jerry,
Lucy is stable now and has kept down 2 feeding tube meals in a row. In a perfect world she could have a couple more days to recover from all her anesthesia from past appointments (delayed Tuesday’s surgery). Problem is the SCC has become a large nasty infected area that she would at least need a bandage/ dressing change plus it may be making her sicker. Plus she will get good pain meds after surgery (vet says so). Will see if I can get ahold of the vet today to discuss my concerns.
Just catching up on your sweet Lucy. Clearly she is loved and adored and has been given the best care possible.
Lucy certainly has had her share of health challenges and I know all of those issues can really complicate your decisions. One thing for sure, whatever path forward you take it will be because of your love for Lucy and her will being.
We are all here to support you and sending healing energy for your sweet lucy.
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!
Thank you so much benny55 and friends. Here is Lucy today.[Image Can Not Be Found]
Sorry, I guess uploading a photo is too complicated using the blog function. Maybe I will try later
I'll PM you my email if you'd like to send me some pics and I would be glad to post them. Cant wait to see sweet Lucy 😎
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!
OK this is how adding images works in the Forums.
Basically you need to:
- upload a photo somewhere like your own Tripawds blog, or a public image hosting site like Imgur.com
- then copy the image URL (or just tap the image and copy it if you're on a mobile device)
- return here, and paste the image into your forum post.
Hope that makes sense. Let us know if you'd like help!
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