Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi all,
New to the forums, and finding tons of useful information here. Hope I'm posting in the right place!
Our vet told us this morning that our 7-year-old Pomeranian, Max, needs to have his front left leg amputated at the shoulder. Unlike many of the dogs here, Max does not have cancer; rather, he's been battling valley fever that settled into his bones instead of going into the lungs as it normally does. Though he was on anti-fungals previously, they were not enough; an x-ray today showed that the bone lesions have spread into both leg bones, completely destroying the elbow joint to the point where there are pieces of bones completely missing because the valley fever has totally eaten it away.
I know that amputation will be the best thing for him, because it means he won't be in pain. He's been unable to bear weight on that leg for a while now, so I doubt he'll have trouble adjusting to walking on 3. I'm just having trouble dealing with it (especially since my husband's been out of the house all day and I haven't had anybody to talk to), even though I doubt Max will have much trouble. We were unable to get him back to the vet after finishing the anti-fungals first time around because of financial issues, and even though the vet assured me that 80% chance this would have happened either way, knowing that he might be have been able to avoid this somehow is absolutely killing me. The vet tried to assure me this isn't my fault, but I'm having a hard time with that part.
We haven't scheduled surgery yet. The vet is going to call this week with an estimate and then we'll schedule surgery for next week most likely. At least it gives me a few days to absorb the news that my dog is going to be even more special than he already is. In the meantime, I'll be doing lots of reading here and trying to reassure myself that things are gonna be OK.
Julie, mom to Spirit Max the Pomeranian,
the bravest poofle dog who ever lived!
Welcome and best wishes for Max! As a small dog he should adapt quickly and do well on three legs.
Be sure to bookmark Jerry's Required Reading List if you haven't already, and you'll find lots of recovery and care tips in the new Tripawds e-book Three Legs and A Spare.
Your future posts will not require moderation. Drop by the chat room if you see this reply soon.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Don't beat yourself up, we're all just doing the best we can with the crummy hand that's dealt to us. Everyone also has trouble dealing with it...that's why we're here!
BTW, Max is a little cutie-pie!
http://tate.tripawds.com/
August 16, 2006 to November 28, 2011
TATE ~ Forever in our hearts.
Oh my gosh! Max is a cutie pie. (I have a pom mix)
Yes - don't beat your self up, we are just doing the best we can. And I have heard that fungal infections can be very tricky to treat.
Max should be fine, smaller dogs do very well as tripawds plus like you said he is already practicing to be one.
Sending good thoughts and huggs your way,
Lylee's Mum
http://lyleegir.....ipawds.com
Aww, he is a cutie! Don't beat yourself up. We are all in the same boat- just trying to do the best for our dogs with what we have. Max loves you no matter what, that's the great thing about dogs. Hang in there!
Diagnosed with OSA: 5/2/2011 Ampuversary: 5/11/2011 OSA returned in hip: 8/26/2011
Chili Dawg crossed the Rainbow Bridge on 8/30/2011 & is now pain free. He was my heart dog, and I miss him every day.
What a cutie! He will do fine on three legs, just wait and see. I know it's hard to deal with at first but once you see how quickly he bounces back you'll wonder why you were ever so scared. Dogs have a way of showing humans that life is about having a good time, not worrying or fretting over things they can't control.
Welcome! We're glad you found us.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Oh my dog! What a cute little one you've got with Max!!!
Gosh, I've heard of Valley Fever in dogs (in Las Vegas) but I've never known of any dog actually getting it. But Max is going to do great. He's a little guy, so being a tripawd should be a breeze! It's scary, but it will be all worth it in the end, trust me. I had a three legged dog for 12 years (birth defect) and since she was under 40lbs, it was way easier on me than a lot here that have big dogs. Being able to pick them up helps a lot.
I wish you the best and try not to worry. Max will adapt just fine.
We are here to help you in whatever way we can.
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
I am just like you and I have started to try to blame myself for my dogs problems. My dog is a Great Dane and she has Osteosarcoma and had to have a front L amp. At first diagnosis all kinds of thoughts went through my head that made me wonder if it was something that I did that led to her cancer. Like, did I feed her the right food or was it the flea medicine I put on her or why didn't I know sooner? I realize that there is no way to know why and how these things happen to our dogs. Blaming ourselves won't help and there is nothing we can do now but move forward and do the best that we can to give our dogs the best life we can while they are still here. I wish you and Max the best! He sure is a cutie!!! It's not an easy thing to go through but my Faith and my Love for My Dog is what is getting me through this challenging time. Definitely get lots of sleep before hand and if possible get a friend or family member to be on stand by if you need help in any way. Good Luck!!!!
Never doubt that you're making the right decision, especially during those first few weeks when the going gets tough. It's going to be rough during that time, but Max WILL get through it. And so will you. Post often and with any questions you have, no matter how small. We've all been through this before, and this is the best place you can go for guidance on how to deal with the situation. Welcome to the forums.
I've been trying to catch up here on Tripawds, so sorry I'm late in responding. So sorry to read about Max. What a little cutie! You'll be amazed at how well he'll do on 3 legs. He is small, and he doesn't have to fight cancer. I've never heard of valley fever, so I'll have to google that.
Please keep us posted on Max's journey. We're all here to help you in any way, to just listen to you - or answer any questions you may have.
Sending you many golden hugs!
Cathy
Thanks so much for the kind words, everyone!
Max has an appointment for a consultation with an orthopedic surgeon on Friday morning, so hopefully we'll get everything all sorted out and he can get in for surgery maybe next week. The vet looks very good with lots of experience, plus this specialty clinic has a relationship with U of AZ's Valley Fever Specialty Center, so maybe Max can help them with their research 🙂
Valley Fever is basically a fungal spore that lives in the dust, and it's very common out here in Arizona. It's mostly something dogs get (though people can pick it up too sometimes) that goes to their lungs, causing extreme fatigue and breathing problems. Max is one of a small percentage that got the "cutaneous" form, causing a few sores on his skin and lesions on his bones. It's normally treated with anti-fungal medication, which he's going back on now.
Julie, mom to Spirit Max the Pomeranian,
the bravest poofle dog who ever lived!
Welcome Max and pack,
I haven't been around much lately since I work for a Theater Company in the summer (in addition to my paying job).
My Tri-pug Maggie was about 17.5 pounds at the time of her rear leg amp- how big is Max? You can read Maggie's story if you want to- the link is in my signature box below.
We have Valley Fever in the hills around here too- I live near San Francisco, inland about 40 miles.
Oh- and none of this is your fault! We all do the best we can for our pups with the resources we have. Don't spend time on the 'what ifs' it just drags you down. And besides- there is no way to know how a different decision might have turned out.
Good luck with the consult on Friday, keep us posted.
Karen and the pugapalooza
Hi everybody, thanks again for all the wonderful comments! Max went to see Dr. Boulay at Veterinary Specialty Clinic of Tucson, and we got a very positive outlook. He agrees that Max is a good candidate for amputation because there's so much bone missing in his leg, and this will get rid of all of his pain. The surgery should go very quickly both because he's so small (weighed in at 11lb this morning, and most of that is fluff!) and because the shoulder muscle has atrophied from disuse of the leg. Dr. Boulay thinks that he should recover very quickly, especially since he's been "functionally amputated" and unable to walk on that bad leg for quite a while now, so he's pretty much used to walking around on all three's already.
The surgery is scheduled for this coming Tuesday. I'll drop him off on the way to work, he'll stay the night, and we'll pick him up on Wednesday with some additional pain medication-- probably a Fentanyl patch in addition to the Metacam and Tramadol that he's on already. My bosses gave me the OK to work from home for a week or so in order to keep an eye on him as he recovers.
I'm feeling pretty good about this whole ordeal, and definitely MUCH better than I was when we first received the diagnosis last weekend. I just want to say "thanks" to everybody here for being so helpful and supportive! <3
Julie, mom to Spirit Max the Pomeranian,
the bravest poofle dog who ever lived!
Dropped Max off for surgery this morning, he won't go into the OR until after lunchtime and I can expect to hear from the doc after 3:00. No visiting for us, since the visiting hours are only 3 hours post-op and he'll be too drugged to do much. The nurse said that if he's conscious, he might get too excited and think he's going home if he sees us, so we'll just wait it out and pick him up tomorrow.
Doggy Dad got home last night (went to Vegas with some buddies for a video game tournament over the weekend) and wasn't terribly supportive, unfortunately. DD doesn't "get" why I'm so upset by all this stuff, and instead completely freaked out about the finances, which only made me worse. I'm sure he just needs to cope in his own way or something like that, but coming home and getting a two-hour lecture on taking care of pets, which segued into about three other things he's annoyed with me about right now, was definitely NOT what I needed when I was freaking out last night.
Bleh. Sorry to rant there, DD is an awesome guy most of the time, but I'm just a little high-strung and upset with him right now.
Thanks to all for the good wishes, and best of luck to the other puppies having surgery today!
Julie, mom to Spirit Max the Pomeranian,
the bravest poofle dog who ever lived!
Max will be just fine. After Skyler's surgery, we also weren't allowed to visit - as she would get too excited if she saw us. We were able to pick her up the next morning, and she walked out of the hospital just fine. Get lots of rest! It's awesome that your boss will let you work from home. Please keep us posted. Sending up lots of prayers, and sendiing you many golden hugs!
Cathy
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