Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hey everyone, just wanted to tell my story hoping it would make me feel better about the whole situation. I have a yellow lab, his name is Buck and he just turned 8 on March 17th, 2013. I was at the lake back in 2009 and noticed a knot on his leg, thinking he had just bumped it and it was swollen. It never went away, but didn't seem to bother him. After a while I got worried and it kept getting bigger and took him to the vet. First thing everybody said was osteosarcoma and talked about amputation and chemo. Obviously this was very upsetting and I was sent to the Auburn, Alabama vet school for a follow up. They wanted to do an aggressive biopsy and to everyones surprise the results came back negative.
So over the course of the past few years, we came in and did periodic check-ups and x-rays of the leg and his chest to keep a check on it, but nothing strange has happened. His appetite, thirst and demeanor has not changed at all and he's the same happy Buck. The only thing that's changed is that it kept getting bigger and bigger. I never went back to the vet school, but the vet that originally saw his leg kept telling me that he would recommend not cutting it off as long as it didn't interfere with his walking. And it didn't, he walked, ran swam played did everything a normal dog would do and other than lick it occasionally nothing seemed amiss. But it kept getting bigger and bigger, still I never got a recommendation to have it removed even though I inquired about every time I took him to the vet.
I have taken him to several vets and the vet school in Auburn and strangely not a single one of them has ever seen anything like it. It's a huge bone growth off his leg, but it's not cancer. One idea was that something traumatic happened to the bone and his brain told his leg to heal and it just never stopped and it's just been adding new bone ever since.
The problem is that now it has wrapped around his leg and just recently has moved down to where it now interferes with his walking. I hate myself for not getting it cut off sooner, but I was told that nobody knew the right answer. That it was possible that could have thrown fuel to the fire and we'd be in this situation a lot sooner. At this point though, it's so entangled with his regular bone and it's so big that the only option now is amputation. I know this is the best thing for him, it's a back leg which I know is better than a front, but it's still very hard. It grew so slowly up until this point that I wanted to wait until after my wedding in two weeks to have it done.
What I think happened though, is that as soon as it grew into his joint and started getting irritated, it's growth has increased exponentially and I feel like it is really starting to bother him now and I can't sit back and make him wait two weeks in pain for this procedure, he's my baby. But since we didn't have it set up ahead of time no vet can see him for two weeks anyway. They have given us some Tramadol to keep him comfortable in the meantime.
The weird thing to me is nobody I've talked to has ever seen this happen to a dog, has anyone on here had anything similar or heard of anything like this happen to a dog? If it was cancer, I would have lost him a long time ago...
Thanks in advance for your advice
John
Hi John, welcome to Tripawds. Your future posts will not require moderation.
First off- don't beat yourself up. You have asked questions and seen many professionals- you are doing your best for Buck.
I don't think I've heard anything like this before, how odd. You might post a question in the 'Ask a Vet' forum to see if our resident vet's have ever heard of anything like this.
Sounds like the amputation will be scheduled soon. You might want to read through Jerry's Required Reading list- lots of info there on what to expect with amputation and recovery. General consensus is that back leg amps get around better than front, but I've met lots of front amps that get along just fine! I know it's hard to imagine, but after he heals up Buck will be back to swimming and playing and being Buck. Maybe a little less stamina than before the amp- three leggers do work harder to get around. The first couple weeks after surgery can be tough so don't get discouraged. Often after the staples or sutures come out around the two week mark we see the sparkle come back.
Congrats on getting married in two weeks...is Buck's recovery part of the honeymoon plans now 
?
Karen
Good grief Buck and John you've certainly come here with a different kind of challenge!
I have zero insight on the. cause of your situation, but like others here, can certainly offer insight if amputation is the solution. I know it's hard to wrap your paws around but you are one of the "lucky" ones as amputation sounds like an actual cure. We don't get to see a lot of that too often,although it does happen.
Amputation can be a daunting decision and one no one wants to be faced with. I started out with...absolutely not....to proceeding .....but only after cancelling the surgery one time before going ahead. My Happy Hannah at time of amp six wks ago) was 123 lbs. and eight and a half yrs. Her recovery was slower than some and I held onto this site like it was my only source of oxygen----I felt like I was suffocating with fear and second guessing. Happy Hannah is doing so very well now----even better than before the surgery. You will be so pleased to see how well Buck does after his recovery. You won't realize how much is leg was bothering him until you see how well he does afterwards. He'll be doing back flips off the diving board and wanting to swim in the doggy Olympics!!
One more thin, don't spend one more second in the "would a, should a" category-----it would really upset Buck if you wasted your time there rather than loving him and giving g him treats!!
We are here for you, Sally and Happy Hannah......Is Buck in the wedding?
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 Buck & John-
What a very strange occurrence. Although I've never seen anything like this with dogs, it is fairly common in the equine community. A majority of times when something happens to the bone (even just a slight tendon tearing away from the bone) their system reacts just as you described and you end up with a large calcium deposit. Equine vets generally do not do anything unless the deposit is interfering with a joint or irritating a tendon or ligament and they will then go in and shave off or remove the deposit. Seems odd no one thought to investigate further. You definitely did your best with asking questions.
Labs are such tough and resilient dogs that I'm certain Buck will do just fine with his new way of life. Remember we are here if you need any support. Thinking good thoughts for both of you.
Spirit Shooter was a Miniature Australian Shepherd who was diagnosed with a MCT and had a LF amp 1/28/13 at 13-1/2 years old.
Shooter crossed the Bridge on 8/28/13, his 7 month ampuversary and two weeks from his 14th birthday.
John, welcome. Like Karen said, don't beat yourself up. You did exactly what any responsible pet parent would do. Waiting is usually the best decision when you want to avoid something so invasive and drastic until you know exactly what you're dealing with. To answer your question: no, we've never had a member join for that exact same reason that Buck has.
We are going through a similar situation with our Tripawd Wyatt Ray ; he had an odd infection that stumped the pros at Texas A&M vet school back in November and now the only thing we can do now is wait and see and hope it doesn't come back.
Two weeks seems like forever, especially now that you're getting married too! Congrats by the way.
If you think the tramadol isnt' effective enough right now, ask for stronger pain meds. There are drugs out there like Fentanyl that can really help manage the pain a whole lot better than tramadol alone, don't hesitate to ask your vet OK?
Hang in there. All this stress will be over soon and you and Buck and your new spouse can get on with living.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Oh, yes, our story is quite similar.
Two, maybe three, years ago I noticed that Chico's right leg seemed "thicker" in one area than the other. It didn't bother him so I didn't do anything about it.
18 months ago, Chico started limping. We visited his regular vet at least 6 times before they referred him to an orthopedic specialist. We went to the specialist April 18th, 2012 and they did a biopsy which indicated cancer--either synovial cell or histiocytic cell sarcoma. He had his amputation May 2, 2012. It was histiocytic cell sarcoma and it had spread to his lymph nodes. His first visit with the oncologist was daunting--he said he'd never treated a dog with histiocytic cell sarcoma that lived over 12 months, and 12 months was "stretching it."
I'm happy to announce that today he saw the oncologist and he'll take his oral chemo in a week and then, unless something comes up, we'll drop to every other month visits and probably no chemo. Chico has had no signs of recurrence or metastasis.
This is the first I've been back on here since I made the post and I really can't thank you enough for all the kind words and support.
Update: Yesterday I got an emergency call from my fiance. The pain the past few days must have been there because there was blood building up on the growth. Yesterday around lunch it burst and blood was everywhere. My fiance is pregnant and the fire department is right down the street they came and put Buck in the back seat and she rushed him to the emergency room at the Auburn vet school. They were able to get him doped up and feeling better and he had his surgery today, they went ahead and removed the leg. But x-rays showed cancer on his lungs.
All this time of being told that if it was cancer he'd be dead by now and I have so many unanswered questions. If I had it amputated years ago could I have stopped this? Why were the results negative everytime leading me to believe he was fine? This has been there 5 years, how has he lasted so long?
They did ultrasounds of the rest of his body and there were no other tumors, leading them to believe his leg was the source. They are going to keep him for a few days and then we'll get him back. They said we would start chemo in about 10 days and without any recent xrays or data, there's nothing yet to determine how long the cancer has been there or how its growing.
I know the coulda wouldas are not helpful, but I feel so robbed. I've thought this whole time once the leg was gone he'd be ok and the cancer is a complete shock. I know I have to take it day by day and he's a strong pup, but this is such a complete shock.
Alinell, your story gives me hope and I feel like if his cancer has been around so long and it hasn't hurt him, maybe this is something he can recover from.
Benny and Krun, yes Buck was part of the wedding when we were going to do it on my mom's land, however, the new plans don't work too well, especially due to what just happened. We are however forgoing our honeymoon to stay and take care of him.
Thanks again,
John
So sorry to hear about the news your received. Just keep loving on Buck because he knows that's what is important. Whatever you decide to do for follow up is the right decision because you will do what is best for Buck and your family. You are very special to stay and take care of him at this important time of your life. How special you are!
Spirit Shooter was a Miniature Australian Shepherd who was diagnosed with a MCT and had a LF amp 1/28/13 at 13-1/2 years old.
Shooter crossed the Bridge on 8/28/13, his 7 month ampuversary and two weeks from his 14th birthday.
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