Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
Tripawds is your home to learn how to care for a three legged dog or cat, with answers about dog leg amputation, and cat amputation recovery from many years of member experiences.
Join The Tripawds Community
Learn how to help three legged dogs and cats in the forums below. Browse and search as a guest or register for free and get full member benefits:
Instant post approval.
Private messages to members.
Subscribe to favorite topics.
Live Chat and much more!
Register
Log In
Members
Add Topic
Offline
jake3 said
I want "Three legs and a spare" in book form rather that an e book...
No printed versions are available for the Tripawds e-books . You can always print out the PDF, but the greatest benefit of both Three Legs And A Spare and Loving Life On Three Legs are the numerous direct links they include to articles, videos, and podcast interviews for more helpful information from the Tripawds Blogs
Currently, Be More Dog is the only Tripawds book available in paperback.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
CLARE AND MEG!!! Thank you so much for taking time to INSPIRE by word and by video!!! Meg is always my "go to" when newbies need "proof" that a dog can handle three legs AND be HAPPY😀
Plus, selfishly I get to see some of the most delightful videos ever produced! And some I may not have seen before. Can't remember if I had seen the one of her blazing a trail through the snow. Loved it.....loved them all! Anything that dog does just lights up my world!😁
Thanks again Clare😊❤
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!
megstamum said
Hi there, Jake and family! (And thank you lovely Sally for alerting me to this thread),
Thank you for posting Clare! It's always so fun to see Meg's videos, she is so full of spunk that it's hard to believe she's already twelve. She's a total inspiration 
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Jake's surgeon said to me in an email "Given that this is a low grade tumor, and located at the elbow, we have the opportunity to do a subtotal forelimb amputation, meaning removal of the limb at the level of the shoulder, instead of the more typical complete amputation, which also removes the scapula. " He goes on to say it's less traumatic and easier recovery. He also writes, "personally, I would recommend the subtotal amputation."
I have read on this site that if the scapula isn't removed the muscles/etc around the scapula can atrophy and then it can be painful for the dog to rest on it. I basically read that some people that didn't have the scapula removed wish they had for the dogs sake. I asked my doctor these questions but he hasn't responded yet. Please can I have some input on this. The surgery is likely on Thursday.
Here's a link started in 2011 and goes thru 2014.
https://tripawd.....on/page-2/
Rene can maybe give you more history, but I can only tell you that, in many cases, it just seems to be an individual prefe6 of the Surgeon. I can also tell you that, here anyway, it seems to "preference " is to remove mthe scapular, regardless of how high up the tumor is.
Good for you for questioning. An Orthopedic Surgeon should be perfectly comfortable remove the scapula.
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!
Funny, I just found that link from 2011 to 2014 and read all of it. Thanks. No need for anyone else to respond...It sounds as though most are in favor of the scapula removal. I'll speak to the surgeon and see why his preference is to leave it intact. Go from there.
Today was a very tough day, but it has ended well! It became apparent to me that the surgeon I had chosen was perhaps not a good fit. I have been spending too much time waiting for email responses to questions I had and then when I did receive responses I felt they were curt. I didn't get a firm response as to why he wanted to do the partial amputation. He said he could do a full or partial amputation but, "still, I do not have a very strong opinion on the matter". I was shaken and realized that I didn't feel comfortable anymore. So I called my vet and he lined me up with a great surgeon in our area. He called and said he only does the full amputation with scapula removal, and he stated all of the reasons I researched on this site! Thank you Tripawds. So I don't have the date soon but he said it'll be within a few weeks. He said he once had a chihuahua with no rear legs and it used a little carriage! He seemed super nice and said he's been a surgeon for 34 years. I was so upset mid day but feel so much better now.
I've been trying to buy the ebook package but am having difficulty. I have a kindle. Does it download onto my kindle? Even my daughter had a tough time figuring it out. I want to read 3 legs and a spare . Any advice from anyone?
Thanks all for your help and support. It's nice to know you're not alone (: ps Jake is doing great, not limping but the growth is growing! He still runs/digs/jumps etc...
Good for you, Connie, for trusting your gut and cutting loose the surgeon who was not a good match! You are an amazing advocate for Jake and I am happy that you have found a new surgeon you trust. It's nice that you will have a few weeks to prepare your home for Jake.
One thing that I didn't think about right away was getting rugs for the kitchen where Griffin's food/water bowls are located. There is a rug brand called Ottomanson which I found on both Amazon and Walmart that has a lot of really inexpensive options for non-skid area rugs and runners that I wound up purchasing for the kitchen, living room, hallway, and my bedroom.
Rest easy tonight. You did a great job today!
Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com
So glad you feel more com with this new Vet! It is so important! The Surgeon Happy Hann had did a great job, but as far as communication...not so much! So to get skill and some personal warmth is a win/-win! And I love that he had a little Chih with no rear legs he fitted with a little carriage. I bet that was an adorable visual!!
I'm glad he reassured you why he thought full scapula remov was a good idea.
Thanks for the update.!
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!
Hey there! I'm sooooo glad you are feeling better. You did it! You advocated for Jake and this will make surgery and recovery soooo much easier for you both. When you're not getting the questions answered by the person whose bill you are about to pay, it's time to move on and find someone more accommodating. Even now with the world being as weird as it is, that's no reason why you can get the kind of care you want and he deserves. Great job finding that!
Meanwhile, about ...
I’ve been trying to buy the ebook package but am having difficulty. I have a kindle. Does it download onto my kindle? Even my daughter had a tough time figuring it out. I want to read 3 legs and a spare . Any advice from anyone?
I'm so sorry you are having problems. Did you actually buy it yet or are you just wondering how to download the files? You can always reach out to us via email, phone 707-845-3129 or usually you'll find us in the Tripawds Chat during the day (Pacific time). We can walk you through the download, but for now check out this blog post that describes how to transfer files to a Kindle. In this case it's talking about MOBI files, and our e-books are PDFs, but most Kindles will read PDFs so the instructions are the same. Please see:
https://bemored.....to-kindle/
Let us know if this helps OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Connie
As you mentioned, I think it is super important to be comfortable with the vets you are working with. This is already so stressful we should not had to it by working with somebody we don't fully trust.
I also completely understand your feeling going into the surgery while you see your dog still 'doing ok'. Arktik as been limping quite a bit over the past 10 days, and even then it's still difficult imagining putting him through this. But we have to keep in my mind it is for the best ( I have to constantly remind myself that!), because if we don't things will get worse over time.
It is great following you and Griffin. Do you have a date for your surgery? I believe we will be almost at the same time. Arktik is going in tomorrow.
I will be thinking about you guys
Patricia
Hi Patricia. Because I switched surgeons I'm now waiting for a date, but it will be within a couple of weeks. Soft tissue sarcoma doesn't spread fast so I have a little time. It does grow fast though in the site of origin. It's in Jake's elbow. He isn't limping or favoring the leg yet.
I'll hold Arktik in my prayers! Arktik is handsome!
1 Guest(s)
