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
This is Louie's first night home after leaving his right front leg at the hospital! He is 4 month old darling Chihuahua who had a very misfortunate accident this past weekend. I'm devastated still, but reading some stories have taken the edge off. He is not letting me out of his sight...and that's ok. He's having a hard time maneuvering, which I'm sure will improve and he's still in a bit of pain. Any helpful hints are appreciated. I wasn't prepared for this and it's such a blow.
Welcome to Tripawds, your future posts will not require moderation.
I'm sorry you had to find us due to Louie's accident. Amputation is a lot to take in, but hopefully you have seen here that tripawds can lead a pretty normal life.
Have you read through Jerry's Required Reading list yet? Lots of good information on what to expect with amputation and recovery. The e-book Three Legs and a Spare is another good resource.
Many here will tell you that small tripawds have an advantage- and I suppose that is true in some areas. My little pug Maggie lost a rear leg to cancer- and she had some obstacles that she could not overcome because she was so small- for example she could not climb more than 2 or 3 stairs. But we made accommodations and she was a happy, obstinate pug for almost 4 years.
The first couple weeks after surgery can be tough- pain meds, learning to walk/hop, sutures.... so don't get discouraged if Louie takes some time to come around. But we have often seen here that the young pups bounce back faster- hopefully Louie is one of those!
What kind of pain meds is Louie on? If he is still in pain you might talk to your vet about upping them a little.
Karen and the pugapalooza
Welcome! You are going to find these boards soooo helpful. This is my kitty's third night home and it definitely gets better each day! Let us know what you need or any questions you have!
Jill is a 9-year-old tuxedo kitty. She was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in June 2012 on her toe in her right hind leg. Her leg was amputated on 12/12/12 and she completed four rounds of chemo (2 of Carbo, 2 of Doxy) in April 2013. "Like" Jill's facebook page: https://www.fac.....tty?ref=hl Proud member of the WINTER WARRIORS!!!! Her blog can be read at http://jillsjou.....ipawds.com. xoxo
Welcome, Andrea. This is a wonderful support group for the pawrents of new three legged pups and now kitties too! You will find far more folks are here beause of cancer, so at least you don't have that facing you.
The recovery period is often a challenge. There are lots of adjustments for you and Louie. I'm going to make this comment and hope I don't offend you - be careful about helping him out too much. He is a little guy and there is a natural tendency to pick him up and carry him. He has to learn to adapt to his new normal.
Rest when he rests, because the humans are under more stress than the dogs during the recovery period.
Ask all the questions you need to. Someone will jump in and help out.
Shanna & Spirit Trouble ~ Trouble gained her wings 3/16/2011, a 27 1/2 month cancer survivor, tail wagging. RIP sweetheart, you are my heart and soul. Run free at Rainbow Bridge.
The November Five - Spirits Max, Cherry, Tika, Trouble & Nova. 11/2008 - 3/2013 An era ends as Queen Nova crossed the Bridge.
Oh what a sweetie puppy. He is so the opposite of mine. (Big, "tuxedo" and some say elderly) I think his age is a very good thing. 3 legs is the new normal. We have a tripawd chihuaha in the neighborhood and he just gets along very well.
I learned something after my pups front leg amp which might be helpful: Pumba is very tickle sensitive - one light touch to his side sends that rear leg into loco-motion. When he came home, his rear legs were floppy from the fentynal, but when that corrected, he would throw the back leg out in a bizarre jerky motion. Finally, it came to me that he was trying to loco-motion while walking because the pull from the bandages was setting off his tickle response. I had kept a pad over the suture area because vet had left an about 1 inch stub of leg (I call it his nubbins) and I was afraid it would hurt w/out some padding. Once I removed all tape the herky-jerky stopped. Altho your pup is rear leg, he may still be feeling that urge to loco. Also, a shirt helps - maybe it's like the calming effect of a Thundershirt or maybe it works to de-sensitize - who knows?
I'm confident your pup will be just fine (oh jeez-you will be soooo surprised at how well he adapts) and keep his sunny future in mind while you go thru this tough recovery period.
Oh poor kid! I'm glad everything turned out as best as it could. It's got to be so hard when you face this without any warning whatsoever.
Rest assured that Louie's smaller size will be a big help as he recuperates and learns how to get around. It won't take him long, you'll see! Don't get discouraged though, all dogs are different in how long they take to recuperate, but I'm going to be it won't take Louie long if you're upbeat, positive, and like Karen said, don't baby him (it's tough not to!).
We're glad you found us. Keep us posted on how he's doing OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
1 Guest(s)
