Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi everyone,
Well, it's exactly 43 days today, since Jake's amputation surgery. I thought he was doing a little better each day... but this week, especially today, he seems to be having difficulty in walking. We have to help him alot more, using the harness... His back legs don't seem to be working as well, and he's fallen down several times while trying to walk by himself, like his front remaining leg gives up. He just plops to the ground!
My husband noticed this too, so it's not just me being paranoid. He's been on glucosamine, fish oil, vitamins/minerals, healthy homemade liver treats for several weeks now... He's also on meloxicam.
Last nite when I brought him into our bedroom and he plopped down on his doggie bed... I started kissing him and rubbing all over him. That really seemed to perk him up and he started rolling around and being frisky. Wolfie ran over and started wrestling with him, like they used to do. Jake tried to get up to play some more, then his front leg gave way and he plopped back down again. I'm hoping that his condition today is just do to his overexerting himself last nite. Maybe he's sore all over? But he's on meloxicam and that's supposed to help... I don't know. He's breathing fine... just his usual panting once in a while (usually in the middle of the nite). His gums are nice and pink... so no lack of oxygen... He poops and pees normally, still has a great appetite...
Tomorrow it's pool time, and I hope that it'll perk him up again. When he's swimming, he doesn't have to worry about putting any weight on his legs... But then again, swimming does take alot of energy out of him... so does that mean he'll feel even worse that evening... the next day?
I'm really trying to keep a positive attitude about all this, but I have a sinking feeling in my heart today. 
Jake's (worried) mom
Jake, 10yr old golden retriever (fractured his front right leg on 9/1, bone biopsy revealed osteosarcoma on 9/10, amputation on 9/17) and his family Marguerite, Jacques and Wolfie, 5yr old german shepherd and the newest addition to the family, Nala, a 7mth old Bengal mix kittie. Jake lost his battle on 11/9/2009, almost 8 weeks after his surgery. We will never forget our sweet golden angel… http://jakesjou.....ipawds.com ….. CANCER SUCKS!
I know how that worried mom syndrome eats away at you, and I'm sorry you are struggling. It is very difficult for us humans to adjust to the new three legged life for our munchkins. It does take time for the stamina to build and to truly get the sense that all is well. Keep working in little steps and you'll get there.
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.
Sounds like you went through the checklist of all the scary symptoms I know of. So letting him rest as he needs to seems like the wise course for now. If the worry starts wearing on you too much, and you are able, I would recommend calling your vet for reassurance or to get him checked out. That made it easier for me to put my mind at ease when Yoda had anything weird going on, but if that's not practical for you, it sounds totally reasonable to me to believe that Jake just needs some rest for his muscles. Good luck and I hope you see improvement soon!
Yoda&Mom united: 9/5/06 …….… Yoda&Leg separated: 6/5/09……… Yoda&Leg reunited: 10/14/09 ……… ……………….………….………….……. Yoda&Mom NEVER separated! …………………….….……....….…… Though Spirit Yoda currently free-lances as a rabbit hunting instructor for tripawds nationwide
Oh Jake's Worried Mom,
This is Emily's worried Mom. I am so sorry that Jake is having problems with his leg. At this stage of his recovery it still could just be over exertion. All else sounds well. I know it is scary though because we are going through problems with Emily's only remaining leg. If it continues I would cal the vet and see what they can do for her. Jake is always in my prayers.
Debra & Emily
Debra & Emily, a five year old doberman mix, who was diagnosed with an osteosaecoma. She had a right rear leg amputation on May 19, 2009. On November 10, 2009 she earned her wings and regained her fourth leg.
Thanks Yoda's Mom and Emily's Mom,
It really helps to know that I'm not alone in all this. I don't post much of the negative stuff to my blog... cause my parents also read it and they are just so worried about Jake. So, I save all my fears and stuff for the forum... where you guys can all understand!
Tomorrow is another day... and I hope that it is better.
Thanks again for your comments... 
They did make me feel a bit better...
Jake's Mom
Jake, 10yr old golden retriever (fractured his front right leg on 9/1, bone biopsy revealed osteosarcoma on 9/10, amputation on 9/17) and his family Marguerite, Jacques and Wolfie, 5yr old german shepherd and the newest addition to the family, Nala, a 7mth old Bengal mix kittie. Jake lost his battle on 11/9/2009, almost 8 weeks after his surgery. We will never forget our sweet golden angel… http://jakesjou.....ipawds.com ….. CANCER SUCKS!
Dear Jake's Mom,
Yes, we do all understand how you feel and our thoughts are with you
Our black labrador Holly was diagnosed with a rare form of osteosarcomma in her hind leg in 2005, so we gave her the best chance of survival by having the leg removed...full story on page 33 back in March 2008!
She is a wonderful dog, hasn't changed one bit, still has bags of attitude and is very, very happy but i still worry about her every single day. When she's tired, sneezes, makes a noise, eats grass, is quiet I wonder why, has it come back? I worry about her other leg as sometimes it clicks when she gets up, what if it hurts, what if she cant get up one day, why isnt she as quick anymore......it's enough to drive you mad!!
But as I look across at her now, fast asleep in her basket with not a care in the world, I know she is happy and that I should be happy too.
Take Care, Claire, Nick & Holly xxxxx
Hi Claire, thanks for commenting! Please consider registering so your posts won't require moderation.
You should start a new topic too, or a Tripawds Blog, to share Holly's story. All our members would love to hear about your four-year three-legged cancer hero!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Eneough of the sexist remarks!! Worry is not the exclusive right orproperty of Mom's. Cherry is definitely a Daddy's girl and I can show the grey hair to prove it. 
Now to the real issue at hand. Unfortunately, recovery is not always a straight line. At 43 days, Cherry still had about three weeks of her chemotherapy, so for us, Jake's conditions would have been an improvement. At approximately the three month mark, her condition also made a bad nose dive. I really was not sure if she was going to make it and we continued in the precarious condition for two weeks. Total recovery did not occur for more than a month. That was March, and we had a similar condition while in the Yellowstone area in June, but that time she recovered in a week. For Cherry, the chemotherapy treatment really compromised the immune system and her ability to shake off bugs and recover. However, she has never been better since the amputation than she is today. Yes, she still tires easily and the eight or more mile walks are a thing of the past, but the spirit is glowing and the body has plenty of energy, even if for shorter periods of time.
Point I am try to make with this long winded post, take a deep breath, let both you and Jake have some quiet time together, and see what a good rest brings. Your detailed observations are excellent and none of us would ever suggest that you should stop them or the worry that seems to creep into all our minds. Keep telling yourself, "This is just a temporary down on this roller coaster, and Jake will again have the quality of life we all want." I am a firm believer in the power of positive thought, but then too I was sure that Cherry would not make it many times. It is not easy, but we are all pulling for Jake to have a better tomorrow.
Bob & Cherry
Cherry said:
(I tried to put a "winker" here but it did not work.)
Hmmm... just testing here.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Holly - you should tell us about your story. You were diagnosed in 2005 and still around to tell the tail!?! Amazing!!! We'd love to hear about it.
Emily and Jake - It seems that all the tripawds are conspiring. Tazzie 2 stumbled several times at the end of last week, went right over on his side once or twice and the front leg gave out when walking a few times. I attributed it to the lumps growing on the right hind leg, which seemed to be confirmed because that leg did start to show problems this week (quivering, holding less weight). We can't take that one off! On the other hand, the stumbles and falls usually happened when he was overly excited, such as after being left alone - oh horror.
Anyway, even though this went on for a few days, I have not noticed it during the last two or three days.
So maybe Emily, Jake and Tazzie 2 have been posting on their own tripawd website about how to get their pawrents really anxious!
Jake - you have been very active since the beginning compared with most of us. I would try not to worry about a little setback yet.
Susan & Tazzie 2
Since I was feeling so low... I decided to pick up my guitar (haven't touched it for over 3 months) and play and sing some tunes... My husband brought 'floppy' Jake over to the family room where I was playing... and let him lie there nest to me while I sang. In the past... my two doggies (my best critics) would lie on the couches while I played. Always felt like I had a 'nice' audience (no hecklers!) for my performances.
Anyways... Jake chewed on a rawhide bone and Wolfie chewed on every single stuffed toy he could find... It was nice and relaxing (for a change). Then I took both doggies out to pee... but I had to help Jake up, using the harness... He did his stuff, but did not hop around as usual, so I brought them both back in. Jake is sleeping now...
While I was singing and playing... it brought back nice memories of when they (and we) were all OK... No problems. Then when I stopped... it all came back... like an avalanche!!! CANCER... finances... etc... At least I had a few good moments when everything seemed fine... I should really do this more often... it helps me to forget reality, at least for a little while!
I'll let you all know how tomorrow goes with Jake... in the pool and afterwards... My hubby and I are supposed to go to a Halloween party... We don't really feel like leaving our babies... especially Jake... But we've been neglecting our close friends the past 2 months... so I guess we'll make an appearance. But I'm sure we'll be home early... I can't stand to be away from my babies these days...
Thank you again for all your encouraging posts... It really helps get me through all of this... I wish I could meet you all in person one day, to give you all a big hug!!!
Jake's Mom
Jake, 10yr old golden retriever (fractured his front right leg on 9/1, bone biopsy revealed osteosarcoma on 9/10, amputation on 9/17) and his family Marguerite, Jacques and Wolfie, 5yr old german shepherd and the newest addition to the family, Nala, a 7mth old Bengal mix kittie. Jake lost his battle on 11/9/2009, almost 8 weeks after his surgery. We will never forget our sweet golden angel… http://jakesjou.....ipawds.com ….. CANCER SUCKS!
Enjoy the party. Try to have some fun. Jake and Wolfie will take care of the trick or treaters!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Jake, stop scaring your mommy!!! And try chilling out for a couple days...super dog can make an appearance later 🙂 Right now you need to relax, eat your vitamins, and enjoy your family. Are your mom and dad keeping pawsitive attitudes around you? Jack got in major trouble yesterday when he tried to eat my parent's dog (she's only 6 pounds, so maybe he wanted an appetizer??) and after he got done getting his talking to, he sulked in my bedroom the rest of the evening and acted all depressed. He hasn't acted like that since before his amputation, so I felt like that was a little set-back and it wasn't even cancer related! Well, I guess once you get the diagnosis, everything is cancer related in our minds, right? But it really is amazing how much acting happy and funny can help in healing! Best wishes you golden beast, you 🙂
<3 Laura and bad jack
Wow.. It is nice isn't it during those times you find you forget all about the cancer, and you see your baby like they always have been. Then the scare of a cough, a stumble, a sneeze, and the infamous night pants. Then it quickly all floods back once again, and fears set in. Shilo family will keep you and Jake in our prayers. It sounds like you have checked everything, I am sure he just over did himself. I am sorry you are having a run of the fears, but try to have a good time tomorrow. It will do some good, and give hopefully a good boost to bring back to the boys. Stay strong.
Shilo and Mom
Shilo diagnosed with osteosarcoma 9/4/2009, amputation 9/9/2009. ShiloAnne lost her battle 11/23/2009 where she regained her fourth leg and is patiently waiting for her parents to join her. We will always love you baby girl.
Hi Jakesmom, I know you are worried about the OSA returning, as you should be. Due to Jakes amputation being recent, give him some time to build up stamina and muscle in the remaining front leg. Chuy is also a frt. leg amputee and at the ripe old age of 1 yr. old had to have FHO (femoral head ostectomy) surgery on his left rear leg (he's missing the lft. frt.) For about a month we dealt with a 2 legged dog as Chuy would not walk on the left rear leg at all. Once we started swim therapy, Chuy became more confident, built up muscle in the remaining front leg as well as his rear legs. We still go to therapy once every 3 weeks, just for fun more than necessity now.
What I am trying to say is the swim therapy is really good for Jake, low resistance, muscle building exercise. If he's tired afterward, let him rest, he knows how much he can handle. Also, if he falls, it's perfectly normal, try not to worry too much. Chuy still falls down once in a while, but since the therapy started it doesn't happen quite as often. Mostly if he gets going too fast and tries to turn a corner. Keep building up that muscle, stamina will happen right along with it.
Chuy and Eleanor
Chuy, showing everyone that Tripawds do everything 3 times better than regular dogs!
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