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Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat

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Levi - TriPawd to be...
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On The Road


Member Since:
24 September 2009
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46
14 September 2015 - 9:15 am
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Awwww yaaaay! So glad things are going great. Keep it up Levi!

P.S. Love how you post the Instagram pics here. We're lazy about being on IG so it's nice to see your updates. Thanks.

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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16 September 2015 - 1:40 pm
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5 days post amputation, and he doesn't understand what all the fuss is about. Our biggest challenges now are keeping him off the furniture and not allowing him to mess with his incision. He's not obsessed with it or anything, but it interests him every now and again, and we have to make sure somebody is with him to make him stop.

We got him one of those inflatable e-collar alternatives, but he wasn't a fan - shoved his paw through the opening near his neck and ripped the velcro off...so we're not too confident leaving him alone with just that on.

Made his appointment for the stitches to come out on the 25th, so just have to stay vigilant for another 10 days. At this rate he'll be ready to chase squirrels again by then.

Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

Virginia



Member Since:
22 February 2013
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48
16 September 2015 - 3:09 pm
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Great.to jear Levi is doing so well, especially this early on.

I love the visual of Levi getting out of that donut cone so fast. Nothing holding that boy back...and that's a great sign!!

Run squirrels run...Levi's coming!!!

Hugs to all!

Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle 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!

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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16 September 2015 - 3:17 pm
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Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

Virginia



Member Since:
22 February 2013
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16 September 2015 - 3:41 pm
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STUNNING!!! Absolutely stunning!!! EVERYTHING about this picture is just beautiful! The coloring, the glow of soft light and, of course, the exquisitely handsome Levi! Talk about a sacred forever treasure...here it is!

Thanks so much for sharing. Just perfect!

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!

Green Bay, WI
Member Since:
18 May 2014
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16 September 2015 - 7:28 pm
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Way to go Levi! You the Man! Pssstt keep your humans thinking you're NOT quite there yet and I bet you'll get even more cozy options and have them eating out of your hand, er paw. So happy to see you doing so well! Keep up the good work, and kudos to your awesome humans for taking such good care of you.

Paula and Nitro

Nitro 11 1/2  yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms.  Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"

http://nitro.tripawds.com

"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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52
21 September 2015 - 7:45 am
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Well, we have our diagnosis - Osteosarcoma it is crying

I thought I'd prepared myself for it, but I wasn't expected the biopsy results this soon, so it's hitting me harder than I expected. At least we know now, and at least we got it out.

Doc recommends 4-6 injections of chemo, so we'll probably go ahead with that. Hopefully the Im Yunity I ordered gets here soon as well. We'll get to cooking better cancer-fighting meals for him as well. We'll start with Dr. Dressler's recs and I'm going to be heading over to the nutrition forum here ASAP. My dude is a tough guy and a fighter and I know he's ready to kick some more butt just like he did in initial recovery.

Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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53
21 September 2015 - 9:04 am
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This looks quite informative as well - especially since Zeus and Levi are nearly identical weights.

http://tripawds.....-id-share/

There is a holistic veterinarian right down the road from my regular vet, and we may try to make an appointment there for a nutritional consult, as well as anything else they may have to say.

Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

On The Road


Member Since:
24 September 2009
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54
21 September 2015 - 10:07 am
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Dang I'm sorry. I am in the chat right now if you want to talk

The diagnosis is hard, but with it, comes education and a plan on how to manage it. By having a great team in place and being conscientious about his diet you are off to a great start. Hop on over to our Tripawds Nutrition blog , we have lots of home cooking and cancer fighting nutrition ideas there OK?

Give that  handsome pup a smooch from us. Stitches are off this week right? Yay!

Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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21 September 2015 - 1:26 pm
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Thanks Jerry, I certainly will. Just glancing at it, I know that the PetValu down the road sells Primal freeze dried, so we should try to incorporate that as well.

He has been on grain-free since we got him (at age 2). We started with Taste of the Wild, but have since switched to Earthborn Holistic for a few years. Then every couple weeks we'd give them some Stella & Chewy's frozen raw patties as a treat.

Now that we have the diagnosis though, we'd like to get him off the kibble as much as possible. Our other dog would ideally be off it as well, but I'm just not sure we can afford to feed them both that well financially. We'll have to see what we can swing.

And yes, stitches come out Friday.

Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

Virginia



Member Since:
22 February 2013
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56
21 September 2015 - 4:14 pm
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Yeah, even though you kinda' "know"...it still is a jolt to have "it" confirmed.

As Jerry said, now you can move forward. Through your research I have no doubt you will develop a "butt kicking" plan for Mr. Levi. The research can be soooo overwhelming, so conflicting and confusing. Dr Dressler's book offers a lot of good general guidelines.

My Happy Hannah wasn't spayed until about two years. I was able to basically "navigate" around vaccines other than the puppy shots. Although I didn't do homecooking lrior to her diagnosis, I feed her the supposedly best quality kibble according to Whole Dog journal or Dog Food Advisor. She developed osteosarcoma at 8 1/2. After diagnosis I did a lot of homecooking and, although I still used some "highly rated" kibble, Honest Kitchen prodcuts played a big role in her diet. I also used K9 Immjnity Plus, Apocaps , and a couple of other supplements. I wasn't as well versed on the ImYunnity at the time, but I definitely would have added it if I had a "do-over". Happy Hannah received four rounds of Carboplatin. That was the number the Onco. recommended. Happy Hannah sailed through the sessions with no problem. Even IF Levi has some loss of appetite or @lethargy, it only last a couplemof days. The Onco will give you Cerenia should Levi experience nausea.

I know this journey is not easy, but you have a GREAT attitude...and that kind of energy is important! Every day with our dogs and cats is a gift...a bonus..always has been, always will be. This journey adds an intensity to our "bonus days" and gives us the ability to focus in the NOW with a depth that we never even knew existed. We embrace each day from a perspective of Being More Dog...Being More Levi!! Treasure your time together. Never waste it with worry or fear. Levi sure isn't worried about a thing!

Give that sweet boy a smooch for us, okay?

Sending lots of hugs to all!!

Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle too!

PS...Happy Hannah had me convinced a scoop of ice cream was an important nutritional supplement. And I always celebrated her ampuversaries with a steak!

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!

Green Bay, WI
Member Since:
18 May 2014
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57
21 September 2015 - 7:31 pm
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Like Sally said, it is still a shock to hear the words even though you were preparing yourselves. But now you make a plan and move forward. I always feel better when I have information and can make a plan. You guys are doing SO well with everything that's been thrown at you I have no doubt you can handle this too. Levi is so lucky to have you! Keep us posted and let us know how we can help.

Paula and Nitro

Nitro 11 1/2  yr old Doberman; right front amp June 2014. Had 6 doses carboplatin, followed by metronomic therapy. Rocked it on 3 legs for over 3 years! My Warrior beat cancer, but couldn't beat old age. He crossed the Bridge peacefully on July 25, 2017, with dignity and on his terms.  Follow his blog entitled "Doberman's journey"

http://nitro.tripawds.com

"Be good, mama loves you".....run free my beautiful Warrior

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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58
22 September 2015 - 9:26 am
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First treatment (Carbolin) is Friday. He'll be there anyway to get his stitches out, and they plan to keep him for all/most of the day to monitor for any adverse reactions to the drug. Dr also advised that side effects could come on 2-3 days later, which I already knew thanks to the wonderful folks on this board!

In the Dog Cancer Survival Guide , Dr. Ettinger mentions Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) levels as being a potential prognosis indicator, so I asked that we have those checked soon as well as the usual white blood cell count monitoring that goes on during Chemo.

Just took him for his longest post-surgery walk yet - all the way around the block! He did great, the only thing is that he sometimes tries to lift the leg he still has, so he's standing there like some sort of Cirque Du Soleil performer clown while he pees! Be careful, man!

Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

Virginia



Member Since:
22 February 2013
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59
22 September 2015 - 10:01 am
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LEVI!! Ao you want to try out for Doggy Cirque du Soleil? Sounds like you're getting a great head start! I'm ordering my ticket now!

Your humans are doing a GREAT job of taking care of their "tough guy dude". And you are doing a GREAT job of just getting on with enjoying life to the fullest!! You still have to take it slow though, okay? Don't want to be waking up with any sore muscles from overdoing. That could interfere with your training for the Cirque show!!

Extra treats for you! And hugs to all!

Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle 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!

Member Since:
3 September 2015
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60
2 October 2015 - 7:49 am
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3 weeks post-surgery update:

He's REALLY back to being himself now and it makes us so happy. Chewing his nylabone (we call it his nightly dental regimen), bugging us for dinner an hour before it's time to eat, playing with his toys by himself...just being Levi again.

He didn't have any problems after the first chemo treatment (Carboplatin - I think I spelled it wrong earlier). Next week he goes for a complete blood cell count, and if all is good, we'll schedule treatment number two.

We've been cooking all his meals for him, so he's eating like a king. Supplements are Im Yunity, coconut oil, calcium carbonate powder, Pet Naturals hip & joint, and Source Naturals Mega One multivitamin.

Levi was diagnosed w/likely osteosarcoma at 7.5 years old in 7/2015 and became a Tripawd on 9/11/15. Loved life until he broke one of his front legs on 2/12/17. As x-rays showed clean bone, we decided to repair the leg. He recovered well, but in June of 2017, started to limp on the same leg. X-Rays showed return of OSA in the front leg. Levi crossed the rainbow bridge on 7/20/17, after over 22 months as a happy Tripawd. 

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