Hi Kim. We've all been there. You are doing the right thing. The amputation will give him his best chance. People always are shocked I've done so much for my baby. Spleen removal, chemo, amputation, metronomic chemo... But all I can say is he's my baby and I would do it for the human one so why not him. Is it selfish??? I don't think so. But he's happy and that is what is important. Dogs don't think like we do; they live for the "now". If he was in pain and sick and I wanted to keep him around, that would be selfish.

As far as your kids, this can teach them perseverence, dealing with a dsability, tolerance, and so much more. Even with having a leg amputated, Mack will do everything he did before. Your kids will see that Mack is still Mack, even with one less leg. It will be very easy for them to relate this to humans with disabilities. At their ages, this is a great time for them to learn that. They will be much more tolerant and understanding of other kids and adults that have disabilities as well. Prepare your kids ahead of time. They will probably handle it a lot better than you think.

Champ also has a neurotic sister, Lady. We kept Champ in a small play-yard in the dining room/living room area. Lady always saw him and knew he was there. She was a bit confused why he couldn't come out (except for potty breaks) and she couldn't go in. But she was there around him so she handled it well. I hope Rozee does too.

As far as how he will handle the surgery and recovery, each case is different. The surgery usually is the easy part. The recovery, as everyone here states, is two weeks of hell... if not for them, for us. I was in a panic for everything. Did the incision look ok? Is that a staple coming out? Did he poop enough? Why did he sigh?... etc. I remember when my daughter (the human one) was a newborn and I would wake up at night in a sweat because she had taken a deeper breath than normal.

My suggestion for the recovery, besides a bottle of wine for you, is to breathe, relax, ask questions here, don't overreact. The folks here are unbelievably great. Any problem you might think you have, there is a great chance someone here has had that experience. Ask.

Best of luck on Monday. Sleep while you can. Keep us posted.

Joy & Champ

Welcome to the family. I am going to assume the name has something to do with the trucks, am I right. Well you know why people like Macks, cause their tough, and you are about to find out how tough your Mack is. Taking Gus in the day of the surgery was harder than making the decision to do it, don't ask me why, but he came bouncing out the next day looking happier than he had for a couple weeks, I know part of the reason was he was finally free from the cancer pain. He was already limping, so he had that part down already, he even jumped up on the counter to check things out. don't be surprised if when you pick him up he looks great, then a day or so later goes down, that seems pretty normal, and you will have lots of ups and downs the first couple weeks, he might not even act like himself at times, all normal. The real anxiety is us humans, but once he is healed you will say I can't believe he is doing so well, so take a deep breath and relax, your too young to grow old fast!!! Meds will play games with them sometimes, you might experience phantom pain , Gabapentin will help with that if needed. As far as wondering whats going to show up down the road, you probably won't find one person here that isn't the same way, its what this crap does to our minds, we put everything under a microscope once we start down this road, all I can say is don't let it control you, watch him, but don't let it keep you from enjoying him, he'll be fine, and you know what, when I first came here and people told me the same thing, I'd think, when will that time ever get here, besause those first couple weeks won't be the easiest you ever had, if you get a chance to get some sleep, take it, it's something you don't get alot of at first, which adds to the stress. Don't feel guilty for doing it, some do after they are home a couple days, this is the best way to give him a second chance, with time he will be doing things just like before, and from the way it sounds, he lives a pretty easy life already, he shouldn't have any trouble, he'll probably have to learn a new stance for doing his business. all part of the adjusting. Good luck tomorrow, Paws up, Spirit Gus and Dan

Welcome Kim and Mack.

I am a newbie here too. My Maddie Mae just had a rear leg amputation this past Thursday. Her's is not due to cancer of any sort, so I can't speak for that end of things, but she has done very well so far. This is our day #3.

I too was very concerned and worried about the whole thing and how she was going to cope. So far she is coping great. All though she had practice on 3 legs already, being hers was injured for a long time before she was rescued and given a new shot at life. 

Mack is a fairly young dog, so giving him a chance at life in my opinion is the right choice. I agree with the idea of not totally isolating him from Rozee. Petsmart has what I call a throwdown Kennel, which is really a play area without a top or bottom. You can set it up in a common area in the house so that he doesn't fee left out of things and Rozee can still be near him.

I'lll be keeping you and Mack in my prayers tomorrow. Keep us updated. 

BTW - if you haven't yet, you need to look at some of the pictures of others amputations. That way you are prepared for what you will be prepared for what you'll see when Mack comes out. Don't let him see you cry and be upset. If you act like it's ok in front of him and that he can do it, he'll believe he can to.

They do feed off of our emotions.

paws crossed and give us an update when you can tomorrow.

Hi Kim,

I am soooo sorry that you are going through this.  We all understand here how hard this night is for you.  Thankfully Mack is completely unaware.  

I have a bulldog named Betty.  She has had a spleenectomy and an eye removed, both were agonizing surgeries for me to sit through.  And I rescued her at 10+ years old before she had them, so being a senior bully under anesthesia was even more risky.  She came through just fine and recovered very quickly.  And, yes, she's a couch potato too.  🙂

My amputee's are Raven and now Miles.  Blogs are in my signature.  I just want to reach out to you since we have so much in common.  I'd like to invite you also to the Bulldog Lovers Porch forum.  They were there for me through Raven's amputation and both of Betty's surgeries, they are wonderful bulldog lovers there and a great support group.  

http://www.netw.....um/665543/

Hang in there and you and Mack will be in my thoughts and prayers tomorrow!

Dawn

I have two children ages 5 and 8. I also care for other people's children ages 2-5.

So, when we found out our golden was going to have a rear amputatuion, we went on this website and looked at pictures of the tripawds. Then we talked about the surgery. We counted the tripawds legs. Pictures of dogs that were very similar and without the same legs were favorites!

 I took a picture of Bud in the ICU and sent it to the parents, giving them the decision of sharing it with their kiddos. They did, and the kids were prepared to see him when they came back. None of them had issues! One child asked me how Bud was going to walk? I said he would hop. He said like a bunny? I said yep!

Without being asked, they are so gentle and just accept him as Bud!

Best wishes on Monday! Kids and dogs can be a lot more resilient than we are!