Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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This is Buster. My boyfriend and I got him from a shelter at our County Pet Expo on April 22nd. We did not go to look for a pet to take home but when we saw they had $20 dollar dog adoptions we decided to at least check them out. As soon as we walked up to the shelter's booth, we saw Buster, who was wearing a bright orange "Adopt Me" vest laying down inside a crate. I sat down on the ground next to him and when I started petting him through the gaps in the crate he stood up and I noticed he had three legs. They said he'd gotten hit by a car and had to have his back right leg amputated. He'd been there all weekend (Friday, Saturday, and all day Sunday) and people were interested in him until they saw his missing leg. The worst part about it was that he'd gotten his amputation on Thursday and they put him out for adoption the very next day. We talked to a vet from the VCA booth which was doing free checkups and he was so mad he walked over to where the shelter's booth was and talked with them for quite a while. We understand that they wanted him to find a home but they definitely really rushed his recovery.
Needless to say we took him home with us after my boyfriend carried him to the car (getting blood from his stitches on himself in the process) and he laid on the couch all night. Since the shelter had sent him home with us without any antibiotics or pain meds we took him to the vet the next day. He was dehydrated and needed fluids and got a shot for two weeks of antibiotics and pain medicine. He was pretty lethargic for the next few days but after that he was a whole new dog. He goes on walks every day and loves them. He sleeps in the bed with us, but probably more accurately we sleep in the bed with him. The Dog Beach is a little rough on him because of the sand but he loves going to the Dog Park and Petco. He's such an amazing dog! Best twenty dollars we ever spent 
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Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
OMD, I can't believe they put him up for adoption right after his amp! And sending him home w/ no pain meds! Geez! I'm so glad you guys found him and took him home for some TLC!
Can't wait to see some pics of him and hear more about his Tripawd adventures. Sounds like he won the Doggy Lotto!
Jackie, Angel Abby's mom
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
He's such a great dog. Super affectionate and well behaved. We won the doggy lotto too 
Hopefully this picture will work, thanks for the help:
This is him a few weeks after his surgery before his hair grew back. He definitely has some terrier in him because of his wiry hair but we aren't sure what else there is. Any ideas would be appreciated 
He's adorable!!
Yes, he definitely looks Terrier-esque. Not sure what else is in there, except a lotta cute!
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
OMD! He is the cutest little thing ever! And what a trooper! Glad he found a good family to join!
Spirit Chili Dawgs pack (which also includes a Buster)
Diagnosed with OSA: 5/2/2011 Ampuversary: 5/11/2011 OSA returned in hip: 8/26/2011
Chili Dawg crossed the Rainbow Bridge on 8/30/2011 & is now pain free. He was my heart dog, and I miss him every day.
Wow. That makes me so mad and sad I have tears in my eyes! But, I'm so happy he found you! Agree that it sounds like he has now won the doggie lotto. I have a little guy who looks somewhat similar and don't really know what he is either other than definitely having some terrier in him. Enjoy your new boy!
He is a real little cutie and so lucky to have found you.
I am a bit shocked at the way supposed "shelter" organisations work. Firstly for trying to sell him so soon after amputation and not giving him any meds and secondly for selling him so cheaply. That increases the risk of rescued dogs going back out to a second bad home!
But, at leat this is a happy ending for little Buster. His missing leg may have been his saviour because if he had had 4 legs he may never have found you guys.
Looking forward to hearing more about Buster's adventures.
Karen and Spirit Magnum
Magnum: 30th May 2002 to 5th May 2012. Lost her back left leg to osteosarcoma on 5th Sep 2011. Lung mets found on 20th Mar 2012 but it was bone mets in the hip that ended her brave battle. Magnum's motto - "Dream as if you'll live for ever, live as if you'll die today" (James Dean). Loyal, loving, courageous and spirited to the end. My beloved heart dog, see her memoirs from Rainbow Bridge ...... http://princess.....pawds.com/
Welcome Buster and family. He is a real cutie!!
Zeus was a Husky mix diagnosed with Osteosarcoma at age 11. A visible lung met and suspicious spot on his liver meant a poor prognosis-six weeks was our vet's best guess. We decided to fight for our boy and his right front leg was amputated on 12/1/11. We did six rounds of chemo, changed his diet and spoiled him completely rotten. We were blessed with 10 great months after diagnosis. Against the odds, the lung met remained a single met and grew very little over those months. A wonderful furbaby with the most gentle spirit, he fought with a strength that we never imagined he possessed. We have no regrets...
http://zeuspod......pawds.com/
Buster is just the cutest ever.... He sure hit the jackpot with you. Don't some people just make you want to spit!!!!
This is probably the nicest online community I've ever seen 🙂
We lucked out in adopting him. It was horrible that the shelter put him out that soon but it worked out nicely for us. We got an amazing dog because of it.
We aren't sure if he was a stray before getting hit by the car. He wasn't microchipped and he has some scars on his chest and legs but he only had a few accidents so it was almost like he may have been housebroken. We don't have a dogdoor so we let him out into the backyard a bunch throughout the day and play with him so that could be why. 😛
Here's another photo of him. This is him at the Pet Expo the day after his amputation:
He's adorable! I love him! And really reminds me a little bit of my little guy Kodi. Kodi started out life with cute floppy ears, and I hoped they would stay that way, but they went up within a few months. His tail is a blur in the photo... it is always in motion. He's a happy and hyper little guy.
What's the guess as to Buster's age? I got to thinking about how gentle your boy must be. For him to be in pain, and dehydrated, and just post amp, and to allow your bf to carry him to the car showing no aggression is remarkable. My big guy Duke showed aggression toward me once, but not right after his amp. (And, just by the way, he wasn't even home from the hospital for 4 or so days after his amp! Grrr.. at the rescue but so glad he found you.) But in the beginning stages of his extravasation problems I touched Duke's incredibly sore leg and he got a tooth on me, but he was in agony and I can't blame him. How else was he supposed to tell me to stop being an idiot and touching him where he hurt so badly!! He is usually such a gentle soul. So, given Buster's horrible circumstances, for him not to act out, what a great little dog he must be. He may look similar to my Kodi, but Kodi would have taken somebody's finger off! 🙂
Enjoy your new little boy. =)
Aww your dogs are adorable! (Assuming that's Duke shown in your avatar )
The rescue said he looks like he's 18 months old and the vet said that seems about right. I think Buster didn't show any aggression because he was so tired. I sat in the backseat with him on the way home and we stopped at a fast food place to get him a cup of water and he wouldn't even really drink it. Once we got home he slept on the couch until the next morning. My boyfriend has a three year old nephew that likes to say, "I love him, the baby Buster" but also enjoys trying to rough house with Buster who doesn't want anything to do with it. He'll growl a few times to warn Christian that he doesn't want to play. He nipped at him once but it wasn't hard at all. Just his way of saying to leave him alone.
What kind of dog is Kodi? His face looks really similar to Buster's. Buster's little beard has been getting lighter brown since it's Summer
If I'd been through a major surgery like an amputation I wouldn't be in the best of moods, I'm sure your dog is a sweetheart under normal circumstances
The only problem we've had with Buster is his skin. He gets skin irritations and chews at them until his hair falls out in some places. Nothing big, just wherever the irritation happens to be. We gave him a bath with crushed oatmeal in it and put baby oil all over him hoping that it would moisturize his skin and he stopped chewing for maybe half a day until he started again. We've never seen fleas on him except for last week when we were giving him a bath after being at the dog park. I just picked up some moisturizing shampoo but we haven't used it yet because we heard it's not good to give them too many baths so we're trying to hold off on that.
Any suggestions?? We were thinking Neosporin but we are worried he'll just lick it right off. I was just wondering if anyone has had the same problem with their dogs, tripawds or not. 
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