Hello, all. I found Tripawds in Feb 2023 after our "incident" and have been a frequent viewer since. I've been hesitant on joining and sharing our story because I fear I'll jinx myself. But, here goes:

Sophia is a Great Dane/German Shephard mix and was born in April 2014. A high school friend adopted her immediately after birth and raised her with her mixed family of humans, dogs, and cats. In January 2018, this friend reached out to me and asked me to adopt Sophia. They were losing their house and had to move to an apartment that would not allow dogs. I immediately declined, having still not gotten over the recent death of my previous K9, Miss Sierra. I had zero interest in "replacing" Sierra. Weeks later, my friend called me again, begging that I take Sophia or else they would have to turn her over to their local shelter - a kill shelter. I reluctantly agreed, and this friend traveled across states to bring her to me. Sophia was very attached to her family, and when they left, I could see that she was confused and depressed. She would wine, would not eat, and was very skittish toward me. Me, being overly empathetic, could feel her sadness and strived to cheer her up and acquaint her with her new life. I learned that I could sit by her food bowl and feed her by hand since she would not eat any other way. Amazingly we warmed up to each other quickly and I became her "daddy". She attached and followed me everywhere, from room to room, and stayed by my side everywhere we went. She would have nothing to do with anyone else but me. Sophia became my perfect dog. My best friend!

Sorry for the long intro, but I'll explain the rest more concisely...

In February 2023, Sophia was a perfectly healthy, nine-year old (almost) girl. She had never shown any signs of distress, discomfort, or pain. One evening I had just gotten home from work, and she greeted me at the door as usual. She always has this happy whine and then runs to grab a toy to show me. We went out to the back yard immediately, as usual, and she caught sight of an evil squirrel on her property. Sophia did what Sophia does and immediately took off after that squirrel. As she hit a patch of mud she slipped, and I heard the most horrible snap and yelp ever. She went down and I knew she had snapped a leg. I ran over to her and told her to lay down and stay so I could run next door to get a neighbor to help me carry her. The neighbor and I came back, and she had already hopped her way to the back door. Surprisingly, she was able to hop to the truck and we helped lift her inside. It was obvious that her rear, left leg was broken. I had googled and found only one vet open that late nearby and they were closing shortly. I called and they agreed to stay open for me. I rushed her (since I am now retired, I will admit to this) lights and siren to the vet. The vet x-rayed her and told me they were near certain the leg had snapped due to Osteosarcoma. They told me they could not repair the leg, and it needed to be amputated. They had already called the nearest surgery center that could handle the situation, which was the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. We loaded my poor lady back into the truck and I rushed her an hour and a half to UGA (I may have used lights and siren to get through a few traffic jams). UGA examined her and confirmed that there was almost certainly Osteosarcoma. Amputation or euthanasia were the only options.

The veterinarian explained Osteosarcoma to me as well as life expectancies and chemotherapy options to extend life. I weighed the options and decided that Sophia was not near her end and had plenty of life left. We opted for the amputation of her rear, left leg, which was done the next day. Surgery went well, I was able to come visit her before bedtime and left her for two nights observation. When I came to pick her up, she was very loopy, but we were able to walk her with a harness. She was given Gabapentin, Carprofen, and Trazadone. The first two or three days she was very lethargic, but able to eat and drink as needed and walk and go potty with the help of a harness. I started to feel that she was miserable and resented me for my decision. In a relatively quick turn of events, as the meds wore off, she started to become herself again. The wound was healing fine, and she was learning to get around just fine. By the time we had to return to have the sutures removed, she was getting around on her own as if nothing were different (other than having to hop around while pooping because she can't hold balance that long). I quickly learned that dogs are resilient and have no self-pity. 

Again, I realize that was a long-winded story and not very concise. I'll do better...

Tests confirmed Osteosarcoma. We opted for no chemo treatment due to my financial status and inability to commit to all the appointments. I was aware of the difference in life expectancy, but there just was no way for me to do the chemo. At that point I was ready to accept only a couple months more to really love on her as much as I could.

Fast forward to today (I really, really hope I'm not jinxing myself. *Physically knocking on wood here*). 18 months post-amputation/diagnosis and Sophia is doing amazing! We now have a vegetable garden in the back yard that attracts wild rabbits...lots of rabbits. Sophia can't resist the chase and hunt as soon as that back door opens. I always worry about her snapping another leg with how fast she runs through the yard and woods, but I can't stop her from her predator/prey instincts. It is obvious she is getting older and she's tiring much quicker on that one rear leg, but I don't attribute that to anything more than aging. She loves to sunbath and lay around and is still enjoying life. She is 10.5 years old and considering her breed and her diagnosis is outliving all expectations. I cherish every day with her and make sure she knows she is loved. I will take every day that I can. 

This website and this forum have been amazing and is the most helpful resource for any owner/parent going through an animal amputation incident. I thank you for the resources and thank everyone for their stories, recommendations, encouragement, etc. I know my story was long winded and most people won't read through it, but I hope someone reads it and gets encouragement that enjoyable life is possible after amputation, even for those that can't afford or commit to chemo. The statistics are grim, but there are also many success stories. Stick with it, no matter what route you must take and cherish every day with your best friend. 

Thank you. 

-Jasond-