Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
Tripawds is your home to learn how to care for a three legged dog or cat, with answers about dog leg amputation, and cat amputation recovery from many years of member experiences.
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Hi, I am new to posting on forums so please bear with me! My special boy Sparks, who lost his front right leg when he was six months old, had an operation on his left rear cruciate ligament the day before yesterday. He was discharged from the vets last night.
Needless to say I had very little sleep last night, spent the night on the floor next to his cage. He is a staffordshire bull terrier so is very strong, and seems quite happy to get about on just two legs, although he is now starting to put the weight on all 3.
I am a bit worried about how I am going to cope, after we came in from taking him out to do his business, he streaked straight past me and leaped on the couch before I could stop him (my vet will kill me).
He is a very loving natured boy who just wants to be with his humans, and is finding life in a cage a bit stressful (although he is a rescue dog so should be used to it!)
I can see that other dogs on this site have gone through similar experiences, and I really hope that Sparky gets better soon just like they did!
So hard to keep a good dog DOWN, isn't it? Well, at least his spirits are high! Good luck getting him to rest 
I remember, between Yoda's osteosarcoma diagnosis and amputation, that when Yoda's vet prescribed tramadol, among other medications for the pain from the tumor, that I felt relieved when she had told me it may have a sedative affect on him. Yoda is a pretty mellow dog, but he was still much to active for his leg's condition, but I couldn't convince him or my roommate's dog (who always seemed to want to lumber about Yoda's weak leg when he was laying down) of that. In the end, the tramadol really didn't seem to slow Yoda down at all. Oh well! Again, GOOD LUCK!
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
Hey Sparky, thanks for joining us here. Sorry you had to go through another surgery, but we know you'll do just great! Keeping calm is the hardest part, for sure.
Did you read about Chuy and his FHO surgery? Do a search for him in the Forums too and you'll see from his videos that he's doing great! His Mom has him on a good physical therapy program, and something like this can definitely help you recuperate.
Hang in there and let us know how we can help.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Sparky! Welcome to Tripawds. Chuy is missing his front left leg and had FHO surgery on his left rear leg last May. When he started to get a little too active and agitated, his vet recommended benadryl as a sedative. It really did help calm him down with no side effects. You may want to ask your vet about it. It's been almost 3 months since Chuy's surgery and he's back to doing the normal "Chuy things" as we call them. 
I'm sure Sparky will do great, good physical therapy is one of the keys to recovery, keeping them down to heal is one of the hard parts. Keep us posted on Sparky's progress!
Eleanor & Chuy
Chuy, showing everyone that Tripawds do everything 3 times better than regular dogs!
Hi Guys, thank you all so much for your support
Sparky is doing well and is now able to walk on all 3 legs again. He has not needed to be caged too much and is quite happy to just lay there and watch everything going on around him. His stitches come out this weekend although they have not been bothering him at all, he is quite happy to lay on that leg and has not licked the wound once!!
My vet is very pleased with his progress, I think he has stolen the hearts of everybody in the practice & he has become a minor celebrity in our villlage!
He still has a long road ahead of him, it is extremely easy to forget that he had such a major operation only a week or so ago, but I have forced myself to make sure that he stays DOWN on all 3 legs. Not easy when he just wants to bounce and play all day long. He does have a sedative that I give him about an hour before bedtime to help him sleep during the night, as he has a tendancy to dream that he is running the marathon in the middle of the night!
I am so pleased that Chuy recovered so well from his op, and thank you Eleanor, your story truly did help to put my mind at ease during the tough first few days last week.
I will of course keep you posted on progress and thanks once again, I am so glad we have discovered this site x
YAY!!! I'm pleased he is doing so well! That's funny about Sparky's dreaming, because Jack does the same thing! Especially since surgery. It'll be quiet and all of a sudden we'll hear whimpering from the bedroom and rush in there to see Jack twitching his little legs like he's trying to get something. I like to egg him on and whisper things like "where's the kitty?" in his ear while he's sleeping. I hope Sparky keeps up his good recovery 
Dear All
I am pleased to report that Sparky is recovering brilliantly. He has now had the stitches out which has seemed to make him a much happier boy - I think they were getting a bit uncomfortable towards the end.
He is now walking on all 3 legs, although he does tend to have a skip every 3 or 4 steps so he does still have a bit more healing to do. The scar is barely noticeable and he has not been licking it, which I have been told is a good sign.
Obviously this is a massive relief as I did expect his initial recovery to take longer. However he does still need to have his right leg operated on so we are not out of the woods yet - but at least we are almost halfway there!
He is now acting as he did before the op, and can sleep through the night on his own. I've found that if we leave his cage door open, then he is quite happy to go and lay down in there, it's just when the door is closed that he does get a bit stressed.
Will keep you all posted on the progress, hopefully if anyone else out there is or will be going through the same kind of thing, then this may help ease their worries as Chuy's posts did for me
x
So glad to hear Sparky is doing so well! He's another tough little dude here at Tripawds. You are lucky he is recovering so quickly as it took Chuy 8 weeks to be totally normal again.
Keep up the good work you are both doing and give Sparky a big hug for us.
Eleanor & Chuy
Chuy, showing everyone that Tripawds do everything 3 times better than regular dogs!
Thanks for the great update! Keep up the goosd work there Sparky! A wonder dog indeed.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
My 3 legged Comet had to have both done within 2 years of each other. She is a 37 lb corgi/golden lab mix with a front deformed leg that doesn't function. We had the TPLO surgery done. The first surgery was traumatic. With a deformed front leg I was afraid of wire crates because the deformed foot could get caught. I bought soft sided crates and that helped but she really couldn't see out too well. Carrying her up and down stairs and having her by my side was difficult. My vet insisted she not do anything for 8 weeks. I was scared to death since a specialists had came in to do the surgery. When her second ligament tore, I was petrified to do it again but did. This time my husband and I got smart and made a crib on wheels. We had old wooden baby bed without legs that we added a bottom to that was sturdy and added heavy duty wheels. We then put a stretch mesh cover on top so she couldn't jump up. (a bungy car thingy you buy to hold down stuff) We padded the inside so her legs wouldn't get caught in the rails. She really liked it since it wasn't enclosed too much and she could be next to us at all times. It saved our backs.
vavra said:
This time my husband and I got smart and made a crib on wheels. We had old wooden baby bed without legs that we added a bottom to that was sturdy and added heavy duty wheels. We then put a stretch mesh cover on top so she couldn't jump up. (a bungy car thingy you buy to hold down stuff) We padded the inside so her legs wouldn't get caught in the rails. She really liked it since it wasn't enclosed too much and she could be next to us at all times. It saved our backs.
Wow! What a great idea! Do you have a photo of it?
Thanks for taking the time to share Comet's story. We hope to see you here again, so be sure to register so that your posts will appear immediately!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Okay - I registered! I've dealt with a 3-legged dog by myself for 11 long years that I am now realizing that I do need a support group (along with anti-anxiety meds!). I'm glad to be aboard! Thanks for having me!
Yes, I do have a pic. But it's just a top view. I bought the wooden baby bed thing years ago at a garage sale, not sure why I bought it since I don't have kids.
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
cometdog said:
Okay – I registered!
Thanks for joining the discussion! That picture is indeed precious, bless you for taking such good care of your pup.
Please consider starting a new forum topic or creating a Tripawds blog to share Comet's story.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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