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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Hey guys,
I just joined this group as I agreed to take on a Rat Terrier who JUST had her rear leg amputated... The leg was removed yesterday (7/7) and she will be transported to me on 7/10..its a long trip for her (Ky to Ny) I worry its too soon for her to travel, but there is no choice.. if she did not get on this transport, she would have been PTS.
Ive never gone through this and I am TERRIFIED! Dont know if they will have her on meds, so I need to know what she should be on, as I can not get her to the vet till they reopen on Monday!!!
Thank you so much,
Tracey
Gosh, I hope they have her on some sort of pain meds. Do you have more information about the dog? Age, reason for amputation, history, etc?
Depends on the dog for the long ride. Probably more stressful than anything else.
You have come to the right place. Lots of great folks here with a ton of support and information.
"I don't know where I am."
Welcome and thanks for joining! please be sure to log in when visiting the forums so your posts appear immediately without requiring moderation.
The most importangt advice we can provide is to remain calm and strong so your dog will follow your lead. If you are upset, she will be too. (Does she have a name?)
The vets at California Animal Rehab recommend that if you want your dog to be "normal" again quickly, the best thing to do is act as though life is perfectly normal. Freak out, and your dog will too, making recovery much worse.
We traveled 6 hours bringing Jerry home from his amputation without any issues. Just make sure your dog has a comfortable flat area to lie down for the whole trip. For a Rat Terrier this should be easy. A pet carrier or crate with ample padding should do the trick.
Search these forums and you will find lots of information about pain meds. Most dogs receive Tramadol and/or an NSAID prescription for the first couple weeks. Gabapentin is also often prescribed which works well for treating phantom limb pain in dogs. Keep in mind too that most dogs cope better with pain than they do with the side effects of some medications. Tramadol is known for causing heavy panting, other meds may make dogs restless, or cause them to pace or stare off into space. Just follow your vet's prescribed advice. Don't mistake such behavior for pain symptoms and end up over-medicating.
Also, be sure to boomark Jerry's Required Reading List for lots of post amputation care tips and recovery advice from the past few years of posts.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Tracey......welcome. There's a wealth of information here and a plethora of support. My golden girl, Shelby, just had her front right leg amputated last Friday. Take a deep breath and just read everything here......you'll be surprised that you'll look at the little one and simply see a dog rather than a dog with only 3 legs.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.
Her name ( from the shelter ) is Meryl.. between the age of 4-6 years old. She was picked up as a hit by car stray! They needed $450 to fix her leg...I was told it was a clean break and she should heal fine... I busted my butt to get as many folks as I could to help me raise the money to save her.. not only did we meet the goal.. we went over it!!!!! (by $5.00)
Come to find out yesterday that her leg ( rear) had taken a turn for the worst and it could not be saved and she was scheduled for amputation within a few hrs....
I have not even heard back to see how things went with the surgury..if shes on pain meds or if shes gonna be on antiboitics..
Thanks..ill read through the site....
Tracey
Denali had her rear left leg amputated last week due to cancer. When she came home she had:
fentanyl patch (pain killer)
rimadyl (pain killer)
simplicef (antibiotic)
gabapentin (for treatment of phantom limb)
Because she was using her 'bad' leg until the day she had it amputated, her muscles were not built up and she has a 'bunny hop' instead of a 'tripawd hop'. I have posted pictures of her recovery if you search for them.
~~~~ Denali ~~~~
June 9, 2010 OSA suspected
June 17, 2010, July 14, 2010 Clear X-rays – no mets
July 1, 2010 Amputation
July 9, 2010 OSA Confirmed
November 23, 2010 Cancer took you from me - Never forgotten, Always Loved - Forever
Supporting the Fighters, Admiring the Survivors, Honoring the Taken, And never, ever giving up Hope
Welcome to the family. Looks like you have gotten the suggestions of most of the pain meds most people here have spoke of already. Hopefully maybe they would sedate her for the trip(if thats an approved practice). Get ready for some rough nights the next couple weeks, not to scare you it just goes with the territory of this kind of surgery. Try to get yourself together about the whole situation, your being calm will do wonders for the dog since not only is she dealing with the surgery but a whole new environment. You must be commended for taking on this task, hopefully once the dog gets settled in you both will have a great friendship for years to come. I wouldn't worry about the dog having only three legs, once they get healed you usually don't even know they are missing a leg except for the hop. Don't be afraid to ask a question about anything here, experience gives the best answers and the folks here are the best for support, they don't let you down. Good luck and paws up. Gus and Dan
My buddy Gus had a left front amputation on April 7, 2010 and lived a great life until July 26,2010
Welcome Tracey. Breathe. Everything's gonna be alright. Chances are Meryl will be so doped up on the ride she won't even notice. Dogs are sooo resilient, you'll be amazed at how well she does. We dogs always do so much better than humans!
Before you pick her up, write down ALL of your questions. Then, when you pick her up, be sure to get a complete list of all of her meds, and what you can expect in the way of side effects. Also, get the phone number of medical pros you can call when you have questions or need help immediately.
Meryl's small size will be a huge plus. She shouldn't have any problems at all. Hang in there and let us know how it goes.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
This is a great gift you are giving this dog. Just think of it that way. You give her love and acceptance and be the strong leader of your pack. All will be fine.
Daisy came home with Previcox and Tramadol (for pain) and an antibiotic. I didn't even use the Tramadol, as I knew it made her loopy. After 3 days of the Previcox, it seemed that she no longer needed it. Take your cues from Meryl.
Welcome to the community!
Daisy, 12 years young, had left forelimb amp on 5/19/2010 due to osteosarcoma. She left her body behind and joined the other spirit tripawds on 7/16/2010.
So grateful for each day with her!
Lexi (Daisy's momma)
When you start to panic, just remind yourself that your best - no matter how not good enough it might feel to you - is always going to be a thousand times better than what would have happened to her otherwise. Read up on those links Admin provided. Ask questions as they arise. Hopefully you have a vet you can call for help too, because though we have a lot of collective experience, we're not professionals (well, most of us aren't).
You are a wonderful person and you can do this!!!
Gerry has been a tripawd since 12/16/2009.
He was a shelter dog with a mysterious past and an irrepairable knee injury.
Videos and pics of Gerry's pawesomeness can be found at: http://gerry.tripawds.com
Looks like Meryl may have found herself a wonderful forever home!!!!!!
I this below, from the shelter....
~~~~~~~~
She is in foster care since the original trip to the vet. Here's the
next
question - the foster is willing to keep her though rehab - about 3
months
and help her walk again etc etc... Deana thinks there is a chance
she'll
keep her in the end since it's going to be a slew of work. She can't
even
stand up to poop - squat to pee etc. Soooooo how badly do you want
her?
She is safe thanks to you, her surgery is done and her medical is taken
care
of thanks to your efforts.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am sooo happy this girl is safe, in good hands and not forced to make
such a long trip so soon after surgery! We will see what happens after 3 mos... if she still needs a home by then, my door is open to her!
So happy soooo many folks were willing to donate and save this little oen!
I will tell her foster mom about this site and keep it myself... !! WONDERFUL INFOMATION na dyall seem so nice and supportive...what a lovely community!
Cheers,
Tracey
Oh wow! What a great chain of events, and you still have the option to grab her in the end if necessary. You're an amazing person with a big heart. I know you will be in touch, so keep us posted on her recovery.
Shanna & Spirit Trouble ~ Trouble gained her wings 3/16/2011, a 27 1/2 month cancer survivor, tail wagging. RIP sweetheart, you are my heart and soul. Run free at Rainbow Bridge.
The November Five - Spirits Max, Cherry, Tika, Trouble & Nova. 11/2008 - 3/2013 An era ends as Queen Nova crossed the Bridge.
Another great update! Thanks for passing along the Tripawds community info.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
That's wonderful! And great work by you! Your efforts really paid off !
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.
Im not amazing, all I did was donate a little and beg ALOT!!!!! Im just grateful it WORKED!! Everyone at the shelter knows Meryl is to come to me if the foster dose not want her in the end..in my eye, the foster home is the TRUE hero here, and yall just ROCK!!! Thank you all for all you do!!!!!!!
ps..kinda creepy..in a good way.. could not not sign in,wouldent let me.... so I had to answer a math problem... the answer is my lucky/fave number!!!!!!!!
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