Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello-
I'm new to the tripawd community. We found out about 3 weeks ago that our beloved black lab, Marley, has osteosarcoma. We have made the decision to amputate, but have been reluctant to call and officially make the appointment. He has been limping for almost 2 months now, but it hasn't gotten any worse...and he acts completely normal--eating habits and activity level have been the same. The vet started him on Metacam for pain management . We know we need to schedule the appt, but it is SUCH a tough decision to make-- especially when he doesn't seem to be in much pain. Should we wait until his pain is much more evident....or should we just do it??
We obviously don't want to wait until his pain is unbearable, but he seems like a regular, happy dog with a limp right now....so it's such an awful thought to take him to the vet and have his leg amputated! On the other hand, there is this unrealistic thought that if we just REMOVE the cancerous site from his body, maybe the cancer hasn't metastasized. Miracles can happen, I suppose. My husband and I are struggling with this decision every day.
Any thoughts or support would be great.....
Thanks.
Stephanie
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Welcome, sorry to hear abut Marley but glad you found us. Your future posts will not require moderation.
Dogs are incredibly good at hiding their pain. Many people don't discover their dog has cancer until they experience a traumatic pathological fracture. You certainly don't want that to happen. And in many cases, getting the tumor out early ensures clean margins resulting in lower chance of metastasis.
Good luck with the decisions you face, just try to remember who you're doing this for. Many members have found the book Without Regret helpful in coping with the human emotions you're feeling. We sure did!
You'll find lots of more helpful information in Jerry's Required Reading List, and for immediate answers to the most common dog amputation questions consider downloading Tripawds e-book Three Legs and A Spare.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
geesh, we agree with admin that dogs are so good at hiding pain. and with osteosarcoma...the chance is very great that the leg will just SNAP - we are talking mega pain with a broken bone. amputation is scary, but you guys can and will handle this!!! gayle is a black lab mix and has been a tripawd since feb 2010. there were adjustments, but she is doing fine without the cancerous leg. i'm sure other folks will chime in with recommendations and suggestions. welcome to the site, sorry you find yourselves here..
charon & gayle
Life is good, so very, very good!!! Gayle enjoyed each and every moment of each and every wonderful day (naps included). She left this world December 12, 2011 – off on a new adventure.
Love Never Ends
Call tomorrow and get it scheduled. I know it is scary, but you say you have made the decision to amp. The sooner you do it, the sooner he will be out of pain. The sooner he can get through the recovery period (which is going to be rough - for about 2 weeks, but you will all get through it) and then the sooner he will be start to amaze and inspire you. Dogs don't have hang ups about being 'handicapped' - we have the hangups.
How old is Marley? Abby was admittedly still just a pup when we got her diagnosis (15 mo) so she adapted very quickly, but I have also seen many older dogs do well on here as well. If you take a look at her blogs in my sig below, I have a video of her today running at the beach. She does pretty much everything she did before amp, only now she is without that painful tumor.
I truly do know how you are feeling - it really is scary to contemplate cutting your sweet pup's leg off, but it will be ok.
Be sure to come here with any more questions - you won't find a better group of folks anywhere on the 'net. (Also, I would recommend the 3 Legs and a Spare book - it helped us get through the surgery and recovery period.)
All the best,
Jackie, 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!
Oh gosh! So sorry to hear about Marley! It is so scary and we totally understand!
But yes, you must muster up all your courage and get that leg ASAP! The cancer is eating at the bone which is horrifically painful! Dogs can handle so much pain. And like ET Gayle said, it'll end up breaking because it is being eaten away.
We here to help you get through this. Trust us when we say, it will be much better to do this without hesitation.
Wishing you and Marley all the best!
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.
Stephanie,
I recently had my boy Princeton's leg amputated. Like Marley, he had started limping two months earlier. During that period, however, he underwent numerous tests to determine the problem. There came a night when suddenly his leg became very sore. It was amputated two days later. Was it easy? Christ, no. It was an agonizing decision. I remember actually touching the bad leg the morning of Princeton's surgery and thanking it for the twelve years it had given him. Once the leg was amputated it was sent to be analyzed and the result came back osteosarcoma (interesting since the previous biopsy was negative).
If you've found this site you've obviously had concerns and searched for answers and recommendations. I did the same. I'm sure you also know that osteosarcoma is deadly in most circumstances if left untreated. Treated, it is also no guaranty of a cure, and many dogs eventually succumb to it. There are, however, success stories where the cancer goes into long term remission. Some dogs live years. In most of these cases, however, the cancer was removed early and before any mets in the lungs. Right now, the cancer is going through Marley's body regardless how he feels. If it were me, I'd make the appointment. Have the amputation performed, turn the page, and tackle the matter at hand. Go after the cancer. Be proactive. This will give Marley the best chance.
Terry
Welcome to the family. My advice is don't wait another day. We messed around with first thinking a pulled muscle, the vet suggested x-rays the first time I took him in for a limp, but I said i didn't want to pay the money if they weren't going to show if he had muscle issues, 2 weeks later he still wasn't any better, did the x-ray, saw the suspicious spot on the leg, sent them to OSU to confirm, messed with a biopsy that came back negative but still did the amp since all felt we were dealing with cancer. By the time we actually did the surgery, the poor guy wasn't even using the leg and was in so much pain the surgery day couldn't get here quick enough. The thing was is the vet thought we caught it early, lungs were clear at first set of x-rays, did the surgery, 6 weeks later I notices a golf ball size lump on his neck, did more x-rays and found lung mets and we lost him only 3 1/2 months after surgery. He did great once he healed, but I opted for no chemo, and with as aggressive as his cancer must have been I don't know how much it would have helped, but if you know he has it, I wouldn't wait another day. For me, the worst thing was taking him in for the surgery, the decision to amputate was easy, and I picked him up the next day, he was so happy and free from his cancer pain. Thats not to say recovery was easy, you won't get much sleep, but once healed, these guys do great. I have read stories here where people have waited, and out of nowhere the leg breaks, then you've got a mess, and what are you going to do if that would happen on a weekend or holiday, you could go to an emergency clinic but if you think having your regular vet is expensive, wait until you see the bill from those guys, plus it is always nice to have your regular vet do the surgery so he knows right from the start everything that went on with the entire case. Good luck and Paws Up, Spirit Gus and Dan
My buddy Gus had a left front amputation on April 7, 2010 and lived a great life until July 26,2010
I agree with everyone else, that you should do the amputation asap. Marley will amaze you with how well he'll be so soon after surgery. The next few weeks will be very tough, but you'll get through it. Show Marley that you're the strong leader, and he'll follow your lead.
Skyler had a mast cell tumor, and showed no signs of pain whatsoever. On the one hand we thought (why take away a leg from a "healthy/happy" dog), but on the other we knew we had to do it quickly, to hopefully get rid of the cancer. When we confirmed the MCT, we did the surgery next day.
Please keep us posted, and sending you may golden hugs that the surgery/recovery goes well.
Cathy
I will share the one thing that just kept ringing in my head. Our second opinion vet, who ultimately did the surgery, and cared for Trouble for the next 28 months, was very careful to stress this and make sure we understood.
Osteosarcoma is a very painful disease. The only way to stop the pain is to amputate.
None of us want to make this decision, but I have no doubt it saved Trouble's life and we had many more months to share.
It is frightening, and I cried all the way to work the morning I dropped her off for surgery. It wasn't until we picked her up two days later, that I knew we had made the right decision.
You and Marley will be fine. If you've already made the decision, get it scheduled now.
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.
Hello everyone. Thank you so much for the support and kind words. We took your advice and scheduled the amputation for tomorrow morning. My heart is breaking right now, but I know everything will be okay....
I am so glad to hear that you made the decision to amputate. To echo Trouble's Mom, our vet told us that Osteosarcoma is a very painful disease, and the only way to stop the pain was to amputate. I was worried about the decision when we made it too, but when I saw Chili Dawg's eyes when we brought him home, and saw that he was no longer in pain, I knew we made the best decision. Dog's are good at masking their pain. The first 2 weeks were tough, I'm not going to lie to you, but once we got through that, it was wonderful. Chili Dawg adapted so quickly, and he was 9 years old. Yes, his cancer came back and we lost him 3.5 months later, but i DO NOT regret the amputation. His remaining time with us was pain free and we got to enjoy that time as a family. Yes, it was much too short, but I'd say that about any length of time with him. You can do this, and you will be surprised at how well Marley does. You've come to an amazing place for support. These people are the best!
Jenna and Spirit Chili Dawg
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.
We also struggled with the decision as Rumbles was in no pain at all. But with a fast-growing and slow-spreading hemangiopericytoma, we knew we had no other choice. The first 10 days, I regretted the decision. But as the pain meds decreased and his personality re-emerged I finally felt that we did the right thing. Now, 4 happy months later, I can't barely remember what the doubt felt like!
Oh good - I'm so glad you made The Call and so glad they could perform the surgery quickly. Was worried there might be a long wait. (We lucked out with Abby and the surgeon who did her amp had a cancellation so we were able to get her in within 2 days of calling, instead of the 2 weeks they had originally told us it would be.) Once the surgery is done, once you get over the hump of the recovery period (the worst of which for most folks lasts right around 10-14 days), you'll see that your pup will begin to amaze you!
We'll be thinking of you tomorrow and hoping for an uneventful surgery. Let us know when Marley is out of surgery (and when he comes home, and when he does his first pee, and when he goes on his first walk, and when he does his first poo. Seriously - we get really excited and all celebrate these things. Each in our own way - some with cheese, some with ice cream, some with a margarita. 
) And we are going to need to see some pics soon!
We're all here pulling for Marley so try to not be too worried. Of course there are risks to any surgery, but he should do fine. Try to get some rest tonight because sleep can be in short supply the first few days after they get home!
All the best,
Jackie, 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!
Stephanie.....take a deep breath. We're all here for you......we've all been down this road. I am blessed that my 7 year old golden had her right front leg amputated on 7/2/10 and over a year later, she is still cancer free....hell on 3 legs, faster than my 4 legged dogs and full of life and energy.
Marley will surprise you........hang in there, okay?
Hi Stephanie,
I didn't get a chance to post before you posted about your decision to amputate, so I'll just say now that I hope the surgery goes well tomorrow and Marley has an uneventful recovery. Do some more reading and be prepared- you might want to look at some post op pictures too to know what you will see when you pick Marley up. Many of us has ups and downs the first two weeks or so- but some lucky pups sail right through- hopefully that is Marley.
Get all your tears out of the way while Marley is at the vet. You need to be strong and positive when you pick up Marley so he knows everything is OK.
Good luck tomorrow!
Karen and the pugapalooza
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