Hi,

Our chocolate lab, Lady, had her front left leg amputated on Thursday (June 11th) of last week. She is 12 1/2 years old & weighs about 102 pounds. She was limping a bit at the beginning of last week, and then Wednesday night when she went out late for a bathroom break, she yelped and collapsed. We took her to the emergency vet the next day, since our regular vet was not available. This being our first family dog, we had no clue the decision that was about to be put in front of us: amputate her front left leg or put her down the next day.

My family all had different opinions, being that she's so old, but the vet told us there was no wrong decision. She said it was very promising that Lady was already hopping around with just 3 legs and that they wouldn't recommend it if they didn't think she would be a good candidate for it. I also will add that Lady has a bit of trouble with her hind legs; she stopped going upstairs to the second floor about 2 years ago. The emergency vet said that dogs have overcome worse and it didn't change the outcome. We spoke to another vet at our regular vet's office (not her actual vet), and she also said the same thing: there is no wrong decision.

After the chest X-ray, they said they saw small nodules in her lungs but that this could just be normal in an older dog. They still said we could choose to amputate. We debated over the course of the evening. Lady is a VERY happy, spirited dog. Even with her broken leg that day, she still was hopping around, eating, and drinking and just her normal, happy-go-lucky self. There was no sign of her wanting to slow down. We also researched a lot on here and found that most dogs, even older dogs, will adapt to the amputation. So the decision was made to amputate.

The next day, after she went into surgery, Lady's actual vet called. I explained the situation to him, and he said that it's a completely personal decision but he probably won't have put her through all of the pain, knowing all of her history and her age. That was a bit of a low blow, but he said only we know our dog and again, there is no wrong decision. We took Lady home Saturday. She came out on a big cart and we scooped her into the back of the car. When we got home, we carried her out into the backyard. She didn't even try to stand. As the day went on, she stood up with a lot of support from us, and even took a few steps (all assisted). 

Yesterday was a bit more active, she walked a little around the house, but she cannot walk without support & guidance. We also have to carry her outside, as we have about 6 steps into the backyard that she definitely cannot do at this point. Something interesting that she does that I haven't seen mentioned here: when she does try to walk, she backs up like she's in reverse before she goes forward. She has been eating and drinking water. Food seems to be her biggest motivator; however, we are monitoring her intake very closely due to her size and not wanting her to gain any weight. She has not gone #2 yet. She seems very happy; wagging her tail often and very smiley. I've been reading so much of the forums on here and know that these are all really positive signs. 

I am hoping to find some support from older, heavier front leg amputees. A lot of dogs seem to be walking right away, and this is just not the case for our girl. We're hoping to get one of the harnesses on here to use once her stitches come out, which should make it easier. Is it unrealistic to think she will be able to do those 6 back stairs again? Did we make the wrong decision? Is it okay to carry her outside? Or should we just let her go in the house on pee pads? I'm sorry I have so many questions!!! Any and all feedback would be so appreciated, since this is all completely new territory. Until then, I'll be scouring every article, forum, and blog I can find on here... this is truly such a wonderful resource.

Thank you,

Erin (and Lady)