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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My 8 year old Great Pyrenees was just diagnosed with bone cancer yesterday morning in his front left wrist. Unfortunately, 2 vets and a specialist missed it when I had him in for limping in April, May then June so we have lost 3 months. I noticed a slight bulge in the wrist of his affected leg the night before last, frantically searched through xrays that had been done and discovered that, between the 3 of them, they did everything but his wrist (even his full other leg and his spine). I’m blaming myself for not keeping a closer watch on what they were doing but when they said they were x-raying “everything” to do with his front leg I just assumed his wrist and foot were included. I know my energy is just going to be wasted dwelling on this now, but it’s hard not to.
My vet told me he will have about 2 months with pain management . I’m not convinced we will even get that because he is in pain with what I’m giving him. He said he did not recommend amputation due to his size and age. He’s 120 lbs. He didn’t recommend chemo alone either; feeling it wouldn’t really add much. Nonetheless, I did ask him to do a chest xray because I figured if that wasn’t clear, that would be the answer. It was clear though.
Then, I started researching and am wondering if I should try to get a 2nd opinion….hopefully at University of FL? The problem I have right now is time and not being able to wait a month for an appointment!
I’m most interested in hearing from people with large dogs like this and their experiences. Did one vet advise not to then a second opinion was more optimistic? I was up all night reading everything I could on this site and it’s been very helpful, but it’s all very overwhelming and I feel like my brain isn’t functioning well due to how anxious and upset I am. He is my heart dog. 🙁 Please give it to me straight. If amputation isn’t a good option, then did anyone have success at least giving them quality of life back for awhile with anything else? If it’s confined to the wrist, should I ask about partial amputation? It looks like prosthetics are available for partial amp? If anyone is in Central Florida and had good experiences with anyone anywhere please let me know.
I just approved your other post. Thank you for starting a new topic.
My dog Sassy was a 128 pound Rottie when she was diagnosed. Her Osteoscaroma was in her rear leg and I did get a 2nd opinion because I didn't trust the first vet who gave it to me. She did awesome as a Tripawd. You can read our blog the link is in my signature line. We have had plenty of larger dogs that had amputations and did really well.
You know your dog the best. We have a saying around here no one has a time stamp on their butt. I can't tell you what to do but with that being said I know what I would do. I would give my dog a chance.
It does sound like your vets x-rayed the normal places that Osteoscaroma would present. Most vets check shoulder, legs, and spine. I am sorry that you are going through this. Questions to ask your vet, Jerry's Required Reading List , Giant Breed Dogs are all good places to start reading.
Usually when doing an amputation for Oseoscaroma they usually take the whole limb. Prosthetics can be used in some circumstances but you do have to be diligent to putting the prosthetic on all the time.
Others will jump in
Sassy is a proud member of the Winter Warriors. Live long, & strong Winter Warriors.
sassysugarbear.tripawds.com
07/26/2006 - Sassy earned her wings 08/20/2013
05/04/2006 - Bosch, Sassy's pal, earned his wings 03/29/19 fought cancer for 4 months.
"You aren't doing it TO her, you are doing it FOR her. Give her a chance at life."
Hello and welcome. Your future posts will not require approval.
I'm so sorry to hear about your dog's diagnosis. I haven't been through the cancer journey with my dog (she's a trauma amputee), but many of our members have. I'm sure someone will be along shortly who has been there. I know we've had members with giant breeds who went through with amputation successfully.
I think getting a second opinion is a good idea. Keep us posted on your journey.
Info on giant breed tripawds https://tripawd.....iant-breed
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We know how hard thos is to wrap uoir head around. We get ot. We've all been there. You are asking great questions.
I'll just touch on a couple pf things. We have definately had dogs much larger and much older that you sweet pup. BTW what's his name?
As Michelle mentioned with Sassy, "large" dogs can handle three legs just fine. My Happy Hannah weighed in between 125-130 lbs, was considered "mature" at 8 1/2., Recovery was nompicnic at first but she handle three jist fine.
One of my favorite member stories was Atlas, a very large Great Dane, a "mature" dog who had Wobbers" and, if I recall, arthritis too. The first Vet suggested euthanasia, as did the second Vet. But Atlas's hooman knew him best and knew he wasn't ready to give up yet. Too much lofe in him. The third Surgeon said YES. Atlas thrived for two years!
Another Great Dane who recently passed at 10 yrs weight 170 lbs plus. She also best all sorts of odds and thrived for another two years.
We have Saint Bernard's, Mastoffs, Anatolian mixes....all sorts of large dogs doing very well on three.
Anyway, point being size does not matter nor does age. If your pup is in good condition overall, enjoys life and a Surgeon says he's a good candidate, then you can be assured.
So yes, get a second opinion from a Certified Orthopedic Surgeon.
If the only reason the Vet said he's not a good candidate is aize, he's just not up to date on all the success stories we see around here with dogs mich larger and much older
Agree that, as much pain as he's in, a month out for a second opinion is a long time. Especially if the meds are no longer helping him. Would your Vet try and make a call to get you in sooner at the Florida facility?? At the very least get on a waiting list.
And keep thinks chunked down for now. You can decide on chemo or not later. There is no guarantee one way or another with it. We can go jnto that later, but for now we need to get that painful leg gone.
What's the dose , name and frequency 9d the pain meds he's on? Maybe you can get that increased u til you can get a second opinion.
Oh, and great news that xrays were clear!
We're here for you and suppprt whatever path you take.
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
Eustacia,
Just wanted to add my two cents, I have a great pyrenees mix, Ellie, who was 97 pounds when she got her right forelimb amputated. She has adjusted great to 3 legs. I think the biggest difference (potentially) is it just takes longer for them to recover, but from a pain management perspective amputation was the way to go. My vet explained how it can be really hard to manage that long term chronic pain of the tumor which only gets worse (which unfortunately you know very well right now) versus the acute, but temporary pain from the surgery. If you move forward, I would make sure your vet is comfortable with giving pain meds for as long as is necessary, some vets seem to have a hard cut off at 2 weeks or so, and that simply isn't long enough for some of our larger pups (Ellie was on gabapentin for 6 weeks).
I also looked into prosthetics for Ellie, I was so worried with it being a forelimb. My vet advised against it saying that they tend to just be one more thing to learn and get in the way more than anything. Also, with a full amputation (scapula and all) the prosthetics just aren't that helpful since dogs really do adapt to 3 just fine, and that it can always be revisited down the road.
That is so hard with a much loved dog... Our dear Newf (144 pounds just turned 8) had his front leg amputated almost 3 weeks ago, doing well, Honestly when I first saw him I was so happy to have that cancerous leg gone and the worry about a pathological fracture gone.
Just a word about pain and stoic giants. Nicholas's signs were: Saturday moderate then heavy limping, Sunday a sudden lump about the size of a small egg. That's all. When they removed the leg 50% of the bone had been destroyed, He must have been in great pain for weeks.
Looking back, I remember that for the last few weeks he had been impatient with his puppy fans at the dog park. He's always been a great teacher and protector for them. I thought he was just getting old and cranky! I'm so sorry I misjudged him...
You've gotten some pawesome tips so far, I just want to say "welcome to the club nopawdy wants to join!" and let you know you are not alone.
As you've seen, Giant Breed dogs can do just fine on three legs. Any vet who says otherwise doesn't see enough cases to realize this, and I would go with another vet who does. To get into U of F (an excellent teaching hospital!), see if you can get into a clinical trial. They may speed you ahead of the line and get you in fast. I would call them to find out. Here's a good trial right here:
Thanks so much. I wi
Michelle said
I just approved your other post. Thank you for starting a new topic.My dog Sassy was a 128 pound Rottie when she was diagnosed. Her Osteoscaroma was in her rear leg and I did get a 2nd opinion because I didn't trust the first vet who gave it to me. She did awesome as a Tripawd. You can read our blog the link is in my signature line. We have had plenty of larger dogs that had amputations and did really well.
You know your dog the best. We have a saying around here no one has a time stamp on their butt. I can't tell you what to do but with that being said I know what I would do. I would give my dog a chance.
It does sound like your vets x-rayed the normal places that Osteoscaroma would present. Most vets check shoulder, legs, and spine. I am sorry that you are going through this. Questions to ask your vet, Jerry's Required Reading List , Giant Breed Dogs are all good places to start reading.
Usually when doing an amputation for Oseoscaroma they usually take the whole limb. Prosthetics can be used in some circumstances but you do have to be diligent to putting the prosthetic on all the time.
Others will jump in
Thanks so much. I'll be reading Sassy's story and appreciate that so many of you have shared those to help others of us.
Thanks. I did contact UF this morning and that's definitely my top choice of places to bring him. Unfortunately, once they get the referral from my vet and his records, they said their team meets discuss new cases and contact people based on what needs to be done and urgency then they call people to set up appts. I asked, if they received everything from my vet today, could she give me a rough estimate of how long that would take and she could not. It doesn't bode well that their website has an alert up that they are accepting limited new oncology patients right now to provide top notch care for existing patients.
I set up an appts at 2 other more local places. I have a consult at one tomorrow morning and the other place on July 17. I just don't know if I would trust either of these places to actually do the procedures. I want the best possible care and opinions for him. My thought is I don't need to commit to anything tomorrow but can feel out options. And, maybe before July 17 comes around at the other place, I'll hear from UF. Yet, I also feel like I can't just wait around too long either.
suzanne52515 said
That is so hard with a much loved dog... Our dear Newf (144 pounds just turned 8) had his front leg amputated almost 3 weeks ago, doing well, Honestly when I first saw him I was so happy to have that cancerous leg gone and the worry about a pathological fracture gone.Just a word about pain and stoic giants. Nicholas's signs were: Saturday moderate then heavy limping, Sunday a sudden lump about the size of a small egg. That's all. When they removed the leg 50% of the bone had been destroyed, He must have been in great pain for weeks.
Looking back, I remember that for the last few weeks he had been impatient with his puppy fans at the dog park. He's always been a great teacher and protector for them. I thought he was just getting old and cranky! I'm so sorry I misjudged him...
Oh wow. Yes, Great Pyrenees are super stoic too and he clearly didn't show pain on manipulation when I had him in for all those vet exams and the specialist since they completely disregarded doing an X-ray of that limb and did only the elbow up. I love Newfies. It's encouraging to me that he is the same age and weighs even more and doing well. Are you doing chemo or anything in addition? So many variables to try to figure out.
Thanks. That makes
Whitney said
Eustacia,Just wanted to add my two cents, I have a great pyrenees mix, Ellie, who was 97 pounds when she got her right forelimb amputated. She has adjusted great to 3 legs. I think the biggest difference (potentially) is it just takes longer for them to recover, but from a pain management perspective amputation was the way to go. My vet explained how it can be really hard to manage that long term chronic pain of the tumor which only gets worse (which unfortunately you know very well right now) versus the acute, but temporary pain from the surgery. If you move forward, I would make sure your vet is comfortable with giving pain meds for as long as is necessary, some vets seem to have a hard cut off at 2 weeks or so, and that simply isn't long enough for some of our larger pups (Ellie was on gabapentin for 6 weeks).
I also looked into prosthetics for Ellie, I was so worried with it being a forelimb. My vet advised against it saying that they tend to just be one more thing to learn and get in the way more than anything. Also, with a full amputation (scapula and all) the prosthetics just aren't that helpful since dogs really do adapt to 3 just fine, and that it can always be revisited down the road.
That makes sense. I'm so glad Ellie handled it well. I'm lost in confusion right now about the process and have a consult set up at one place in the morning and another place on July 17, but neither are the place I most want to get him into which could not tell me when I might hear back from them. I just hate sitting around doing nothing. I did manage to reach my regular vet and he is prescribing some additional meds for him so he isn't suffering right now.
Regarding the two place you are checking g out before the 17th, are they 24/7 fully staffed clinics with an Orthopedic Surgeon on board?
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
if they received everything from my vet today, could she give me a rough estimate of how long that would take and she could not.
I'm not sure if I'm the only one who does this, but I ask for everything from my vet to be sent to me so I have a record. It was so helpful when I was "shopping around" with different oncologists. I was able to send all of Ellie's xrays and blood work immediately, and if they needed something more then I could pull my primary vet in. I know I definitely have control issues, but that was very helpful. Added bonus I could review all her bloodwork/xrays and look up anything I might not understand when my vet originally told me (I'm an awful auditory learner, it's usually in one ear out the other).
Whitney, that's a great idea! I am much better at processing written information than auditory. I'll have to keep that in mind for the future.
Update from first consult:
I spoke with the surgeon and oncologist and they were both great with answering all my questions. They also were able to give him some zolendrate while he was there.
They didn’t see any reason why he wouldn’t do fine after amputation but they suggested he is a good candidate for sterotactic radiation/chemo/bone strengthener since his bone still is intact enough and he is still putting weight on that leg. I think the thought is to try to let him keep his leg for longer if we can but change course and go to amputation at any point. They don’t offer the radiation though so now I’m trying to get him in somewhere that does for a consult and the soonest appt I could find was the 19th.
Did anyone go this route then do the amputation later? Hope this makes sense. I’ve barely been able to eat or sleep since his diagnosis so difficult to put thoughts together.
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