Hi Kristie,

My tuxedo cat, Charlie, had a left front leg amputation on August 9th. He just turned 11. I was amazed how quickly Charlie recovered after surgery, but it has taken time for him to be where he is today and he is still improving. A couple of weeks ago I was telling his vet that I realized Charlie never sits anymore; he either walks or lies down. Well, within a few days he suddenly was sitting all the time! Charlie was never a very active cat, and certainly never much of a jumper. Even so, he is less active now. I think that may change some with more time, but I also think it is probably not unusual. It takes more effort for him to get around. He is using a litterbox with no issues (I do keep it nearby where he likes to sleep), and he can get to his food bowl with a pretty good pace He has ventured down the stairs a few times, but I think he lacks confidence coming down them. But he is happy and pain free and I love him to pieces 

It sounds to me like your Sasha is doing remarkably well! I have no doubt that time will see her becoming more and more active. I have two litterboxes for Charlie (and his sister, Bella). Before surgery, the only type of litterbox we had was a taller one. After surgery, I added a lower litterbox for him. Although he has occasionally used the pre-surgery taller box, he pretty much always uses the lower litterbox. I have to think he just finds it easier. If you have a taller litterbox, it might be worth trying a lower one. But I think it is likely Sasha just needs a little more time. 

Many thoughts are with you and with Sasha!

Pam and Charlie

Hi Kristie and Sasha!

Welcome to the tripawds club - I know you didn't want to join but well here you are!

My Jill is a rear leg amp, but she is a kitty so I thought I would add my thoughts :).  She is coming up on 23 months post amputation for bone cancer.  Jill took a while to get a good hang of her hop, she wobbled for a bit, however, she didn't have trouble with the litter box, but she STILL to this day, almost two years later needs help jumping.

I have a thought though, maybe this applies - is it a regular litter box?  I was told to use either one of those disposable silver baking pans you can find in the grocery store or get a regular litter box and cut the front out so she could just walk in, instead of having to step in.  That may make things way more comfortable for Sasha.

Jill has never been a super active cat, she's always been pretty lazy to begin with!  

Keep us posted and let me know if you have any questions!

xoxo,

Erica & Jill

Hi...another kitty tripawd here.  My Sebastian is 7 years old and lost his front leg to cancer in March.  I'm sorry for why you're here but glad you found us!  The people here are wonderful and have great advice.

Sebastian actually wasn't even allowed full run of the house for a month (my vet was more strict than most).  So I wouldn't be bothered at all by her activity level so soon after surgery.

He was pretty active before surgery and now, while he is still his usual self, he does move around less.  His remaining arm has gotten visibly more muscular but it of course took some time.  He gets tired faster than his two rambunctious brothers so he stops and sits for a while, then gets back to it.  He doesn't do the same level of jumping and climbing he used to either.  He still gets up on top of things, but he finds a way up with shorter hops.  When he jumps down he likes to have a flat surface to put his paw against and slide down.

Sebastian also prefers the normal litter boxes now.  And for a month the litter box was less than 10 feet away at all times, so I'm sure that helped.  So I would suggest making sure yours is in an accessible area and make sure the sides are low enough for Sasha to just step over for now.  Now Sebastian has to climb down a flight of stairs to use the litter box and we've had no issues.  I agree with Pam that talking to the vet is a good call if Sasha continues to not use the litter box properly after she has fully recovered (there could be other reasons).

How is Sasha's weight?  You want to do everything you can to reduce stress on her joints, both because of being a tripawd and her age.  Sebastian needs a lot less food to maintain his weight now because his activity level decreased, and he's still chubby...he gained a pound or two since the surgery.  I'm trying to get his weight down.  You can also give her supplements in her food like Dasuquin, which is to help the joints.  You just sprinkle it on top and most cats will eat it right up - I've only heard of a couple turning their nose up.

I'm happy to hear that Sasha is her usual happy self - that's one thing everyone's right about, animals don't sit around and mope about losing a leg.  They mostly care about food, sleep, and love   Plus Sebastian might have gotten some fish and chicken and other delicious things while recovering so he thought it was a pretty good deal.  Maybe that's why he's chubby!

Hi Kristie! I realize I'm a little late to the pawty, but I've been getting used to a new work schedule. 

My kitty, Steve, is a right rear amp (just over a year post amp). She bounced back the day after surgery, but that is absolutely not normal. An amputation takes a while to recover from and even longer to get back to the usual routine.

My big concern with Steve has always been her activity level as well, since she is a spayed female. Spayed females are known to gain weight rapidly, and we all know that an overweight Tripawd is a bad thing! Steve is pretty active on her own since she has two brother kitties to play with, but when I feel like she needs a little encouragement, I break out "red dot." "Red dot" is our $25 laser pointer that we bought to keep Steve in shape and active and boy did it work! Steve goes nuts for it, and after buying and starting to use it, I noticed a great increase in Steve's abilities to get up to all of the places that her brothers can get to. Whereas before, she needed to step or climb to a higher point, she now jumps or does what I call rock climbing moves where she'll throw herself at her target, grab on, then pull the rest of the way up. Adding makeshift steps around your house to help Sasha get down from some of her favorite higher places will help her adapt. We had boxes and furniture placed all around for Steve. Most of our "steps" are gone now.

As for the litter boxes, we have 3 different sized litter boxes. Two are covered and are a bit higher, one is uncovered and lower. Steve seems to prefer the lower one, but she'll use all 3. I did notice some accidents outside of the box until I added the lower uncovered box.

I hope this helps. Thanks for sharing Sasha's story!!