Most dogs adapt fairly well to life with 3 legs, and 11 1/2 is older, but not ancient.  The first 2-3 weeks are the hardest, it can be a roller coaster of emotions for everyone.  Make sure to keep up on his medications - he will probably come home on a couple.  Murphy came home on Tramadol, Rimadyl & Gabapentin ... some have a Fentanyl patch and some also have antibiotics.  Make sure you don't give all of his pain medications at the same time - you want to space them out a little bit so that he has more adequate coverage. 

Since you're pregnant, make sure that you speak with your OB & the oncologist to make sure what the risks are to you if you proceed with chemo for Freddy.  Not everyone does chemo, some people choose not to for a variety of reasons.  I'm sure the precautions will include that you not clean up his urine or stool or allow him to kiss you, but I don't know what chemo he would get or how long you would have to maintain those precautions.  Chemo affects fast growing cells - so would definitely affect your baby.

Donna

We are a week post-op with our 13-year-old lab, Dolly. Everyone but our vet thought we were putting our girl through some serious stuff by amputating at her older age. I know we aren't out of the woods yet...we go to our first chemo appointment Tuesday. But, I'm so proud of her progress. She never really acted her age, and while she was limping around with the tumor still attached, she continued to eat well, follow us around the house, and do her best to convince us that she needed to go on walks. I'd recommend looking for those silver linings. Those are the things that really kept us going even when logic told me that we were taking a risk.

We have two little human boys, and I'm not ready to lose my fur baby girl yet either. I completely understand how you feel. Getting a diagnosis is such a shock and it takes a lot of time to see through it clearly (I'm still not there). The recovery from the surgery was heart-breaking at times, but my heart is so much lighter now that we made it through this first step.

As far as some of the things that affect older dogs, we've taken a few extra steps to help her remaining limbs. Dolly has arthritis and hip dysplasia. We added fish oil and dasuquain to her daily meds. We also started her on adequain months prior to finding out she has osteosarcoma. There are some more holistic things you can do as well. We had a line-up of those, but Dolly is hopefully participating in a study at a veterinary college that won't allow us to use herbs. I would absolutely recommend talking to your vet about those things too. It makes me feel like we have a little bit of control over the diagnosis.

Sending lots of love to your little family and your Freddy! If you need to talk, please let me know!

My prayers are with you. The surgery was scarey, but I have to admit that it went better than Inexpected. Karl surprised me at how well he adapted to three legs. These dogs are amazing. You'll see. God Bless, Julie and angel Karl.

Sending very best thoughts for surgery today, and recovery and homecoming. It's going to be so good for your boy to be rid of that pain.

My best advice (you've gotten some great advice already), is to really talk with your surgeon/vet about pain management options.  Most of our pets come home with multiple modalities for pain management and you want to stay ahead of that surgery related pain so he gets good rest and that can help him heal faster.  Don't be afraid to call your vet once you are home and ask about adjusting the different meds either in dosage or timing to get the right rhythm for your boy.