Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello everyone,
Our tripawd was recently diagnosed with a UTI. The UTI caused her to lose function in her back hind leg (her other back hind leg was amputated). The vet provided us with the proper antibiotics to treat the UTI. The vet told us we need to get her to pee today to show that she can be on the right track.
The vet did extract her urine when we originally went in.
We are now trying everything to get her to pee, but without her back leg working she is very tense and it is not easy. We have tried expressing her urine but I imagine the fact that she is putting all the pressure on her front legs, does not make it easy.
I am looking for any suggestion as to how we can get her to pee. She never pees in the house, I doubt she would ever do it. Just looking for any way to help, obviously my family and I are not trained to express her bladder properly. I tried the way google suggests, I believe I have the bladder (feels like a little bit of a deflated balloon near the back of her stomach) but I squeeze and the only signs I see is her tail tensing up.
I would appreciate any suggestions.
Could you support her with a harness or support sling out in [the yard / wherever she pees outside] in a usual pee spot she normally goes to?
It's also probably helpful if you can try to relax in whatever way you can (waaaay easier said than done, I know!) so she'll get relaxed vibes and feel more comfortable peeing.
That said, I feel for you in this tough spot and am sending all the chill vibes I can muster your way.
Natalie & Juno (aka June)
Online
Aww poor girl. Maybe some of these tips can help:
How to Help a New Tripawd Urinate After Amputation
Was it today that the Vet took urine?? Giess my real question is how long has it been since she peed at the Vet? And has not peed at hone, right?
Expressing the bladder incorrectly can cause more harm than good. If you can get back to the Vet tomorrow, have them show you with some "hands on practice" several times before actually putting on the pressure to release the urine. Videos are helpful, but having the Vet take you through the steps in person will give you the confidence and reassurance you need.
Confused on how the UTI has made her lose function in the back leg and made her unable to stand/squat to pee?
Natalie had some good suggestions. Also, as crazy as it may sound, have your husband take a whizz (sorry for crudeness) outside and take her to that spot. Also puppy pee pads have an attractant that may help.
Sorry you are dealing with this. Hopefully the antibiotics kick in quickly!
((((((((Hugs))))))
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. Her amputation was several months ago, right?
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!
benny55 said
Was it today that the Vet took urine?? Giess my real question is how long has it been since she peed at the Vet? And has not peed at hone, right?Expressing the bladder incorrectly can cause more harm than good. If you can get back to the Vet tomorrow, have them show you with some "hands on practice" several times before actually putting on the pressure to release the urine. Videos are helpful, but having the Vet take you through the steps in person will give you the confidence and reassurance you need.
Confused on how the UTI has made her lose function in the back leg and made her unable to stand/squat to pee?
Natalie had some good suggestions. Also, as crazy as it may sound, have your husband take a whizz (sorry for crudeness) outside and take her to that spot. Also puppy pee pads have an attractant that may help.
Sorry you are dealing with this. Hopefully the antibiotics kick in quickly!
((((((((Hugs))))))
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. Her amputation was several months ago, right?
She peed at the vet at around 10:30 and she has not peed since, if she has we have not seen it. Its is now 11:30.
We will see if we can get some expert advice tomorrow, hopefully she go pee on her own.
The vet said it some cases when it gets to the point where she loses function in her hind leg when it gets bad. She hid it very well, but it was bad the day before she went in, she did not pee for the whole day. She has pooped today however. She just does not want to use her hind leg, she has the strength if you have her stand on it but she rather sit down.
LOL I am the kid of the family, it is our family dog, I did try that however! We will look into puppy pads.
Thank you for your kindness!
Yes she has been out of amputation since May 1st.
We did pu
Natalie_2 said
Could you support her with a harness or support sling out in [the yard / wherever she pees outside] in a usual pee spot she normally goes to?It's also probably helpful if you can try to relax in whatever way you can (waaaay easier said than done, I know!) so she'll get relaxed vibes and feel more comfortable peeing.
That said, I feel for you in this tough spot and am sending all the chill vibes I can muster your way.
We did put on her harness and lift her, she walks around with her two front legs but she's so stubborn - she is the kind of dog who will only do it at her one will. We will keep trying with the harness, they did say that the pressure from the harness helps as well.
It's difficult to get her to relax since she is so tense standing on her two front legs, just hoping she regains that function with the antibiotics.
Thank you for the good vibes!
Is she drinking much and does she have easy access to water given her mobility limitations? It'll be important to keep her hydrated under the circumstances.
I saw you also have a thread going in the Ask a Vet forum - that's great. Perhaps you'll get some good perspective on this problem there. You could even make a new thread in that forum to get other ideas from Dr Pam about how to encourage her to pee / deal with an advanced UTI.
Bravo for taking the initiative on this for your dog and your family. ...and for taking a whizz in the yard for the team. Anything to help, right?! 🙂
Natalie & Juno (aka June)
You mention repeatedly that she's stiff. Have you tried giving her a massage to help loosen her up?
The others have given great advice, as well.
I think that the UTI and not urinating is secondary to a neurologic issue; I have never heard of a UTI causing a rear leg to not work properly but it is very common for dogs with a spinal issue to not urinate normally which then leads to the UTI. Sometimes a UTI can progress to a kidney infection that can make a dog sick so I would be sure to still give her the medication. If she is not already on gabapentin I would ask for that.
Pam
I'm glad Dr Pam chimed in and noted the back leg issue seemingly unrelated to the UTI
I know I posted in my previois reply questioning that too.
Confused on how the UTI has made her lose function in the back leg and made her unable to stand/squat to pee?
So hopefully now you can have the Vet do further investigation.
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!
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