Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Things have been up and down for the past few days. We got really discouraged yesterday. Kadie, our dear Lab/Rot Mix has just had her front limb amputated on Wednesday - about 5 days ago. She will still not get up by herself, she is barely eating and we have to prompt her to drink. We have to give her meds by syringe. Up until this morning, she would only go potty in a diaper on her bed, which upsets her very much. She is very sensitive to that. There is blood in her stool, though not too much, and this morning when she woke up, her t-shirt was soaked in blood. We are keeping her heavily medicated.
We built a contraption to lift her up on both sides using a big towel. However, she is over 100 lbs and I can barely lift her with my husband's help. She barely helps herself to walk out to the yard.
I know she is miserable right now and so are we. We are unsure of the right thing to do at this point.
We are confused about how long to continue to work with her and figure out if it is going to be better with the other alternative. She is 12 years old.
If anyone can offer any advice or share information on their own experience with this, we would be very grateful.
Thanks.
~Kadie's Mom
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Kadie's Mom, please don't get discouraged. Be patient. Every dog has his/her own recovery timetable. Kadie only has been out of a major surgery for 5 days. Not willing to move around, or having poor appetite, is normal during the first couple of weeks of the recovery journey.
Though I am a bit concerned when you mentioned that blood-soaked t-shirt. Was it really “soaked”? or just small patches of bloodstains? Do you see blood seeping out? Does it have an opening at the incision? Have you called the vet?
What kind of pain meds are currently given to Kadie? Pain meds, especially Tramadol (which has been mentioned in this forum a lot), that would cause side effect, like whining, panting, and sometimes could be misleading. That makes you think the dog is in pain, and hence, more pain meds given, and subsequently, causing more discomfort. You might need to find the balance of pain meds dosage to help her manage pain.
Sounds like you already got the idea of makeshift sling to help her move around.
Things will only get better and better. Hang in there.
Kadie's mom,
Hang in there- these first 2 weeks are very hard....very hard. And yes every dog does recovery at their own pace. Many dogs on this site have been up right away and many have taken even longer than the 2 weeks to get themselves back to being comfortable.
Re: the blood soaked T shirt. We experienced that with Wrigley.. actually she was "squirting" blood from her incision site - due to too much collecting and having to find a way to relieve itself. I did rush her to the emergency vet when I discovered this ( it was on a Sunday) . They put a compression wrap on her and kept her overnight to monitor her blood levels. By morning they were a bit concerned because one count was down quite a bit and they were talking about blood tranfusions and reopening the incision as they thought maybe of vessel had seperated. Fortunately, by now it was Monday and I was able to get her back to her surgeon who monitored her all day. He kept the compression wrap on and put her on some iron supplements to get her blood levels back in check. We never ended up having to do a transfusion or reopen any incisions. She recovered from the surgery just fine, just had a few days of drama there.
I would definitely check in with your vet and make sure everything is OK. It will make you feel better knowing that there isn't something to worry about.
Hang in there.
Seanne and Angel Wrigley
Thank you so much for your responses; we are really grateful to read your comments... you all are very caring.
Regarding the blood soaked t-shirt, a lot of the fluid was seepage mixed with blood, it really was not all blood. It was alarming though because the whole side of her was the dark red and brownish red. The vet was not that concerned with this when I called him. He said it isn't that uncommon and since this morning was the only time it happened, he felt it was ok. She has had no seepage since this morning, not even a drop.
Today was the first time she went potty outside with our help and the makeshift sling (we are eagerly awaiting the Ruffwear tripawds harness we ordered); she did it twice! That was very comforting. We also found that crushing and sprinkling her meds (Tramadol and Rimadyl) on top of canned dog food along with her regular food works great. She hates the syringe method. (We have never given her canned food before and didn't even think of that option until the vet recommended it today - she loves it).
We haven't given up hope yet, and your responses and experiences were extremely helpful. Many many thanks.
~Kadie's Mom and Dad
Never give up hope! These first couple weeks wil have good days and bad. Leaking incisions are pretty commen. Many vets even put drains in with the sutures. We had to have Jerry's seroma drained once. Take things one day at a time and keep us posted. Best wishes for a complete speedy recovery!
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Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I can only echo what has been said before, "Don't give up hope." After my greyhound Brody came home (after 5 days in intensive care because of blood pooling and seepage), Brody would literally scream everytime he got up. I have said it before, but if it weren't for this site and helping me through this, I couldn't have made it. I doubted my decision because I felt he was in so much pain and it would have been so much easier to put him down. However, it was constipation, not pain from the amp. Give it two weeks. Things will get better each day and then one day you will have your wonderful dog back (and even in the small instance that it doesn't happen, you did everything you could to save your dog. I know there are bonus points somewhere for doing this). Some of us are never quite ready to give up the fight--and your puppy's will to live will prove this out. Hang in there. Brody's mom, Pat
Sounds like things are starting to improve for you a little. Our Bonnie was a front leg amputee and did not rush to move much either. It took her a while to get used to the pounding that remaining front leg took. Also, the pain medication was working against her. We cut back on the tramadol and got our old dog back. The sling helped also. The Ruffwear harness should not be used until the incision is healed so the sling really helps out until you can finally use the harness. Take it one day at a time. It is amazing how happy a dog pooping on three legs can make us!
chris-bonnie
Hopefully, Kadie is doing better a few days latter. It has to be a little tougher on the larger dogs, there is more of them to learnto maneuver. The first couple of weeks are very trying for the humans as well as the dogs. Hang in there, you will both come through with flying colors.
Shanna & Spirit Trouble ~ Trouble gained her wings 3/16/2011, a 27 1/2 month cancer survivor, tail wagging. RIP sweetheart, you are my heart and soul. Run free at Rainbow Bridge.
The November Five - Spirits Max, Cherry, Tika, Trouble & Nova. 11/2008 - 3/2013 An era ends as Queen Nova crossed the Bridge.
How's Kadie doing now? Keep us posted, we're rooting for her, and you too! Hang in there.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hello all!
I am happy to report Kadie is doing great.
We did have to take her back into the vet where they put in a drain. She had considerable infection. Since then, she is a lot less puffy and more comfortable. She is hopping around and going potty on her own in the front yard. She has bright eyes and wags her tail.
These last two weeks have been very hard on everybody, lots of stains on the carpet and messes to clean up. She is finally back to her hard dog food and not insisting on boiled chicken every night. She is actually keeping it down too.
She is such a large dog, part Rott and Lab - huge ribcage and head, she has really had to struggle to manuever herself. I joke with my husband that lifting her is like trying to lift two big bags of flour instead one big bag. When we try the lift the front of her, the back of her goes dead weight and vice versa.
She is really doing great though and I thank you all for the encouragement.
~Kadie's Mom
So glad to hear the good news. Thanks for the update!
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Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Kadie's mom
Funny I missed your previous posts - Tazzie is one week behind you in terms of surgery date, but I had scrolled back in time to find other 'late bloomers' and it sounds as though Kadie qualifies for the club. It sounds as though she had a rough ride. So you aren't going to give Kadie that canned dog food anymore? Poor thing - I've been using that to entice Tazzie to hop over to his food, to conceal the metacam, and just to get him up so that he is more likely to keep moving and pee and poo. I also mix the canned food in with his water to get him to drink more. He will not allow anyone to squeeze meds into his mouth, but cream cheese and peanut butter work like a charm. If Tazzie were not so food-motivated (and thankfully very lean), I doubt he would have moved since he came home one week ago! Once we need to start watching those calories, it will be hard to control the treats. Everyone wants to give food to a dog having cancer!
I hope Kadie keeps hopping along. It is refreshing to hear that things perked up a couple weeks down the road
Chicken, beef or even vegetable broth in their water can help get tired pups to drink too. And we found braunschwager (lverwurst) to be great for giving pills, albeit stinky.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Tazzie says "the stinkier the better!" and I'm sure all his friends agree. Unfortunately, my mum is a veg, so does not have the full slate of stinky things in the house I'd like.
She has been using broth in water to entice me to drink (yumm), but I wonder - is broth too salty to use often?
Smuckers makes a really good peanut butter that only has crushed peanuts and oil as the ingredients. You just mix and refridgerate and it makes an excellent, natural way to give pills 🙂 They make a reduced fat kind as well, but it uses an oil substitute which is a chemical make-up.
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