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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I think Ciara would love to have some chicken and eggs added to her meals, and it should be good for her too!
Yes, she will get stronger and her muscles will adjust to her new gait as a tripawd. In takes about two or three weeks to recover from the surgery itself. It takes about a month for a dog to adjust as far as using different muscles , etc.
She still needs to just do potty breaks and then back inside for more rest.
If you have access to a Rehab Specialist , they are invaluable in keeping a tripawd strong. The Tripawds Foundation will pay $200 towards first appointment.
Others will chime in on the weigjt loss. My Happy Hannah was a chow hound and never lost an ounce (except however the weifht of her leg). Vut I think others jave jad dogs whomlpst a few pounds during recovery. A trim tripawd is good for the joints!
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!
sara87 said
First is - she does fairly well on the 3 legs, but will she gain more strength as she heals? I guess I worry that her back will hurt or something like that.
Second - my husband thinks she's lost weight since bringing her home. With upcoming chemo treatment, we want to make sure she stays strong as possible. Did anyone supplement their post-op pups with eggs or chicken while they healed or after chemo?
She will gradually build stamina and strength but not as much or as well as she could if you had a rehabilitation therapist to guide you. We feel that all Tripawds need rehab therapy, even ones that "seem" to be doing well after surgery. This is more for our education as pet parents, so that we know the right and wrong kinds of activity our dog should be doing. And because each dog is an individual with a unique body, a rehab therapist can assess Ciara and show you where here strengths and weaknesses lie. The best part is, the Tripawds Foundation may even pay for your first rehab visit ! So please look into that and in the meanwhile our Tripawds Gear blog has lots of exercise tips, as well as our e-books library.
About her weight loss. Talk to your vet about her weight. It's ideal for a Tripawd to be thinner than they were before, to minimize the impact of an altered gait on their body. We are so used to seeing our dogs "fluffy" these days that it can be hard to tell what a fit dog actually looks like, and your vet is the best person to guide you. We also have some blog posts about weight in our Tripawds Nutrition blog .
Hope this helps!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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