Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi,
My dog Fenway was just diagnosed with osteosarcoma in his left scapula. I have decided to amputate, much to the inspirational stories I've found on this site. Our issue is price. We will not be able to afford to follow amputation with Chemo, so my hope is that he will be pain free and one of those crazy success stories that out lives his estimated survival time. I have found a board certified surgeon in the area, that will amputate his leg for $2700, this includes an overnight stay and five days of post op meds. My regular vet, has an orthopedic surgeon come in and do the amputation for $1800, but he comes home the same night. We are in a bind financially, but I also want to be sure that Fenway is getting the best care possible. I was wondering what others experiences are in regard to whether or not they typically stay overnight/come home same day and costs for this procedure. Thanks so much for any info you can share.
Kerri
Hi Kerry and Fenway,
Welcome to Tripawds, your future posts will not require moderation.
Sorry to hear about Fenway's diagnosis. Tell us more about Fenway- what kind of pup is he? Big, medium or small? How old?
Here is a link to a topic where amp (and chemo) costs have been discussed: Cost of Amputation and Chemotherapy: What Did You Pay?
This might give you some ranges to compare your to your situation.
My pug Maggie stayed at the hospital overnight, I think that is the case in most situations. Some bigger dogs stay a day or two longer. It is doable to bring Fenway home the same day- there are people here who have done it. Hopefully they will share their experiences. I think new member Porter came home the same day, he is on day 5 or 6 of his recovery. Here is his blog: Porter's Journey. His mom posts in the forums as portersmom. You could leave a response on the blog, or send a private message (PM).
No matter what you do, post amp pain meds are really important. I think most pups here were on pain meds for two weeks or so. Some lucky pups were off them sooner, but is something to be aware of. We have heard of some vets sending pups home with no pain meds- which is old school thinking. This is a major surgery.
You might also check out our Nutrition Blog. Lots of ideas on good diets and supplements for Fenway.
Lots of people here have chosen not to do chemo, for lots of reasons. My local friend Cemil is 3 YEARS past his amp for OSA and did not do chemo. The important thing is that you are addressing the most pressing issue- the pain from OSA.
Actually, the most important thing is that you are doing the best you can for Fenway. We all wish there was an endless money supply for every situation, but that is just not the facts. So, once you decide what you are going to do you go forward without regrets!!!
And as you have read- there is a lot of experience here, and lots of shoulders to lean on!
Karen and the pugapalooza
Hi Kerri--Welcome to the club!
I don't know where you are located, but another potential solution might be to see if there is a veterinary teaching hospital near you. That's what I did, and I was able to get Dakota into a couple of clinical trials that cut the price down significantly. It meant a couple of extra trips to the hospital, but the price break was worth it.
As an example, the hospital was a 2-hour drive from me. One week before surgery, I took Dakota for an injection of a chemotherapeutic agent. We stayed the day and then drove back home. So that trip was only for that reason. However, they cut about $750 off the amputation cost. We did another trial that was started the same day and saved me a trip (that was a gait analysis and caused Dakota no pain or harm.) That cut off about $50, but since we were there anyway, it was stupid to pass it up.
Dakota did stay overnight, but the Priceline hotel fee was nothing compared to what I was saving. And I could have justified a much longer drive to save the big bucks.
I may be in the minority here, but I think you could manage Fenway's pain yourself with some education. If you decide to go with your local vet at the lower price, be really up-front and honest. Tell him that you want to bring Fenway home that evening but you need a crash course in administering pain meds to get him through the night. If you have a good, long-term relationship with him, he will likely help you with this. You will have to sleep near Fenway and monitor him, but you are talking about saving a lot of money. Personally, if it were me, I would try to do that. I trust myself and my abiliites and knowledge enough to know I could make my dog's first night comfortable, but only if I were shown how to do it. I've given injections before, I've done some gross and nasty stuff--I know I have the ability, just not the training.
Good luck, but whatever you do don't let anyone tell you Fenway only needs pain meds for 5 days. Like Karen said, most are on them 10 days-2 weeks.
Shari
From abandoned puppy to Tripawd Warrior Dude, Dakota became one of the 2011 February Furballs due to STS. Our incredibly sweet friend lived with grace and dignity till he impulsively raced over the Bridge on 12-15-12.
Dakota's thoughtful and erudite blog is at http://shari.tr.....pawds.com/
Welcome to you and Fenway. We had Abby's amp done by an ortho surgeon at our local vet, similar to your second option. I think it was ~$1900. We had the option of bringing her home that night, but opted to move her to a nearby overnight pet ER that kept her hooked up to IV meds for the night. That added ~$300 to the cost. We probably would hve been fine if we'd brought her home, but we were a little nervous about it. I think you would also probably be fine bringing her home but, as Shari said, have a good long talk about it with your vet. Or is there an option to move Fenway to an overnight facility yourself like we did? It would give you peace of mind, but not add too much to the overall cost. Might be worth looking in to.
And, yes, 10-12 days is the norm for pain meds. You might be able to get him off of them sooner, depending on how he does, but 10-12 days is the usual routine.
Good luck with your decision and please keep us posted. Have some hope! I know it's so scary to get the OSA dx, but there can still be lots of wonderful times ahead for you and Fenway. We had 15 amazing months with our Abby. It's a wonderful thing to be tripawd pawrent. Welcome to the club.
Jackie, Angel Abby's mom
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
Welcome Kerri and Fenway,
We're so sorry about your diagnosis, but hope that we can make your journey as easy as pawsible. ALL of us understand budget constraints here when it comes to getting medical care (and you'll probably find that most of us make sure that Tripawds get better medical care than the humans!). So please don't beat yourself up about what you can and cannot afford to do. As Karen said, the most impawtant thing is that you are taking action and helping to alleviate his pain.
Chemo is not a guarantee either, so don't get down on yourself if you do not do it. Many, many dogs here have beaten the odds without it (including myself, for two years!), and we often wonder if those survival statistics are just a luck of the draw, since sadly we've seen many dogs succumb faster than the odds predicted even with chemo. Making the most of your time together without money worry or stress could be even better medicine than the chemo itself, ya just don't know.
The prices you quoted are pretty fair, in my opinion. As long as there are no complications that's a pretty good price. With money being very tight, I think Shari is correct, if you have a good communicative relation ship with your vet, and are willing to carefully monitor Fenwaqy you could bring him home the same night. It's not the ideal recovery, it's scary as all heck and you will need to be VERY strong and have LOTS of information ready when you pick him up, but we've seen dogs go home the same night and do OK. You'll need to make sure that you have someone you can call at 3AM and have plenty of instructions about managing his pain, but it can be done. The only thing I would be concerned about there is if he is a large, giant breed dog, or if the surgery had complications. Then I would hesitate to bring him home the same day.
Please let us know what you decide, we will be here to help you no matter what.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Rumbles amputation was done in a large 24 hour vet hospital by an orthopedic surgeon. The original plan was a one-night stay, but he became aggressive the morning after surgery and they called to ask if they could him an additional night to fine-tune his pain meds to solve the aggression problem. The charge for the extra night was $200, which I felt was reasonable.
I am not sure where you are located. Boomer is 2 weeks 3 days post amputation (Back left leg). He didn't need Chemo and I am sorry about your diagnosis. Boomers amputation cost $1608 and that included a lot of medication to go home with and staying overnight with a vet doing regular checks on him to ensure he was doing well and comfortabe.
The doctor who did the amputation wasn't the first one we went to. The first one said it would be $2000-$2500 and didn't include much. Shari had a great idea for doing a bit of driving and finding schools and such. I wish you the best of luck and look forward to seeing great recovery results.
Tina and Boomer
Welcome Fenway (what a cool name) and Pawrents,
Location makes a huge difference. In the LA area I was quoted $4000 for just the amp and post op care. Driving a little bit out of town brought it down to $2000. My dog really needed to stay and be watched a bit because she's a very big girl and they sometimes have more problems. If Fenway is an average or small guy it probably isn't as crucial. If you can swing the 1 night stay it may be a lot easier on you. Unless you've had previous experience with post surgery recovery, it can be a little shocking and worrisome. It can look very bruised an swollen at first. You need to have a good understanding of what's normal so you won't worry. There's also some seeping (drainage) that happens. This is normal and part of the healing. You should ask your vet how to watch for infection so you will know the difference between normal drainage and infection. Mine told me the smell will be quite different and strong with infection and the incision would get more redness and you can take his temperature.
We can't afford the chemo thing either... actually we (and our vet) are more into the holistic/eastern med approach.
Whatever you decide will be right for your family.
The first thing is to get that darn leg off fast to get rid of the pain!
Even though we all want to get our dogs off pain meds as fast as possible to perk up their spirits and make them less loopy, it's important to have enough to keep going for the 10 - 12 days. That's my opinion anyway.
If you can swing $20 for a download, the Three Leg and a Spare book on the website is really helpful.
Best of luck on your big adventure! (Get lots of rest)
Wags and Slobbers
Judy and Baby
Thanks so much for all your replies! I really appreciate all the info. As some of you have asked, Fenway is an 8 year old chocolate lab, he weighs 78 lbs. We live in southern New Hampshire. My regular vet took xrays of his leg, treated him for arthritis, bursitis, did an xray, that came back clear and said she was "stumped". She referred us to a surgeon in the area. She repeated the xrays and easliy saw the tumor. She is the board certified surgeon, whose quote was $2700. I called an old vet I used to take Fenway to in Northern NH, two hours north of us. Its a very small country vet office out of the vets house. We loved the dr there, but it has since changed hands. The new vet gave me a quote for $1000, and this is much more reasonable for us right now, but I admit, I'm afraid to take him somewhere I'm not familiar with, in fear that he won't be in the best hands.
I have a consult with her tomm so we will see how I feel afterwards. I will also take your suggestions and talk more about same day post op care, what to look for as well as possibly finding a place for an overnight stay.
Thanks again! I'll let you know how it all works out.
Bit late but...
Welcome to the best place for Tripawd parents, Hope everything goes welll for you. I can't really help on the price thing as we are in new zealand are after reading what others have written I feel extremely lucky as our total cost for Amputation and 3 days at vets was alot less than anyone else. But as always shop around if you have that option. Its hard when something like this happens we want to do the best thing by our pet but the cost can be huge.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Sarah and Kayla
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