Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello,
I posted some time ago, but guess I never made an account until now. My 7 year-old Tabby kitty, Charlotte, had a tumor removed from her left, rear, thigh in March that was a sarcoma - pathology report said, "indicative of an injection site sarcoma". (I still don't get this, as she has never been injected there.) The vet felt pretty good about the surgery, as there was a narrow, but clear margin, and it was encapsulated. In late July, I felt a BB sized bump on part of the suture line. We biopsied it, and it was sarcoma. On Wednesday (August 28th), her leg was amputated by a board certified surgeon, who comes into do specialty surgeries at our vet.
She came home on Thursday, on Onsior tablets, and Buprenorphine liquid for pain. She finished the Onsior this morning. My concerns is she sleeps almost constantly. She will eat a tiny bit sometimes, and did drink this morning. (The vet said to bring her in for fluids if she didn't - but she hasn't drank since.) I called my vet yesterday, and he suggested halving the Buprenorphine. She is a small cat (6.5 pounds before the amputation), so only getting .12 ml, and I totally failed trying to only get half that in today. (It is premeasured in a syringe for oral administration.) I don't even know if she peed today. (We have two cats, so hard to tell.) The vet gave her appetite stimulant after I called yesterday...not sure if it worked at all, and AD food. She nibbled a bit earlier, and I thought she had turned the corner, but tonight I had to put it on the roof of her mouth so she would eat it. I got one tuna Churu in her today, over a couple of tries. I don't know how much of that is ok to give.
As far as walking, she is doing quite well - the little she walks, and even got up on the couch before we knew it, but I don't know if we need to go in, or this is normal, or what. It doesn't help it being a 3 day weekend. Any help would be appreciated.
Hi Marlene
Your post is now approved and others will chime in with some good feedback. Apologies for the quick response as I have to head out to work.
I'll just say that what you are experiencing does not sound too unusual for just a couple of days out from surgery. The main thing is to get some liquid into her and to get her to pee. You can try any of the wet Foods, even if it's not the most nutritional. Of course, tuna water is always worth a shot too. I know others have used Churro to get cats to eat... so at this point, probably any food is better than no food.
It's wonderful that she's already mobile! So be sure and celebrate that!
Stay tuned......
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!
Thanks for the reply. I think her meds are the culprit - her pupils are very dilated. I halved her pain meds this morning, but if she doesn't perk up in the next couple of hours, I am calling the vet and taking her in for fluids.
Hi Marlene! I agree that this sounds pretty normal, but it's always good to call your vet to put your mind at ease. Let us know what they say. I hope today is better!
I am at the vet right now. Charlotte was dehydrated, and is getting fluids. The vet says to stop the buprenorphine for now, and we are restarting the onsior, which she has done fine with in the past. Praying this works!
Oh good! That sounds like a reasonable plan. I hope she perkes up so keep us posted!
Charlotte was acting perfectly fine after fluids last night. She gobbled down some food, finally peed, was purring, jumped up on the couch with me...Now this morning she is listless and went to hide behind our bookshelf again. Do you think the Onsior isn't enough and she is in pain? She doesn't seem dehydrated anymore from her skin. What is going on?
I'm sorry I missed this Marlene. How is she today?
The recovery phase is often referred to as a roller coaster ride. There are lots of ups and downs and it's not fun for either pet or parent. Pain control isn't an exact science because each animal is unique. So it could be that the Onsior is not doing it. Is she on Gabapentin for nerve pain? I don't see that you've mentioned it.
She is not in Gabapentin. I am going back in to get supplies this afternoon and will ask.
It has been awful. She was in again yesterday, got more fluids, a B-11 shot, Cerenia for any nausea, and an antibiotic in case of infection as her temp was just a shade high. Nothing made a difference. The only good thing is she will eat the Churus Nourish, but nothing else. So today the vet has me syringing AD food into her mouth. That isn't fun, and not sure it will make her want to eat. They are talking about putting in nasogastric tube tomorrow if she doesn't start eating on her own. I don't know that I want that, but I also don't know what else to do. To make it worse, we are supposed to leave ona 5 day trip on Thursday, and she will have to stay there. None of this.can be good for recovery.
I am really regretting doing this to her. She was a stray that wandered into our barn 5 years ago. She has always been so loving and in our laps, and now she seems scared of me. She came through tooth extraction, spaying, and her first tumor removal and didn't miss a beat. I didn't expect it to be this bad.
Hi there,
You are in the middle of that rollercoaster ride but it won't last forever! If you have not asked about the gabapentin, I would definitely do so. It made a world of difference for Huckleberry. Her reactions sound like she needs pain management . As far as the Churu's are concerned, honestly ANYTHING you can give her is better than not eating. Tuna, chicken, low sodium broth like chicken bone broth, cat milk, Churu, Delectables, Fancy Feast broths, whatever you can get her to eat. I had an arsenal for Huck's recovery and he still took time before his appetite got better. Syringing the A/D might be just the trick and that is a fantastic source of nutrition for her. It is high in calories and nutrients, I have used it many times. It might be just what she needs to realize she is hungry. It honestly sounds like you are doing a great job. If she has phantom limb pain the Gabapentin will help tremendously. It does tend to make them a little drowsy at first but that doesn't last.
I have not been here in quite a while. When I stopped by I saw this post so I just wanted to say hi, hang in there, this will all pass. She is lucky to have somebody that loves and takes such good care of her. Huck had his right rear amputation in 2017 and he can scale a 7 foot cat tree. He beats the other cats to the top of the stairs and he is a very happy boy.
Good luck in your journey. 
Hugs,
Jackie, Bo, Andy, Oscar, Phoebe, and the coolest feral tripawd kitty Huckleberry 
We know how jard this part pf the recovery can ve. FWIW, I joined this community on day six after amputation. My first post was something along the lines.."Help, I fear I have made a horrible decision!"
This community threw me a lifeline of knowledge, support, tips and a whole lot of reassurance! The main thing I learned was that meds do need tweaking until the "sweet spot" is found. I was reminded that every recovery is different and every dog/cat recovers at their own pace in their own way.
The foods and getting the right pain meds seem to be the ticket for getting Charlotte moving forward with recovery. The fact that she does have a slight fever could definitely make her feel even more crappy.
They are talking about putting in nasogastric tube tomorrow if she doesn't start eating on her own. I don't know that I want that,
Take this FWIW, but I have seen cats this first week or so after surgery eat very, very little. It does seem like she is eating "some" so maybe the Vet wants to hold off on the feeding tube a bit. She's getting her fluids and that's important....even of it is thru IV.
now she seems scared of me. She came through tooth extraction, spaying, and her first tumor removal and didn't miss a beat.
If I read this right........no additional pain meds....or different meds....other than the Onisor? Amputation pain is a whole different kind of pain. The surgeries she had before didn't involve cutting through bone, muscles and nerves. Amputation is MAJOR surgery.
Charlotte isn't "scared of you".....she's feeling vulnerable, as any animal would, and most likely wants to sort of "hide" and heal. That's what an animal in the wild would do. She also is probably still dealing with some unaddressed pain.
Update when you can.
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!
As I was typoing this, I see that Jackie, Huckleberry 's Mom chimed in with encouragement and advice! She is a cat expert extraordinaire! 👍 Glad she "validated " checking into Gaba and reassuring you that eating "something " is better than nothing.
Thanks Jackie💖💖💖💖💖
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!
Always glad to help ♥️
Check out Huck's blog if you get a chance. I'm in the forums too... my whole rollercoaster ride is there. I'm an animal person. I have helped more furbabies than I can count but when I took this ride I may as well have never had any animal experience, it was gutting. I lost anything I ever knew and got totally caught up in anxiety and fear. Huck was a feral cat that decided my home was his sanctuary. Amputate or euthanize... we chose life and after the battle it was totally worth it. ♥️
Hugs,
Jackie, Bo, Andy, Oscar, Phoebe, and the coolest feral tripawd kitty Huckleberry
Thanks to all of you for your replies and advice! I know this was a serious surgery, but I really wasn't prepared for it to be THIS bad!
My vet and I had a talk late this afternoon. He wants to see her eating pretty consistently to avoid a feeding tube. It isn't a nasogastric tube, but an esophageal tube, and it sounds just awful to me. Anyone had to go this route? I hope it doesn't have to go there. The other issue is that we did the surgery when the surgeon was available (a board certified surgeon came into our vet clinic to do it), and I didn't want to tempt fate anymore than we possibly already had by waiting to see if the tumor came back. We are supposed to leave for a trip on Thursday - one more day. I am just sick over it, as I fear Charlotte having to be at the clinic for 5 days will set her back more. (She won't be boarded - she will be in the clinic.) I can't see shouldering our friends that come to feed and check on the animals with giving her meds, or if something happens, either. If she stays there, then he will see how she does on gabapentin. (He felt it really "rocked" cats - in not a good way.) She got totally glassy-eyed on buprenorphine - which the vet said is generally the drug that they give cats. (That is why she I only on the Onsior.) We are going to try a half dose and see how that works. She is so tiny - only 6 pounds now without her leg, that I wonder if she reacts more even on what is supposed to be a correct dose for her weight.
The vet sent me home with more Churu Noursish and A/D, and suggested I also get and try some baby food. I accidentally got ham with gravy baby food, and I don't know that that is good for her - but she did lick up a tablespoon. I gave her more a bit later, which she ate, but not quite as enthusiastically. I boiled her some chicken, and she ate a little of that - maybe a teaspoon or a bit more. She still won't eat her Greenies treats, and they are usually her favorite thing ever. I even got her a couple more flavors. The fridge now has open cans of 4 foods, plus the chicken.
Yay! Charlotte is eating some so be sure and celebrate that! That is an improvement! That is progress!
You were dealing with a lot right now, especially the extra stress of going away. Although I know you hate to leave Charlotte at the vet, she'll be in really good hands and you'll be able to check in on her daily.
It's possible that she will show enough Improvement that maybe your neighbors and Friends could care for her while you were gone. Possibly a vet tech could come over and check on her too assuming she does continue to improve.
I don't have any insight into the.now she seems scared of me. She came through tooth extraction, spaying, and her first tumor removal and didn't miss a beat. tube. I agree, if you can certainly avoid that though it sounds like that would be a good thing!
You are doing everything right, okay I know it feels like this recovery will last forever. We all felt the same way. Better days are ahead, just continue to stay positive and Surround Charlotte with a confident energy.
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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