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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Oh I remember that surgery day anxiety all too well! I was at work too but mostly on this site!!!! Keep us posted and let us know how things go. And remember to breathe.... lots of deep breaths!!!
Sending you lots of positive energy and hugs!!!!
Alison with Spirit Shelby in her heart
Shelby Lynne; Jack Russell/Shiba Inu mix. Proud member of the April Angels of 2014.
October 15, 2000 to April 8, 2014
Our story: Broke rear leg in June 2013 - non-conclusive results for cancer so leg was plated and pinned. Enlarged spleen in September 2013 and had it removed and was diagnosed with Hemangiosarcoma and started chemotherapy. Became a Tripawd January 8th, 2014 and definitive Hemangiosarcoma diagnosis. Three major surgeries in 7 months and Shelby took them all like a champ only to lose her battle to cancer in her brain. We had 8 amazing extra months together and no regrets. #shelbystrong #loveofmylife
The surgeon called! Kylie is out of surgery & awake! She's pretty zonked but she's OK & surgery went well! Hopefully we can still pick her up on Sunday. Thank God! We are thrilled! What a relief. She has a ways to go of course but making it through surgery was the first hurdle! The rest we can handle 😉
Great news! Now get a good night's sleep so you can be ready for her when she comes home.
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016. Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016. Lung mets August 25, 2016. Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016. Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma.
Wherever they are, they are together.
Glad you are past that first hurdle, but I'll be honest, I didn't sleep at all until my boy came home again, which was nearly 48 hours after surgery. I hope you do better than me!!
I hope she can return home on Sunday as planned!
Lisa, Minneapolis
On October 27, 2016, nearly 6 months after amputation, and 18 months since his cancer likely started, we lost Pofi to a recurrence of Soft Tissue Sarcoma in his spine quite suddenly. His canine sister also succumbed to cancer on March 1, 2019 - we lavished her with our love in the interim, but life was never quite the same without her only real canine friend. Cliff kitty had to leave us, too, suddenly, in August 2019. Lucia kitty grieved all these losses, but helped us welcome two new Lurchers into our home and our lives, Shae and Barley.
WOOF!!! WOOOF!!! GRRRREAT NEWS!!!! Kylie is seeing pink elephants right now, so go get some rest!!
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!
FABULOUS NEWS!!!
Ditto everyone else. Get some rest and take care of yourselves so you're ready to take care of Kylie when she comes home.
Meg and Clare xx
Ruby, Staffy, born June 2022, became a Tripawd, 23 November 2023, adopted 12 January 2024.
Also Angel Tripawd Meg (aka The Megastar), who died in April 2023, aged 14, after seven glorious years on three, and Angel Staffies Pie and Bille. In the pawprints of giants...
Yeah for surgery being done! And for pink elephants!
Donna
Donna, Glenn & Murphy
Murphy had his right front leg amputated due to histiocytic sarcoma at 7 years old. He survived 4 years, 2 months & 1 week, only to be taken by hemangiosarcoma at 11 1/2 years 6/12/17
Read about Murphy's Life on Three Legs
The Dr at the Vet hospital called us to give a morning update on Kylie! She had a good night, she is up walking...& pretty well she thought! Not eating much yet, but overall she's pleased. They will call us again tomorrow morning after morning rounds & if all is still well, we can pick her up early afternoon tomorrow!! We are so excited & giddy to have our girl home!! Now we are trying to think of what changes we might need to make in the home before her arrival!? I will check the other forums, blogs etc. For info too!
Other people will contribute, I'm sure, and I would really recommend the ebook Loving Life On Three Legs . It's incredibly useful. I didn't buy it as soon as Meg became a Tripawd, and when I did, I really wished I had.
The number one thing to think about, in my experience is traction . It's FANTASTIC that Kylie is already walking. (That took Meg a couple of days, and she was already pretty one-sided) and you want to make sure that you have coverings down on any slippery surfaces (hardwood floors etc.), so she doesn't slip and lose confidence as she adjusts to her new gait. It's definitely more slippery on three legs because of the hopping action. I've found a mixture of cheap rubber matting (yoga mats etc.) and heavy jute rugs, with a non slip backing underneath, work well.
I also bought cheap baby gates and put them across a couple of doorways, so I could contain her if I needed to and stop her wandering off upstairs for example when I wasn't there to supervise. I also built stairs up to my bed and a step up onto the sofa. (in her case, it wasn't so much jumping up, as jumping down that I was worried about as she's a front leg tripawd and has a dodgy elbow). When she first came home though, I moved a mattress downstairs anyway and slept with her on the floor.
Hope some of that helps. I'm so pleased to hear how well Kylie is doing. One more sleep and you'll have your baby home!
Love
Meg and Clare xx
Ruby, Staffy, born June 2022, became a Tripawd, 23 November 2023, adopted 12 January 2024.
Also Angel Tripawd Meg (aka The Megastar), who died in April 2023, aged 14, after seven glorious years on three, and Angel Staffies Pie and Bille. In the pawprints of giants...
Thanks Clare! Great tips!!
So far we cleaned EVERYTHING on the main floor where were all be living/sleeping for a while. I'm paranoid of her getting an infection in her incision. Also we have carpet in most areas and rugs down on the other areas she tends to go. We've had those down for a while already because she had already been limping for a couple weeks. We plan to hit Home Depot after lunch to see what else they have. I want to avoid her tripping!! That would not be good! Also Kevs brother is giving us two baby gates today! His kids are older now. Score!! lol so we saved money there! Oh I just can't wait for her to be home.
YAAAY! How wonderful she gets to come home. What a sweet day it will be.
Yep, traction is key, definitely. Other tips we recommend:
- a firm bed
- raised bowls
- tasty irresistible treats and meats to entice her to eat and take medication
- no-sodium broth to entice her to drink
- lots of dog towels
Also, don't do this rookie mistake we made and I think pretty much everyone does at first: don't hide pills in her regular food. Tramadol is especially bitter and if she smells it in there she won't want to eat at all. You'll either have to disguise pills in something like a pill paste, peanut butter or other soft wrap, or do the ol' "down the hatchet" maneuver.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thank you!! I'm so mad that we just got rid of her raised bowls earlier this year!! It was metal & they got rusty so we tossed them out. Now I wish we kept them. Oh well. Walmart is open late! 😉
As for traction I think we got it covered! Mats and runners are everywhere that she will be! No coffee table! It will be replaced with a mattress from our spare room so we can sleep down here with her. 🙂 Kevin's parents came by today to drop off some stuff, already asking if they can stop in & see her tomorrow. What are your thoughts on guests?? I don't want her so excited that she hurts herself (she absolutely loves them!) but I don't want them to wait ether since I know they're just as anxious as us! They love her so much!
I guess a lot depends on how she is doing, We will wait & see.
Guests are probably fine. One of my daughter's friends came over Otis' first night home. He stayed in his bed, but wagged his tail and seemed pleased to see her. A little love never hurts. But do prepare them for what the incision will look like. It is big, and they shave an incredible amount of fur. There are various photos on the site if you need to prepare yourself too.
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016. Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016. Lung mets August 25, 2016. Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016. Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma.
Wherever they are, they are together.
Ok great, I will see how she is and once she's settled for a few hours maybe we'll call them over to see her.
We called the hospital to get an update before bed and they said Kylie had a good day! She ate a bit for them but not much, they suspect she will have more of an appetite once she home 🙂 They also said she has been out for a few walks and is doing very well. She should be Ok to go home tomorrow as scheduled! We're so happy she is recovering Ok so far. We can't wait to see her! !! Xox
We have a ranch-style house, but in a couple of areas there is 1 step down - going from the kitchen into the family room, from the living room to the front door & from the kitchen to the basement/garage. So one thing that I did was to put a tap light in those areas - you know those dollar store lights that you tap on? I just put it on the floor, then at night when we turned off the lights, I stepped on those lights so that it lit up the step ...that way if Murphy walked around at all he could see exactly where the step was & judge the depth of the step. I used them until the batteries wore out.
Donna
Donna, Glenn & Murphy
Murphy had his right front leg amputated due to histiocytic sarcoma at 7 years old. He survived 4 years, 2 months & 1 week, only to be taken by hemangiosarcoma at 11 1/2 years 6/12/17
Read about Murphy's Life on Three Legs
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