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 was wuite relieved the further along I got in your post!!! Soooo glad LB is doing better!!!
Petra gave you some good insight jnto her recovery with Stewie.
We say this AL.L. T.H.E. T.I.M.E: Every dog is dofferent......every recovery is different! And as you already know from the way LB reacted to his dose of Gabapentin, LB is apparently pretty "sensitive" to pain meds. So hubby gets a an extra bonus point for suggesting tapering off the pain meds! 🙂
As with Stewie, my Happy Hannah was at about three weeks before she started showing actions indicating she was starting to return back to her "normal self". This was about the time that "back slides" stopped and she just started making steady progress without interruption. If I recall, she didn't even lay on her amp side until about five weeks!
WELCOME BACK MUPPY!!!!!! 🙂 🙂
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!
Hang in there!
Your LB has gone through a tremendous change in the last two weeks. If you had faced such a change how would you be doing? Even though my pug Maggie didn't bounce right back she did better than I did with my orthopedic surgeries.
It sounds like he is ready to be tapered off the pain meds, they are a necessary evil after surgery, but for some pups they really do cause behavior changes.
I'll share my roller coaster- Maggie wasn't on it, just me! Maggie was a slug for 6 weeks after her surgery. There were no medical complications, she was off all meds around the two week point but she was just not herself. All the vets had said most all dogs do fine on three so I was convinced that I had the only dog that was not going to adapt (Mag's surgery was before Tripawds was here).
In hindsight it made sense that she took a long time to adapt. Mag was very obstinate and set in her ways, she hated any changes to her routines. I was so excited when she finally started playing with me again- around 6 weeks post op. Once she accepted her new normal she hopped happily through life for almost 4 years.
You are always welcome to ask questions and vent here, we all get it. We would all talk about our dogs all day!
Karen and the Spirit Pug Girls
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
Hello to Sally,
i found it interesting that you said that your Happy Hannah didn't lay on her amp side until 5 weeks... Stewie will only lay on his good side. He only laid on his amp side during his difficult time with his seroma . It seems to be difficult for him to lay on his amp side. Is this normal?
Remember...“live in the moment!“
Petra, just my 2¢ worth. Just like people,dogs hsve "favorite" sleeping positions. Plus, they often turn in circles in one direction /to pack down their "nest" in the "wild"). The amp of one leg can through their whole pattern off and disrupt their usual way of sleeping.
Additionally, at least in Happy Hannah's case (and maybe in the case of most large dogs) the surgery site itself is still somewhat "tender" for quite a while, even after the fur has grown back. I think the scar tissue, the rearrangement of muscles, etc just take some getting used ro as far as actually laying on it
All that said, there are dogs who lay in their amp side within the first week!!!!!! Back to the "every dog/recovery is different"!! 🙂
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 Sally! What you've said does make sense. He has tried to lay on his amp side, but always ends up switching right away. It's comforting to know that Happy Hannah also had a bit of trouble getting used to laying on her amp side. it has after all only been 7 weeks since his surgery...
Thanks for your reply Sally!
Sloppy kisses from Stewie👅🐾
& all the very best from his adoring pack,
Petra, Paul, Mr. Spike, Chester Molester & Miss Lily 🐾🐾🐾❤️
Yes, I always need to remember that every recovery is different. Most times I tend to think the worst. I'm afraid I'm putting too much pressure on him to get back to normal, emotionally. I'm just afraid of losing him sooner rather than later. I'm sure I'm not saying anything new.
I guess on a different note, LB has been laying on his amp side within the first week. Oh, seeing that made me cringe. How in the world could he do that? I guess he wouldn't do it if it hurt. Silly boy.
I really appreciate your positive thoughts and stories, even in other posts. It helps keep the glass half full.
Tiffany
Tiffany, the great lesson of this journey that LB will teach you is to live in the moment!! You've seen it here over and over: Be More Dog
!
To live any other way allows that piece of crap disease to interfere with yiur time together...to rob younof your time together. The one regret people sometimes have is wasting precious time worrying about the tomorrows instead of immersing ourselves jn the joys of today. LB IS WITH YOU NOW AND THAT IS ALL THAT MATTERS 🙂 LB lives from kne eternal glorious moment to the next with no worries, no fears....just enjoying the blissnp of being loved and spoiled by you! 🙂
Living in the now is empowering and very freeing. Focus on making every moment the best moment ever! That's what LB does! And that's all you have to do to completely free yourself up to be fully present with LB! 🙂
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. You can never lose something that will never leave you
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!
I believe happy days are ahead for LB. For the last 2 to 3 days, LB seemed like his normal self. He's been trotting around here and there, was so excited to chew on a bully stick for the first time in weeks and he even chased one of the cats for a few feet. He's even back to snuggling on the couch.
That's my good news. I hope everyone else has something positive, no matter how big or small, to celebrate as their furbabies continue to do good things.
Tiffany
GREAT NEWS INDDED!!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 YAAAAAAAAAY FOR DOING " NORMALTHINGS"!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 Best feeling in the worl!! It uplifts us humans skynhigh!! And pretty sure it does the same for our pups! 🙂
SNUGGLING ON THE COUCH...CHASING THE CATS...SLOBBERING BULLY STICKS....LB IS BACK!! 🙂 🙂
You know what you forgot though? I know you know! I'm sure I don't have to spell it out, do I ?? Okay, I'll spell it out! P.I.C.T.U.R.E.S.! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Extra hugs to all!
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!
Hi Muppy LB!
it sounds like you have turned a major corner, good lad! I bet the cats aren't too happy that your feeling a lot more like yourself again!
Here is a picture of Stewie and his brother Chester Molester. They absolutely love each other to pieces!
https://instagr.....ZVb92jKYV/
Stewie has had an excellent couple of weeks... he has had his favourite people visit and smother him with love and kisses, you'd think he'd died and gone to heaven! Now I need to deal with soppy eyes and constant pleas for belly rubs... even more so than before!
Thanks for keeping us updated and asking about everyone's good moments this week, it feels good to pass on good news doesn't it?!
Take care Muppy LB and we'll chat again soon!
Sloppy kisses from Stewie👅🐾
& all the very best from his adoring pack,
Petra, Paul, Mr. Spike, Chester Molester & Miss Lily 🐾🐾🐾❤️
Ooops, Super Stu forgot to log in! It's OK though, since you posted that fabulous pic you are forgiven 
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
Thanks for the reminder.... I forgot that I hadn't logged back in... I was wondering why it had to verify me.
Haha! Well although I'm sure the cat isn't celebrating, we sure are. Yay for LB! What a wonderful update. And yes, every little achievement deserves 
Keep on letting us know how things are going. We are sending all our best for a fantastic week!
P.S. Petra, thanks for sharing your pic. Adorable!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Yes, it truly is a relief to start seeing my boy again. I don't think so much about that dreaded cancer. Well, at least not as much as before. He's pretty much back to his normal eating routine again. Yesterday I spent the early afternoon cooking and putting together another week's worth of food for him. It's a labor of love.
Maybe some of you know of a public pool in your area that invites dogs to swim before the pool is closed for the season. An amusement park here in PA is having their 5th annual Doggie Dive next Sunday, which happens to be my birthday. So I emailed the park, asking about parking. For LB to walk from that ginormous parking lot to the pool would wear the pup out. Worth a try, right? I also added that LB's birthday is Sept 14 so I really want to make the day memorable.
Speaking of LB's birthday, I found recipes for doggie cakes. It's another reason to spoil him like crazy. My husband says I love the dog more than him. I didn't tell him he's wrong 
.
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