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.
Join The Tripawds Community
Learn how to help three legged dogs and cats in the forums below. Browse and search as a guest or register for free and get full member benefits:
Instant post approval.
Private messages to members.
Subscribe to favorite topics.
Live Chat and much more!
Register
Log In
Members
Add Topic
Offline
HI, our boxer Duke will be having surgery on Monday, removing his left front leg. I am trying to find information on what to expect transporting him home from the vet. I have a Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV , which he has jumped in his entire life or my husband has picked up when he started limping. We lift him down with a harness, (which he won’t be able to have on after surgery.)
We plan to get a ramp or steps once he’s recovered, but we will have to teach him to use. The diagnose and turn around for surgery was so fast (thankfully) there is no time to even teach him on four. I don’t even know if he will/ or how even how good he will walk out of the vet
Any tips or experiences on leaving the vet and getting him in the vehicle and out into our home? He is a 90 pound wiggler.
Thank you in advance for any insight !!!
Welcome and best wishes for Duke's speedy recovery!
He will likely hop out of the hospital to greet you with a smile, when you can gently lift him into and out of your vehicle. Jerry was 80 pounds, and we took him home in our pickup that we outfitted with a mattress...
Once Duke is healed, you will find various ramps and SUV steps as well as ramp training tips in the Tripawds Gear blog .
While you wait for comments from others, use the Advanced Search above to refine your forum search results with specific phrases, and you're sure to find lots of helpful feedback. You can also search all blogs here . Or, consider downloading the Tripawds e-books for fast answers to common concerns and feel free to call the toll-free Tripawds Helpline anytime!
Please keep us posted. Your future forum posts will not require moderation. Meanwhile, start here for help finding all the helpful Tripawds resources and assistance programs.
If you ever need help navigating the blogs, start here for help finding all the helpful Tripawds resources and assistance programs or watch this quick tutorial video.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Welcome to Duke the Wiggler and his hoomans!! Sorry you find yourself here, but as you can se from all the valuable links and information given to you by our Admin Guy, you are in the right place!!
And the Vet Techs will be there to help get him in the car. Guessing you and your husband will both go to pick him up so one of you can stay in rhe back with him.
My Happy Hannah, 125 Bull Mastiff (a rear legger) hopped into the waiting room with no problem. Now, that said, do NOT be concerned at all of Duke isn quite mobile yet snd needs help walking and getting up. You can use a towel sling or a canvas shopping bag with handles to help. Every dog is different and handle recovery at their own pace. Some larger dogs need a bit longer time to get mobile. And being drugged up can make them quite wobbly, especially for front leggers.
Is he spending the first night? Most dogs do stay at a fully staffed clinic for the first night. Qhen yoi fo fo pick him up, don't even bother to look at his incision or draw attention to it. Just look I to jis druggy eyes with a smile on your face and tell him he's a good boy and he's going home!!
Peeing and drinking are important. No worries of he's off food and bit and doesn't poop for a few days. He needs complete rest for about two weeks, short leashed potty breaks and back in for more resr. He will most likely come home with Gabapentin, Tramadol and Rimadyl and an antibiotic. pain management is important.
STAY CONNECTED and let us know how we can help. Recovery is no picnic, but it doesn't last furever!!!
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. I am owned by a front leg BlueTick Coonhound who REFUSES to let me help him get into the back seat of my Jeep Compass (smaller than your Cherokee), but I think yoi'll find Duke will handle it just fine with a little harness help for his own good. I do TRY to guide Frankie down out of the car with harness help to lessen the impact on his front leg.
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!
Thank you both so much! Obviously my husband and I are super stressed with an unhealthy mix of extreme lows...but we are glad we found this community to guide us through. We know we are doing the right thing, but I am sure Duke will make us think we did something wrong during his recovery. I appreciate the tips and will definitely keep you all posted on his progress. He’s a trooper and will say that his personality and playfulness has changed during this, so we hope we can see this again shortly after the surgery.
- Alissa
Alissa how is Duke doing? I hope things are going well.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi, Thanks for checking in on us. Duke is doing pretty great, which we are so thankful for. All the redness and swelling from his incision has gone down and he will be getting his sutures out Saturday. He has been hopping all around the house getting the hang of how to be a tripawd. The pain meds still make him a little more tired than normal so we have been doing lots of sleeping and cuddling, which is good so we can make sure he recovers fully from the surgery. He is definitely getting his spark back. We are so grateful for this community, and thankful we always have somewhere to turn for information and most importantly support.
I will keep you updated on Duke and our next steps in this journey
Oh YAY! I'm super happy to know things are good with your rock star 
And you're pretty awesome yourself. Great job keeping his activity level dialed down and focusing on the big picture of healing. He's getting there!
Thanks for taking time to let us know. This made my day.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
So the stitches are out! And he took it like a total Champ! Being the people loving dog that he is, he STILL loves the vet even though ALOT recently occurred there haha. So this week we are going to call the cancer vet and make a physical therapy appointment, so that’s what our next steps look like.
We see a lot of things about getting a brace/sleeve for his front leg to protect it...thoughts? We just want to make sure we protect his bones more than ever now!
I know I have said it before, but we really could not have done it without this community, and we were in a dark place several times during his recovery, so thank you! If there is any way that we can pay it forward, PLEASE let me know, I love this community and look forward to helping others in the future!
Look out for Dukes blog as he moves thru this ! 😉😉
Alissa
alissa2686 said
We see a lot of things about getting a brace/sleeve for his front leg to protect it...
Whenever considering a brace, the best thing you can do is consult with a certified rehab therapist for proper evaluation and measurement if an orthotic device is recommended. Neoprene "sleeves" do not offer the support required to make any difference in most cases, and self-prescribed "off the shelf braces" can do more harm than good. You will find many posts about orthopedics and orthotics in the Tripawds News blog .
Another detailed post with full transcript is coming soon for the recent Tripawd Talk Radio podcast about why custom braces or best. Consult with a CCRT or CCRP and the Tripawds Foundation can even pay for your first visit from the Maggie Moo Fund for Tripawd Rehab. Then consider working through your vet for custom orthotics from the likes of Orthopets or Hero Braces.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
1 Guest(s)
