Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Well, Mack's surgery was yesterday and went as planned although a bit delayed due to another dog's emergency. So he was still out of it in the evening. He is still at the hospital and is trying to stand up as of this afternoon.Â
Peeing is apparently NOT an issue as his nurse let us know that he keeps peeing on his bed! I let her know that this is actually a normal, albeit disgusting habit of his that we have never been able to break. We do not provide a typical dog bed for him but let him sleep in a large crate with a floor and a crate pad which can be easily cleaned for just such the occasion. She seemed relieved to know that it is normal behavior so there most likely is not a problem. I gather they are not so thrilled with cleaning up his bed but that's what they get for insisting he stay there instead of home with us.
We did not get a chance to go visit today as Kinsey was home sick but she is feeling better today. I plan to go up there while the kids are in school and maybe snap a few pics on my phone to show them. I am hoping that this will let them do any needed crying before they get to visit him so Mack doesn't get upset. He is fiercely protective of Kinsey and does not like to see her upset or crying EVER! He rushes to her side whenever mama is mean enough to dare give her a time out! 😉
He is not eating yet though but I gather from most of the posts I've seen that is fairly common?? I will keep you updated when I can. Overall, I think he is doing really well for the first day. We miss him terribly though.
Hang in there, Mack's Mama! We are one week post-amp and it is definitely a roller-coaster but this is the place to get the support you need. Our Tate just plain didn't like the food they offered so they gave him cat food!
It is a good plan to visit without your kids first, then you will know better how to prepare them for it. I'd definitely wait til he's not too drugged up and a little bit back to his normal self so he'll wag his tail for them.
http://tate.tripawds.com/
August 16, 2006 to November 28, 2011
TATE ~ Forever in our hearts.
Hi Mack's Mom,
Good to hear he made it though the surgery. Not eating is normal- he is doped up and probably doesn't like being at the vet.
I know it is hard to leave him at the vet- but he is in good hands. Take the chance to rest up to be prepared when he comes home.
Karen and the pugapalooza
Dont tell Bud I told you this...but he had a couple of "accidents" while he was in the ICU kennel. The vet techs seemed to think it was pretty normal due to all of the fluid IVs. They had a big stack of bedding, and I saw them cleaning up more than one dog and kennel while we were there!
We did the picture thing and it worked for us! Everybody was so happy and relieved to see eachother....no tears here! I worried so much, thought I would cry but it was really calming for me to see him and spend time with him at the vet. Hope it is for you too!
Glad to hear all has gone as well as can be expected with Mack so far. Looking forward to his welcome home party!
Here's one of our favorite encounters with kids from our travels with Jerry...
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Oh Mack! We have more in common that I thought! I pee on Dakota's bed at least twice a week! I used to pee on mine until I figured out that it didn't do much for me. But peeing on Dakota's bed is a favorite pastime. Every morning when we get up, a baby gate mysteriously appears on top of his bed. Like that's gonna stop me!
Love, Evelyn
Beauty this good takes a lot of sleep.
Ah yes, the fun begins. A suggestion for everyone, when you bring Mack home, treat him just like before, tell the girls to pet him and act just the same, these guys pick up on us humans anxiety , so the calmer you guys remain, the better Mack will be. If you can't hold a cry in, go to another room. If Mack wasn't a real active dog before, I wouldn't expect him to do much when he comes home. The drugs play games with them sometimes, so expect ups and downs, he might not act like himself. These next couple weeks won't be the easiest you ever had, if you get a chance to sleep. take it, you may not get much at times. You will be amazed at how well he does once he gets over the initial healing, you should see vast improvement everyday after the first couple weeks. Don't worry, he will get along way better than you think, Paws up, Spirit Gus and Dan
My buddy Gus had a left front amputation on April 7, 2010 and lived a great life until July 26,2010
I'm glad it all went well with the surgery. I;m on day #6 post-op with my Maddie Mae. She is not dealing with cancer along with it, so that may make a difference. I don't know.
The first few days when he's home will probably have you watching him way to close for every little thing. I know I did. So try not to hover over him continually 🙂 I agree with the comments regarding try and act normal around him. He'll do a lot of sleeping and the pain meds will have him acting out of it. Maddie would just stand there on 3 legs looking lost. But she was ok, just stoned from the drugs.
Let him do what he feels like, unless he feels like running around the block! 🙂 He needs his rest now. Let him take his time walking out to go to the bathroom. He'll be moving slow, but encourage him that he can do it.Â
Extra treats of whatever it is he'll eat will be good too 🙂
I didn't have that problem with Maddie, because her appetite never waned. But I here that is very common for lots of folks.
These people here are great and full of wisdom and info. 🙂
Good luck to you and Mack. You'll be amazed by your kids I think. Kids tend to adjust pretty quickly to things. The kids around my apartments are amazed by Maddie, and they have all kinds of questions.
Take it one day at a time and keep us updated. We are keeping ya'll in our prayers and thoughts.
Maddie Mae and Mom
Oh Hoppy Day! That's terrific news. I'll bet the kids are going to handle it much better than you think. Generally what I 've seen when kids see a Tripawd they don't know is, you can tell how they're going to react based on their parent's reaction.
So kids, like adults, tend to either think nothing of it, they're curious and ask questions, or they run the other direction.Watch the parents, it's pretty funny to see how the leaf doesn't fall far from the tree.
Once your kids get over the surprise of seeing Mack's new physique, I know they are going to be great ambassadors for Tripawds like him.
Good luck today, let us know how his homecoming goes.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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