Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hey!
I just joined this community. Our handsome 8-year old Belgian/GSD just had his right front leg amputated yesterday. I have been reading other people's stories and it is helpful to hear that everyone goes through very similar things to what we are experiencing.
Mogli hasn't wanted to go to the bathroom but he is eating (he is seemingly VERY hungry- which is typical for him) and drinking okay. I am actually struggling to keep him still. He is still really groggy from the meds and I think pretty zonked from the initial trip home (he did great getting in/out of the vet office and the house when we got home). BUT he is still trying to walk around and is falling a bunch. I try to get the towel under him to help him out but by the time I do, he's already down.
He also keeps trying to lay on the side that the incision is on. Does anyone know if that is okay as long as he is on a soft surface or should we continue to force him to lay only on the non-affected side??
We just want to make sure we do everything we can to help him heal. Any advice/suggestions/tips and tricks are greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
Hi to you and Mogli! Your future posts won't need to wait for approval so post away.
Yes, it does sound like his recovery is really typical at this point, and nothing to panic about. Some suggestions for ya:
What are your floors like? If you don't have traction , see if you can run out tomorrow and get some no-slip carpet runners to put down. He's a smart boy, he'll figure out where he has safe footing to walk.
He may also be falling just because of the pain medications. What pain management is he on? Medications, dosages, and timing? It's hard to keep a Belgian/GSD chill so I imagine he's on high doses. That's OK, because rest is medicinal right now. Do lots of couch surfing with him this weekend if he'll allow it.
Yes it's OK for him to lay on the incision side, as long as the surface is clean and he's not doing it outside on the ground.
Check out our What to Expect articles for some idea of what the next few weeks will be like. Knowing the breed, he'll be bounced back in no time at all!
Oh why the amputation?
Thanks Jerry! I will definitely look at that article!
After reading through some of the other posts on here, I did feel a lot better. We have our entire floor covered! He's doing okay inside, going outside is the trick because its raining here and we don't have a great set up. We tried pee-pads in the garage but he didn't even give them a second thought!
For medications he is on a few: Gabapentin 300mg every 8-12 hours, Trazadone every 8-12 hours as needed, cephalexin 500mg every 12 hours and then Deramaxx 75mg every 24 hours.
He has osteosarcoma that was detected on his right shoulder. We have an appointment next week with oncology and we've done the bloodwork/histology with the surgery.
To ditto Jerry, sounds like everything's "normal" this very early in recovery and while on pain meds. All the hospital soing med should be out of his system by now and this is often whe the Gaba needs to be adjust. How much does Moglil weigh? You may have a little wiggle room to add another dose of Gaba inbetween the twelve hours. Of course, only with Vet approval.
The Trazedone is a heavy sedative and that can definitely make him more unsteady. Hopefully he hasn't needed it???
Great that he's eating and drinking. Peeing is jmportant, but he may not poop for several days due to meds, etc.
My Happy Hannah didn't want a y sling help either. Pretty much froze up if I tried to help her.
And yeah, many dogs take awhile to lay on the inc8 side as it's sore. So of he's laying on it already, that could indicate it's not too painfu.
Try and keep in. mInd he is recovering from MAJOR surgery, as well as trying to adjust to three.
Recovery does last furever....just seems like it at this point. Hang in there and keep us posted on how things are going.
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!
Awesome, you are going to be A-OK! His pain control sounds good. If he shows signs of anxiety or restlessness, it could mean giving the Gabapentin closer to the 8 hour mark than the 12 hours. Definitely check with your vet.
I agree the Traz can do a number on dogs. It's not for pain, just to help them chill out so if he seems extra wonky or even nervous, you might want to scale that med back with your vets permission. We noticed that with our Wyatt Ray , he hated the effect that sedatives had on him, so they actually did more harm than good. Total Shepherd thing, they hate being so out of it. Just watch Mogli carefully to see if he even needs the Traz.
Good to know you've got the oncology appointment all lined up!
Keep us posted! i hope you're getting a break from that rain, and just having some nice couch time together.
Welcome! We are three weeks post surgery with Lacey. Front left leg amputee. She has amazed us after only 3 weeks. Good luck with your journey and we are in this together! I come back to the site and get comfort from others stories. There are some heart wrenching stories too but I am learning from others there is a lot I am not aware of that is positive in this journey!
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