Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Good question. Yeah, you do want to limit his activity for now, The bone is weak and you do want o risk fracture.
Ost likely the limp ,ay be beca he needs his pai meds increased. I k ow je's on Tramadol and Gabapentin already. But you may need to either increase the frequency or up the dose amount. Talk with Vet a let him know the limp is getting worse.
You can check out our Gear Shop for some good orthopedic beds. Upi want a bed firm enough to support his joints and not squishy. He needs the firmness to be able to get up without slippage.
You're doing a great job of looking out for your boy. And he is a very handsome voy.....would love to see more pictures!
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!
chance20 said
Presurgery question. Did any of you limit exercise prior to surgery? I'm still waiting for a surgery date so trying to keep Chance's day as normal as possible to include walks...although much shorter. However, I'm wondering if the increased limping could be caused by his walks.
Sandra I'm so glad you are finding everything helpful. Good job on putting down traction on your floors, that will help so much. You also want to keep his nails trimmed and paw fur in between toes very closely cut to give him more non-slip surface when he walks.
Yes, limit those walks now. When a dog limps, they're in a lot of pain already. And there's a huge risk of fracture when it comes to osteosarcoma. He will have plenty of time to exercise once he's healed. Now's the time to introduce interactive brain games and get his mind working OT while giving his body a break.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
So I'm feeling good about my decision but the oncologist's office just called to schedule the surgery...for tomorrow morning! I don't know why I'm in shock and getting these "is this the right decision" feelings! If not tomorrow, then he'll have to wait until next week. I can't do that to him...just for my feelings. And this COVID situation isn't helping. Just drop him off and "see ya in a couple days"! Ugh!
Hi and a late welcome.
I'm sorry you are dealing with cancer in your boy- but it's great they scheduled the surgery for tomorrow. Get rid of that painful leg and the chance for fracture. I know it makes it all real now- but what is the alternative? You know the leg will just get worse- you are doing the best thing for Chance.
I can't imagine how hard it has been for all of you going through amputation surgery in these times- it was hard enough when everything is normal.
As far as the bed- you might think about putting your mattress on the floor. I did that when my quad Pug Obie was recovering from his two knee surgeries. It didn't occur to me to do that when my first Pug Maggie lost a leg to mast cell cancer- I was lucky she was so cautious and never tried to get on or off the bed by herself.
Keep us posted on the surgery tomorrow.
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
Yes, this is a good thing! I know it doesn't feel like it to you, but to Cesar getting rid of that bum leg sooner rather than later is a good thing!!
Let us know when surgery is done, okay? Dear will be nice and high on drugs while at the Clinic and will be happy as a Clam! He may be so high he might think he is actually a Clam!!
Yeah, as Karen said, many of us do the mattress in the floor our routine during recovery.
Alright, we'll be cheering for Cesar!
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!
Hi Sandra! I saw the comment you posted on Griffin's blog about the recipe for home-cooked meals. Right now, I am cooking for half of Griffin's food intake each day, but especially if you have 2 large dogs to feed, you could make the recipe and use it as a topper for their current kibble to keep costs down. This recipe freezes quite well. I bought small plastic containers so that I could portion out the food and add his supplements to make feeding time easy. The recipe as written makes 9 cups (measured) of food, and Griffin eats 1 cups of home cooked, 1 cup dry kibble (Taste of the Wild), and 1/3 can wet food (American Journey) each day, plus some treats when doing his exercises. I hope this helps! ~ Stacy
Griffin lived an amazing life for 11 years! Diagnosed with osteosarcoma on March 17, 2020, Griffin's right forelimb was amputated on April 2, 2020. Ten days later he was running and playing fetch! Lung metastasis discovered in July 2020 did not slow down Griffin and he lived joyfully for the next 7 months, passing peacefully at home on February 11, 2021. https://griffin.tripawds.com
Surgery went well yesterday. Bit of a restless night (for Chance's mom at least) but good morning spending some quiet time with Chance and Kenya. Still odd with COVID to have to just drop him off...got to the vet office, texted we arrived, took him in and dropped him off. Maybe that was a good thing because honestly I would've been a crying mess if I'd stayed!
Dr said everything went really well. Chest X-rays were clear so that 's good. Only thing she recommended keeping watch on was his increase creatinine levels for his kidneys. I'll need to research diets for that! She wants to limit his Rimadyl Rx for only 5 days post op. I'm waiting for a call this morning to see how he did last night and if he'll be coming home today or tomorrow. Kenya's extra clingy...I think she missed her brother!
Thanks again for everyone's support! 
Jerry -- on the Amazon website you can select a charity that will benefit from a percentage of your purchases. Just want to confirm with you that the "Tripawds Foundation " on the AmazonSmile list is this organization.
Yaaay for clear x-rays and an uneventful surgery! That's so awesome! 
Tell Kenya her brother will be home soon, and be sure to spoil her rotten too.
I agree, vet care during COVID is weird isn't it?
Regarding the 5-day Rimadyl...be sure to ask your vet about Galiprant. It's a great NSAID alternative for dogs and just as effective.
Regarding Amazon: Yep, that's us. Thank you!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
YAAAAAY! SURGERY IS DONE!! Recovery has started!
Let is know when Chance gets home. Remember, we're here for youn, so stay connected.
Yeah, Rimadyl can be hard on the kidneys over the long haul. Good for your Vet stay on top of things.
chance20 said
Jerry -- on the Amazon website you can select a charity that will benefit from a percentage of your purchases. Just want to confirm with you that the "Tripawds Foundation " on the AmazonSmile list is this organization.
And yes, The Tripawds Founfation is us. Thanks for checking into that❤. ALSO, and Jerry or Admin can elaborate, but if you order something by using one of the links noted in the forums/blogs, Tripawds gets a little bit more of a donation that way. There's actually a blog post explaining all that. I'll try and find it. It's a good reminder to all of us as a way we can help support thos community.
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!
Chance is home...snoozing and resting well! Understandably, he's not interested in eating anything right now. He did drink a little water. The drugs must be really good...I didn't realize you can snore with your eyes wide open!
I tried inserting a couple pics, but haven't figured out how to do that yet.
We're all just so glad to have our boy home!
WELCOME HOME CHANCE!!!
Had to laugh at your description of him sleeping and snoring with his eyes open😂😄 Clearly he is whacked and feeling no pain..
Drinking is good. No worries about not eating mich yet or not pooping yet. It'll all happen.
Tha ks for the update. Hopefully you'll have a peaceful night. Paws crossed!
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!
Oh I'll bet he was having a good time last night dancing with pink elephants! How is he doing today? How are YOU? I hope things are good.
Sally is too kind to mention about shopping via the links we post versus defaulting Amazon Smile, thanks lady. Here is the post she is referring to.
Regarding photos,
We have these instructions for adding images to the Forums. Want help? Just let me know. Otherwise:
- Upload pics to a photo sharing site like imgur.com or your own Tripawds blog
- Right click and copy the Image URL
- Return to your Tripawds Forum post and paste the image URL (or the image itself if possible) in your post. It should automatically appear.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hoppy Friday everyone! Chance had a good night...woke up at 11p so I took him outside to see if he needed to pee. Sure seemed like about 5 mins but I bet he felt much better! Still not interested in his normal food but didn't turn down a few treats! He's doing really well when I take him out to see if he needs to pee...actually have to force him to take it slowly!
I did notice some fluid build up on his chest, below the incision area and bandage. It's not warm to the touch so I'll just keep an eye on it. They gave me a cold/heat pack when he was discharged but I won't use that until next week when the bandage comes off.
BTW, my grandnephew that I was concerned about has been wonderful with Chance! Giving him kisses, so gentle with him. He was a little upset when I wouldn't let him stay in the kennel with Chance!
I'll work on the photos! 
So glad to hear things are going so well! Sounds like everything is on target for a smooth recovery. Now, sometimes, they can have a bit of a crash when all the hospital meds wear off, so no worries if that happens.
Check out seroma . That's an accusation of fluid sometimes that forms sort of a saggy sack arou d the incision area. It will eventually be reabsorbed. On so e ocassions this occurs when there is bandaging wraps that may be too restrictive.
Yep, yummy treats, cheeseburgers, whatever it takes right now. 👍
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. Love your Nephew❤.
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!
Awww this is such great news! Yes, check out the seroma link and to help the fluid reabsorb into the body you can try heat and ice therapy.
I'm so glad your grandnephew is being so attentive to Chance!
Let me know if you'd like help with photos OK?
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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