Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Well, last night and today (I know its still early at least here on the West Coast) have not been great. Clyde's clearly not happy and seems to be in pain even with his meds. I can't tell if his back is hurting him, or if its something else. One thing I've noticed him doing is licking constantly in the place where his bad leg used to be. His beds are wet from it. I'm thinking he might be having phantom leg pain ? I'm going to call the vet tomorrow about it, poor guy seems so depressed and is not wanting to move much at all.
Sigh. I thought things were turning a corner.
Sorry he is showing signs of discomfort. When was Clyde's op again? And what meds is he taking, what dosage and how often?
Lisa and Pofi
Lisa, Minneapolis
On October 27, 2016, nearly 6 months after amputation, and 18 months since his cancer likely started, we lost Pofi to a recurrence of Soft Tissue Sarcoma in his spine quite suddenly. His canine sister also succumbed to cancer on March 1, 2019 - we lavished her with our love in the interim, but life was never quite the same without her only real canine friend. Cliff kitty had to leave us, too, suddenly, in August 2019. Lucia kitty grieved all these losses, but helped us welcome two new Lurchers into our home and our lives, Shae and Barley.
Hi Lisa - He's taking Tramadol and Rimadyl. He had a Fentanyl pain patch that came off on Thursday. His surgery was June 3 - vet mentioned Gabapentin in passing when he was first diagnosed, I'm thinking we may need that. I'm also concerned that maybe his back is sore from his hopping - his movement has been restricted, he hasn't jumped on anything, but maybe just using those muscles in a different way is causing him pain. Poor boy, he looks so sad.
Hi, lawcat:
From my personal experience, Gabapentin is key if phantom limb pain or any sort of nerve pain is suspected. It will take a few days to establish the effect, so don't give up when it isn't immediate.
For two weeks before and after surgery, Pofi, who is roughly 70 lbs., took the following and had NO phantom limb pain and really displayed no signs of pain at all:
- Tramadol, 100 mg 3x daily
- Rimadyl, 75 mg 2 x daily
- Gabapentin, 300 mg 3 x daily
Honestly, his recovery was as smooth or smoother than any I have read about here. And I am convinced it was because of the pain management approach at least in great part.
Did he also have any antibiotic? That could be at play with the licking - if there is any infection starting? We also had 20 days of Clavamox 2 x daily.
Stitches or staples out will also probably help with some of the discomfort. We also alternated a heat pack and cold pack at surgical site for a few times a day first couple of days to minimize swelling, bruising and provide some comfort.
It will get better - I'm certain of that.
Lisa and Pofi
Lisa, Minneapolis
On October 27, 2016, nearly 6 months after amputation, and 18 months since his cancer likely started, we lost Pofi to a recurrence of Soft Tissue Sarcoma in his spine quite suddenly. His canine sister also succumbed to cancer on March 1, 2019 - we lavished her with our love in the interim, but life was never quite the same without her only real canine friend. Cliff kitty had to leave us, too, suddenly, in August 2019. Lucia kitty grieved all these losses, but helped us welcome two new Lurchers into our home and our lives, Shae and Barley.
It's not uncommon for a pup to exhibit that licking behavior after surgery. Licking can be a sign of stress or discomfort- it makes sense that he might be having some phantom limb issues.
Have you tried massage on his neck and other shoulder?
Don't get discouraged and remember to stay positive around Clyde. I made that mistake with Tripug Maggie, she was grumpy, I was grumpy, we fed off each other I think.
Is there someone that can come over to visit that Clyde likes? When my dad would come over it would always perk Maggie up.
Hang in there, you and Clyde will get through this.
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
Have you tried putting a cold compress on the incision area? You can use a cold facecloth or freezer pack wrapped in a towel for a maximum of 5 minutes at a time. It helps to reduce any inflammation, reduce the pain and helps distract your dog. My cat did not wear a collar at all and I used the cold packs for distraction. This could help until you talk to the vet.
A month after my cat's amputation I took her in for a chiropractic session and learned exercises to help support her on 3 legs and to maintain the range of motion in her remaining limbs. After a few stretching sessions at home she started doing them on her own - it probably felt good. You might also find rehab valuable. Cats don't do too well at rehab...
Kerren and Tripawd Kitty Mona
I just ran across This Blog Post that talks about phantom limp pain and massage. Maybe something there will help Clyde.
Karen
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
Thanks everyone! I started trying massage yesterday, he likes it while I do it but as soon as I stop, he's back to his sad state. I've had my neighbors over to visit him - he loves them (they take care of him while I'm gone) and he does perk up a lot. He loves to go out front - he has to go down a couple of steps, but maybe I'll try that to perk him up. He's also panting a lot - I found an old thread where people mentioned that their dogs on Tramadol panted a lot - wonder if that's it. Could also be pain, no way to know!
I've got an ice pack on him now - which seems to have relaxed him quite a bit. Might try that more often. And a call to the vet first thing tomorrow. Sucks that tomorrow is my first day back to work after my own medical leave, I'm definitely only going in part of the day.
Okay......start out with some deep breaths, okay! B R E A T H E.....B R E AT H E. This is such an exhausting time, emotionally and physically. This is also still very early in recovery.
Clyde ks a very smart boy and he is taking it easy. He knows he needs rest right now so he can heal from his surgery. It just sounds like his pain meds may need a little tweaking. Talk with your vet. He could need his doses closer together OR, he coukd need them further apart. Yep, a real game of balance when it comes to pain meds. And yes, symptoms from Tramadol can be excessive panting...And the same symptoms can be from pain. Ugh!
You'll see from the links that phantom pain generally presents itself suddenly and with loud yelsp as the dog tries to "move away" from the pain. Although it seems like an eternity, it's usually over within seconds. Comforting yiur dog and gentle massage around the incision can help settle those nerve endings from firing off to a leg that's no longer there. I'm certainly no vet and not giving vet advice.
The massaging all.over will REALLY be helpful. As others have mentioned, he most likely has a lot.of sore and strained muscles right now. It "generally"'takes about two weeks to recover from the pain kf the major surgery itself. It takes about one .month for all the joints, muscles, etc to adapt to walking around on three legs. It really is exhausting at first! Clyde WILL adjust though! You might try going up and down his spine with a "massage" to see if any areas along his spine or neck tense up.
Okay, we do have some things ro celebrate so let's get this pawty started!!
Clyde DOES perk up when his friends come over! A clear sign the sparkle is starting to come back! 🙂 Clude DOES perk up when he gets his full body massage! Another sign his sparkle WILL come back! 🙂
Take note whenever you do see some little sign of improvement...those are HUGE VICTORIES arpund here!!
It's hard, but keep your energy upbeat and confident. He will definitely pick up on your mood. And try and get some sleep!
It took me about three weeks before I could say I was doing this FOR my Happy Hannah and not TO her!! A looong three weeks!!
As you already know, we are all right here beside you cheering you on!
Love and hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
PS. Don't forget the deep breaths.........And to eat lots of chocolate!!
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!
Hello there! I just wanted to pitch in some positive thoughts, as Apollo JUST went through the stage of phantom pains for the last two weeks. It started with licking where his leg used to be, but I just assumed that was the staples bothering him, and left his cone on him most of the time. Then the yelping and screaming started, just as benny55 said, yelping loudly and jumping around. Then it just stops, and he wagged his tail and is fine. This went on every time he stood up for about 9 days, and it was NOT fun, very exhausting. We started him on gabapentin, and within 3 days it stopped like it was overnight. And he hasn't done it since, and he's 18 days post op now, and has 3 more days of gabapentin left as we wean him off now. We saw a huge difference when the staples came out, so keep that in mind as a milestone, it really does make a difference!
Hang in there, thinking of you!
lawcat said
Could also be pain, no way to know!
There are ways to tell...
Is Your Dog or Cat in Pain? Here’s How to Know the Signs.
You'll find various other helpful pain management articles and podcasts on the Tripawds News blog , or you can search all blogs here
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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