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.
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hello, new here. my cat had his rear left leg amputated after a severe trauma which we think was from being hit by a car. after the amputation the surgery site had full necrosis and infection, which led to further surgeries. finally everything is healing nicely and he had the stitches out a week ago. after researching what i'm witnessing, it seems like he's dealing with phantom leg throughout the day. he'll be fine one moment and cruise down the hallway and jump on to a couch, then other moments he'll go into a tense body spasm with cries and hissing, sometimes falling over. you can tell in these moments that he's trying to use the missing leg.
i've seen on here some thoughts of prescription pain treatment and i'm wondering how to go about this, and other treatments i can do at home? i'm also wondering if there's a rough time frame of how long phantom leg can be an issue? he's a little over a month from the amputation at this point.
thanks! 🙂
Hi Deece,
I saw you joined our new Tripawds Support Circle, glad to see you there and here. Remember we'll be turning these forums into read only soon so be sure to post in Circle when you get a chance.
It definitely sounds like phantom pain , and it's not unusual even a month out. How long before it subsides varies from animal to animal and it's not a one-size-fits-all approach.
Have you talked to your vet yet? Also, did you see our Tripawd Cats Walking Backwards post? That will give you a good backstory before you chat with them about better pain control. A visit with an animal rehab therapist can also help (and remember Tripawds Foundation can pay for your first rehab visit too!). They can help treat it from different angles (i.e., massage, acupuncture) to help it go away sooner.
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