Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello, we just joined this forum with the hope we could feel more support. Our husky lost his leg 1 1/2 weeks ago. The incision itself has healed well, but he is extremely restless. Turns around on his other leg trying to lay down but just can’t relax. He will jump up and rush around, spin around and try to lay down again. Panting occurs as well. At night we have to be laying right beside him placing light pressure on his stump for any of us to get sleep. He was given Tremadal for pain, but I don’t know if it’s doing good or bad??? Should we be asking about gabapentem ? Are these classic phantom pain signs for a dog ? What can we do to help ????? We are all very tired including our poor pup. He’s 9 but he’s still a pup in our eyes. Any thoughts or support would be very appreciated 🐕
Selina,
Yes, your furbaby needs some gabapentin. Our Dog Riley, whose leg was amputated in March, had the same thing. He is still on on a lower dose, but a larger dog can be on a pretty high dose so it's safe and it will help them rest.
I would ask the vet about 1200mg/day right now.
They usually come in 300mg tablets so I would do 1 in the morning, 1 during the day, and 2 before bed.
Trazadone can also help them rest at night and get through the nerve pain so I would ask them about that.
Hopefully, your vet can be helpful as I know first hand not all vets are created equal. We've had an amazing vet who worked with us at the start knowing our baby would be in pain following the surgery. A leg amputation is a huge deal and the vet needs to make sure your baby isn't in pain all day and night.
Good luck
Bill
(Riley's Dad)
Hi Selina, welcome. What's your dog's name? Huskies are such a resilient breed, nine is practically a puppy for them! I'm sorry he's having these issues.
Phantom pain isn't uncommon, unfortunately. Yes, ask for Gabapentin, which can calm angry nerves and reduce phantom pain . Now I'm not a vet, but what we see here is that depending on his weight and sensitivity to pain control (as in, does he get super sleepy?), an effective starting dose is generally around 200-300 mg every 8 hours, but your vet can tell you what's right. Just know that a 100 mg starting dose is usually not very effective for a larger dog who's experiencing post-op pain like this.
Was he not given any Gabapentin? If so, I'm really sorry. Tramadol has been shown to be ineffective for major post operative pain. Watch this video and then ask your vet for Gabapentin:
Great input, Bill!
Oh you can also ask for Gabapentin in 100 mg. capsules so you can fine tune the dosage.
Oh goodness, agree with Bill! Yourzweet pup needs better pain management !
Tramadol used to be what was recommended for a amputation pain but it is no longer regarded as beneficial at all.
If your Vet isn't up t0 date on Gabapentin versus Tramadol then you need to find another Vet. Don't mean to sound abrupt but clearly your pup needs prop pain management . A knowledgeable Vet will give you the proper dose and frequency for Gaba based on your pup's weight, pain level, etc.
I think you'll find this makes all the diff in the world. Your pup needs energy to heal, not to constantly figh6 pain.
Tha ks for check in and for advocating for your pup. What's his name?
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!
Oops....was typoing rasberry made her post so that's why I sound so redundant 😜
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!
Ohhh my goodness! I opened up my post crossing my fingers there would be replies !! And there was! We are just so thankful for your replies !! We went with our intuition and what felt like some educated insight, and pushed to get gabapentin prescribed . We were give 400 mg, every 8-12 hrs. Booey( we like to call him Booboo) fell fast asleep in his bed last night🐕❤️. It was so comforting to see him rest. So, we are now wondering…. We were told to pair the tremadal with the gaba but I have a deep feeling that the tremadal makes him feel awful, anxious and does the opposite. I know folks aren’t vets, but curious???? I’m leaning towards stopping the tremadal and just doing the GABA? Thoughts ?
Great job of getting the proper meds for Booey!!
So glad you were finally able to see him get some good rest and not have to constantly fight the pain.
Yes, we are not giving advice but we can repeat what so many veterinarian pain specialist have said, and that is that Tramadol is not effective! So for me, based on that, I would not be giving the tramadol. If you find that the Gabapentin needs to have the dose or frequency adjusted, you can do so accordingly. But right now it sounds like the 400 mg every 8 hours is working. You have seen a positive difference already.👏
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!
Selina it's great to know that BooBoo is getting the rest he needs.
You are right about the Tramadol. My experience with my own German Shepherd Wyatt Ray has been that not only does it not work, but it made him anxious and dysphoric.
Rather than stop it cold turkey, let your vet know that you are seeing these symptoms in BooBoo and ask if it's OK to stop the Tramadol. Most dogs who get an effective dose of Gabapentin don't miss the Tramadol at all. But don't stop until you call and ask OK? Let us know what they say.
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