Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi. Sorry for any language mistakes. I am not a native speaker. I'm from Belgium.
My big mixed breed Cassie is now 10 days post op. She had her rear leg removed. She has not been coping well. She won't try to stand and has started to tear her hair out. She is miserable.
Yesterday I had some very useful advice from Jerry who pointed out that she might be in pain. I took her to the vet this morning and they want to keep her there for a couple of days to try and get her to stand up. No luck so far. When I pointed out that I thought she was in pain, they disagreed and told me she has all the pain killers she needs.
She's on 2 x 50 mg Rimadyl and 2 x 600 mg Kesium a day. She weighs 35 kg's/77lb. I was wondering about your opinions on this.
Thank you!
Sarah, I am so sorry they disagreed with you 
I know thattreatment can vary from country to country but no matter where someone lives, Rimadyl is not enough to alleviate amputation pain, not even close. Good veterinarians will agree, and you can show yours the the WSAVA, the World Small Animal Veterinary Association set of guidelines for pain management in cats and dogs if you care to.
You need a new vet if you want help Cassie. We have a member, Tina (Tinsch) who is in Germany. I'm going to message her so you two can connect and hopefully she will know a good practice you can switch to.
Meanwhile here is a video you should watch from one of the world's best pain experts for pets:
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hey Sarah,
we‘re almost neighbors but I am afraid neither my French not my Flemish are good enough so English will have to do.
our medicine here in Europe does differ somewhat to the USs but generally it’s always the same stuff only w a different name.
We have rimadyl here in Germany, too, and while that may be enough for a limping dog I agree that it’s not enough post amputation.
At ten days post op i do believe that she shouldn’t be in all that much pain anymore but if she hasn’t really even tried to get up at this point and especially if she’s tearing her own hair out you may want to get a second opinion from a different vet or preferably a clinic.
do you know what they put her on immediately after the surgery? My dog had a sticky patch w fenthanyl right after, antibiotics and something like rimadyl.
while I don’t really know too much about Belgian vets, feel free to contact me via pm as well, I am more than happy to help!!
also, if you prefer a decent French speaker I can put you in touch w Teresa who lives in France.
let me know how I can help!
hugs
tina
Guardian of Manni the Wonderdog. -Or was it the other way around?
Osteo and amputation in Dec 2015. Second, inoperable, primary osteosarcoma found in June 2017.
The end of our adventures came Dec 10, 2017. 2 years to the day.
Thank you for the comments. She's in a clinic right now. I don't doubt that they are great vets but as stated in the video that Jerry shared with me last night, they might not know about pain control.
Honestly, I'm giving up right now. She goes potty where she lies and then eats it because she is ashamed... I carried her outside last night with a lot of difficulty and we just lied there in the wet grass together crying. She didn't pee. As soon as I struggled to get her inside again she peed on her pillow. Her tail and remaining rear leg are almost hairless right now. She keeps biting hair out.
She didn't have a patch or anything. She kept her a little longer because she was not doing so well but that was it. The wound is healing perfectly however.
They want to keep her at the clinic for a few days but I asked and she is not on extra pain control. They try to get her to stand/sit up every hour but she won't. She won't even sit up. This morning for a few seconds when my sister in law, who is one of her favourite people, came to see her, she tried to sit up but fell over and was in panic. . The kids also get her to eat something, but otherwise, she is just sad. She does definitely enjoy cuddles from me and my husband and puts her head on our shoulder and sniffs our hair like she used to do. All other people, she ignores. Which is not like her. She loves people. All people...
I'm thinking about bringing her home tomorrow. If they don't offer extra pain control. The cold compress and massage helped her to get to sleep last night, thanks to Jerry. Warm compresses don't help. I'm so sad that she's there at the clinic all alone tonight...
Thank you so much for responding Tinsch. You are very kind. I just don't really now right now. When I ask/call around for the best vet around, people recommend the clinic where she is right now.
Okay, deep breaths....we KNOW this is scary and is making you quite fearful, understa dalby so.
But dont give up. There HAS ZTto be an explanation and a solution! And part of that solution is to get her pain under control, which zi know you are trying to do.Can you, or your husband DEMAND that she get proper pain treatment, even of the Vet does6 think it is necessary, I sister on trying it!
What was her mobility like before surgery?? Overall good health??
Just throwing thismout there.... it it seems to me she may have a back issue. An issue with her spine or discs. When you massaged her did she show a y signs of tensions anywhere?
I agree. get her home if they are not doing anything for her other than trying to make her stand. Arethey doing a y additional tests to try and figure thus out?? Do you have a "regular" Vet who can prescribe better pain meds?
Do you have somewhere you could take her for a second opinion? A Rehabilitation Specialist perhaps?
Hang in there and lean on us, okay?? ,Keep us informed. Stay positive and strong! There HAS to be a way forward to get her better!
(((((((((((((((((((((((((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!
Sarah, my dog wasn’t doing quite as bad back then but it wasn’t easy AT ALL either. I remember when he fell the first few times he didn’t want to walk again after that either. My boyfriend and I had to make him, one pulling his collar, one pushing his behind. I cried very desperate tears. The one thing that FINALLY helped was his best dog friend that came over. He did make an effort for her and things started to get better after that.
as for the vets: it’s their job to ensure that no animals feel pain. I would tell them nicely that you want to make absolutely sure that the issues are not due to pain and I am fairly certain they will say: we don’t think that’s it but if you insist we can use medicine x
also: what always made me personally be absolutely insistent on pain meds was the imagination how an amputation would be for me and if a few aspirins would be all I would need after a few days.
i am not saying that to pressure you all, please understand that, but sometimes it helps me personally to have clean images in my head.
i keep my fingers crossed for you!
hugs
tina
Guardian of Manni the Wonderdog. -Or was it the other way around?
Osteo and amputation in Dec 2015. Second, inoperable, primary osteosarcoma found in June 2017.
The end of our adventures came Dec 10, 2017. 2 years to the day.
Thank you for your support, Benny.
Our regular vet couldn't even figure out it was bone cancer... People are driving 100 miles with their pet to see the vet I'm seeing so I doubt there will be better options...
I didn't mention any tension during the massage but I'm not an expert. She has always been a very laid back dog. Always just lying there, close to her people. Not the type of dog who would chase a ball or something. She used to run with the kids in the backyard but that was it. We took her from a shelter. We didn't want another dog after we lost The Flash. But we walked by by coincidence and there she was on the other side of the fence. Quiet. Happy. Sweet. Special... Instant connection from my part. My husband was hesitating since she definitely is no beauty queen and quite big. But he was convinced after we took her for a walk and we took her home. It felt like she had always been a member of the family.
I will ask the vet tomorrow to check her back. They did do a thorough check up before deciding to amputate. Maybe they missed something. Her remaining legs seems to be very weak... Maybe she is older then expected. We are not sure since they found her starving in the streets. We have had her for 7 years. That's the only thing we are sure about.
She is not doing great. She has no strength left in her remaining rear leg after three weeks of lying down. Very bad infection on her tail.
She does try to get up now. But her leg can't support her. She scoots around while yelping for 10 minutes at a time hitting the collar against furniture. Then she puts her head down and reacts to nothing or nobody anymore. 30 min later it starts again. When you try to help her support her weight she stops trying.
The remaining leg just hangs there. All the muscle is gone and it is very badly infected. She needs to wear the collar non stop because she immediate starts biting her legs and tail and everything is infected. She pees where she lies.
She hates the collar but it needs to stay on.
The wound itself has healed nicely and the stitches come out tomorrow.
Hi Sarah - (my apologies, I am only fluent in English). I'm so sorry your dog is having such a hard time. It's so hard on them, and of course hard on us to see them struggle. The kind folks here are giving you the right advice. Push hard for pain relief from your veterinarian. When our dog had bone cancer (it was inoperable) the veterinarian prescribed a barbiturate to help with the pain. I agree that anti-inflammatory meds just aren't enough post-amputation. A nerve blocker like gabapentin is also worth trying. Might also help with her biting issue on the infected area.
Just a thought - is it possible to get or fashion a "walker" for her back end? Even something simple like a baby stroller or wagon wheels with a support sling. If she can get outside into the fresh air and be somewhat comfortable it might help her a lot. And it takes the pressure off the infected areas so they can heal better.
example: https://make-an.....hairs.html
Sending you and your sweet pup lots of love and strength. It's good news that the amputation incision has healed so well. That is a hopeful sign. 
- Jessica (and Yum Yum kitty, tripawd since 2/19/21)
One more thought Sarah:
i took my dog to a physiotherapist fairly soon. I would assume you have them in Belgium as well. They may be able to help regardless of how much muscle she’s lost.
Guardian of Manni the Wonderdog. -Or was it the other way around?
Osteo and amputation in Dec 2015. Second, inoperable, primary osteosarcoma found in June 2017.
The end of our adventures came Dec 10, 2017. 2 years to the day.
Eye vets like human ones can get a pretty accurate age of the pet. I was shocked when my eye Dr told me my issue with slow adjustment hits 45 or 40. I don’t remotely look my age. One of those Sally Field faces. I asked him how he knew my age, was in the records but doubt he looked at that before coming in.
so if you need to know precisely that is how.
Thank you everybody for your advice. We had to put her down tonight. She just couldn't cope.
It breaks our hearts to hear this. Just shaking my head in disbelief
Please know you did everything possible for your girl, everything possible. You did what we would all do, and that was to try. Even though this did not turn out like any of us would ever hope, you at least tried. And she knew you tried and that is what she would want.
This disease can be so nasty and brutal and cunning. Even with the best medicine has to offer, sometimes there is just nothing that can be done to beat this crap disease.
I know you and your husband got some extra cuddle time these past few days. I know that was comforting to her and I hope it brings Comfort to you.
As hard as it was, you loved her enough to give her the release that she needed. She is now free and whole and happy and watching over you forever
When you can, please share more of the happy times you shared with this precious soul. We would love to see pictures and can help with that if you'd like. Here is a link for adding images .
We are surrounding you with our love💖
(((((((((((((Hugs))))))))))
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie
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!
Ohhhh I'm really sorry, my heart breaks for you and your family. Your very special pup was so loved by you all, she left this earth knowing that she was cared for and adored. You did everything you could to help her, and were so courageous yourself during this difficult time. Being an advocate was not easy but you managed to do it because your love for her was so great. She knew that, she transitioned on feeling that the people she loved would always remember her. No dog could ever ask for more.
My deepest condolences and virtual hugs are being sent to you across the miles. I hope someday your hearts feel lighter knowing that the time you spent with her created beautiful memories that will last for all time. Until then, you can lean on us and share all about her OK? We are here for you. I'm so sorry.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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