Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat

Thank you so much for the wonderful advice and kindness. The vet said that she was able to go pee unassisted this morning, which blows my mind! I will pick her up this afternoon and will definitely be in touch - I wish there were an app for this that I could easily access on my phone.

My 62 pound rescue had his back left leg amputated approximately 30 days ago, so I understand your anxiety. Taz was a very good patient in terms of going outside to potty. He did so from the start

The veterinarian really wanted me to crate him as much as possible, but I could only get him in it once. After that, I couldn’t trick him anymore. So I put his big pet bed in my bedroom and tied him to one of the bed posts using a leash. I know that sounds terrible, but it kept him from trying too much too soon.

Taz whimpered the first two nights. I then talked with the veterinarian about this. She said to give him his anxiety medication every time he seemed uncomfortable. I discovered that if I gave him those pills in between his pain medication he did so much better. The anxiety medication really helped a lot. 

Last tip, rest, rest, and more rest!

I hope this helps you in some way.

Hi everyone. Just a quick update on Chiffon for anyone following along. She went to the vet yesterday to get her incision checked because it's been leaky - this is the underneath area where they removed mammary glands/tissue at the same time when they amputated her right hind leg. Believe it or not, it's all in one giant incision that loops from across her belly/underside, up and around to the very top of her right hip joint. They cleaned it really well and said it actually looks great and that the tissue fluid is a normal thing that happens a lot in the mammary area. WHEW! Chiffon seems to want to be much more mobile than she is allowed, so we are constantly confining her to her bed and sitting next to her so she stays put. She's much happier in her recovery suit than in her cone, and the vet said we can continue to use that for her - she only has one tooth so it's not like she could chew it off herself even if she wanted to lol. 

I really want to thank everyone for sharing your beautiful stories of your dogs with so much encouragement, including the difficult parts. It seems like many people are dealing with osteosarcoma. Chiffon's cancer was a mast cell tumor with extensive "fingers" of cells extending from her knee down toward her ankle and then also up her thigh, which is why they amputated all the way to the hip joint. At the vet appointment, they said that they believe they were able to get clear margins, and in addition, the mammary tissue showed no evidence of cancer, so that's a huge relief, too. We are just praying that this big surgery will conclude our experience with cancer for Chiffon, that it doesn't return in any way and that she has a long and happy life ahead of her. She's only 7... That said, it feels like it will always be a lurking fear and we will probably remain hyper-vigilant looking for any lumps or bumps on her. 

I am continually amazed by how well she is persevering. She hasn't skipped a single meal since coming home from the hospital and she's getting around so well when we take her to the bathroom. It gives me so much hope for what her future will look like, that she will be able to recover in the emotional sense. She has already been through so much (she was a commercial breeding bitch who barely survived terrible burns in a kennel fire, and was surrendered to rescue, where we adopted her only 3 months ago). I was truly afraid that she would just lay down and give up after this, but not our girl, she is such a fighter!