Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi guys, I'm new here.
My dog Brian has had his first chemo (Carboplatin) yesterday, about 10 days after his amputation. He is really down and depressed, crying, whining and barking. Early this morning he had what looked like a pretty severe seizure, he was shaking, foam on his mouth and he peed himself. Anybody has an experience with this?
He is also on an antibiotic (Synulox) and painkillers (Metacam and Tramake). We are in Ireland, if the meds sound bit different than the ones in US.
Hi Beata, I'm so terribly sorry to hear about Brian's seizure. Did you call your oncologist? What did they say? If this continues and he has another I would take him to the emergency vet as soon as possible. Poor pup! I don't have any experience with chemo but others here do and they can provide some insight on their experiences. What I do know is that the side effects of it are experienced by just a handful of dogs. I"m so sorry Brian is one of them.
Brian is handsome. How old/young is he? Front or rear leg amputee? Do tell, we would love to hear more about him. Also, we have a Tripawds UK Facebook group that you might also be interested in joining too. We have UK members here too, but you might find members closer to you in the UK group.
We hope today is a better day for you and Brian. Keep us posted.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
We did call our vet, in fact I woke him up at 6am 🙂 He believes that the the chemo and the seizure are unrelated and just coincidental, so I'm keeping a close eye on Brian and hoping he won't have any more fits.
Brian story is a really sad one. We got him as a foster dog for our local shelter and ended up keeping him. He is 7, a black German Shepherd. His previous owner gave him up. He was kept chained in a back garden for all of the 7 years of his life, with little or no human interaction. He didn't know what a treat was, he still doesn't play, no ball, no chew toy, nothing. I believe once he started limping, his owner just gave him to the shelter. So we got him with a bad limp, which ended up being osteosarcoma. He had to have an emergency amputation as the tumor grew so big in just few weeks. He is a hind leg amputee.
It just breaks my heart. Due to lack of exercise, his hind parts are almost atrophied and he's having real trouble walking on three paws. We'll have to build him up really slowly. We are really hoping to get a few fun months out of him before he goes, his life was such a misery so far.
And he is such a sweet guy, he came out of his shell and he adores us and everyone, even the vet 🙂
If he does have more seizures we'll probably leave off the chemo.
Hi, welcome to you and Brian. I'm so sorry you had to find us here and so sorry to hear Brian's sad story. If nothing else, at least he knows love from you now. Maybe he doesn't know "fun" but he knows "love."
As for your question, I don't remember seeing anyone on here have issues with seizures related to the chemo. We have had some pups on here have seizures - but I think for various other reasons. Maybe some of them will chime in.
We did carbo w/ our dog and she did quite well on it. Others here have done well without chemo, so if you do have to stop doing the chemo, don't think it's the end of the line. There are other options - at home chemo pills (tend to less side effects) or alternative therapies.
Hang in there and keep us posted. Please give Brian a little extra loving from his new Tripawds family!
Jackie, Angel Abby's mom
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
Oh how fortunate that you have a vet you can call at home! I do hope the two events are unrelated. Come to think of it I've never heard of a pup having seizures as a result of chemo, however I have read that German Shepherds are predisposed to them, unfortunately. I hope that no more happen, they can be very scary. I used to have seizures but once my pawrents upgraded my diet to a partial raw meat and premium kibble diet, they went away.
As for Brian's background...wow, some people are just horrendously awful. Grrr. You are PAWESOME for taking him in. He is such a lucky guy to find you after all that time. It's pretty amazing that he is able to even adapt to his new environment, since keeping a GSD isolated like that is akin to training an aggressive attack dog. Isolating one is the worst thing for any dog, but especially for a Shepherd. I'm so sorry you are coping with osteosarcoma now, but at least he will know the true love of good humans.
His story is a lot like Tripawds Spokespup Wyatt Ray's. He was chained up in a backyard as a "guard dog." He lost his leg because his tether got wrapped around it. And unfortunately that's not the the only instance of a dog becoming a Tripawd in this manner. Grrr.
We hope that the coming days are easier on your pack. Like Abby's Mom said, if you stop the chemo, it's not the end of the line. Many dogs here do fine without it and even beat the prognosis. I didn't do chemo and lived two years after an osteo diagnosis at the age of 8. I hope that Brian does too.
Keep us posted, and share some pics when you can. My people are totally partial to Shepherds!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Wow. You are amazing for taking in a dog in that condition. It is so sad you will likely have him such a short time - but it is so awesome that Brain is finally getting to know what love is all about, and that he is able to share his love. Sounds like you are being showered with 7 years worth of saved up love!
Gabapentin (generic) or Neurontin (trade name) is great for pain relief and is an anti-seizure medication. (I should add I am not a vet.) You might ask your vet about that if his pain seems bad. I have a dog who was on Gabapentin for pain, no history of seizures, and I forgot to give it to her one morning before her k-laser treatment and that triggered a seizure. The vet thought having given it to her for pain had lowered her seizure threshold and thus for some reason the laser treatment triggered a seizure. She is on it for life now for arthritis pain relief, but also to avoid further seizures. My tripawd was on it just after his amp, and then was off all pain meds for a month or so until we had a major chemo mishap and he is back on it again now for pain relief. Just something to think about.
And as others have said, there are options other than IV chemo. Unfortunately that is no longer an option for us either so we will be going to oral chemo when we can resume treatment.
Good luck with Brian. He is so lucky to have you. Sending lots of good energy your way.
What a beautiful boy! As others have said, it's so wonderful that you have taken him in and that he now knows love and comfort, something that it seems he has never known before.
Once you get the seizure thing figured out, physical therapy might help with building up his atrophied muscles...that may be something to try.
Good luck! Please keep us posted on how he is doing.
Thank you all for the imput. It's much appreciated. Such a fantastic supportive community! I will keep in mind all the options and meds suggested.
I have to say, while Brian was having his surgery we were sitting at home, watching youtube videos of 3 legged dogs and the very first one we came across was Wyatt Ray running at the beach and we thought to ourselves, things will be fine, look at this guy go 🙂
Brian is the gentlest dog, nothing fazes him. You can brush him while two small, needy, crazy terriers are trying to get in the way
and here he is shortly after the surgery, all miserable and weak, but still patient with the 'dog central' situation we have going on at the moment (I'm dog-sitting for a friend)
Just to add, we had Brian on pure raw diet since we got him, but we are taking a break from it for the chemo. He's on cooked dinners, but just as healthy, not leftovers. I've only had great experience with raw, both or my terriers are on raw for over a year and they are loving it! No more allergies and they are in fantastic condition 🙂 Cannot praise raw enough.
That's a good looking crew! Brian looks like such a love! I'm so glad he found his way to you.
Jackie
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
beata said
while Brian was having his surgery we were sitting at home, watching youtube videos of 3 legged dogs ...
Thanks! We're glad you found Jerry's videos inspawrational.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
My rear amp is a retired racing greyhound so nothing but bone and muscles. He transitioned to tripawd status without missing a beat and I thought it probably was in part due to his very strong gluteal and rear leg muscles. He also transitioned to bipawd status for a while without missing much of a beat. That one stunned me. Still does. Talk about a spirit to live! He is starting to use his third leg again once in a while but can run on his two right legs exceedingly well. I'm sure his status as a retired racer with tons of muscle allowed him to do so well. Unfortunately, you beautiful boy didn't have the advantage of all that musculature.
Have I mentioned all 4 of my dogs are black? That's probably an additional reason why Brian melts my heart. He is just beautiful!! I hope he has many more months, maybe even a year or two, with you.
Yo Brian! My mom wants to know if you are named after Brian Boru? That would be a grrrreat name for a tripawd warrior! We don't care who you are named after though! I'm another GSD rear leg amp--actually there are three of us at my crib right now. Me, Travis, and Austin. None of us are cancer dawgs, just victims of human meanness and stupidity. Dude, I sure hope you haven't had any more seizures--we don't know anything about those around here but they sure don't sound like any fun. Did your vet say why he thought you had the seizure? If its epilepsy they got drugs for that. Just a word on Gabapentin--lots of tripawds have been on it but it did not do good things for Austin. He went on it recently but one of the side effects can be muscle weakness and he got it big time. He has slowly been getting better and it may not actually have been the Gabapentin but its definitely something to ask about if your vet offers it. Last thing a tripawd needs is muscle weakness!
You sure sound like a nice boy--and you are definitely good looking! Wish I could meet ya someday. Get your pawrents to post more pics
. And 10,000 tripawd blessings on their heads for giving you the home you always deserved! Sounds like you have hit the jackpot!
xoxox,
Codie Rae and the OP +1
Woohoo! Tripawds Rule!
Regulator of the Oaktown Pack, Sheriff of the Oaktown Pawsse, Founding member and President of the Tripawd Girldogs With 2 Names ROCK Club, and ... Tripawd Girldog Extraordinaire!
I can't offer anything on seizures. I just wanted to say welcome and what a wonderful thing you have done in taking in Brian and giving him a chance to have a loving home not knowing how much time you will get together. I will be praying for you that Brian gets a bit more good luck and he is with you for years to come.
Good luck and please keep us posted on his progress.
Karen and Spirit Magnum
Magnum: 30th May 2002 to 5th May 2012. Lost her back left leg to osteosarcoma on 5th Sep 2011. Lung mets found on 20th Mar 2012 but it was bone mets in the hip that ended her brave battle. Magnum's motto - "Dream as if you'll live for ever, live as if you'll die today" (James Dean). Loyal, loving, courageous and spirited to the end. My beloved heart dog, see her memoirs from Rainbow Bridge ...... http://princess.....pawds.com/
I was kinda wondering if Brian got his name from Brian, the dog on Family Guy... Now you've got us all wanting to know. Spill your story, Brian.
Jackie & Angel Abby
Abby: Aug 1, 2009 – Jan 10, 2012. Our beautiful rescue pup lived LARGE with osteosarcoma for 15 months – half her way-too-short life. I think our "halflistic" approach (mixing traditional meds + supplements) helped her thrive. (PM me for details. I'm happy to help.) She had lung mets for over a year. They took her from us in the end, but they cannot take her spirit! She will live forever in our hearts. She loved the beach and giving kisses and going to In-N-Out for a Flying Dutchman. Tripawds blog, and a more detailed blog here. Please also check out my novel, What the Dog Ate. Now also in paperback! Purchase it at Amazon via Tripawds and help support Tripawds!
AngelAbbysMom said
I was kinda wondering if Brian got his name from Brian, the dog on Family Guy... Now you've got us all wanting to know. Spill your story, Brian.Jackie & Angel Abby
That's what I was wondering too! We love that dog!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
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