Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello tripawrents,
Looking for some advice about seroma . My dog Maya had surgery on Thursday and everything went really well. The vets were very impressed with her attitude after surgery as she was already walking after a couple hours. She is a strong and stubborn girl and I am really proud of her however, I think she is getting too active too soon. Today she asked to go outside about 5 times and in the evening I noticed that she had a big pocket of fluids. I got scared and did a little research but would like to have your opinion since most of you have been through it. For now she still has the bandage and I am planing to remove tomorrow. Should I be worried about it? Also is it okay to let her go outside so many times? New tripawd mom here and worried about my baby.
Hi Maya and family. Yes, definitely let your vet know about the seroma (click the link for info about them). They are usually harmless and rarely require intervention, but it's good to keep the vet in the loop.
As for her activity, yes it does sound like she's getting too much in right now. It's GREAT that she's so energetic but to keep her incision and her body safe, she should only be going out for leashed potty time and that's it, at least until the stitches come out. No stairs if you can help it, no jumping onto furniture.
How's she doing today? Hope she continues on the great recovery path!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Yoi've gotten good mfor snd links on seromas...what they are and how and why they happen. Of course, always good to keep your Vet in the loop, but generally nothing to worry about.
All the hospital pain meds should be out of her system now, so she may not feel quite as "spunky" which, in her case is probably a good thing.
Is she going out because she has to pee each time, or is it a combo of that plus just wanting to be outside roaming around? As Jerry said, short leashed potty breaks. Maya! No tricking your Mom and trying to sneak in a little "free range roaming".😉
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!
I am going to call the vet today but I have been monitoring and has not got any bigger or any dark discharge. My biggest challenge now is working with a extremely stubborn puppy 
. She wants to go for walks already and will not do her business if I have her on the leash. Last night we decided to let her off leash and she finally did her business. This morning she was putting pressure to go for a walk and I had to put her in a confined space so she can rest more. I think she is just not used to being a couch potato and thinks she can get back to her activities. I tried to give her the anti anxiety medicine that we got from the vet but she really does not like it. So I am trying to keep her on tramadol, gaba and eloxi for now. I will upload a picture so you guys can see her angry face when I forced her to stay quiet.
Silly puppy! Yes they are such a challenge during recovery, they think they can do anything. And of course they can, but you know the reality so good job at maintaining a bit of tough love during these weeks.
You may want to focus on interactive mind games with her. Even learning obedience commands can help her burn off energy and can be just as tiring as physical activity. Here are some posts about things you can do indoors:
https://amazon......-training/
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thank you for all the suggestions and I will definitely look into the games. Last night was tough. She seemed to be uncomfortable and did not sleep through the night. Seeing her so hopeless made me question if I made the right decision. I know it will get better but definitely a rollercoaster ride. We are on day 5 and wondering when it starts to get better?
Hello and a late welcome.
Seeing her so hopeless made me question if I made the right decision.
I think almost all of us had these thoughts during recovery! My Pug Maggie was a slug for 6 weeks after her rear amp- I was sure most all of that time that I had made a bad decision for her. That being said most dogs get their sparkle back in two to three weeks.
We often see here that dogs have a bit of a crash around the 3 to 5 day post op mark. The good hospital drugs are out of their system and their new Tripawd hop has exhausted them. It's not uncommon to need to tweak the pain meds or dosing schedule. Talk with your vet about what you are seeing. Sometimes the pain meds need to be increased or the dosing schedule changed (for example 3 times a day instead of two times a day). Also overlapping the meds sometimes helps- don't give them all at the same time. Again- work with your vet to get Maya as comfortable as possible.
Things will get better! Keep track of every little victory or hint of her sparkle showing through, she will be back to herself soon.
Karen and the Spirit Pug Girls
Tri-pug Maggie survived a 4.5 year mast cell cancer battle only to be lost to oral melanoma.
1999 to 2010
My first post here over six years ago was something like, "Day six and I fear I've made a horrible decision!" This great community threw me a life line of reassurance, support and information.
And as you can see from Karen's response, that's what we're doing for you, so stay connected!!
Maya gave you a little bit of a "false illusion " that recovery was a cake walk since she was quite spunky. Keep in mind, this is MAJOR SURGERY, all while trying to adjust to three legs and on pain meds!! Humans would still be in the hospital on a morphine drip! So no, she wasn't feeling "hopeless", she's recovering in her own way at her own pace from surgery..
We remind everyone to keep in mind you are doing this FOR Maya, not TO her! Promise!!
What is her pain plan, dose and frequency? Her weight? How's she doing as far as eating, peeing and drinking? Has she pooped yet?
Hang in there. Stay confident and strong and pawsitive. And make sure YOU are getting some rest. Getting to this point I'd exhausting mentally and physically.
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!
Thank you again! This forum has been a lifesaver throughout this whole process. Maya keeps getting better everyday and the seroma is already gone. She is eating since day one and going to the bathroom on regular basis now. She is still sleeping a lot because of the medication (gaba & tramadol) but that’s expected. Today they called to confirm the pathology results and as we expected it is osteosarcoma. Praying that we can get ahead of this nasty cancer and keep our girl around to spend quality time with us. Next week we go for chemo consultation and will post updates on a new thread. Thank you again for all the amazing support!
I'm so glad this community could be there for you and Maya! That's terrific that life is almost back to the new normal.
Try not to let the diagnosis news get you down. It's hard not to, but remember that many dogs will beat the odds. You just never know. So treasure each day and enjoy the knowledge that you gave Maya a fighting chance to be one of them!
Lotsa love & hugs coming your way.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Oh good! Glad to hear Maya is settling into this recovery routine very well. And you are too! You can see her progress and finally see she is improving and moving through recovery as she gets more and more of her sparkle back,
And yeah, the most important lesson on this journey is to love in rhe now...Be More Dog ....make every moment count...that's exactly what Maya is doing!
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!
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