Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hello all,
Just a little history here-my sweet girl, Quincy, was diagnosed with bone hemangiosarcoma over 4 months ago and had her right hind leg amputated immediately after fracturing it playing at the park. No metastasis at diagnosis and she started and just finished 5 rounds of Doxyrubicin and is about to start a daily pill of Metranomic chemo therapy since the oncologist said she did so well on the first chemo. She's been doing great so far through everything and has been managing on three legs like it's no big deal, until now.
About a week and a half ago, she started wincing a bit when she would turn over on her side while laying down-no limping or loss of appetite, etc, but I was immediately worried that there might be some metastasis in her chest or belly. So, we went to the emergency room and all her scans, ultrasound, and bloodwork were all clear and normal (thank goodness). The oncologist said she most likely has a slipped disc or it is her osteoarthritis acting up and prescribed her 50mg of Carprofen, 2xday and rest and light strolls. He also congratulated us on her great prognosis with the cancer. She immediately seemed to start doing better within a day or so and so we went on our usual daily strolls and ran errands in the car for the whole week. Then, three days ago, she cried out loud when waking up and started shaking and got all tense. I called the emergency room doctor, where the oncologist is also at, and they said it soundl like the slipped disc got upset again and prescribed her 300mg of Gapapentin 2x/day and said she must be confined to rest with no walks and no stairs or jumping on the bed (which she has done every night since I've owned her) so the disc can heal.
Both the Gaba and the Carpofren are helping and the mornings have been the worst. She wakes up stiff and shaky and then the drugs kick in and she is better but still moving stiff. Has anyone had any issues like this? All I can do is read on the internet and there are so many things, of course. Does this really take a long time to heal or is this soundling like surgery?
I hope someone reaches out. Thank you,
Heather
Your best bet is to consult with a certified rehab therapist for a professional evaluation, treatment recommendations and exercises you can do at home to keep Quincy fit and strong. Visit a CCRP or CCRT and the Tripawds Foundation will even pay for your first visit from the Maggie Moo Fund for Tripawd Rehab!
While veterinary oncologists are brilliant, they do what they do best, and that is oncology, not necessarily orthopedic evaluation and rehabilitation. And if it is a slipped disc, the certified therapist is the one who can help!
While you wait for comments from others, use the Advanced Search above to refine your forum search results with specific phrases, and you're sure to find lots of helpful feedback. You can also search all blogs here . Or, consider downloading the Tripawds e-books for fast answers to common concerns and feel free to call the toll-free Tripawds Helpline anytime!
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Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thank you so much for your advice here. You are right, an orthopedic or re-hab specialist is the way to go. I will do that now.
Ditto the Admin!
Just want to add that, soft tissue injuries, miracles strain and pulls, back issues, etc take weeks to fully recover. Only saying this from my experiences with my dogs through the years...not from a professional observation at all. .
A dog can "appear" to be better with a day of so of rest and some good anti-inflammatory drugs., resume their normal activity, only to exasperate the "injury" that never had time to heal in this first place.
Another thing you can try in the mornings before she gets up. Gentle massage up and down all over...neck, back, shoulders, etc, over a warmed towel. If it is a disc issue, just the "thought" of moving wrong and causing that searing, shooting pain, can cause "anticipatory fear" that it's going to hurt!
And YAY for Quincy doing so well!! Good job........both of you!!!
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 SO much for your reply, Sally. I have been reading that it takes a long time for these types of injuries to heal. I feel really stupid and naive for thinking she could just go, go, go on those three legs and chase the squirrels like she did in the past, everyday.
I've been massaging her a lot now, when she feels comfortable and am planning on waking up two hours before we go to the holistic vet tomorrow morning and making sure she has a good amount of pain meds in her and gets warmth and massage. I'm so nervous about lifting her into the car and hope that I don't mess up anything else more. But, the holistic vet is going to give her cold laser therapy and acupuncture and we are going to start talking about rehab specialist.
The 'anticipatory fear' is awful. I can't stand it when she is trembling so bad and I'm grateful for the meds she is on but don't want her to take them for ever. I will be sleeping on my couch downstairs so she can rest well for awhile now and not go up stairs and jump on our bed. Sigh...can't believe all this after all we have been through with the cancer and the amp. Trying to stay positive.
thank you so much again
First, please don't blame yourself for not knowing what you didn't know. I promise you aren't the only one, and that's why we are here, to help people understand the best ways to care fro their Tripawd. All of us have learned something the hard way, including Admin and I (we are mom and dad to Spirit Jerry and Wyatt Ray ).
As for pain medication...again, don't feel bad if it becomes a way of life. For many Tripawds who are on long term medications (like our Wyatt, who is on a 3 med combo) it's the best way to manage the results of living with a compromised gait. Pain medication is a good thing and it helps, and by taking her to rehab you are off to such a great start too! Hang in there, you can do this.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hello and welcome. It's great that Quincy has done so well so far!
I feel really stupid and naive for thinking she could just go, go, go on those three leg...
I don't think any of us ever anticipated having to make these decisions and deal with a Tripawd!. My Maggie lost her back leg to Mast Cell cancer, the only guidance I got from the vets post op was that she could do anything she wanted after 14 days. Lucky for me she was a 7.5 year old Pug so overdoing wasn't really in her nature 
Hopefully some rest and rehab will get Quincy feeling better 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
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