Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Oscar has been doing very well since surgery and will have stitches out Wednesday. I was fortunate enough to be home the past two weeks because I'm a teacher but I go back to work Thursday. Now the worry is setting in - worried about licking wound- will this be a problem because his stitches are out, will he still need a cone? Worried about increasing activity - want him to have freedom to do more but don't want him to overdo it. I know he wants to run and jump on furniture but I want to keep him safe without being that overprotective parent. Wish I had a few more days at home with him. Good news is I have already been in contact with a physical therapist and will set up first evaluation after stiches come out.
Oh boy you and Oscar will feel like a huge weight has been lifted when those stitches come out!
Try not to worry. If the stitches are out, it's probably going to be just fine to allow him to be home without a cone. Your vet will be able to tell you if enough healing has been taking place.
As for running and jumping on furniture, etc. Good for you for being the overprotective parent! Is there any way you can keep him confined to say, half your house, while he is home alone?
I'm so happy to hear that you will take him for a PT evaluation! Don't forget that the Tripawds Foundation will cover the cost of your first rehab visit . We can't wait to hear all about it!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Yes he will be confined to area where the can't jump while I'm at work. Also looking forward to PT. Don't know what I would do without this group!!
YAY FOR STITCH REMOVAL!!😁
SUCH A GREAT UPDATE! OSCAR IS ONE TOUGH DUDE!
Sounds like you have a good set-up for going back to work. It will do you both good to have a sense of getting back to your regular routine.
Stitch removal day calls for ice cream and a cheeseburger.....in that order!!
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!
Hi Oscar and Mom 🌸🐾
These are exciting times as stitch removal is the "turning the corner" moment for the majority of our fur babies 👏🏼👏🏼
Good idea to limit one area of your house when you are away.
You will find you can increase access to other areas as he masters the art of hopping on three a little more each day.
Hugs and cuddles 😘🐮💫✨🌟🌹
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
Vet says still needs cone as licking may lead to area getting red and raw.Any suggestions to keep him from licking now that stiches are out.
Oh what a bummer! Have you tried Bitter Green Apple spray? Lots of folks mention that works well. And of course the cone of shame is pretty fool proof for most dogs. You may also want to moisturize the area to keep it from drying out (it causes the itchiness), with something like Microcyn.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I am pretty much in the exact same place as you with the same problems. Either my husband or I have taken turns staying with my dog Kaiserin 24 hours a day for almost 3 weeks (amputation was August 1) and I have been so nervous to leave her alone. I don't want her to fall trying to do something or to lick the incision. I just started leaving her for short time periods these past couple of days. She is in one room of the house that only has one sofa (so she can't do too much jumping). Her staples were out just over a week ago. She will still lick one part little of the incision so she has a cone on at night still and one of those inflatable donut things in the day when I can't watch her. I have also been trying the bitter apple spray. It is very effective for a short period of time but I think if you were gone for several hours, it wares off! I guess it depends on the dog though. I think it is best to stay on top of preventing the licking because it is easy to get it infected still for a while after the stitches or stapes come out. After Kaiserin had surgery last October to remove her original tumor, I didn't take any precautions after the staples came out. I just kind of thought it was over at that point. And it got infected at the bottom of the incision and she had to go back on antibiotics. So not letting that happen this time!
Like you, I am also worried about how to balance doing too much too soon with wanting to give her some activity. My first physio session is next Friday! I am hoping they will give me direction! Until then, we are taking it easy still!
Oscar did great with physical therapy. He’s jumping on the couch and made it upstairs with help from me( although I don’t think he needs it ). PT comes back Monday and that is my big question. Just because he can jump on furniture, does that mean he should? Or should he use the step I made. I’m way more cautious than he seems to be.
So glad Oscar is doing so well! Makes my heart happy!💓
One of my favorite couch stories....Bruiser Bruno's hoomans cut rhe legs off their loveseat so Bruno could get on the sofa with ease!😁
Dogs just will not be denied their sofas! Depending on the height of the sofa and how easily Oscar gets up and down (no hard jumping up or hard jumping down). Obviously if he will use steps , that would be ideal.
I am NOT the one to give advice on keeping dogs from getting on the sofa. I have THE most hard headed, strong willed, do-it-my-way, hound dawgs ecer born! I'm sure of it! He's a tripawd and has "issues" with remaining resr legs and has noooo business jumping up or down!! I've blocked off the sofa...he's moved, or crawled under, or jumped over, anything standing between he and the aofa!! A step up platform, he avoids. I've fi allm removed all the cushions so at least it's not as high a step up. He pulls down on the back cushions to make it more comfy for himself. The few times I've managed to seemingly vlock him from the sofa, he just sits and howls at me (ear piercing Coon Hound howls) to express his displeasure. I relent. He owns the sofa...and me❤
So, in my world and with my dogs, to deprive them of soda time takes away from their definition of quality 😎
Sorry, didn't mean to vote you with my "no help" post!
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!
Dogs just will not be denied their sofas!
Haha Sally you are so funny, you said it.
Wyatt Ray 's favorite "bed" is our living room sofa, however it's only about 16" off the ground, and he's a big dog so it's more like just stepping up and down for him instead of jumping.
Just because he can jump on furniture, does that mean he should? Or should he use the step I made.
As Sally mentioned, it really depends on the height of your furniture. But does he sleep on your bed as well? If so, then stair training is really the best thing for him. Physical therapists have told us that jumping on and off furniture, in and out of cars, etc., isn't the best thing for four legged dogs, much less the Tripawd variety. So, not only will stair training keep him safe, but you'll build a better bond as you work on the training aspect of using stairs. You went through the trouble of making him a step, now use it so he can preserve those joints.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hey Oscar and family 🌸🐾
I agree with avoiding jumping on and off the couch and training him to use the step.
Try to make it insteresting for Oscar until he gets the hang of it.
Maybe hold some favourite treat which will be released once he is safely on and off the couch?
Impact jumping is not good for four leggers, as Rene says, and worse for three leggers.
My baby dog Paloma is still very young but probably would manage to jump into and out of the car by now, but I got her a ramp and make sure she uses it at all times.
In fact, I’ll make sure she will always use it even when she will be an adult.
I may sound a bit paranoid but she is a Great Dane so the impact would always be more important than with a smaller, lighter dog.
In any case, I would try my best to train Oscar to use the step, that is if he is not as stubborn as our Frankie boy 😉
Hugs and cuddles 😘🐮💫✨🌟🌹
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4 May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30 Nov 2016. 3 courses of doxorubicin, PET scan 26 Jan 2017 showed more mets so stopped chemo. Holistic route April 2017. Lung X-ray 5 May 2017 showed several tennis ball size mets, started cortisone and diuretics. Miss Cow earned her XXL silver wings 12 June 2017, 13 months and 1 week after amputation and 6 1/2 months after lung mets, she was the goofiest dawg ever and is now happily flying from cloud to cloud woof woofing away :-)
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