Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Our Bernese Moose is 5 days post-amp on his rear left leg due to (suspected) osteo - surgery Friday, came home Sunday. We were warned it would be hard but it has been SO much worse than we thought. He was so sedated on Sunday, I think due to the 400mg of trazodone he was on (130 lbs pre-op), that he couldn't even use his front legs, let alone his remaining back leg - we had to carry him with harness and sling like a suitcase but he was unable to even try to walk or potty. I stopped the traz but kept him on the carprofen (150mg 2x day) and gaba (600-900mg 3x a day recommended, said we could up to 1200mg briefly if needed). Per vet instruction I added Tylenol 1000mg 2x day the first couple of days but they said not to give more than 6 doses.
He was zonked the first night but finally pottied and started being able to walk a little bit by the second night, Monday. I had been giving him 600mg of gaba but thought maybe I should go to 900mg as the hospital meds wore off, so I upped it Monday night and he had the worst night, so much crying, so anxious. I couldn't tell if it was pain or a reaction to the gaba which I've seen here can happen.
So I brought the gaba back down to 600mg 3x a day. There was much less crying last night but then he had two short, intense episodes of seeming panicky, he actually got up and started lurching around the room, breathing extremely hard, whining, trembling, couldn't settle. It only lasted a few minutes each time but it was awful. Trembling to me sounds like pain but the last time I upped the gaba he cried continually so I'm afraid to go up again.
I have a call into the vet to talk it through but would love perspective/thoughts/context here.
Hi Laurie and your sweet Moose. You havecome to the right place fpr support and information.
Glad you dropped the Trazedone. As you know, it does nothing for pain but sure can sedate.
Of course, we are not Vets and. not giving Vet advice. Check with the Vet avout dripping the Tylenol. The leeway he gave you woth Gabapentin should helped take care of pain.
Try to stick with some consistency with the Gaba that seemed to work at 600 mg X 3 for now and monitor accordingly.
Now, it sounds like you are describing phantom limb pain. The dog will jump up,yelp and try and run away from the pain. It's when the brain is still firing off signals to the leg nerves and, with no leg to absorb the signals, the nerve endings send off an "electric shock" sort of. The Gabapentin is used in hoomans and dogs for that. But it does need to be given consistently. The Vet may want you to up the Gaba more if necessary .
Let is know what the Vet says, but thinking consistently with the Gaba, eliminating the Traz and Tylenol, monitoring when pain signals show up (right before next dose due, etc)
This is the up and down time when tweaking the pain meds until you find the sweet part can drive ya' whacky!
It's still very, very early in recovery. Continue to stay strong and confident and put off a positive energy to Sweet Moose. Things will get better, promise!
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 Laura, how is it going now? Did the meds adjustment help at all? Were you able to get in touch with your vet?
Tuning the pain control is tricky for a lot of dogs. It sounds like your vet is really on top of pain meds and isn't shy about prescribing which is GREAT. If the Gabapentin changes aren't helping, ask the vet if they can prescribe Pregabalin, and Amantadine. Both can be game changers when standard pain protocols aren't working.
If it's any comfort, these situations are not uncommon. Usually just a day or two of fine-tuning can make a big difference. It's still really early and things should be improving really soon, especially now that you stopped the Traz.
How's his appetite? Pottying? Was today any better? I hope so! Keep us posted.
Thank you for the support and guidance! Moose had a really good night! The vet added amantadine (200mg 2x) to the regimen, so he went to bed last night on 600mg gabapentin, 150mg carprofen, 1000mg Tylenol, and 200mg amantadine. That's a lot but it made a huge difference. He slept all night next to me on the floor mattress/bed we made up on our first floor, and he never panted or showed any pain signs at all.
I could tell when the meds wore off after 6am because he was getting trembly and starting to squeak a little. I gave him breakfast with more meds (skipped the Tylenol) and he is having a peaceful morning. WHEW. That amantadine is a game changer as you said.
Meanwhile he is getting himself up and outside to potty (just needs an assist getting up one step back into the house), his appetite is OK, and he finally seems calmer so maybe we are getting through the worst of it.
If he stays stable we'll keep the meds as they are, I'm not tapering yet, but when we do, how does that work? The surgeon said by day 5 or 6 post-op we should be near the end of the post-op pain. We're on day 6 now. The cancer is gone for now (lungs are clear for now) so once the incision heals, do they still need all these meds long term? He'll start chemo soon and we will get the Yale vaccine in April.
Thank you,
Laurie
Oh good, sou ds like you've found the right pain management that works for Moose.
Of course, confer with your Vet, but is just now day six and since the pain is finally starting tosubside, I wouldn't reduce anything quite yet (other than no more Tylenol), Moose can now focus on using his energy for healing rather than fighting pain.
Really glad he's getting more mobile and more confident. Hopefully from here on out it will be onward and upward, slowly but surely!
Thanks for the update! Good job!
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!
Laurie I am SO Happy to hear that things are better! YESS!!!
Tapering is something to work with your vet on, but generally it involves spacing out the meds further and further apart, while gradually decreasing dosages. They can guide you on how to lower the doses. Some meds can be decreased faster than others.
As far as long-term medication: Ortho vets tell us that NSAIDs are really useful long-term, and safe, as long as a dog is being monitored, to reduce inflammation caused by the new mobility changes. Many Tripawd dogs do stay on a light mix of meds like Gabapentin and an NSAID, to help with aches and pains. The best way to know if Moose has long-term pain is to have him evaluated by a rehab therapist so that they can assess his pain now to get a baseline, and keep track of it later as time goes on. Remember Tripawds Foundation can pay for your first rehab visit too!
I hope today goes even better! Keep us posted.
I wasn't sure where to write this so I am putting it here and I'm sorry for using your post to do so but also I am glad Moose is getting better!
I have a question for anyone able to answer about my cat. His name is Merlin and he is 6 years old and just two days ago had his leg amputated due to feline injection site sarcoma.
He's been doing well except for sometimes licking at his wound which I try to stop, but also his medicine. He was put on gabapentin every 8-12 hours as needed. The last two times I gave it to him he started foaming at the mouth. He's not allergic because he was fine the first few times. I think he is just not swallowing well when he takes it or something. He really doesn't like having a finger in his mouth so he doesn't open up very wide for it.
I did read about opening up the capsules and sprinkling it onto food but he is very picky with his food and usually only eats dry food. I have been trying to give him wet food with his recovery since he wasn't drinking for the first day but thankfully is now. But the problem is he won't eat the food with the medicine on it.
Does anyone know any extra tips or ticks to help him take his meds? Also is there any reason he could be foaming at the mouth when he takes his medicine now, but was fine before?
Thank you for any help!
Amber_5 said
I wasn't sure where to write this so I am putting it here and I'm sorry for using your post to do so but also I am glad Moose is getting better
Hi Amber,
You can feel free to start a new topic by going to the main Treatment and Recovery Forums Page, or our Three Legged Cats Forum, and selecting "Add Topic" like this:
We can help you and Merlin better when you have your own topic so I'll look for your post there. For now, here's some quick input.
Does anyone know any extra tips or ticks to help him take his meds? Also is there any reason he could be foaming at the mouth when he takes his medicine now, but was fine before?
See these articles about tips for giving medication
I know we've had lots of folks mention how their cats would foam at the mouth during pill taking, but when I searched the forums I couldn't zone in on anything that would be super helpful. My first suggestion is to let your vet know so that they can suggest alternative ways to give the pain meds, like a transdermal version applied to the ears. Also, start a new topic in Three Legged Cats with that subject line ("Cat Foaming at Mouth When Taking Medication") so that it's a very specific post and our feline members with more experience can help better. I wish I could be more help! But I will watch for your post over there so see you soon!
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