Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi,
Our dog Samantha had her leg amputated for suspected Osteosarcoma on Tuesday (June 23rd). They still don't aren't sure if we have to do chemo or not yet. They sent her leg off to be tested. (I'm sure anyone reading this knows how hard that is to even comprehend that they are sending your baby's leg to a lab.)
The reason I am posting is because she was doing fine until Friday night. Her amputation was on Tuesday, we took her home on Thursday and she was almost up and walking on her own by Friday.
On Friday night, I woke up with her laying next to me and breathing really heavy. (I have set up a futon mattress on the floor next to her bed so she doesn't have to move too much to lay by me). On Saturday, she didn't want to get up and barely would eat and wouldn't drink, even if we tried to trick her with chicken broth flavored water. The only thing she will eat is Frosty Paws. (Purina frozen dog treats.)
Of course we have talked to the doctors and heeded their advice, but I was hoping to get some crowd-sourced advice from the community here. It just seems like Samantha gave up all of a sudden 4 days after her surgery and realizing how hard it is to get around. She is currently on 150mg of Tramadol every 8 hours - but she was on 100mg every 8 hours when when she had her leg.
I'm just really worried that now she doesn't even want water (she will eat if we feed her while laying down- but refuses water). She is laying behind me right now and her breathing is just a tad fast, but I would say it is near normal for a dog who didn't just have a leg amputated.
We are having to force her out of bed twice a day to go potty (which she is actually doing) but we are using a sling to her her up and she can't really get very far before she just sits down.
I know that is alot, but we were just hoping for some advice from the community on how to get our doggie up an moving again, and if this is normal behavior.
Thanks!
Hi Bryan, Samantha and Family, welcome. Your future posts won't need approval so post away. Looks like you weren't getting sleep last night, you posted late!
First, try not to compare her surgery recovery with others. Every dog is different and has different needs during recovery. There are generalities you can aim for, such as the not drinking water. Yes, she should be doing that. You really do want her to drink, so have you tried adding tempting flavors? Throw those frosty paws in her bowl, add some no salt broth, Gatorade or even tuna water to get her to drink up.Â
Don't expect her to do a lot right now. Major surgery recovery is exhausting for pets or people. She should only be going up to go potty. When she does try to get around, what are your floors like? If they are slippery, add traction . The goal right now is to let her rest as much as possible. She shouldn't be doing anything else than getting up to go potty.
Also, if she is at all overweight, that can play a role in her mobility as well. Although you'd won't solve that overnight, it's something to keep in mind when you wonder why she's not getting around.
As for her pain medication, talk to your vets about increasing it up to every six hours. If she's only on Tramadol, ask about Gabapentin as well. We have a good article in our news blog about Gabapentin that you may want to check out.
Oh what was your vet's advice when you called? Anytime you're worried, call them. That's why you pay them.
Finally, remember: the more normal you make life again, the more normal she will believe it is. Hand feeding, sleeping on the ground with her, while they are comforting, they aren't 'normal,' so you really want to strive to achieve that again. Let her rest, don't baby her and know that she will bounce back.
Hang in there. This great community will chime in with more insight.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi there! My guy also had a bit of a "crash" about 3 days after surgery. He still would eat and drink, but was not at all interested in moving around and I was really worried. The great people here told me that its common for there to be a "crash" a few days after surgery as the pain meds they were on for the surgery itself have left their system. I would call your vet - panting can be a sign of pain. She just may need some additional pain relief - is she on a Fentanyl patch and Rimadyl in addition to the Tramadol? Clyde was on all three for nine days, then the pain patch came off and he was on the two others until his staples came out. He is now back on Rimadyl at night because he gets a little sore hopping around.
Keep asking questions, this place is a great resource! Kept me sane during the first couple of weeks!
Clyde's mom
Hi, Bryan:
Hope your vet clinic is open this holiday weekend so you can talk to someone (if you are in the US).  I would echo everything Jerry said above - Gabapentin may be a missing piece here to control pain associated with the disruption to her nervous system caused by the amputation.  Many of our dogs have Tramadol, Gabapentin and an anti inflammatory  like Rimadyl post surgery to approach pain in different modalities (nerves - Gaba, brain pain receptors - Tramadol, aggravated, inflamed tissues - Rimadyl).  For the first few days the more powerful drugs they used in surgery MAY have been helping mask post surgical pain that is expected during this recovery period.
I assume there were chest x-rays prior to surgery and lungs looked clear? Â
As Jerry said, every dog is different and a lot of people here report a bit of a "crash" for their dogs 3 to 5 days post surgery. Â We are here to help support as she gets through this!
All good thoughts for your sweet Samantha! Â 
Edited to add: Clyde's Mom and I posted nearly the same thing at the same time!!
Lisa, Minneapolis
On October 27, 2016, nearly 6 months after amputation, and 18 months since his cancer likely started, we lost Pofi to a recurrence of Soft Tissue Sarcoma in his spine quite suddenly. Â His canine sister also succumbed to cancer on March 1, 2019 - we lavished her with our love in the interim, but life was never quite the same without her only real canine friend. Cliff kitty had to leave us, too, suddenly, in August 2019. Lucia kitty grieved all these losses, but helped us welcome two new Lurchers into our home and our lives, Shae and Barley.
Love Miss Samantha's avatar picture! Can't wait to see more!
DITTO everyone else! Better pain management may help!
By day three the hospital meds are pretty much out of their system and some dogs are really feeling the rramifications of MAJOR surgery pretty strongly! Getting the proper pain medsand the frequency balanced can be a bit of trial and error.
We are not vets and not giving vet advice, HOWEVER, I think you'll see better results with a combination of Tramadol, Gabapentin, Rimadyl (or something similar) and an antibiotic. You want to keep the pain meds consistent so it never has a chance to get a head start. As others have said, for now, complete rest and potty breaks.
As far as not drinking water, my Happy Hannah had that issue too...for about two weeks!! She ate just fine but not drinking water worried the heck out of me. What worked was adding a scoopmof ice cream to her water and swirling it arpund. First, I let her take a lick or two of the scoop of ice cream, then had her nose follow the scoop down into the water while she was still tasting the ice cream. Worked like a charm everytime!!
I think you'll find that everyone here made special sleeping arrangements to be able to sleep side by side with their dogs during recovery for awhile. Many of us invested in a mattress to put on the floor so they could sleep with us and we could sleep with them For Happy Hannah and myself, sleeping side by side was our own way of "returning to normal".
Hang in there and stay connected! We understand like nomothers can. Recovery is nonpocnic and fullmofnups and downs for a couple of weeks. Samantha's sparkle will soon be back bigger and brighter than before!
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 All!
I am blown away by the awesome replies. Thank you all for the great advice.
We live way up in Montana, but had her surgery done down at Washington State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, so we are easily a 5 hour drive from the vets that did the surgery, but they are very helpful by email and phone if needed.
Samantha is currently on the 150mg of Tramadol every 8 hours and 150 Rimadyl every 24 hours - which we were told to give her in the morning. She never had a Fentanyl patch. They only gave us enough for 1 week, so all of that would be ending next Thursday. We are going to ask our local vet here about Gabapentin, since ironically one of the doctors at WSU had just suggested it via email right before we posted on here.
She is still eating a little bit - not licking her bowl clean as she usually does, but eating enough. One of our doctors suggested we put a bit of chicken broth in her water - which didn't work last night, but this morning it worked great as she drank everything I gave her!
As far as sleeping arrangements go, she used to sleep with us upstairs - a very very steep set of stairs in an old house which she won't be going up any time soon if ever again. She is basically stranded on the ground floor for now - which is far from normal for her, but there is really nothing we can do but leave her alone downstairs or sleep down here with her.
Thank you all for the suggestions and most of all... hope!
Hi Samantha and Brian
Is Samantha a daschund ? That was my first dog decades ago, I upgraded eventually to Great Danes 
It is really normal she is not herself, the pain medications have a lot of side effects unfortunately.
My girl Eurydice stopped drinking water less than a week after amputation and I had to give her something called Oralade mixed with water with a syringe. Eventually I was able to get her to drink only water but I had to do the syringe job for almost one month!
Same with feeding, I hand fed her for almost one month!
It wasn't a matter of not insisting and waiting for her to eat and drink or her own because she would not do it.Â
Now, two months post operation I was advised to reduce her food intake as her appetite is enormous! And as for water intake she could rival any baby camel.
Every dog is different but we pawrents have to make sure food and drink is ok so all is allowed until they get back into track.Â
You know your baby, be patient and he will get back on his feet really nicely.
Sending you big hug and cuddles to your gorgeous boy
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4Â May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30Â 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 :-)Â
Sorry Samantha, I just realised I called you a boy ... you are a gorgeous baby girlÂ
Eurydice 77kg/170lb Great Dane limping end of April 2016, amputation (right front leg/osteosarcoma) 4Â May 2016 6 courses of carboplatin followed by metronomic therapy, lung mets found 30Â 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 :-)Â
Ditto the others. Â The crash on days 3 - 5 seems pretty common. Â Panting for no apparent reason was one of Otis' pain signals - we worked with the surgeon to adjust his Tramadol dose, and to better stagger the pills to prevent a crash as it wore off. Â Many folks here also had Gabapentin. Â You will need more than 1 week's supply - Otis, for example, continued on Tramadol into week 3. Â Don't expect a lot of activity now. Â Sleeping and short, leashed potty breaks is perfect. Â I kept a log so I knew if I really had to get Otis outside, or if I could let him sleep if he showed no interest in moving. Â My vet said to think about having to hop on one leg everywhere you wanted to go. Â If you have to feed her and bring water to her in bed, do it. Â When she is ready to go to her bowl, she will.
I am part of the mattress on the first floor crowd. Â Otis started doing stairs at month 3, and last weekend (month 4 1/2) we moved back upstairs, although I still sleep on the box spring and mattress (no frame). Â
Many dogs perk up after the staples come out, on about day 10, so hang in there!
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016.  Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016.  Lung mets August 25, 2016.  Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016.  Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma. Â
Wherever they are, they are together.
Hi All,
I'm so thankful that you all can relate to what is going on with Samantha. Everybody gives you mixed opinions, but crowd sourcing ideas for Samantha has been great!
@hester - Samantha had a full CT scan and everything (including her lungs) looked great. We had already decided not to do the surgery if the cancer had spread. Thy actually were not able to aspirate the growth, so there is a 10% (or better we hope) chance she had some other issue that is not malignant. We won't know until next week.
Thanks to all of the advice here, we just plan on keeping Samantha comfy and get her to eat and drink. We are thinking about adding some Gelatin capsules to her diet since she still won't drink today (after this morning).
We had asked the vet about this, but have any of you had your dogs let out a quick whine when getting up or down? (Not while walking - just when getting up or laying down?) The vet told us it could be use of muscles that are no longer attached. I'm just hoping she isn't hurting her 3 limbs she has left.
Whining or tipping when moving or changing position is not abnormal. Â Otis would whimper when my other dog Tess walked by him. Â I think he was tensing up and causing pain along the incision site. Â Remember that it is major surgery. Â If it starts happening without movement, more likely to be phantom pain . Â Gabapentin might help then.
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016.  Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016.  Lung mets August 25, 2016.  Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016.  Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma. Â
Wherever they are, they are together.
I meant yipping.
Otis - 106 pound lab/Dane mix, lost his right front leg to osteosarcoma on Febuary 9, 2016.  Four rounds of carboplatin completed in April, 2016.  Lung mets August 25, 2016.  Said goodbye too soon on September 4, 2016.  Lost his adopted sister, Tess, suddenly on October 9, 2016. likely due to hemangiosarcoma. Â
Wherever they are, they are together.
Thanks for the response - that is reassuring that it happens in other dogs. When she first started "yipping" I was completely freaked out and actually called the vet at 2am. I thought she might have broken her front leg or something worse - I was actually terrified she was just done for.
Our doctor said the same thing about the phantom pain - she said, "although I can't prove it, I believe dogs experience Phantom Pain in their limbs after amputation". I know for a fact it happens in people - just talk to a soldier who lost a limb, so why not dogs? She also gave a really plausible response (as I mentioned before) that she is trying to use muscles that aren't even connected to her leg anymore.
We are still going to look into the Gabapentin option on Tuesday, since I don't think we can get into the vet until after the 4th.
Yeah, phantom pain generally presents itself with the dog jumping up qucikly with loud yelping as he tries to "run away from the pain". Fortunately, it lasts less than a minute and things are pretty much back to normal.
The Gabapentin shoukd help block the nerve endings from sending a signal to the brain for a leg that is no longer there.
Since you can't get the Gaba until Tuesday, you might try some gentle massage around the incision site. Sometimes just lightly cupping your hands over the incision site seems to bring some comfort.
My Happy Hannah, a 125 lb Bull Mastiff rear legger, never was able to go back up the stairs to sleep in bed with me. I also have an old home with steep and narrow stairs. Almost all of our "bonus"'time together of one year and two months, I slept on the floor downstairs with her...either partially sharing her Big Barker Bed
with extra blankets and pillows as an "extension", and eventually I was able to buy a mattress to put in the floor. She lpved being able to sleep with me, and with her little buddy Bodie...and I loved it equally as much
And yes, do speak to the vet about getting enough meds to go a total of three weeks!! Many dogs need them going into three weeks and sometimes longer, at aleast at a reduced amt. Besides, itsw always good to have a few extra Tramadol around in case of a pulled muscle down the road.
You are doing a great job of speaking for Samantha! 🙂
Soon, of course not soon enough, Samantha will have all her sparkle back enjoying life to the fullest 🙂
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 Bryan ~
I agree with everyone else here - Murphy came home on Tramadol, Rimadyl & Gabapentin. It does sound like Samantha is having some nerve pain & not enough pain medication. You can also try an ice pack, with a towel to protect the skin, applied to the incision for about 20 minutes a couple times a day. And massaging around the area will help to re-absorb any extra fluid that has built up. Murphy also didn't eat well, so I cooked up some rice and poured chicken broth over it then added some chunks of chicken to it.
Donna
Donna, Glenn & MurphyÂ
Murphy had his right front leg amputated due to histiocytic sarcoma at 7 years old. He survived 4 years, 2 months & 1 week, only to be taken by hemangiosarcoma at 11 1/2 years 6/12/17 Â
Read about Murphy's Life on Three Legs
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