Good morning!
We are happy to be home, and happy that this part of the journey is “over” (although- the recovery is just beginning). I hoped to write an update yesterday… All we did was lie around so Molls could rest, but any time either of us slowed or stopped petting her, she’d wake up and nudge us to start again. 🙂
So far things are going well. It was such a good feeling to pick our girl up from the CSU Animal Cancer Center yesterday — she nearly dragged our surgeon and veterinary student out from the back when she saw us. The ride home was tough, as we live in the mountains and have to drive about 45 minutes up a very winding and curvy canyon. All Molly wanted to do was stand up and stick her head out the window but for obvious reasons couldn’t, so she was pretty angry with Jordan (who was keeping her down and calm) by the time we got home. We made it inside without too much excitement and then Molly was conked out for most of the afternoon. Here are a few pictures of her resting (heads up — there is a shot of her amputation site below. The incision is bandaged so it’s not too graphic, but just in case anyone is weak of stomach…):
Not great quality, but right after we picked her up. Ready to go home!
Hanging onto my arm with her paw – MUST. HAVE. PETS.
No major bruising yet… On the lookout for seroma but so far, doing well.
Using her “baby” as her pillow while she snoozes.
She had a great appetite yesterday and drank lots of water. I have an awesome video of us taking her outside to pee for the first time — I’ll get that uploaded later. Never thought I’d be so happy to see her squat! We’re still waiting for a BM but we’ve read and been told that the pain meds can delay this process a bit, so we’re trying to be patient. Nervous for how that will pan out, though. We did leave the house for about two hours last night and even though she hasn’t been going after her incision at all, we put the “cone of shame” on just to be safe. She was so tired that she didn’t really care.
When we got home, she had moved spots (from her big blanket to her bed) so we know she got up on her own. We’re still using the towel under her hips for any movement around the house or outside, and I’d imagine we’ll continue that for at least a few more days. Other tripawd families: how long did you use your sling?
Last night was pretty tough. She peed at around 9 and then we tried to get her to go one more time at 10:30 but she had no interest. We all fell asleep quickly but then Molls woke me up (glad she did) at probably sometime between 1 and 2. I could tell she was a little anxious. I moved to the floor and dozed next to her for the next couple of hours, then woke up Jordan at 4 so we could take her out to pee. She whined and grumbled for the next hour-and-a-half so we figured she must be ready for a BM, but when we took her out again, she just wanted to walk around for 15 minutes. That’s why I think she’s constipated — wants to go, but can’t yet. At that point we figured we were up for the day and anyway, Molly was antsy for breakfast and her pain meds, so we’ve all set up camp in the family room (Jordan and I with large cups of coffee). 🙂
Such a long update! It’s helpful to write everything out, and we keep returning back to the Tripawds forums and “must read” list for good info and tips. Grateful to have this community.
Love,
Kirby, Jordan, & Molly
Sam is almost 2 months out from left hind amputation. I still keep a sling around for steps or when he gets tired. Mostly for me. His other hind leg had TPLO in November so trying not to stress it too much. The first few days were tough for us also. They quickly improve and get more mobile. Good luck I slept in the floor for a few nights. Wishing speedy recovery
Thank you, Lynn! I’d imagine we will keep an “emergency” sling as well. It’s funny how we have to keep reevaluating — will this make us feel better, or will it make Molly feel better? If we’re lucky, it’s both. 🙂 Glad to hear I’m not the only floor sleeper! They’re so worth it though. Hugs to your Sam and thank you again for the well wishes!
I’m having to make the decision to amputate my dogs front leg. How did make such a difficult decision??
Hi Squirt’s mama! You’re right, this is a very difficult decision to make. It’s no picnic! Everyone’s situation, circumstance, and dog are different so our path may not be the same path as yours — that’s okay! For us, amputation was absolutely the quickest way to get Molly out of some very serious pain. Since pulmonary metastasis has already set in, we are focused on making her time that of quality and not of pain. I posted this already on a forum topic, but my husband said something to me that totally made me snap out of MY fear… We were 90% decided that amputation was going to be a stop on our journey, and I said that I was nervous and worried about taking a leg from Molly. Jordan said that he was not sad about that leg because it wasn’t OUR Molly anymore — it was a nasty, infected thing that was making her feel badly. He was excited to help Molly kick that thing out (no pun intended :)). We did struggle with the fact that Molly’s “good” leg has a partial cruciate tear, so while she was an adequate candidate for amputation, she wasn’t the best candidate. We decided, though, that we would rather do physical therapy, harnesses, whatever, to help Molls rather than have to watch her be beat down by the terrible, horrible pain of osteosarcoma.
I’m beginning to ramble, but my point remains the same — your situation is different than anyone’s and you will know the right decision to make. I will say that so far (mind you, we are only two days post-op), she has done remarkably well and we think we can see how relieved she is that she does not have that source of pain any longer. Just know that this community is here for you one way or another so please utilize it! Ask questions, write down your feelings, read stories… It all helps. You are not alone! HUGS!
Awwww! What a great update, it’s so wonderful to know that Molly is doing so well. And as you know, so much of that has to do with 1) your fearless leadership, and 2) the amazing care at CSU.
We are big fans of CSU ourselves. Our Wyatt Ray has received some incredible care there and we can’t say enough good things about that school.
By any chance are you in Estes? We spend summers in Red Feather Lakes. It would be fun to meet up somewhere inbetween when Molly is up to it!
Keep us posted and give that big ol sweetheart extra smooches from us.
Thank you so much, Jerry! I’m so glad your Wyatt was in such good hands at CSU. It’s really an amazing place. And yes, we do live in Estes! We love the Red Feather area and have taken Molly there lots of times. Once she’s starting to recover a little bit more, we would love to meet up! Let’s stay in touch.
I have said this in many different places, but thank you for creating such an awesome community for the tripaw families. It truly has helped us beyond measure.
Awww you are so welcome. Tripawds is all because Jerry showed us the way, how to Be More Dog.
I KNEW it was Estes! Well we are just over the mountain so holler if you need anything at all.
Oh as for the sling…it really depends on the dog. Some will allow it, some won’t. Our Jerry did not. Usually it’s just a couple of days before they’re like “Uh Mom, you can stop now.” Molly will let you know.
We had our Golden Retriever’s (Buddy) front left leg amputated last Wednesday due to Cancer. We are waiting to bring him home tomorrow. My heart is still broke over this event, but we are looking forward to having him home. How hard was it to adjust to? What kind of follow-up therapy are you doing? I am so full of questions on how to take care of this boy.
Hi Tom! I’m no expert (we’re on day two of having her home) but so far, it’s been going well. I MUCH prefer having her here with us rather than at the hospital… It hurt to think of her being anxious and wondering where we are — even though the staff at CSU are just wonderful. I was a little nervous about our ability to care “properly” for her (made me think that’s what new parents must feel like when they take their baby home from the hospital :)) but everyone has told us that we know our Molly the best, so we will know what will make her happiest and the most comfortable. The biggest adjustment has been trying to keep her quiet and resting. The gabapentin has a sedation side effect, so that knocks her out, but there are times when she wants to just get up and move around. Amazing to see her recovering so quickly, but nerve wracking because she needs to heal! We have been really committed to staying by her side or in the very near vicinity so that if she tries to stand up, we’re ready to assist. Otherwise, we have been lucky in that it’s been fairly uneventful (knock on wood!). She has figured out how to pee on three legs, she has a great appetite and is drinking lots of water, and she’s not going after her incision at all. We’re still waiting for the first poop 🙂 and sleeping last night was tough (as I described in my post) but otherwise, we’re using this time to give her lots of love and quality family time. I truly believe in the advice that you know Buddy best, he is your fur baby, so you will have those “parental instincts” to make sure he recovers at his pace. One other piece of advice I’d add is to take some time for yourself. We went to lunch with some family today and even though it was only 90 minutes outside the house, it helped us a lot to breathe some fresh air and take a mini break. Helped Molly, too, to be able to rest in a quiet house (contained area, cone on, etc.).
As for therapy, we are still waiting for our PT plan from the Cancer Center — it should be here on Monday. We have a lot of PT work to do because Molly’s remaining hind leg has a partial cruciate tear, so we have to be careful she doesn’t overdo it. I’ll be sure to post about that plan when I get it!
Sorry this got so long… Hope it helps a bit and please don’t hesitate to ask more questions (here, or in the forums). We’ve only been part of the community for about a week or so but it’s already made such a difference in our outlook, our feeling of preparedness, etc. Hugs to you and to Buddy — Molly sends him lots of love!
Kirby