Yesterday I took Mr B and his leg for a “last walk.” He was running around happily on four legs, sniffing everything, in absolutely no pain. Apart from the lump on his hip you wouldn’t know anything is wrong with him.
Mr B with Four Legs
As I write this, Mr B is currently having surgery to remove his back right leg. We dropped him at the vet’s this morning and now we are just waiting for news. I’m still not sure we are doing the right thing. He has a large 9x7cm myxosarcoma sitting right on top of his hip, so the only way to remove it with “clean margins” is to take the whole leg and part of his pelvis. It sounds so brutal, but the only other option is to let the cancer keep growing. Apparently chemotherapy isn’t effective but amputation is considered “curative.”
Three and a half hours later, the vet has just called to say that the surgery was complex, but went well. He is sedated and has an epidural for pain relief. Hopefully he will stay asleep for a some time yet to aid his recovery. They will give us an update tomorrow morning, which seems approximately FOREVER away.
I now have a three legged dog.
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I am so sorry. I know how hard and scary this is… Day 6 post op for my almost 7 year old Cockapoo. Once you get over the shock and acceptance.. there is only one way forward! Don’t look back.. we did what we did in the best interest of our dogs. No one can predict the future. Stay strong!! Look forward to hearing Mr. B’s progress!!
Thanks 🙂
Well Mr, B, welcome to your new Tripawd family!! And YAY for surgery done!!
I know getting to this point was stressful to say the least. You ARE doing the right thing for Mr B ! It may not feel like it during the first couple of weeks of recovery, but you are doing it FOR Mr B snd not TO him! He just had MAJOR SURGERY and is learning how to adjust to a new gait with three. Staying confident and being patient will help Mr B during recovery.
If you have hardwood floors you’ll want non slip scatter rugs for traction. No jumping, no running, just short potty breaks and back to rest. Managing pain can be a bit tticky. Most dogs come home with Gabapentin, Tramadol and Rimadyl and an antibiotic.
When you do go to pick Mr B up, don’t even bother to look at his incision or draw attention to it. Just look into his druggy eyes and tell him what a good boy he is and he’s going home!!
Try and get some rest ronight. Mr B has sone good pain meds snd will be having fun seeing some pink elephants.😉
Stay connected and update when you can. Recovery is no picnic fot a couple of weeks, but it does not last furever!!!
Hugs!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
Thankyou. He might be coming home today so we will definitely take this advice on board.
Oh WHEW! So glad to see that he made it through surgery. He’s such a cutie!
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I hope he can go home soon. We’ll be waiting for pupdates!
Thank you! 🙂