Rufus the Runner
Rufus the Runner
My beautiful dog Rufus, a lab mix, was running with me on Monday, three days ago, and for some reason bolted in front of a train. He survived, but is going to lose one of his rear legs. The vet here will not make the amputation until he can stand on his three good legs. I know it's early, but he is having a great deal of trouble using the good rear leg. They have not found any hip or spinal damage. I am anxious to bring him home, since I think he will heal spiritually and physically better with the family. I visit him twice a day and encourage him to stand on his own. Am I expecting too much at this stage? I have committed myself to his recovery and refuse to consider the idea of putting him to sleep.
- Attachments
-
Re: Rufus the Runner
You should post this down on the amputee bb; the "3-legged Dog Club" would be happy to have another member! It's gotten QUITE active down there, but I don't know whether the posters come to the other bbs or not.
Re: Rufus the Runner
rufakin...first, hello. terrible to meet under these circumstances. i'm sorry for your pain and for what rufus is going through.
i want you to know that life on three legs is an adjustment, but still a full and intersting life. rufus will be able to do almost EVERYTHING he ever did on four legs...i can almost guarantee you that.
i'm not a vet, or even medically minded...but i'm surprised that your vet is waiting until he's up on three legs before removing the fourth. when my dog, xena's, leg snapped from cancer...she spent several days in the vets waiting for the swelling to subside before the amputation. until the leg was removed...she could NOT get up because is caused her so much pain. the minute they removed the leg...she was up and bounded outside to go have a pee. when i think about it...*i* wouldn't move an inch myself if a limb was causing me pain. i wouldn't even dream of trying it until the limb was removed, or completely immobilized and painless. make sense?
i wonder if you're feeling bold enough to phone another vet to just pose a question. or to just bite the bullet and tell the vet you want it done now. rufus will work it out on his own. really!
do come join us in the three-legged dog club. we are mostly front leg amputation there...but we have a new member now who also has a dog with a rear leg amputation and will know about the special needs for those dogs. i imagine the toilet is going to be a tricky learning curve...but i could well be wrong.
and rufus is just gorgeous, btw. what a beautiful picture. i hope you'll stick around a while and become a part of our family while we all negotiate these developments together. some of us have websites full of info about our experiences....so be sure to visit those. too
hang in there,
tessa
i want you to know that life on three legs is an adjustment, but still a full and intersting life. rufus will be able to do almost EVERYTHING he ever did on four legs...i can almost guarantee you that.
i'm not a vet, or even medically minded...but i'm surprised that your vet is waiting until he's up on three legs before removing the fourth. when my dog, xena's, leg snapped from cancer...she spent several days in the vets waiting for the swelling to subside before the amputation. until the leg was removed...she could NOT get up because is caused her so much pain. the minute they removed the leg...she was up and bounded outside to go have a pee. when i think about it...*i* wouldn't move an inch myself if a limb was causing me pain. i wouldn't even dream of trying it until the limb was removed, or completely immobilized and painless. make sense?
i wonder if you're feeling bold enough to phone another vet to just pose a question. or to just bite the bullet and tell the vet you want it done now. rufus will work it out on his own. really!
do come join us in the three-legged dog club. we are mostly front leg amputation there...but we have a new member now who also has a dog with a rear leg amputation and will know about the special needs for those dogs. i imagine the toilet is going to be a tricky learning curve...but i could well be wrong.
and rufus is just gorgeous, btw. what a beautiful picture. i hope you'll stick around a while and become a part of our family while we all negotiate these developments together. some of us have websites full of info about our experiences....so be sure to visit those. too
hang in there,
tessa
Re: Rufus the Runner
I am very sorry to e-hear about your dog. I know what it feels like to have your dog at the hospital while you're full of questions at home. Assuming, like you said, that there is no damage to the hip and spine, your dog will be fine.
My dog was hit by a car about 3 months ago and before he had his amputation he was not too responsive but he was also under a lot of medication. They are able to walk almost as soon as they wake of from surgery.
I, personally, was not too worried about his future. Other than missing a leg, he is a very healthy and happy 5.5 year old labrador, but I was VERY VERY worried about the first few days/weeks/months of recovery. Everybody was telling me: they recover very fast... they just never told me how fast was fast. One vet told me that it takes them 3 weeks to adapt and be their old selves (which was true, by the way). She also told me that they do know they are missing a leg at the beginning but that they learn to compensate for it. My dog leans his stomach on the trees to pee and points his tail towards the tree for balance.
Like a true lab, he still loves to swim and to run on the beach, he loves to eat, but because he lost his front leg he had to go on a diet. He gets tired faster than he used to, but it still take a lot to get him tired.
Why is it that your vet wants to wait until he can get up on three legs? If nothing else got damaged, like you said, there is no apparent reason to wait. I also think that as soon as you have your dog with you at home you both will start to feel better.
I love the picture of your dog on the couch, he looks like a black slimmer version of mine
.
Please keep us posted. I'll be praying for you and your dog.
My dog was hit by a car about 3 months ago and before he had his amputation he was not too responsive but he was also under a lot of medication. They are able to walk almost as soon as they wake of from surgery.
I, personally, was not too worried about his future. Other than missing a leg, he is a very healthy and happy 5.5 year old labrador, but I was VERY VERY worried about the first few days/weeks/months of recovery. Everybody was telling me: they recover very fast... they just never told me how fast was fast. One vet told me that it takes them 3 weeks to adapt and be their old selves (which was true, by the way). She also told me that they do know they are missing a leg at the beginning but that they learn to compensate for it. My dog leans his stomach on the trees to pee and points his tail towards the tree for balance.
Like a true lab, he still loves to swim and to run on the beach, he loves to eat, but because he lost his front leg he had to go on a diet. He gets tired faster than he used to, but it still take a lot to get him tired.
Why is it that your vet wants to wait until he can get up on three legs? If nothing else got damaged, like you said, there is no apparent reason to wait. I also think that as soon as you have your dog with you at home you both will start to feel better.
I love the picture of your dog on the couch, he looks like a black slimmer version of mine
. Please keep us posted. I'll be praying for you and your dog.