3 Legged Dog Stories
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Amputation is never a decision that any dog owner wants to make.
When I was faced with that decision I was very confused, afraid, disappointed, and saddened. I seriously considered returning the dog. I wasn't sure if she would be able to play with my other dog, I wasn't sure if she would be happy, I wasn't sure if *I* would be happy, and on and on it went.
I did not want a dog that was "different" and that others may think was weird looking.
Ultimately, I just could not part with Shania; so now, she is the favorite of everyone in the family.
Shania is a bouncy, energetic, Siberian Husky that is full of life and full of verve. She delights everyone, and is always ready to pounce on people and give them lots of licks.
She is also a three legged dog, but most people do not even notice that until much later. Although there are certain things to consider when caring for a three legged dog, many tripod dog owners agree that they are just awesome to be with!
Below are some three legged dog stories that illustrate why.
** All the stories are from comments in the article Three Legged Dog Care and Tripod Dog Care. Many thanks to all the people who shared their three legged dog stories and experiences.
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3 Legged Dogs Are an Inspiration
"[Three legged dogs] are a great role model for us humans who can let little things get us down." ~~ [Carolyn]
"Alex lost her left foreleg for reasons unknown to us. She was reportedly a 3 year old American Rottweiler, with a fresh surgical wound when we adopted her from a shelter. She has touched many with her jaunty little walk. Often people would assume at first that she was limping, but would then stop when they noted a missing limb.
After hearing her story, many would then continue on with their day with a little more "can-doedness." ~~ [Nicole]
I think Shania not only inspired me, but she inspired many people at the hospital she was in.
When she was going through surgeries to try and straighten her leg, she was extremely brave, upbeat, and still loved all the people around her.
The hospital staff gave her this little squeaky toy that played James Brown's "I Feel Good" song. They told me that she spent her days there going to visit everyone, both human and canine, while singing the "I Feel Good" song.
It put a smile on everyone's face and made them feel a lot better.
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3 Legged Dogs Are Active and Can Do Just About Anything
"[Three legged dogs] are really a treasure to have and such lively dogs. I was expecting him to be limited to do many things but he quickly showed me he was able to do everything without a sweat. His name is Blaze and he's all white with a few brown spots on his back and ears." ~~ [Chel]
"By the way my Bella is a real dynamo too, even though she is a tripod, [she] still loves to play and run with my other dog Sadie." ~~ [Linda]
It is natural for us to worry and be over-protective of a three legged dog. However, your three legged dog will amaze you with her ability to quickly bounce back, and relearn how to do, all of the things that she used to do.
Shania is a go,go,go girl, who frequently tires out my other dog (Shiba Inu Sephy is only a year older than Shania). She also manages to steal his toys and food!
Sometimes, I worry about Shania when she is running around at top speed while playing with my Shiba. However, doing a not-too-controlled slide and roll on the grass doesn't seem to faze her. She can actually go faster than my Shiba, when in a full run, and has no problems with balance.
There are some things that are a bit more difficult for a three legged dog, but Shania always approaches everything with a very positive, yes we can, attitude.
3 Legged Dogs Are Great Role Models
"My name is Mac. I have a three-legged dog, Reggie, that we got three months ago. He is three years old, and lost his leg from a car accident. I am in second grade. I want to learn about three legged dogs like Reggie, and am making my science fair report about him." ~~[Mac]
"For those of you just beginning with a "tripod wonder" and wondering how it will impact your family. Both of our daughters were young when Alex came and both learned about tolerance and acceptance in the process. One is finishing her doctorate in physical therapy and the other is in her first year of premed, as tribute to what they have learned." ~~ [Nicole]
Many people always stop me on the road and ask me questions about Shania and how she gets along on three legs. I tell them that she is a dynamo and she constantly tires everyone out. They are usually surprised that she likes going for walks so much and how she requires a lot of exercise.
Shania loves meeting people and she is always ready to receive tummy rubs and give licks as payment. Most people are very happy to meet her and will usually walk away with a smile on their face.
Three legged dogs help us see that disability is not something that we should pity or try to ignore.
Tripod dogs may look a bit different, but they are happy, loving, and full of doggy goodness. Through their example, we can perhaps learn to appreciate people who may be different from us, who may not look like us, but who share the same needs for compassion, acceptance, success, and happiness, as we do.
3 Legged Dogs Are BRAVE
"I have a 4 Y.O. Weimaraner named 'Dieter' aka 'Der Blau Hund'. Dieter's female companion , 'Gabi' likes to chase the garbage truck up the driveway. Dieter was injured by the garbage truck while he was herding Gabi out of the way. As a result, his right rear leg had to be amputated and he's now a 'tripod' in the recovery stage." ~~[Dave Potter]
"Our dog's leg was amputated after he was attacked by a pit bull.
In 2003, our 9-month old rat terrier puppy, Yodi, (like Odie from Garfield, not Yoda from Star Wars) was attacked by my parents' neighbor's pit bull. The pit bull was not restrained in any way - no leash, no fence, no pen - and was just roaming around on the loose that night." ~~ [excerpt from My Dog Has Three Legs]
Three legged dogs have to go through much adversity; and yet they are able to maintain a very positive attitude, and a very happy outlook on life.
Whenever I have to journey through a dark patch, I think about Shania, and borrow some of her courage and grace. Somehow, my burden gets a bit lighter, and I begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
She is sitting there, with her tongue hanging out, waiting for me.
3 Legged Dogs Are Casanovas
"I have recently "inherited" a tripod named Grim. He is especially challenging because he is an 180lb mastiff. Unfortunately, his last owners kept him in the house all day, and did not exercise him. He is 5 years old and such a sweet boy." ~~[Lila]
"I have a tripod puppy that is 4 weeks old (I have her mother and siblings too!) I have decided to keep the tripod as I feel I can give her the home and love that she deserves. She was born with very little of the fourth leg, but it is a nub and useless to her. ... She is the sweetest and most loving puppy I have ever seen and I want her to be happy." ~~[Amy]
"Arthritis has taken the grace from her step and cataracts have clouded her vision, but her nubby tail always greets us with a rapid wag and makes us feel loved. The shelter staff still keep in touch with us and often remark at how lucky Alex was to find a home with us.
However, it is clear that it is us that should be giving thanks for the blessings that she has brought to us." ~~[Nicole]
Is a Three Legged Dog the Right Choice?
"Sorry for the windedness, but just wanted to share what we have gotten in exchange for our little bit of effort. We will certainly miss our Alex when her years are done. God Bless to all of you just taking up this uncertain and sometimes painful path...it is worth it!" ~~ [Nicole]
Is a three legged dog right for you? That is a difficult question to answer and is a decision that you must make on your own.
I can only say that I am very happy and privileged to share my life with Shania. She is sweet, loving, perky, happy, zesty, and an absolute joy to be with.
What do you think of three legged dogs?
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Comments
My APBT is recently a new tripawd. She's taking very well to it. It's hilarious to watch her chase her tail though. She's like a little tornado. It's just a pain because we've had to add carpet runners throughout the house because she slips on the hardwood floors.
I can sympathize with your sadness and confusion of having to make a horrible decision like this concerning your beautiful dog. Keep in mind that animals are more adaptive to situations like these then humans. When they have bad day they deal with it and when their days are good, they make the most of it. She will adjust and you will love her just the same. After all, she is your baby!
Great article and beautiful pictures...
[christine] Thanks for your very kind words. Btw. love your profile picture.
[Whitney] Yeah I hear you with the carpets. I just ordered some new ones for Shania. I made the mistake of choosing a darker tone though, which is bad for hiding dog hair. Now I have a dog-hair carpet :) Hugs to your little tornado. My little tornado is currently cutting a path of destruction through my new bushes and tree. ><
[Nancy] Good to see you. Yes, it was not a good time; but since then things are pretty good :) You are absolutely right about animals being very adaptive. Shania was her usual self on the day after the operation! I still worry about Shania and am perhaps a bit over-protective of her, but she is a force of nature and will tornado around if she wants to :D
We have loads of carpets. We've finally got each room matching. Where for a while, we had to buy whatever the store had until they had enough to match. We've had to replace the kitchen once already, a second time will be needed soon though where she keeps tearing it up from boredom during the day. At least the ones in the kitchen are cheaper runners and center carpets.
What happened to Shania to need a the amputation?
lol - gotta love dogs. They teach you to be a lot more Zen about stuff in the house :)
Thanks for asking about Shania. She was a c-section baby, and was "born" with a crooked leg. We do not know for sure what caused it, but we speculate that it happened when the vet pulled her out. Our surgeon told us that when they are that young if too much force was applied, it could have misaligned the bones.
Initially we tried to realign the bones. It is a pretty uncommon procedure, but the surgeon was optimistic about our chances. We had to put this "device" on her leg to keep the bones in place and slowly move them back into position. Things seemed to be going well, but unfortunately, when we took the "device" off, the bones slid out of place again. Finally, the surgeon decided to try and manually reposition the bones. During the operation, he called us up to tell us that there was too much cartilage damage to really save the leg. Even if we managed to realign the bones, they leg would not be usable because of joint damage. He recommended amputation and we agreed.
What about your APBT? Btw. what is her name?
Good Hub - my friend has a tripod long haired poodle - he lost his leg 7 years ago after a road traffic accident. When he got home after surgery he just carried on as though nothing had happened; he's really popular and an object lesson in how feeling sorry for yourself is a great way to waste many hours of your life !
Wow that sounds dramatic. My cousin's lab mix had a growing problem with one of her front legs, and had to wear a brace, but she's fine now.
Her name is Mia. She has bone cancer. We fought amputation for a long time, but after a few months and a few too many pricks from the vets in Auburn, the pain started and we decided to go ahead with the surgery. I actually have a little info about it in my hub guide for dog cancer. Basically, she had a growth and my local vet wasn't sure what it was as it looked a little like a cyst but still didn't quite look right since she had two spots on the x-ray. We had a bone specialist look at it, and he wasn't sure, but did sugery to remove 3cm of the right radius for biopsy and removal of the growth, leaving the smaller spot. ABout a month later we found out it was bone cancer. It's actually pretty uncommon for them to get 2 tumors on the same leg, but she got it. She had 2 chemo treatments before we amputated just in case the 3cm removal was enough to start metastis, but after the 2nd treatment she had another xray and the tumor was returning in that area. Around Christmas 08 she started limping and it was a fairly constant limp. We got her leg amputated about 13-14 weeks ago. She's had 3 chemo treatments and has 1 left. She has a 50/50 shot to live a year. She's not 2 years old yet, and she's been dealing with this since she was 17 months.
Excellent hub! Love those tripods! :)
[Iphegenia] Yes, that is a very good lesson to learn. Still it is sometimes difficult to execute in real life situations. Having dogs around can really help though. It is tough to stay depressed when someone is licking your hand and giving you the please-come-play-with-me "look" :)
[Three-Legged Dog] Thanks for dropping by. I used a quote from Yodi's story; I hope that is ok with you. I wrote to you through the hubpages email system, but it may have gotten thrown away as spam.
Whitney, lol - yes there was some drama during the whole process but the hospital we went to was really great and everybody there loved Shania and treated her really well. They even wrote an article about her in their newsletter and had pictures taken of her with the hospital staff.
Is Mia in your profile picture? She is a cutie and extremely courageous. You have probably come across Jerry's place? http://www.tripawds.com/. I really enjoyed many of the stories there.
As I write this, Shania is right next to me, and she wants me to send Mia her most positive, Siberian-charged, energy. I actually think that Shania would get along really well with Mia. My Shiba is getting really lazy, and I think an APBT is more her speed :)
Wow. That's crazy. I know everyone at Auburn knows MIA because it's not often that they get dogs her age and have 2 bone tumors in the same leg, much less a super friendly, chicken APBT.
Yes, Mia is the pup in my picture.
tripawds is a great website. My dad participates in the forums occasssionally. It's the site that introduced us to the ruffwear harness.
Mia is crazy energetic at times. It makes my dad nervous when she starts taking off through the house at full speed.
lol - I don't blame your dad. Shania does the same thing and gets into all kinds of trouble. It is tough sometimes to balance her freedom and happiness with her safety.
Definitely. He's such a worry wort about her. He's already said that his next dog, which will either be another APBT or a Bull Mastiff will be on EVO and the K9 diet supplements, immune boosters, and omega 3 from day one.
He figures it won't hurt by any means, and I agree with him. It'll probably be my plan for my next pup (plus a little raw. ha), but that won't be for a good while, after I move out. Although, it'll be rather expensive, it'll be worth it. I'll just have to convince my boyfriend it's worth it. He wants a boxer and I'd love a APBT or mix, so two large dogs on the diet and supplements will be a killer.
lol - I am glad to see that I am not alone in this. My parents and friends think I am nuts to spend so much money on dogs. But, giving them a good life gives me a lot of joy, so ultimately, it is as much for me as it is for them :)
Yea, when I tell people one bag of dog food is between $75-$90 depending on the size we buy, they're like 'that's ridiculous my dog gets alpo.' I just leave it alone. The people at my job are older and pretty much set in their ways. There are a few people that actually feed good food and consult their vets on diet and nutrition.
And, like you said it is a little selfish to put them on such expensive diets. It's good for them, and good for us.
I have a three leg dog too.
The vet where we live has know that we was looking for a dog, and a person brought in a dog, it got ran over by a car and it's owner did not want it any more. So the vet gave it to us. It was a black lab. and it had a fav toy ball, (but now it lost it's squeek) It's name was bob.
People call him Bob the dog, or Bob the three legged dog.
Hello Kristine,
Thanks for sharing your story about Bob. It is so good of you and your family to take Bob in when he was in need. It is great to know that Bob found a happy home :)
just got a puppy 3 legged Akita, front leg,so everyone say should have pretty normal life, he as so much Carita,, most out of the litter,,
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christine almaraz says:
8 months ago
beautiful dogs:) three legged dogs are just as capable of being a friend as four legged dogs are. great hub. very inspirational for animal lovers.