Update on Norris surgery- they have to amputate.

[kittymonsters]

I am probably going to be the only one to say this but... I think it is a good thing the second vet had to amputate. I don't like the first vet putting off the surgery, but sometimes with bad breaks it should be done.

I have seen too many HBC dogs go through painful, very expensive broken leg repairs only to have to have the leg amputated two weeks down the road due to nerve and vascular necrosis.

When they get a bad crush injury on top of the break, the nerves and blood vessels slowly die, cutting off blood supply and the limb dies. Then they run the risk of sepsis and death from gangrene.

When I read your description of how bad the break was and that the bone was shattered, I just felt it most likely had a bad crush too and the outcome would not have been good, even if the break was sucessfully repaired.

This is a blessing in disguise for your sweet Norris. You will be amazes at how quickly he becomes a "normal" dog again.

 

[momofmany]

Just saw this update (have been out of town on business the last few days). I've witnessed a couple of shelter dogs that had to go thru an amputation and they do bounce back far quicker than orthrascopic surgery. I'm sorry he had to go thru it at all but it was probably for the best.

Sending you more get well Norris vibes your way! You'll make him a frisbie dog eventually!!

And I also volunteer to have a talk with Colin about adopting him!!

 

[muttigreemom]

Poor Norris! I'm so sad this had to happen to him... but on the other hand I am kind of glad he's having his leg amputated. Like others have said, I think it's just going to be an easier recovery for him.

I've been through this once before... sort of.... so I kind of know what you're going through. My first dog, Melody, was born without a nail on her right front foot. It was fine for 5 or 6 years, but then the hole where the nail should have been became so severely infected with strep that they had to amputate the toe. They tried antibiotics, surgery, etc... nothing else worked... and her foot was so swollen she couldn't even walk on it. Now, I know this isn't nearly as severe as what Norris is going through, but I thought her story might help a little with what to expect post-surgery. They kept her foot bandaged for a few days post-surgery to keep it clean... which I don't know if they'll do with Norris... but they also gave us a plastic cover to put over her foot so we could take her outside.... so if they don't do that for you, you might want to ask for something similar. Helped a lot.

Her first night was horrible... she was in a lot of pain. I ended up sleeping on the floor with her that night (not necessary, but I'm a crazy lady with my animals

) But after she had a good night's rest, there was a big change in her the next day. She was still hurting, but you could tell she was feeling much better. By the end of the week it was like nothing happened. So I'm very confident that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, Norris will have an excellent recovery.

We also put her on a glucosamine/condroiton supplement. What we found with both her, and my boss' dog, was that it was better to use the liquid supplement instead of the pills. The pills have a lower absorption rate and takes a lot longer for it to build up in their system... which also means a longer time for it to cause any benefit. The liquid has a higher absorption rate and showed huge improvements in both Melody, and my boss' dog who was on it for arthritis. I can't remember the name of the one we used, but it was in a white bottle and we got it at Sam's Club. You don't need to buy one specifically for animals... we compared the ingredients between the one for animals and the one for humans... it was exactly the same and the one for animals cost 4x as much.

I hope that helps! All fingers, toes and paws crossed for Norris' speedy recovery!

 

[trouts mom]

Awwww, Norris

You know, of course it is so sad that he will lose his leg..but I have faith that he will be fine...so many pets live with 3 legs, adn they thrive

I am sure the little sweetheart will live the rest of his life in loving arms, at his furever home with no problems

 

[denice]

I am sorry that he lost his leg but he will adjust. Most importantly he is on his way to being painfree. Hopefully he can live the rest of his life as a pampered pet and be taken care of the way he deserves to be.

 

[adymarie]

Poor Norris, but in retrospect this may be the best thing for him (well, be whole and healthy would be best, but not an option). I still think it is criminal what the "owner" and vet did to that poor sweet thing. Tell him when he gets home that he is loved not only by you but by pretty much everyone on TCS - I will keep him in my prayers.

 

[jenny82]

Continued vibes coming for a fast healthy recovery for Norris.

 

[white cat lover]

It stinks that he lost his leg, Nikki....but he won't have to go through possibly more surgeries. What's done is done & now he can come "home"

& recover under your care. He'll be doing great in no time!

 

[sarahp]

Originally Posted by StarryEyedTiGeR

I REALLY would love to adopt him, but it kind of just depends on time and what Colin thinks. If Coiln doesn't feel he can handle anymore animal i will not press it. (In the past year he's gone from 0 animals to 6 plus all of my foster animals.) He is such an incredable guy to open up his home to all of them and let me foster

I just don't want to overwhelm him right now with more than he feels ready for so we'll see. I will have Norris for a long while as a foster doggie anyways so we have lots of time to talk about it and see what happens. Keep your fingers crossed

I think that's a very smart way to approach it. You don't want to take advantage of his kind nature, and the more you own, the harder it gets to foster - especially with dogs! You can't adopt them all

I'm sure anyone who looks past his missing leg and wants to adopt him will be a very kindhearted person and will take good care of him.

Originally Posted by StarryEyedTiGeR

Also quick question for you if you remember- how long did it take for your kitty to heal after the amputation? Was the body part the limb was amputated off in a cast or a wrap for a while?? (i'm not sure what to expect tomorrow and want to make sure i do everything right for him).

I'll put in our story as well... When our Bonnie lost his leg he hadn't been able to put much weight on it for a little while - they did surgery to try and fix him, and that didn't work, so he had a cast on, and he hobbled around, then they did the amputation after that, and when he came home with his leg amputated (right up at the thigh, there was no stump), he literally jumped out of his cat carrier, and RAN under the bed where he hid for a while

He NEVER had issues with hopping around.

Originally Posted by theimp98

what your saying is collin is special needs?
that is not a nice thing to say

 

[pamela]

StarryEyedTiGeR-

I have been following all your threads about Norris and wanted to let you know that he's in my thoughts and prayers! It really makes me furious to hear about ppl who do NOT take care of their pets like that!

I do have a question for you- I was showing a close friend your threads and wanted to show her the pictures you had posted of Norris with his swollen leg but couldn't find that anywhere. Could you tell me where that thread with pictures are so I can show my friend?

Good luck and I'm waiting anxiously to hear about how he's doing after surgery. Hang in there!

 

[ldg]

I wasn't around for a couple of days, and I came wandering in to find out how Norris was doing.

I guess it's turning out to be the right thing to do for Norris anyway - but my God, what you had to go through to get there. I still can't get over that horrible first vet.

Of course Norris will be SO happy to be back to his new home (temporary or not

) - and as every has pointed out, he's in GREAT hands!!!!!!! He sounds like he's got the personality to do really well - three legs or four.

- and belly rubs for Norris.

Laurie

 

[gailc]

I joined TCS because my stray garage cat Tommie had been shot and I was unsure about amputation. My vet had said damage was too bad and this was best option. It was a hard and costly decision for a stray who lived in my garage. The surgery went very well-when I went to see him the next day-he was eating, very happy to see me. It was hard to confine him as when I got him home the day after surgery he jumped over a 3 1/2 foot enclosure I made. I ended up borrowing a very large dog kennel and setting it outside for the first couple of weeks. After the stitches were removed I left him roam outside following close behind-man that cat could move.
Unfortunately for both of us he was PTS a couple of months later due to a false negative for FeLV. But he adjusted to three legs just fine.
I hope his recuperation goes well!!

 

[littleraven7726]

i'm so sorry to read this.

i hope he heals up quickly. my sister's cat is a tripod and he does ok, so i bet norris will be ok since he already was walking like a tripod. sending healing vibes his way.

 

[arielrain]

He will be just fine. I've heard of other dogs and cats with 3 legs and they lived very happy lives.

 

[starryeyedtiger]

Thankyou everyone for the supportive words and stories. i appreciate it. Norris is now at home with us- i'm about to start a new updated thread in a moment about everything.