A tripod dog is a dog with three legs. The loss of a leg can be due to many reasons including cancer, leg trauma (car accident), or congenital deformities (born with a deformity).
I am privileged to share my life with a three legged Siberian Husky, called Shania. She had a congenital deformity called radial head luxation, i.e., the bones on her left front leg were misaligned, and she was unable to put weight on it. This condition is rare, especially for a Siberian Husky, and the cause for it is unclear.
We speculate that it may have been from birth trauma, since she was a c-section puppy. We had hoped to correct the problem with orthopedic surgery, but unfortunately, there was too much cartilage damage in the joint, and the surgeon recommended amputation.
It was a shock when she came home with three legs, and a BIG bandage around her torso. However, Shania recovered quickly from the surgery and is now a happy, bouncy, and somewhat spoiled member of the family.
Here are some things to look out for when living with a three legged dog –
1. Keep a tripod dog slim.
The most common health issue with three legged dogs is that they may develop arthritis earlier than other dogs. Because they are missing a leg, more stress is placed on their remaining joints, and there is more wear and tear. Therefore, it is very important to keep them slim, so that they do not have to deal with additional joint stresses from excess weight.
Feed a three legged dog a healthy and balanced diet, but do not overfeed her.
2. Keep our dog’s foot-pads clean and healthy.
Proper foot care is very important for a three legged dog.
They may develop cracked foot-pads because of the additional weight placed upon each paw. I now apply DermaPaw cream to Shania’s footpads to help keep them protected.
Previously I was using Tuf-Foot by Bonaseptic, but I find that the DermaPaw cream brings better results, is easier to apply, and stays on for much longer than Tuf-Foot. However, Shania will often try to lick the cream up, so I apply it right before she takes a nap (e.g. when we come home from our walk), and I supervise until she settles down.
I also keep Shania’s nails short, and trim the fur at the bottom of her feet. This allows her to walk comfortably, and without slipping.
3. Watch out for Elbow Hygroma.
An Elbow Hygroma is a fluid-filled swelling around the dog’s elbow. It occurs, when the elbow bone causes trauma to the soft tissue around it. This usually happens in younger dogs who are constantly lying down, or falling down on a hard surface. It may also happen when a dog leans, or consistently places too much weight on one elbow.
As a dog matures, a callus will form to protect the elbow and prevent this condition. Dog beds may help, but some dogs prefer to sleep on cooler, hard surfaces.
Young three legged dogs are especially susceptible to elbow hygroma, because their elbow calluses have yet to form, and their activity level is high. Shania developed this condition when she was less than a year old. However, the swelling was small, and our vet advised us to let it heal on its own. In more serious cases, where there is an enormous amount of swelling and/or infection, surgery may be needed.
We now have a cool bed for Shania in her crate. It helps to keep her cool during the summer, and provides her with a nice soft surface to lie on. Remember to regularly clean and air out the water bed, so that mold does not accumulate on its wet undersides.
For outside the house, we use the Coolaroo outdoor dog bed. It is durable, provides a soft surface, and is elevated from the floor. The elevation allows free air-flow during hot days, and prevents water from accumulating during rainy days.
4. Manage slippery surfaces
Make sure that there are not too many slippery surfaces in the house.
Three legged dogs have less balance, and can easily slip on hard surfaces like wood, tile, linoleum, or marble. This is especially true when they are running or playing.
If there are many hard, slippery floors in the house, it may be time to go rug shopping! Rugs also provide a nice, soft surface for a dog to rest on.
I get natural hand-knotted rugs, that can stand more wear and tear from the dogs. Consider getting a light, earth-tone colored rug, that can hide dirt and dog hair more easily.
In addition, I check the backyard, and make sure there are no deep holes. Shania can trip on uneven surfaces and hurt herself. I also clear away large piles of sticks and leaves. Larger sticks may sometimes catch on a dog’s nails and cause damage.
It helps to get raised water bowls, so that our tripod dog can drink without having to bend down too much.
5. Let a 3 legged dog be a dog
When we share our life with a tripod dog, we naturally want to protect her from as many things as possible. It is important, though, to let a dog be a dog.
If a three legged dog is kept from doing all the things that dogs love to do, she will have lived an unfulfilled life.
“A life lived in fear is a life half lived” ~ [Spanish proverb]
Most of these stories are about small to medium sized dogs can anyone tell me if a giant breed like a Great Dane is able to cope having only three legs? My daughter is looking to get a puppy from a breeder in the area and we just learned today that the puppies were born last night and that one of the largest puppies has a malformed right front leg. The breeder is trying to decide whether to put the puppy down or not. I feel like the puppy should be given a chance if it is healthy other than the unusable leg. I need to know if this puppy as a one day giant will have a chance at a fairly normal life or will her size drastically shorten her mobility. If anyone has experience with a large breed tripod, I would much appreciate any information you can give me.
I would definitely check out the tripawds site.
http://tripawds.com/2010/02/02/inspawrational-great-dane-moose-leads-the-big-dog-parade/
http://nova.tripawds.com/
http://tripawds.com/2013/07/02/tripawd-tuesday-celebrates-atlas-the-great/
I have a yellow lab that will be going in for surgery due to a soft tissue cancer in is back left leg.I too am concerned abt. him learning to balance with his size.he has been walking and jumping on three legs for the past few weeks due too the tumor in his leg.this is reassuring that he will adjust nat.,but i’m concerned with the adjustment of the weight he will be losing once his leg is removed.
yes, we have a 3 legged Great Dane that we adopted from a Rescue. She had a broken leg and they had to amputate the back leg. She has done extremely well and can run faster than her 4 legged friends. You should give her a chance- you’ll be surprised!
I am considering adopting a 12 wk old Husky who’s only had 3 legs since birth. She was born to a family pet, instead of a breeder. No one was home when mom went into labor and the first puppy was breech – mom chewed the back left foot off to get her out. Since she has always been without the 4th leg it’s normal to her, and from what I’ve read it seems “better” that it is a rear leg instead of a front leg. Your article is informative and gave me some info on keeping her healthy, thanks!
Thank you Crystal. Yeah, as I understand it dogs carry more weight on the front of their body, so there is less stress if the missing leg is in the rear.
Have you decided on the adoption? Big hugs to little Husky puppy. 😀
Hi, I have a husky puppy called nala. Shes 15weeks and I have just found out after xrays her front right elbow joint hasnt formed properly. They have said we could if we’re lucky make a new joint for her but theres life long problems with that. Or amputation of the leg. Im really stuck as what to do. Alot of people are telling me it’s horrible to make such a young dog go through all this but at the same time I couldnt see myself without her x
Yeah, I struggled with the same things with Shania. It was a very difficult time, and hearing your story brings back a lot of memories. People also said the same thing to me – “it’s horrible to make such a young dog go through all this”. I never really understood what point they were trying to make, because wouldn’t the alternatives be worse?!
Here is more on what happened with Shania.
I am very glad that I get to share my life with Shania. She is wonderful and we have great fun together. As you say, I cannot imagine being without her.
Big hugs to Nala. Please let us know how it goes. Shania sends her love and many Husky licks.
I have a 8 month old schnauzer poodle, who at 5 1/2 months broke her leg. We took her to a vet and they splinted it the leg healed but she had a pressure wound that developed into bone infection which also healed, then we noticed she couldn’t bend the same elbow without a lot of pain , so we took her to a specialist in Ottawa who said we could do corrective surgery or amputate. We chose amputate for 1 main reason , she would be healed in 10-14 days and acting like a happy dog within 3 days compared to corrective surgery which would take months and several surgeries due to the fact that she is still growing adjustment would probably have to be done which meant more surgeries. It’s now been three days since her amputation and she’s playing with toys and chasing the cats as usual, she does sleep a little more due to the pain killers but that’s normal and she’ll only be on them for3 more days.
Hi, my dog Hope is missing her front right leg. She was hit by a car before I met her. I adopted her in 2009 and I couldn’t picture my life without her now.
Recently though, she’s been in a lot of pain. It’s usually at night. She’s up all night panting and crying and refuses to sit still. I’ve taken her to the vet numerous times and he just keeps giving me pain meds, steroids, and muscle relaxers for her. The meds work for about a week or two then were right back to where we started. Tonight is actually the worst that it has been, so I’m waiting for the vet to open so I can get her in again.
My next step is getting blood work and X-rays done but I am in college so money is tight (don’t get me wrong, I would spend my last dime on her in heartbeat) I just want to know that I’m taking the correct route. Everytime I’ve been in before my vet had said to wait on it but I’m really starting to be concerned.
Tonight I gave her baby aspirin to see if she could get any sleep and it doesn’t seem to be working. Do you think things like therapy or the swimming programs would be useful? Or even a set of wheels? I’m open for any suggestions – I just need to get my poor dog out of pain. Thanks
With Shania, going to see a specialist was very helpful in terms of diagnosing the issue with her leg. The bone specialist explained the issue to us, showed us the problem on the x-rays, and laid out possible solutions. If Shania started feeling leg pain again, I would go to see a specialist first, to see if they can pinpoint the cause of the pain.
Big hugs to Hope. Please let us know how it goes.
I have a shep/lab/rott mix that lost his leg at the elbow from having the ambilical cord wrapped around it before he was born. He seems to get around great but my worry is he uses his stub for balance and has a sore on it. I was told to use a baby sock but I cannot keep it on him. Anyone have any other ideas and has anyone delt with this before?
In Shania’s case, her specialist recommended that we amputate the entire leg.
http://shibashake.com/dog/three-legged-dog-care-tripod-dog-care/comment-page-2#comment-109666
I found 9 pups nearby our house, all adopted except a seriously injured one. The Vet suggested to put the pup to sleep as it has only 50/50 chance.
But I couldn’t as every living thing deserves a second chance.
The pup is just merely 2 weeks old and it right rear leg have to be amputated ( to elbow level) as the rest of the leg had been crushed.
The wound has not heal properly yet as now but it is improving.
Still on bottle feeding and has opened it eyes as at 2 days ago.
I would like to know how to protect the amputated leg when the pup starts to walk . Tq
With Shania (front leg amputation), the specialist (bone) recommended that we amputate the entire leg. Shania was a young and active dog, and the vet said that she would move around better this way. He said that if she were to fall on the partial leg, it would be painful and the stub may develop sores.
I did a bit more reading on this, and it looks like one reason to leave more of the leg would be if we were interested in using a prosthetic. However, as far as I can tell, prosthetic technology for dogs is not as well developed or studied. I think this is because unlike people, dogs can move along quite well after a single leg amputation. I asked the specialist about prosthetics, and he said that in Shania’s case, she would get along better without it. Later on, I would consider the use of a cart or wheelchair if need be.
One argument that prosthetic sellers make, is that it would help to reduce the amount of stress placed on the joints of the other legs, and in this way, *may* help to put off the onset of arthritis. However, I have not seen any clinical studies on this. I would also be concerned about continuous chafing or pinching at the points of contact.
In general, I would consult with a trusted vet or specialist in terms of what is best for an individual dog.
More on prosthetics from the tripawds site-
http://tripawds.com/2009/10/30/canine-prosthetics-pardon-my-faux-paw/
Hi, I just adopted a beautiful tripod lab/blue tic
She is 2 1/2 years old and she is missing her back leg from a car accident when she was a pup. She is a wonderful well trained dog and we haven’t had her long but I was worried about the issue with the weight because she is thick and I didn’t know how I would need to slim her down if anyone had advice
With Shania, I keep her slim by helping her to count calories. 😀
I measure out how much kibble she gets, and I do not give her more. If I give her treats, I make sure to reduce her kibble intake by a corresponding amount. In the beginning, we would weigh her pretty frequently so that we could gauge how much to feed her.
I take her out for low-impact walks daily. This allows her to burn off some calories, exercises her muscles so that they remain strong, and she also gets to meet people, explore, and enjoy herself. Shania tires more easily, so we take *many* rest stops along the way. I let her set the pace, and bring my iPhone along so that I can read while she rests and looks at people.
Big hugs to your tripod girl!
I have a 3 year old Lakeland terrier called Archie, I year ago he got out of his harness in the back seat of the car, jumped up at the back window, activating the electric window and jumped out at 30mph he suffered a brachial plexus evulsion of his front right leg. It was touch and go for 5 days as to whether he was going to survive, but he pulled through and adapted quite readily to 3 legs. The only thing he cannot do is turn quickly when running. Unfortunately he is a
little rascal and hyper twice now he has injured his back leg jumping off the bed. Trying to protect his other limbs is paramount in my thoughts. His injured front leg has now contracted up so easily clears the ground when walking/running so amputation was thankfully avoided.I know I may not get him to old age but he does have a good quality of life and thankfully was pain free after 3 weeks after his initial injury.
Ive got a beautiful little tripod girl, she badly broke her front leg when she was only just 6 months and had it amputated as a result – at first I was so worried for her but shes just turned 10 months and im a very proud mummy! She runs and walks better then her older sister and has never had any trouble but i am starting to worry about the pressure shes putting on to her good leg and was wondering if you have any advice on whether to buy a support harness or any other aid? Thanks so much 🙂
In February 2013, we adopted Maggie, a 3 year-old toy breed mix who’d had a traumatic right front leg amputation in Sept. 2012. My husband (Mike) is a traumatic amputee from Viet Nam so our house already had a ramp off the back deck, non-skid surfaces, and an electric chair for the basement stairs.
We’ve heard many people say that tripods get along just fine with ordinary care. However, Mike has significant pain secondary to overuse of his elbows, shoulders, and hips from years of using crutches and a wheelchair. While we don’t consider or treat Maggie like a disabled dog, we decided to be very conservative to conserve the use of her remaining limbs.
Although Maggie can walk and run fast, we consulted a canine rehab specialist over the telephone and plan to see him in the office soon for an at home exercise program (HEP) to strengthen core muscle groups. He recommended maximizing her long-term mobility by limiting walks to 10-15 minutes up to several times a day, depending on weather and tolerance, avoiding stairs, if possible, consistently performing the HEP, and participating in canine aquatic therapy if available in our area. He also reinforced that keeping the weight down was critical to long-term mobility and comfort He did not recommend a wheelchair at this time.
So, we use an Ezy Dog Convert Harness that does not rotate around the torso or pull on her neck collar while walking. It has a small handle to steady her as she goes up and down stairs. She enjoys playing in the back yard and clearly prefers to use the ramp rather than stairs. We bought a Gen7 Cruiser stroller that is great for longer walks or antiquing. We put her on a chondroitin supplement and are trying to get her accustomed to wearing a sock on her left front leg to protect her paw during walks and snow/ice as she fell several times last winter.
You might consider consulting a rehab specialist in your area for an individualized treatment plan and/or swimming therapy to gain mobility without stressing other joints.
We just love this happy little dog and have no regrets about adopting her. The amputation part is minor blip compared to the joy she brings to our lives. She is completing advanced training for the Good Canine Citizenship Test. After that, she will (hopefully) be involved in a local pet therapy program and the Wounded Warrior Project.
I asked the specialist treating Shania about what we could do in terms of long-term care, and he stressed that the most important thing is to keep Shania slim. I also asked him about hydro-therapy, but he said that Shania didn’t need it since her leg muscles are in good shape.
We currently have Shania on chondroitin/glucosamine supplements based on the advice of our vet. The specialist said that they probably weren’t going to do all that much, but if we follow proper dosage, they wouldn’t hurt. Based on what I have read, it seems that industry funded studies show that they can help with joints and slow the loss of cartilage, but independent studies show no significant difference (for humans). Its results on animals also seem just as inconclusive. So it is one of those things.
I think weight, environment management, and supervision are probably most important with Shania. I supervise her at home and now that she is older (coming onto 6 years old) I limit her stair access, and plan our walks so that we only come down more gradual inclines. We have a more hilly area in our backyard, which we have fenced off so that we can manage access. She is missing her front leg, so coming down hills/stairs puts more stress on her joints.
I also supervise her closely when she is with other dogs. She can chase my other dogs in play, but I *do not* let other dogs chase her or jump on her. They can wrestle, but only when the other dog is in a down position. I also manage excitement level during play, and make sure that she is always having fun and not feeling overwhelmed.
I did use the RuffWear harness while walking Shania soon after her amputation, but she no longer needs it. Here is a bit more on our walking experiences.
Big hugs to your tripod girl!