Hi, my name is Sampson, I am an 11 ½ year old, male Rottweiler. I’ve always considered myself pretty lucky. My new pawrents adopted me when I was 6 years old and life has been a big adventure. We do a lot of fun things, my favorite addition to my life has been my new brother. He is a 2 year old Rottweiler named Owen and we have a lot of fun. I am doing all of these things I’ve never done before-like digging. If you haven’t done it, I recommend finding a place in the yard that is inconspicuous and going to town. Do not dig in the front yard, it is not worth the trouble and aggravation. Well, my brother was pretty sick this month, he has Addison’s disease. So we’ve been focused on getting him better. In the middle of this, about two weeks ago, I started limping badly and I was in a lot of pain. Mom, took me to the vet and I was diagnosed with osteosarcoma. What a bummer, but apparently it is pretty common in rottweilers. Since I am still young at heart and otherwise healthy, the doctors at the University of Pennsylvania thought I was a good candidate for surgery. I had my right, front leg amputated on Wednesday, May 5th, Cinco de Mayo. While I am not Mexican or a Chihuahua, the day is appropriate, since it represents Mexico’s victory over the French. To me it symbolizes my personal battle with cancer. I sailed through surgery, no complications. I was up and walking around the next day. Yup, I couldn’t believe it either. The nurses liked me so much, they put my bed in the hospital hallway so I could watch everyone walk by and make friends. My surgeon thinks that I am a really tough guy. Rule number 1, it is good to have a doctor who believes in you. The original plan was to keep me in the hospital few days. I was doing so well, I was discharged the next day. Mom picked me up, I love a good car ride. I stood up all by myself when we drove on to our road to look out the window. I wasn’t sure how my younger brother would react to my change. Wow, was he happy to see me, he climbed in the car and gave me a big kiss right on the nose. I forgot how much I missed him.
I am getting around better each day and hoping it gets easier. I am still pretty tired and have been sleeping a lot. All of us are sleeping in the living room until I am feeling better. My appetite is not what it used to be. How long will it take for me to feel better and get on my regular eating schedule? How long will it take me to get up and around, I get tired pretty easily?
Thank you for the support and please get back to me.
Sampson
PS
sampson, welcome to our family!!! i too lost a right front leg to cancer (a different kind though..) on february 17th. i chased two squirrels and a rabbit out of our back yard yesterday, so it hasn’t slowed me down much. expect to be tired for a couple of weeks or more mr. sampson…you just had major surgery you know!!! rest, rest, rest is my prescription for recovery. napping is king!! it will take a couple of weeks to heal inside and out, and then there’s those pain meds that wack you up and make you see pink elephants, etc.
it must be fun having a two year old brother..the digging thing never came to me before the amputation…now i think i’d have to do it with my back legs – but that’s definitely something to think about.. well, i’m rambling and you need to nap!!
welcome,
gayle
Welcome Sampson! You’ve had a ruff month so far! Keep your muzzle up and keep posting. The people here know a lot abut what your going through! They know cancer in and out,me not so much since I was born with my three legs. Mom calls me her triple threat. I Do know about having three legs, you’ll get lots of attention when you feel good enough to go out in public. Start thinking about ways you can milk that, your brother will be soooo jealous! Hope you start feeling better soon!
Buddy
Welcome Sampson! Thanks for sharing your story. Every dog’s recovery story is different, but once you’re off the pain meds you should start feeling yourself again. If you haven’t already, be sure to review Jerry’s top ten Q&A blog posts.
PS: Be sure to title your posts so they appear in the recent posts widget throughout the Tripawds News blog.
Hey, Sampson! We’re glad you were doing so well that you could come home the day after your surgery – that’s pawsome! Holly also lost her appetite after her surgery – we think it was due to the combination of meds she was on. After a week with no signs of infection our vet said to take her off the antibiotic, but that didn’t seem to help. Her appetite didn’t really come back until she was off her pain meds. We fed her rice and boiled ground beef, which she seemed to tolerate. We also found that many smaller meals instead of her usual 2 a day worked well for her. I’d give her a few spoons about 5-6 times a day (or maybe more – I should have taken better notes!) – probably whenever I could get her to eat. Sometimes feeding her by hand helped. At that point I wasn’t worried about spoiling her! And once she felt herself again she resumed her old eating habits, so spoiling wasn’t a problem. When she ate the rice and beef, I’d sometimes put some kibble in her next meal – sometimes she’d eat it and sometimes she wouldn’t. Sampson – Holly would tell you to milk this for all it’s worth, since she no longer gets hand fed!
We’ll keep fingers and paws crossed that his appetite returns. These first few weeks can be full of ups and downs – but you’ll be amazed that one day you’ll look back and realize it’s all behind you! Sorry for rambling…
Hugs,
Holly and Holly’s mom
Hi, thanks for the feedback. I have been feeling much better, I am sleeping, eating and getting around much better. I’ve been taking pepcid and an appetite stimulant and that seems to help. I will try a few small meals a day. I like being hand fed and that seems to work. I have finally given up and I am making it easier for my pawrents to give me my pain meds. Poor mom had peanut butter in her hair one day. She started by sneaking a pill in peanut butter as I snarled ( I talk a good game), then she would kiss my nose, silly me I got so lost in the moment I swallowed the pill. I no longer snarl and she still kisses me on the nose. I love that. My life jacket arrived in the mail today, so as soon as I am cleared, it is back in the pool for me. Another weird thing is I seem to pant like crazy at night. What is that? Maybe I am having so much fun during the day, I don’t realize that I still have pain-then it is back to the peanut butter-
Hi Sampson,
Sorry to hear about your diagnosis and surgery… but it sounds like you’re recovering just fine. Seems like most of the dogs do alot of panting at nite after their surgery… not sure if it’s due to the anesthesia, or the pain meds, or just the trauma of the surgery…
My Jake also had his front leg amputated due to bone cancer, and he was 10yrs old. As soon as his staples came out, he was cleared for swimming in the pool. He loved it!! I’ll bet you can’t wait until you’re swimming again. Tell your mom to post some pictures of you so we can see your beautiful face!!!
Angel Jake’s Mom
Thanks for the reply. They keep giving me pain meds because they are not sure if I am uncomfortable.
Weird. Today I am all zonked out. I think I am overmedicated, who shall I call the ASPCA 🙂
I can’t wait to get back in the pool. Mom will heat if for me, but not for Dad, how is that for spoiled…
Heya Sampson!
Welcome aboard the “T” Train! Tripawds all the way, that’s what we say!
1st stop…Healingston where you rest, nap and get all better from surgery! You’ll spend about 2 weeks there. Not exactly a walk in the park, but you have to go through it.
Ah – but the next stop is …Funville! I think Funville speaks for itself!
Can’t wait to see you in Funville, Sampson! We’ll hold a spot for you!
Cool Cat Comet