Mumsnet Talk

They do - but I wouldn't be without one in my life for long. It is one of the downsides to having one, but the upsides more than compensate.

Thanks Mistle. I lost Tana, my other greyhound last June (nearly a year to the day that my Mum died) to bone cancer. That was a shock but he was an old man, almost 14, so I was expecting it. Plus he died in his bed and in my arms.

My lovely Peach was only 5, I was expecting her to go on for years yet. At least my husband was with her at the end and she is buried in the garden next to her beloved Tana.

They really break your heart don't they.

We lost our last dog in October last year because of bone cancer - she went from limp to in too much pain to keep her going in 3 weeks. It does leave such a hole - and yours was such a sudden experience of it.

We got another dog just over two weeks' later. She will never replace our old dog - and I'm still sad about losing her, despite having a new one. She is occupying a different dog shaped space in our lives and we're adapting to make that fit work for us and the dog.

Don't be surprised at the level of your feeling - and don't expect non-dog owners to understand. In time you will be able to think of all of the good things and not the suddenness of her departure from your lives.

So sorry Callisto.

Thanks so much everyone. There is a huge greyhound shaped hole in my life now.

I'm so sorry Callisto. You knew your dog and you could make the best judgement as to how he would/wouldn't cope. These things are never clear cut and you have to follow your intuition. You did the right thing.

Deepest sympathy Callisto: it's the worst decision you have to make, but you know your dog best and it will be the right one. Very un-mumsnetty hug from here.

So sorry, hadn't read the whole thread

DH's old dog lost a front leg a few years ago and you wouldn't know he wasn't born without it. He copes really well. Getting a little unsteady now that he's older but he has done brilliantly.

Callisto I think I'd do the same, big hugs.

callisto I have just realised I had not read the whole thread. I am so sorry, my post must seem incredibly crass

Callisto, I'm so sorry

I had a greyhound bitch who lost a rear leg (I know yours is a front leg)
After a week or so of rather ungainly hobbling she was almost 100% sound and apart from a slightly more bouncing gait it was not immediately noticeable.
In your situation I would definitely go for it (I am also not one for long drawn out ops) particularly when faced with euthanasia as the other option. She lived a full and happy life, upto the age of 13 when her kidneys finally caught up with her and was able to run and enjoy her walks fine. The only concession was having to be lifted in and out of the car and ensuring she did not get barged while she was running.
Good luck

Oh sorry sorry sorry. Just realised how inappropriate my last post was. Thinking of you.

I used to walk with a woman who had 4 greyhounds, one of which had had its front leg amputated. It was absolutely fine joined in just the same as the other three, very nifty too.

Calisto - I'm sorry for your loss, its a horrible decision to have had to make.

Ah Callisto a tough tough decision for you to have to make, I am sorry. Be kind to yourself.

Thanks so much for all of your feedback.

My husband and I have made the decision to have my greyhound put down. It is possibly the most difficult decision I have had to make and we based it on her quality of life post op.

Forgot to say that the dog I know had had numerous ops to try and save the leg first , which its owner says in hindsight she wouldn't have bothered with ( and not because of the cost) .

I remember a vet on TV once saying that cats and dogs are really 3 legged animals with one spare ! There is a labradoodle near us who had a front leg amputated and he is fine on his 3 . Good luck .

Mistle, that's a fab thread, and what a gorgeous dog Tip is. So nice to see lots of positive stories from other tripod owners on there.

sorry - crossposted with scuttle and mistle.
Meant to add: we live in Cumbria with a lot of hilly walks, up a lot of steps. The only thing that caused a problem was laminate flooring, but a lot of lurchers struggle with that. Luccy would laugh in your face at the idea she's disabled!

My mum and dad's dog is a lurcher with three legs after a front amputation about 5 years ago.

She recovered very quickly indeed and the scar has never seemed to trouble her.
Her body reshaped itself over the years and she is now tripod shaped.
She is AS FAST and AS MANOUVERABLE as my four legged lurcher, and if you put the two of them together her enthusiasm for life would make you think mine was the one who had been horribly abused and lost a limb.

You could also look at lurcherlink's forum - a lot of tripods on there and a lot of positive stories. It's a heartbreaking hting to have to do and I really sympathise, but please don't worry - outcomes are generally very good. Lucy has no idea at all that she is anything other than perfect and lives the absolute life of riley.

This is one of the LL dogs:
Tip I've been on a walk with him and he was so happy to be out you wouldn't notice that he didn't have the leg. He was let off the lead though because it was more easy to unbalance him.