Hello everyone
My name is Jolene and I was given a special Little angle yesterday his name is Spike.
Spike was born on march 29th 2008 when he was born he his rite front leg would not stay in place at the elbow so when he is not in a splint his leg bends up to his littl face with his paw facing the wrong way.
His prior owner told me the vet could not do anything for him and he should probably be put to sleep.
She did not have the heart to do it so she took care of him best she could untill she gave him to me.

Now I would like to know if anyone has ever had this problum with a Yorkie before and if I build him a walker designed to help him strengthen his remaning three legs if anyone thinks if a dog only weighing 1lb 7oz will ever walk.

When you put your hands under his belley to support his weight he gets so excited this Pup wants to walk he is in perfect health otherwise is it possible for him to ever learn to walk with the rite tranning I have herd of dogs and cats doing fine with 3 legs but he is so small I dont know what to think.

I would also like to know if there are suplements avable to give him more calcium and proteen so the softspot on his little head will finaly close and to help build Musciles Please If anyone has any advice let me Know

Putting him down is not an option this Dog wants to live so Who am I to take his life I would not do it to my child why should his chance of survival be any Different.

Thank you all in advance
Jolene

i'm so sorry I don't have a yorkie and also I can't help you at this point..however I suggest you to use google..if you can't make any search in google regarding your problem..go to the vet..

[lil mutt]

Check out this video of the two legged dog that dog is really amazing and inspiring... I used to have a 3 legged cat and i didnt put her to sleep even if the vet advised me to do so... If there aint no complications then i think you should put that dog to sleep either... Let that dog experience how wonderful life is...

[lulusmom]

Hi. I work in small and special needs dog rescue and we deal with this situation a lot. We don't get many puppies but we do get adults that were born with a deformed leg that is non functional. Dogs can walk perfectly with three legs and as a matter of fact, you would never know they had a fourth one. The remedy for legs that cannot be saved is amputation so I am a bit surprised that the previous owner's vet recommended euthanasia. That's just down right stupid. This little guy wants to walk and he's lucky that he has a new mom that will him learn. The bad leg may throw off his balance so you will have to help him. There is no doubt in my mind that he'll be just fine but you'll eventually need to remove the leg. Get yourself a good vet and keep us posted on your progress with the wee one.

[lulusmom]

Hi again.

The soft spot on your baby's head is an open fontanel and as is common in tea cups, it may never close. I've had teacups all my life and at least three had an open fontanel their entire life. They lived for quite a long time and had a great life. It's more stressful for the owner because you worry about them getting hit on top of the head. That's the only danger.

As far as food, just get some really good quality puppy food. To find the best foods, check out dogfoodanalysis.com. I don't know if you have ever had a teacup before but they are prone to hypoglycemia so make sure that you have karo syrup on hand at all times and make sure your little one eats regularly. When they are as tiny as your baby, a missed meal can cause a hypoglycemic episode. If that should happen, rub the syrup on their gums and that usually brings them out of it. I also keep Nutri-Cal at home which is a dietary supplement for picky eaters. I haven't met a dog yet that doesn't love the taste. You can get it at any of the pet food stores.

I agree with your choice. And I think walking the dog is a great idea. I've heard a lot of stories about three legged dogs, and they all do quite well. There's no reason to think the fourth leg is the happy leg. He'll be fine.

The vet I work for has a saying; Dogs are born with three good legs and a spare. Basically what that means is dogs do fine on three legs, and amputation of a deformed leg shouldn't affect the quality of the dog's life.

The prior vet may not have felt that surgery is an option at this point because of his size and weight. Doing surgery on very tiny dogs can be risky. Or you may not have the whole story. Perhaps the dog has other problems that would make surgery even more dangerous until he's older.

What concerns me is the dog's age, and the fact that he isn't walking yet. He's 6 months old. Unless there's something else wrong, he should have figured it out by now. Because he also has an open fontanel, there may be something neurological going on, as well as the deformed leg. Or he may have something like a liver shunt that's causing additional problems.

I'd definitely get a second opinion on this dog, have some blood work done to check liver and kidney function, and see what your options are. If amputation of the deformed leg is done, once he's healed from that you could try swimming him (with support) to strengthen the muscles and allow him to learn to use his remaining legs without putting undue stress on his joints.