How Cats and Dogs Get Along with a Missing Leg

It can be heartbreaking when your beloved cat or dog has an accident and has to have a leg amputated. You probably worry about the pet having to adjust to a difficult life of being "handicapped" and you feel saddened that he will never be the same again. What's even more heartbreaking is knowing that there are cats and dogs sitting in animal shelters that may never get adopted simply because they are missing a leg. The potential owner may assume that it will be too difficult caring for a three-legged cat or dog. However, contrary to what you may think, three-legged cats and dogs can get along as well or almost as well as four-legged animals. Cats and dogs have a way of adapting easier than humans do to a missing limb. So, if you are hesitant to adopt that three-legged cat, or you feel as if your dog will never be the same if he gets a leg amputated, think again.

If a cat or dog is born missing a leg they will usually be able to do everything a normal four-legged animal does because they never knew what is was like to have four legs. Three-legged dogs will be able to run as fast as any other dog, and three-legged cats will be able to jump as high as any four-legged cat. If they are born into the world with only three legs, they don't have to adjust. They learn how to run and jump just like their brothers and sisters who have all their legs. Three-legged cats and dogs born this way won't even notice a difference between themselves and those with four legs. Unlike humans, they won't compare themselves to other cats and dogs to notice these differences.

Cats and dogs who have a leg amputated will also learn to get along as well as they did with four legs; however, they will have to go through an adjustment period first. With cats and dogs, the adjustment time will be much faster than it would be for a human who loses a limb. For cats and dogs, it's just a physical adjustment. They have to figure out how to balance with three legs instead of four. During this adjustment period, the three-legged cat or dog will probably have a few accidents, but that's to be expected because they are having to learn something new. This is just like a baby learning to walk. The baby will fall down several times before he learns how to balance on two legs, but he will eventually walk. It may be painful having to watch your three-legged cat or dog stumble around for awhile, but it won't last long. Before you know it, your three-legged pet will be doing everything he used to do. After awhile, he will get so used to being three-legged that he won't even notice one leg is missing.

The most important thing you have to remember when raising a three-legged cat or dog is that you shouldn't treat it any differently than you would a four-legged animal. The cat or dog will figure out on it's own how to get around. If you baby it by carrying it around all the time, the cat or dog will never learn how to do things on its own. Treat your three-legged pet as if he is normal and he will never realize he is different. After awhile, this three-legged pet will convince you that he isn't any different at all.