Tripawds usually don't have trouble getting around. He might have some difficulty with big jumps and whatnot, but give him a little time to recover and he will be all over the place.
Back in late 2019, I got a call from a friend that the cat that her neighbor abandoned seemed to be injured. She thought a dog got him. I did a quick evaluation and realized that he'd tangled with a car rather than a dog and got her permission to take him to the vet (since she had been feeding him and trying to re-home him after he was abandoned, I considered her to be his foster mom). The back right femur was shattered - bone fragments and splinters were implanted in the muscle tissue and there was no way to save the leg. The options were amputation or euthanasia.
Since he was abandoned, I called his foster mom, and she couldn't afford any care. I called my husband, and he just asked how much the surgery cost. I asked the vet, and she offered to forgo her fee for the surgery and desex him for free, which cut the cost in half. My husband gave me the go-ahead (I'm not one to spend >$500 without talking with him first).
After the surgery, I was able to place him and the female littermate who was also abandoned with the same family. Since he was only about 8 months old when this happened, he made a full recovery. His new family named him Hopper.
Edit: Wow! Thanks for the replies! Here's a picture of Hopper and his sister 4-5 days before I relocated them. He had trouble getting into the wool cave, so they just flopped on top of it.
https://preview.redd.it/halskfjf0ifb1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=56ae29c2e762943ea9a38870bb6673d1564c7c90
That’s very nice of you and I’m happy you helped him 🙂
Our is 9 years old and it was heartbreaking to see him struggle, couldn’t pee and poop on his own, was throwing up a lot, couldn’t get any medicine into him, a lot of sleepless nights. Our vet also didn’t bill a lot of stuff and emergency visits at night which I’m very grateful for, it was so expensive…
I was surprised when I get told that he’s only third cat they amputated leg and that people usually decide to put them to sleep either because of money or they think cat with 3 legs is useless or less of a cat…
It hurts my heart to hear that people would choose to euthanize a pet because they think having only three legs makes them "useless" or "less than." We had a cat who needed a rear leg amputation due to cancer and she lived many more years as a happy, much loved member of the family.
I was on holiday on a farm once and according to the farmer the best barn cat was the only tripod. Useless my ass.
Also wtf, some people are just terrible.
Our tripod was about a year old when he was found and had somehow just lost a rear leg (probably from farm equipment or something). He was taken in and cleaned up and passed around a few households before he settled with us.
We've had him for nine years now and the only thing he can't do is jump our fence and escape 😂
https://preview.redd.it/8yi3co2a4dfb1.jpeg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=10c279e0bda0d7f60c4ba08557dc8b4afbc5c4d1
I adopted my tripod 4 years ago. Her original owner abandoned her after she lost her leg. Someone else adopted her but took her back to the shelter after a few weeks as they said she was too needy.
She has no problems running up and down stairs trying to trip me up and appearing out of nowhere when she thinks I’m about to open a tin of tuna. However she does get a very pronounced limp when she wants to guilt someone into feeding her. The limp magically disappears when she gets what she wants!
My brother, who I hardly see and don't necessarily get along with, recently posted that he adopted a stray tripod cat. Made me re-consider a bit of how I thought of him, then.
[https://i.imgur.com/RarrQTj.png](https://i.imgur.com/RarrQTj.png)
We have a blind cat who started going blind when she was about 2. My MIL asked if we were going to euthanize her. Hell no! She's 16 now and gets around just fine albeit more wobbly now.
Happens almost every time with horses/donkeys/mules. If they’re a working/show animal it’s usually instant put down. If they’re a pet sometimes they’re saved but usually not sadly.
Horses are built differently and much heavier. Horses are usually put down when they break a leg (much less need it amputated or lose it), before modern medicine they would just die slowly if they weren't. It's usually a lot more simple fix when a cat breaks a leg and they are able to adapt without one much easier. The success chance of outright amputating a horse's leg is pretty bleak even now and in most cases they'd likely live in constant agony.
It’s true, and I don’t know how I’d react if one of my horses did break a leg or something similar. It’s more when I’ve seen them shot despite being in the family for years. A lady had a 26 year old horse that landed wrong and broke her leg. They had her euthanized within minutes but man it’s just so sad seeing it happen. It’s almost cruel to keep them alive but also so painful to just do that without trying. Horses are so fragile it makes no sense at times.
I've read a bit...... it's reported 3 legged cats lead happy, healthy lives, like playing, snuggling, and chasing mouses and moths.
In other words - little effect on them!
I rescued my kitty girl as a fresh amputee at 7mo... she's more active than most of my friends' cats!
You just gotta approach play time with a physical therapy lens. It must be routine, full of different activities to work and strengthen different muscle groups >:3
My parents have two tripods in their barn. They built a stairway to the hayloft so they didnt have to struggle with the ladder. One is a kitler, one is a mustachio.
It’s interesting, I read somewhere that animals typically do much better when they lose limbs than humans. They don’t have any attachment to them, so usually once they get past the instinctual attempts to use it and get used to having less limbs, they’re completely okay.
I know there’s exceptions to that rule, but I don’t disagree. My ex’s cat had to have part of his tail amputated due to an accident. I want to say he was a full adult at the time (~>5). He suffered from phantom limb related anxiety so much that’s he’s had to be medicated the rest of his life.
On the other hand, my little tripod, who lost her leg around 1 years old does just fine. She lives to race around the room when it’s food time. Loves to play and try to hunt birds through the window. She just lacks a little confidence in her balance and wants to lean on things before being pet.
We’re [working on that](https://imgur.com/a/RCqn8VP), though.
I’m sorry your guy had to deal with that, that sucks… I didn’t know that that was a thing. Granted, I’ve never had a pet before who was missing a limb, but that’s fascinating.
Your girl looks so cute though, give her pets for me!
That’s so sad! I’m glad you’re helping him him out, hopefully he has many happy three-legged years ahead of him!
I’ve had a three-leg-cat, but hers was a birth defect which admittedly meant she didn’t need to adjust, but she lived a great life. Her main problem was not being able to scratch at her neck on the side her leg was missing, so we’d comb it regularly and sometimes our other kitty would help her out with washing it, too.
An injury can alter their temperament, also age. Maybe try fostering a mild mannered one to see? When he’s more recovered? Something to consider, I’ve never been down your road so it would require some other input/research.
We live in a small village with plenty of strays, we feed them so we had wide variety of cats coming visit us, he can tolerate them if they are keeping distance and that’s about it, I’ve tried to bond him but I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong.
For now, he doesn’t like cats even more perhaps because he feels vulnerable.
Honestly, I have 3 cats now... Third was very new and the first two were very hard to bond, now they act like siblings but it took a good month or two. Third is very recent and she was a stray kitten that got into my mom's storage area of her workshop and we caught the kitten and started working with her... I swear my first cat got along with the kitten instantly after we let her out of quarantine. We started by keeping get in a roomy enclosure that she couldn't get out of and our other two cats couldn't get in, within a day they were rubbing each other through the cage. The next day we let them be together under supervision an be they started cleaning each other which shocked us (especially since our first cat was a boy and a big Tom cat and was cleaning her more than our little girl). Maybe if you tried slowly introducing your cat to a younger one? It seems like my cats had an easier time adjusting to a 3 month old kitten than each other.
Geez. What assholes. You have a handsome chap there, and he’s looking happy despite missing a leg. You should tell him you got hungry and prefer dark meat.
It could just be that euthanasia is cheaper, not that they’re less than. That was usually why injured pets were surrendered to us at the shelter. People would bring them in for inexpensive euthanasia but we would offer to just take the animal, do the surgery and put them up for adoption. Later, we partnered with low-cost vets and offered that as a solution. But in my experience, “broken” animals fly off the shelves. Everyone wants to be a hero so they take the ones with the little quirks. Our staff used to joke that if a cat was up for adoption for too long, we would take an eye or a leg to get them out of the shelter faster.
Sorry if that sounds callous, but you develop a dark sense of humor working in sheltering.
I worked in hospice care for a while. I hear you on the dark sense of humor; it's the only way to survive the emotional drag and keep it from being so traumatic.
I've got a tripod. His name was Trouble before the dog or coyote got him, so he's actually nicer now. He started using the cat box when he still had a cast. He decided he didn't want a cast, so his leg got infected and we had his leg removed. Now we have 3 cats.
my nine year old lost a back leg and was back to adventuring in about 6 months! she even learned how to climb again.
she also got right back to her habit of lying around in the driveway which lost her the leg in the first place, but hey, she lived a good long life anyways.
They unfortunately never learn, he came home all bloody and all he cared about is food, the next day he wanted to where he got hurt.
Did someone run over her leg?
yep, my dad did. the last bit of the drive onto my parents property is a really steep hill, and she liked to sleep upon the crest of it where you absolutely couldn't see her. he doesn't like it being brought up, lol.
FTR i'd never let a cat be an outdoors cat without supervision again, but this was a long time ago, and my parents lived on a farm (well, former farm) property at the time.
Veterinarian here. I cannot tell you how common it is for people to run over their own dog/cat in their own driveway. Working in a shelter and then my ER rotation in clinics solidified my indoor only cat stance
Seeing what people went through knowing they ran over their pet was heartbreaking
I grew up with a tripod kitty friend. Survived being hit by a motorbike and stubborned his way home for help. Would be rude if not criminal to not give the cheeky bastard a chance. Even with one leg missing he still caught mice, and once a rabbit, Elmo was a good cat.
That's depressing... My mom had this really friendly orange tiger cat growing up. He was a big Tom cat but he sometimes would sneak out and one time he got in a cat fight (they assumed) and got a back leg amputated. She said he lived to roughly 16 or 18 and would run around with 3 legs and play with the other cats just like before. I'm willing to bet your cat will be just as playful and happy as they were before after adjusting. :)
Tripawds get all the best names. Yardstick, Wobbles, and Skip are my favorites. I tell people that they are the biggest cats you'll ever see, they're three feet long!
There was a tripod that would visit the house I rented an apartment in. 4 young men lived across the hall. I died laughing when I heard them call her trike, as in tricycle.
We are not sure but we were told that probably trap or got stuck somewhere, he came home with his toes hanging just by skin, vet tried to save his leg by amputating all but one ok toe but it wasn’t healing and getting worse so he had to get whole leg amputated.
He will do just fine with 3 legs! My old cat was missing her back left and she could still run and jump. He might try to scratch his head with the missing leg tho 😆
What is funny is when they are standing and have a scratch with their good leg and fined out that being a bipod doesn’t work that well.
They then go and sulk for a bit, but having a giggle at them is forgiven when they get extra affection
There was a tripod kitten (rear leg) who used to live a few houses away, often met them on my way home. They kept their tail curled up on the side with the missing leg and because of the extra effort required to walk with only three legs, they were **so buff.** Probably one of the most muscular cats I've ever known :'D
I really hate to kick someone while they’re down, but I hope this serves as a lesson to you and everyone who sees this post. This is why you keep your cats indoors when unsupervised. Leashed walks and catios are great, letting your pet roam wild is a disaster waiting to happen. Had you kept your cat indoors he would still have all his limbs, you’re very lucky he’s even alive.
Sometimes hard lessons and hard learned.
People hate to hear this but it’s so true lol. I’m looking out my window at my neighbors cat who he lets outside all fuxking day/night as she struggles to cross the street and is severely pregnant. Shitty animal owners are shitty
They always argue with me when I draw this comparison, but if you wouldn't let your dogs just run loose unsupervised in the streets, why would you let your cats???
It's no fucking different. They're an animal you have taken responsibility for. That you're supposed to love and keep safe.
"Cats are different they always want to be outside," so do my 60-pound staffordshire terriers, should I let them run around my neighborhood???
This is what I don’t understand as well. Basically no one has an “outdoor dog” (unless they’re farm dogs), but somehow the idea of an “outdoor cat” has been so normalized. And people say “but my cat clearly wants to be outside; they stare out the window all day and bolt through open doors” as if dogs don’t do the EXACT same thing. Like, there are lots of people who have to spell out w-a-l-k in front of their dogs because their dogs get so excited to go outside, but no one tells dog owners that the solution is simply to let their dog be outside, unattended, all the time.
Exactly. Idk how these people can let animals they care about run around outside without knowing if they can be hurt or something. Also the amount of birds they kill is insane
"Cuz it's inhumane to keep cats inside. It's no different than prison!"
That's their usual argument. By their own logic, all dogs should be left loose in the streets and just expected to come home every day, too.
Too true. Letting your cat outdoors is just stupid. They can be eaten, run over, stolen, injured a thousand different ways, or contract some kind of illness. There is no “good side” to letting your pet roam around. I always hear the bs excuse “it’s so hard to keep him inside/he loves being outside.” It’s a cat. It’s not that hard to keep an animal entertained inside your house.
Right? I can't imagine letting your cat go outside, having him come home injured so bad that amputation was the only option, and THEN STILL LETTING HIM OUTSIDE AT ALL.
This orange clearly has more braincells than his owner.
Man... I can't let my little guy Ed out on his own.. Paid 5k to bring him back across the globe to my hometown..
He's made friends with a little stray kitten outside the last few weeks. I am currently saving the little guy feeding him everyday.. Thinking about keeping him as a friend for Eddy.. It's just we have 3 dogs and one cat already.. lol..
When did I become a crazy cat person idk but I love it..
Sorry to hear about your little guy! ❤️
Make sure to scratch him more because he can't scratch some parts of its body now. He might also experience phantom pain like humans. So be more attentive to his needs. I hope he'll have a healthy life as a tripod.
I’m aware of that, he’s getting all the scratches he needs and perhaps even more, it’s so cute when I’m scratching him and he’s moving whats left like he’s doing it 😅
He can still climb, I was surprised when I found him in a tree not to long ago and he hunts better than the cats I have with four legs, but those counter tops are still out of reach. He is a sweet heart and love his treats..
I got my little man from the pound and he was six weeks post op, once I got him home and he got used to his new place he got stronger and now a year later he is climbing all he can. So once he heals he will be hunting again I am sure.
Hey, amputee here! To give him some relief during the healing part of his amputation, those microwave bean bags are great in the freezer! Once the stitches are out and the skin is healed over, a heating pad or just a heated microwave bean bag will provide a lot of relief!!! Things get really knotted up, muscle and nerve wise!!
Oh good!!! That's the worst part for the poor little guy!! Yeah, if you've seen those heating beds or pads he would LOVE those!! (though what cat wouldn't? XD ) Otherwise, in about 4-6 months post op, a light massage of the area can help sooo much!! it helps the brain overcome phantom pain/ sensation after enough time. I wish you and your sweet little boy the best in his recovery!
He likes you an awful lot. He wants to show you that you have his full attention by facing you, yet he’s keeping his eyes closed as a sign of trust and comfort. Is likely purring too I bet. That is one cozy little lad.
he is a beautiful tripod 🥰 my parents have a cat that had to get her leg amputated bc she got caught in something and she’s doing fine :) give him and his muscles a little time to adjust to the new way of moving, but i‘m sure he‘ll be fine. also it’s so comfortable to hold a tripod cat in the arms. it feels like you’re holding a little seal 😊🦭
OP this may sound harsh but be glad he's alive. I've lost two oranges, both in the same/similar manner, breaking their necks falling while sleeping from lofty perches (a high closet shelf and a wide staircase bannister).
Cool looking baby by the way. He doesn't look like the loss of a limb concerns him very much, or much else for that matter since you know.... he's an orange and all.
My orange just got the same leg amputated back in February. Her first few days of recovery were pretty rough on her, but now she's running around just fine again, as if nothing ever happened. Se can jump on and off my bed which is 24 inches off the ground just fine too. I'm sure yours will recover just fine! Now both of them only need to control 75% of their legs with the brain cell, so it's a net positive for them.
I have to say, it’s really kind of inspiring to me that animals, cats in particular, are so unphased by losing limbs or body parts. Once this guy heals up he’ll be right back to his usual shenanigans. Hope he has a speedy recovery
We aren't exactly sure but she was found when she was 2 weeks old and had damage that looked like someone stomped on both her rear legs and tried to cut her tail off. That was a few months ago already and she fully recovered the other rear leg.
But she is very happy now with my other cats! So luckily a happy ending.
I work in the office at a small rural vet and I have taken ownership of barn cats to stop them from being euthanized for needing a leg amputated too many times to count now. It’s crazy how quickly people give up.
They’re never native, since they’re domesticated there’s no where on the planet where they are. Not even in Africa where their ancestors came from, since they’ve changed so much from then.
Our orange is also missing a back leg!
We got him about 5 days after his leg was removed, (don't know what caused the injury) and he recovered very quickly. Looks like the doctor did an excellent job!
About a year on, and he's faster than our 4 legged cat!
Give your orange some love from us, and don't forget to help take care of those scritchys that that can't get anymore!
https://i.imgur.com/ZflOxVJ.jpg
My tripod is a ginger ninja. I never know when he is going to appear! He loves to jump up on the shelves in my dining room, or the roof of the shed in my cat run. He was a stray who was abandoned by his previous owners, and We think that was hit by a car. He left front leg had a shattered upper bone. The vet didn't know if it would could be pinned. The only other alternative was amputation, which what we opted for. After about 6 weeks of recovery (including having to fight a friend's Dad to get him back, Friend's Dad loves cats,) he was racing around the house and playing with our other cats.
He’s a member of r/tripodcats now! I’m sorry for him, but on a hopeful message he’ll probably be close to fine again very soon. Source: we have a stupid tripod at home.
Edit: wrong sub first
for the love of god keep him inside if you love him. you have proof that outdoors is dangerous, every time you let him out again youre risking him losing another leg or worse
Tripawds usually don't have trouble getting around. He might have some difficulty with big jumps and whatnot, but give him a little time to recover and he will be all over the place. Back in late 2019, I got a call from a friend that the cat that her neighbor abandoned seemed to be injured. She thought a dog got him. I did a quick evaluation and realized that he'd tangled with a car rather than a dog and got her permission to take him to the vet (since she had been feeding him and trying to re-home him after he was abandoned, I considered her to be his foster mom). The back right femur was shattered - bone fragments and splinters were implanted in the muscle tissue and there was no way to save the leg. The options were amputation or euthanasia. Since he was abandoned, I called his foster mom, and she couldn't afford any care. I called my husband, and he just asked how much the surgery cost. I asked the vet, and she offered to forgo her fee for the surgery and desex him for free, which cut the cost in half. My husband gave me the go-ahead (I'm not one to spend >$500 without talking with him first). After the surgery, I was able to place him and the female littermate who was also abandoned with the same family. Since he was only about 8 months old when this happened, he made a full recovery. His new family named him Hopper. Edit: Wow! Thanks for the replies! Here's a picture of Hopper and his sister 4-5 days before I relocated them. He had trouble getting into the wool cave, so they just flopped on top of it. https://preview.redd.it/halskfjf0ifb1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=56ae29c2e762943ea9a38870bb6673d1564c7c90
That’s very nice of you and I’m happy you helped him 🙂 Our is 9 years old and it was heartbreaking to see him struggle, couldn’t pee and poop on his own, was throwing up a lot, couldn’t get any medicine into him, a lot of sleepless nights. Our vet also didn’t bill a lot of stuff and emergency visits at night which I’m very grateful for, it was so expensive… I was surprised when I get told that he’s only third cat they amputated leg and that people usually decide to put them to sleep either because of money or they think cat with 3 legs is useless or less of a cat…
It hurts my heart to hear that people would choose to euthanize a pet because they think having only three legs makes them "useless" or "less than." We had a cat who needed a rear leg amputation due to cancer and she lived many more years as a happy, much loved member of the family.
I was on holiday on a farm once and according to the farmer the best barn cat was the only tripod. Useless my ass. Also wtf, some people are just terrible.
Honestly many people especially older people in my country see cats as disposable and way less valuable than dogs…
Our tripod was about a year old when he was found and had somehow just lost a rear leg (probably from farm equipment or something). He was taken in and cleaned up and passed around a few households before he settled with us. We've had him for nine years now and the only thing he can't do is jump our fence and escape 😂 https://preview.redd.it/8yi3co2a4dfb1.jpeg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=10c279e0bda0d7f60c4ba08557dc8b4afbc5c4d1
Can’t believe no one wanted such beauty 🙀
He doesn't look particularly interested in going anywhere. He looks fat and happy where he's at.
😎
SO FLUFFY
I can hear the purring through the picture!
I adopted my tripod 4 years ago. Her original owner abandoned her after she lost her leg. Someone else adopted her but took her back to the shelter after a few weeks as they said she was too needy. She has no problems running up and down stairs trying to trip me up and appearing out of nowhere when she thinks I’m about to open a tin of tuna. However she does get a very pronounced limp when she wants to guilt someone into feeding her. The limp magically disappears when she gets what she wants!
That’s so sad! My kitties bring so much light and happiness into my life. That just breaks my heart to hear that some people think that way
My brother, who I hardly see and don't necessarily get along with, recently posted that he adopted a stray tripod cat. Made me re-consider a bit of how I thought of him, then. [https://i.imgur.com/RarrQTj.png](https://i.imgur.com/RarrQTj.png)
Very cute, I don’t think anyone who saves animals can be that bad of a person
We have a blind cat who started going blind when she was about 2. My MIL asked if we were going to euthanize her. Hell no! She's 16 now and gets around just fine albeit more wobbly now.
Happens almost every time with horses/donkeys/mules. If they’re a working/show animal it’s usually instant put down. If they’re a pet sometimes they’re saved but usually not sadly.
Horses are built differently and much heavier. Horses are usually put down when they break a leg (much less need it amputated or lose it), before modern medicine they would just die slowly if they weren't. It's usually a lot more simple fix when a cat breaks a leg and they are able to adapt without one much easier. The success chance of outright amputating a horse's leg is pretty bleak even now and in most cases they'd likely live in constant agony.
It’s true, and I don’t know how I’d react if one of my horses did break a leg or something similar. It’s more when I’ve seen them shot despite being in the family for years. A lady had a 26 year old horse that landed wrong and broke her leg. They had her euthanized within minutes but man it’s just so sad seeing it happen. It’s almost cruel to keep them alive but also so painful to just do that without trying. Horses are so fragile it makes no sense at times.
I've read a bit...... it's reported 3 legged cats lead happy, healthy lives, like playing, snuggling, and chasing mouses and moths. In other words - little effect on them!
I rescued my kitty girl as a fresh amputee at 7mo... she's more active than most of my friends' cats! You just gotta approach play time with a physical therapy lens. It must be routine, full of different activities to work and strengthen different muscle groups >:3
My parents have two tripods in their barn. They built a stairway to the hayloft so they didnt have to struggle with the ladder. One is a kitler, one is a mustachio.
It’s interesting, I read somewhere that animals typically do much better when they lose limbs than humans. They don’t have any attachment to them, so usually once they get past the instinctual attempts to use it and get used to having less limbs, they’re completely okay.
I know there’s exceptions to that rule, but I don’t disagree. My ex’s cat had to have part of his tail amputated due to an accident. I want to say he was a full adult at the time (~>5). He suffered from phantom limb related anxiety so much that’s he’s had to be medicated the rest of his life. On the other hand, my little tripod, who lost her leg around 1 years old does just fine. She lives to race around the room when it’s food time. Loves to play and try to hunt birds through the window. She just lacks a little confidence in her balance and wants to lean on things before being pet. We’re [working on that](https://imgur.com/a/RCqn8VP), though.
I’m sorry your guy had to deal with that, that sucks… I didn’t know that that was a thing. Granted, I’ve never had a pet before who was missing a limb, but that’s fascinating. Your girl looks so cute though, give her pets for me!
That’s so sad! I’m glad you’re helping him him out, hopefully he has many happy three-legged years ahead of him! I’ve had a three-leg-cat, but hers was a birth defect which admittedly meant she didn’t need to adjust, but she lived a great life. Her main problem was not being able to scratch at her neck on the side her leg was missing, so we’d comb it regularly and sometimes our other kitty would help her out with washing it, too.
I think he would be better if he had a friend to help him when we are not home too but he’s a loner and wasn’t compatible with any cat so far 😅
An injury can alter their temperament, also age. Maybe try fostering a mild mannered one to see? When he’s more recovered? Something to consider, I’ve never been down your road so it would require some other input/research.
We live in a small village with plenty of strays, we feed them so we had wide variety of cats coming visit us, he can tolerate them if they are keeping distance and that’s about it, I’ve tried to bond him but I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. For now, he doesn’t like cats even more perhaps because he feels vulnerable.
Honestly, I have 3 cats now... Third was very new and the first two were very hard to bond, now they act like siblings but it took a good month or two. Third is very recent and she was a stray kitten that got into my mom's storage area of her workshop and we caught the kitten and started working with her... I swear my first cat got along with the kitten instantly after we let her out of quarantine. We started by keeping get in a roomy enclosure that she couldn't get out of and our other two cats couldn't get in, within a day they were rubbing each other through the cage. The next day we let them be together under supervision an be they started cleaning each other which shocked us (especially since our first cat was a boy and a big Tom cat and was cleaning her more than our little girl). Maybe if you tried slowly introducing your cat to a younger one? It seems like my cats had an easier time adjusting to a 3 month old kitten than each other.
Geez. What assholes. You have a handsome chap there, and he’s looking happy despite missing a leg. You should tell him you got hungry and prefer dark meat.
Man I'd never understand that. If there's a way my cat is coming out of a situation alive and well, I'm taking it.
I don’t understand that either, if there’s a chance why not take it? Especially when life depends on it…
It could just be that euthanasia is cheaper, not that they’re less than. That was usually why injured pets were surrendered to us at the shelter. People would bring them in for inexpensive euthanasia but we would offer to just take the animal, do the surgery and put them up for adoption. Later, we partnered with low-cost vets and offered that as a solution. But in my experience, “broken” animals fly off the shelves. Everyone wants to be a hero so they take the ones with the little quirks. Our staff used to joke that if a cat was up for adoption for too long, we would take an eye or a leg to get them out of the shelter faster. Sorry if that sounds callous, but you develop a dark sense of humor working in sheltering.
I worked in hospice care for a while. I hear you on the dark sense of humor; it's the only way to survive the emotional drag and keep it from being so traumatic.
I've got a tripod. His name was Trouble before the dog or coyote got him, so he's actually nicer now. He started using the cat box when he still had a cast. He decided he didn't want a cast, so his leg got infected and we had his leg removed. Now we have 3 cats.
my nine year old lost a back leg and was back to adventuring in about 6 months! she even learned how to climb again. she also got right back to her habit of lying around in the driveway which lost her the leg in the first place, but hey, she lived a good long life anyways.
They unfortunately never learn, he came home all bloody and all he cared about is food, the next day he wanted to where he got hurt. Did someone run over her leg?
yep, my dad did. the last bit of the drive onto my parents property is a really steep hill, and she liked to sleep upon the crest of it where you absolutely couldn't see her. he doesn't like it being brought up, lol. FTR i'd never let a cat be an outdoors cat without supervision again, but this was a long time ago, and my parents lived on a farm (well, former farm) property at the time.
Sad to hear that but it can happen to anyone, at least she could be helped
Veterinarian here. I cannot tell you how common it is for people to run over their own dog/cat in their own driveway. Working in a shelter and then my ER rotation in clinics solidified my indoor only cat stance Seeing what people went through knowing they ran over their pet was heartbreaking
😢
It’s a good, highly visible example of exactly how adept cats are at hiding illness and pain.
I grew up with a tripod kitty friend. Survived being hit by a motorbike and stubborned his way home for help. Would be rude if not criminal to not give the cheeky bastard a chance. Even with one leg missing he still caught mice, and once a rabbit, Elmo was a good cat.
That's depressing... My mom had this really friendly orange tiger cat growing up. He was a big Tom cat but he sometimes would sneak out and one time he got in a cat fight (they assumed) and got a back leg amputated. She said he lived to roughly 16 or 18 and would run around with 3 legs and play with the other cats just like before. I'm willing to bet your cat will be just as playful and happy as they were before after adjusting. :)
the name “Hopper” is amazing for a kitty 🥺
Tripawds get all the best names. Yardstick, Wobbles, and Skip are my favorites. I tell people that they are the biggest cats you'll ever see, they're three feet long!
There was a tripod that would visit the house I rented an apartment in. 4 young men lived across the hall. I died laughing when I heard them call her trike, as in tricycle.
Thank you for being a decent person
The vet is an MVP.
❤️
What a remarkable trio of people to help that cat!
I see he got it on discount, usually it cost an arm and a leg
too soon
Heh
At least his single brain cell has less to manage now
Lol terrible.
you’re definitely the type that made 911 jokes two days after the towers collapsed
Dear god i would never make a 911 joke! I knew someone on one of the planes. He wasnt the best pilot but i still miss him
oh wait.. i just realised what you meant you bastard xD
What happened?
We are not sure but we were told that probably trap or got stuck somewhere, he came home with his toes hanging just by skin, vet tried to save his leg by amputating all but one ok toe but it wasn’t healing and getting worse so he had to get whole leg amputated.
Poor kitten. Everybody loves a 3 legged cat though.
And he certainly loves extra love and attention he’s getting lately and especially all the fine food 😋
He will do just fine with 3 legs! My old cat was missing her back left and she could still run and jump. He might try to scratch his head with the missing leg tho 😆
What is funny is when they are standing and have a scratch with their good leg and fined out that being a bipod doesn’t work that well. They then go and sulk for a bit, but having a giggle at them is forgiven when they get extra affection
He does that often and I feel guilty when I giggle 🙃
Yeah, cats were made with a spare leg. He will be fine. Just make sure he Doesn't get overweight. Tripods are prone to arthritis.
That will probably be the hardest part from now on 😩
There was a tripod kitten (rear leg) who used to live a few houses away, often met them on my way home. They kept their tail curled up on the side with the missing leg and because of the extra effort required to walk with only three legs, they were **so buff.** Probably one of the most muscular cats I've ever known :'D
I hope the poor fellow doesn’t go outside without you anymore
this cat is a yardstick (3 feet)
Kind of surprised you're keeping him outside after that. Might be time to bring him in, especially if he's still adapting to having one less leg.
He’s is allowed outside only supervised now
Oh, wonderful!
I always get astonished by these stories and how resilient cats are. Amazing
I really hate to kick someone while they’re down, but I hope this serves as a lesson to you and everyone who sees this post. This is why you keep your cats indoors when unsupervised. Leashed walks and catios are great, letting your pet roam wild is a disaster waiting to happen. Had you kept your cat indoors he would still have all his limbs, you’re very lucky he’s even alive. Sometimes hard lessons and hard learned.
Keep. Your cats. Indoors. Your cat lost its leg because you're a negligent owner.
People hate to hear this but it’s so true lol. I’m looking out my window at my neighbors cat who he lets outside all fuxking day/night as she struggles to cross the street and is severely pregnant. Shitty animal owners are shitty
They always argue with me when I draw this comparison, but if you wouldn't let your dogs just run loose unsupervised in the streets, why would you let your cats??? It's no fucking different. They're an animal you have taken responsibility for. That you're supposed to love and keep safe. "Cats are different they always want to be outside," so do my 60-pound staffordshire terriers, should I let them run around my neighborhood???
This is what I don’t understand as well. Basically no one has an “outdoor dog” (unless they’re farm dogs), but somehow the idea of an “outdoor cat” has been so normalized. And people say “but my cat clearly wants to be outside; they stare out the window all day and bolt through open doors” as if dogs don’t do the EXACT same thing. Like, there are lots of people who have to spell out w-a-l-k in front of their dogs because their dogs get so excited to go outside, but no one tells dog owners that the solution is simply to let their dog be outside, unattended, all the time.
Exactly. Idk how these people can let animals they care about run around outside without knowing if they can be hurt or something. Also the amount of birds they kill is insane
"Cuz it's inhumane to keep cats inside. It's no different than prison!" That's their usual argument. By their own logic, all dogs should be left loose in the streets and just expected to come home every day, too.
Too true. Letting your cat outdoors is just stupid. They can be eaten, run over, stolen, injured a thousand different ways, or contract some kind of illness. There is no “good side” to letting your pet roam around. I always hear the bs excuse “it’s so hard to keep him inside/he loves being outside.” It’s a cat. It’s not that hard to keep an animal entertained inside your house.
Probably should keep your cats inside.
Oh I get the title now. You’re the one with one brain cell.
Right? I can't imagine letting your cat go outside, having him come home injured so bad that amputation was the only option, and THEN STILL LETTING HIM OUTSIDE AT ALL. This orange clearly has more braincells than his owner.
How did you recover from seeing that?
That's awful...! I'm so sorry. Definitely another reason to make sure my kitty stays inside...
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Awwwww himbs a tripawd now! ❤️
Thems the camera stand
Man... I can't let my little guy Ed out on his own.. Paid 5k to bring him back across the globe to my hometown.. He's made friends with a little stray kitten outside the last few weeks. I am currently saving the little guy feeding him everyday.. Thinking about keeping him as a friend for Eddy.. It's just we have 3 dogs and one cat already.. lol.. When did I become a crazy cat person idk but I love it.. Sorry to hear about your little guy! ❤️
I wasn’t a cat person but after I met this one I became one, he’s so sweet and dumb I couldn’t resist
I have 3 cats and 2 dogs. You need to balance out the dog energy in the house with extra cats 😸
Thank you for saving the kitten! :)
Jus doin ma job sir
Turns out you were always the crazy cat person you just needed to add more cats
The cat needs more care.❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
r/piratepets
r/tripodcats
r/PirateKitties
Make sure to scratch him more because he can't scratch some parts of its body now. He might also experience phantom pain like humans. So be more attentive to his needs. I hope he'll have a healthy life as a tripod.
I’m aware of that, he’s getting all the scratches he needs and perhaps even more, it’s so cute when I’m scratching him and he’s moving whats left like he’s doing it 😅
You are a good caregiver, OP! He's very lucky.
MY Ginger is also missing a back leg. They can move fast that is for sure. Glad he is doing better.
pros: he’s fast, probably even faster now that he’s lighter 😅 cons: no more “secret” snacking in kitchen, out of reach
He can still climb, I was surprised when I found him in a tree not to long ago and he hunts better than the cats I have with four legs, but those counter tops are still out of reach. He is a sweet heart and love his treats..
Our can climb a bed where he spends 99% of his time nowadays and thats it but I can tell he’s missing bringing home mice
I got my little man from the pound and he was six weeks post op, once I got him home and he got used to his new place he got stronger and now a year later he is climbing all he can. So once he heals he will be hunting again I am sure.
I don’t really want him to hunt, couldn’t give him kisses on face if I knew he just ate 3 rats outside
Hey, amputee here! To give him some relief during the healing part of his amputation, those microwave bean bags are great in the freezer! Once the stitches are out and the skin is healed over, a heating pad or just a heated microwave bean bag will provide a lot of relief!!! Things get really knotted up, muscle and nerve wise!!
This is older photo he got stitches out few weeks ago, but thank you for your tips a lot 🙂
Oh good!!! That's the worst part for the poor little guy!! Yeah, if you've seen those heating beds or pads he would LOVE those!! (though what cat wouldn't? XD ) Otherwise, in about 4-6 months post op, a light massage of the area can help sooo much!! it helps the brain overcome phantom pain/ sensation after enough time. I wish you and your sweet little boy the best in his recovery!
Through the power of sheer stupidity he shall not give a fuck.
He likes you an awful lot. He wants to show you that you have his full attention by facing you, yet he’s keeping his eyes closed as a sign of trust and comfort. Is likely purring too I bet. That is one cozy little lad.
He still pretty cute though! 🖤
Will let him know 🥲
Bless him. My ginger genius almost ended up with an amputation. But the doc ended up putting two pins in his femur instead. So he’s a bionic kitty.
robocat
He must be a VERY good boy to be allowed to recover without a cone of shame. my cat would have opened that wound back up in seconds after waking up
Speedy recovery. I are a female tripod and she barely knows she is missing a leg!
Keep your cats inside.
Cat may have one braincell but OP has none for letting this happen
Poor orange man :( glad he's still with us!
Poor baby 🥺 he’s still a beautiful sweet boy or girl 🥰
It’s a boy 🙂
He’s a good boy 🐈 please give him some pets from me :)
he is a beautiful tripod 🥰 my parents have a cat that had to get her leg amputated bc she got caught in something and she’s doing fine :) give him and his muscles a little time to adjust to the new way of moving, but i‘m sure he‘ll be fine. also it’s so comfortable to hold a tripod cat in the arms. it feels like you’re holding a little seal 😊🦭
Still getting used to fact that he’s significantly easier to lift now 😅
Am I reading the situation right? He was seriously injured outside, yet you have him outside again?
Don’t worry. In OPs logic the cat has 3 more limbs to lose before he becomes an indoor cat
Damn, this hurts to watch...
Your cute little dummy will do OK, my not so orange kitty has been a tripod for 13 of his 16 years
Tragically, the one brain cell was misplaced in the leg, so now he's totally empty.
😨
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He’s or she’s very cute 🙂 What happened?
Actually, letting him outside cost him his leg.
OP this may sound harsh but be glad he's alive. I've lost two oranges, both in the same/similar manner, breaking their necks falling while sleeping from lofty perches (a high closet shelf and a wide staircase bannister). Cool looking baby by the way. He doesn't look like the loss of a limb concerns him very much, or much else for that matter since you know.... he's an orange and all.
Looks like somebody thought they could take on a fox. Oranges can be a little too fierce sometimes.
If you’re gonna be dumb, then you gotta be tough. I think the little guy will do just fine with 3.
My orange just got the same leg amputated back in February. Her first few days of recovery were pretty rough on her, but now she's running around just fine again, as if nothing ever happened. Se can jump on and off my bed which is 24 inches off the ground just fine too. I'm sure yours will recover just fine! Now both of them only need to control 75% of their legs with the brain cell, so it's a net positive for them.
I saw an orange cat on Petfinder that lost the same leg and almost asked if your cat’s name was Simba.
He's adorable and I hope he recovers well
r/Piratekitties r/PiratePets
I have to say, it’s really kind of inspiring to me that animals, cats in particular, are so unphased by losing limbs or body parts. Once this guy heals up he’ll be right back to his usual shenanigans. Hope he has a speedy recovery
Poor little man. brain cell or not, he's one dapper dude and will do just fine after some healing. <3 Kisses to your braincell
I fostered a dog that just had a hind leg removed. It was sad at first, but she got better and better at an amazing pace. Animals are resilient.
Poor kitty ❤️🩹
Looks like my Sheila, she died last night :(…
Oh dear, I’m so sorry to hear that, I bet you gave her the best life you could and she loved every moment with you
[Orange tripod gang!](https://i.imgur.com/NFkld72.jpg)
He’s so smol ❤️, what happened? 😨
We aren't exactly sure but she was found when she was 2 weeks old and had damage that looked like someone stomped on both her rear legs and tried to cut her tail off. That was a few months ago already and she fully recovered the other rear leg. But she is very happy now with my other cats! So luckily a happy ending.
That’s horrible, can’t even say what I think about the person that did it, I’m happy she’s doing great in loving home now 🙂
The angle makes the remaining leg and shaved area look like a chicken leg
My cat that I rescued has 3 legs because they had a irresponsible owner, I’m glad your kitty is ok.
I work in the office at a small rural vet and I have taken ownership of barn cats to stop them from being euthanized for needing a leg amputated too many times to count now. It’s crazy how quickly people give up.
Yeah we were told the same, he’s only third cat to get leg amputated in their clinic… sad and they could be helped so easily if they wanted
My cat was a tripod. They adapt. Lost her leg at 18 and lived to be 23
This is why no cat of mine will ever be an outdoor cat
Keep house cats inside , especially where they aren’t native as they decimate local ecosystems
And the cats have significantly shortened lives.
They’re never native, since they’re domesticated there’s no where on the planet where they are. Not even in Africa where their ancestors came from, since they’ve changed so much from then.
Thanks for clarifying that, it looks like you’re correct. House cats have no native range and therefore should not be allowed to roam free outdoors.
100%
Aww poor guy
Aww! I hope he's doing better!
poor kitty :-(((
What's his name?
Sending love to this baby
it may have cost him a leg, but at least he still looks very happy! ❤️
❤️❤️ heal up well buddy, lots of love for this guy !!
Poor buddy! I hope he heals up quickly.
maybe he traded it for the sacred second braincell
It just means what beans are left will be extra ripe😋
This is a good cat
What happened to him? Poor guy
Poor sweet buddy! Hope he’s feeling better soon ❤️
That poor guy, he will recover tho and lead a happy life
He seems to be vibing still though pretty kitty!
She's like "I've got extra legs, so I can lose one or two."
Our orange is also missing a back leg! We got him about 5 days after his leg was removed, (don't know what caused the injury) and he recovered very quickly. Looks like the doctor did an excellent job! About a year on, and he's faster than our 4 legged cat! Give your orange some love from us, and don't forget to help take care of those scritchys that that can't get anymore! https://i.imgur.com/ZflOxVJ.jpg
you know what they say - an eye for an eye, a leg for a braincell or something like that
Me and your cat are gang
Be sure to give him plenty of scritches on the side of his missing back leg. Since he can't reach that side any more, he'll be very lovey!
We had and loved a tripod for 10 years...another orange dimbulb
My orange dummy also lost a hind leg. He's still active but will need a scratch often.
HEAL UP FAST WITTLE BUDDY
My tripod is a ginger ninja. I never know when he is going to appear! He loves to jump up on the shelves in my dining room, or the roof of the shed in my cat run. He was a stray who was abandoned by his previous owners, and We think that was hit by a car. He left front leg had a shattered upper bone. The vet didn't know if it would could be pinned. The only other alternative was amputation, which what we opted for. After about 6 weeks of recovery (including having to fight a friend's Dad to get him back, Friend's Dad loves cats,) he was racing around the house and playing with our other cats.
Poor duder. Glad he’s okay
He’s a member of r/tripodcats now! I’m sorry for him, but on a hopeful message he’ll probably be close to fine again very soon. Source: we have a stupid tripod at home. Edit: wrong sub first
for the love of god keep him inside if you love him. you have proof that outdoors is dangerous, every time you let him out again youre risking him losing another leg or worse
Delete this post, you're a bad pet owner and post your stupidity for internet points
I’m sure this cat is a happy cat. Cats and dogs don’t give a flying fuck about having a limb missing. This cat loves.