Hey Cassie!
My name is Kiera, and I'd like to tell you a little bit about my three-legged beagle, Annie. Annie and her brother, Bucky were born in the same litter and adopted on Christmas Eve from a respectable breeder. This was an average beginning to a not-so-average life.

Four years after she was adopted, she was chasing a car and her entire posterior was crunched by the SUV. We rushed her to the vet, only to find that her spinal cord was severed and her back leg broken.

She lost the use of her tail, her back legs, and her urinary tract. It only seemed humane to put her out of her misery.

However, she was still our baby, and we wanted to wait just one more week to see if she could pull through. Within a week, she made a miraculous recovery. Her spinal cord healed and with the help of some acupuncture and lots of TLC, she regained the use of her entire back half.

She can even move her tail, which once hung lifeless behind her.

This recovery earned her the nickname "miracle dog" at her vet's office.
Not long ago, we noticed a cyst growing on her front left paw.
We didn't think much of it because her brother is prone to developing benign tumors.

However, when we finally got it tested, we received some bad news.

She's always had some sort of medical glitches (Lyme Disease, bladder stones, and a heart murmur, to name a few) but when she was diagnosed with cancer at age nine, we knew she couldn't give up. There were no radiology facilities in the state of Connecticut, so amputation was the only answer. We were worried at first, but then we realized that loss of limb to a dog was for the most part cosmetic.

Now she can get around just like she used to, chasing kites, walking on the beach, jumping on couches, running up and down the stairs, and playing with Bucky beagle.

She's really an inspiration to my whole family.
We come home feeling sorry for ourselves, but then we look at Annie and all she's been through and say "never mind."

By the way, I first came to this site looking for information before the surgery, and it was really helpful. Thanks, Cassie's Club!

Kiera,
Thursday April 26, 2007

Hello to all you courageous canines!
I think I'm pretty brave myself.

My name is Hobbes and I am a 4 1/2 year-old yellow Lab.
"My boy" David thinks he picked me out of the 9 puppies in my litter, but I really picked him! I just love my family and anyone who comes to visit.

My mom says I must be part cat, because I always brush by people's knees and then lean into them so they will pet me - I guess I would say I'm a real lover.

I love to go for walks, play outside with my boy or my doggie friends and go swimming in the ocean or at the local pond.

I have had a problem with my left front shoulder for about a year and a half. It would be sore and a bit swollen sometimes and I would limp,
but then the pain and swelling would go away.

The x-rays didn't show anything serious and a bone biopsy in October 2006 just showed inflammation. Then, after Christmas my shoulder got really swollen and stayed that way.

We went to a special orthopedic vet in New Haven, Connecticut, near where we live and he scheduled a repeat bone biopsy. The vet said it was osteochondroma in my shoulder and that amputating my leg would be the cure.

The special doctor and my regular vet said that I would do fine because I was young, healthy, not overweight and "had a good attitude." My family was sad that would have to have such drastic surgery. I didn't even use my leg for the next three weeks until the operation, I just dragged it around - it was painful and in my way.

The day of my surgery, April 9th, finally arrived.
I stayed at the vet overnight where they took really good care of me.
My family picked me up the next afternoon and I was already walking on three legs! My mom started to cry when she first saw me - but stopped - because she was surprised that I was walking around already.

It's almost 4 weeks since my surgery and I couldn't be happier.
After laying low for the first two weeks post-op, I go up and down the stairs in my house, in and out of the car and up and down the deck stairs at my buddy's house next door, a big yellow English Lab.

My family calls me brave and handsome - I'm just so glad to be free of pain and able to run around and play ball with my boy David again. I am looking forward to going swimming - maybe I'll have one of those really cool vests to wear - and in the winter I'll be able to run and pounce in the snow and then do my best imitation of a snowplow, nose to the ground underneath the snow.

The first photo is from November 2006 and the second is two weeks post-op. I'm glad my family found this website.

The stories and information here really helped my family to understand that I could make it with 3 legs. I'm happy to be alive as a "tripet" (that's what my boy calls me) and able to join Cassie's club.

Dictated by Hobbes to his mom,
Ruth Natzel, Cheshire, CT
Wednesday May 2, 2007