Robert Barker's physical therapy exercises after front leg amputation (dog post-amp PT)

Robert Barker had his left forelimb amputated because of a soft tissue sarcoma. The rehab clinic is the U of MN Vet School, the same place he had his amputation surgery.
In addition to your local veterinary school, look for veterinary rehab providers here: www.caninereha... or here:
www.rehabvets....
Robert had a rehab consultation about 5-6 weeks post-amputation. It lasted 2 hours and by the end we learned a number of exercises to help strengthen Robert's remaining limbs including weight shifts, doggy squats (sit/stands), step stretches, how to use a treadmill, and how to massage his leg.
I made this short video to give you an idea of what some of these exercises are--although I understand that each dog's needs will determine what exercises they should do for optimum functioning. Hope it helps!

[@lindseybrooks4107]

Thank you, that is very helpful. Mt dog is booked for a front limb amputation next week, emotions flying high (mine) so good to get some heads up on exercises

[@farmfreshfeasts461]

Hi Lindsey! I very much understand what you're going through--hugs to you and your pup.
In my experience days 3-5 were the worst. The long-acting intra-operative pain meds they'd put inside before they closed him up wore off, the pills we were giving him weren't cutting it, he wasn't eating/drinking/peeing/pooping normally, none of us were sleeping well . . . it was just Hard. I second guessed my decision multiple times.
You just have to tuck your head and get through it.
Then, bit by bit, things start to get better. Corners get turned, milestones met, and like everyone says, by 2 weeks you're able to lift your head up, look around, and see flashes of Your Dog coming back.

Biggest thing I can tell you is that YOUR ATTITUDE is really important. Your pup takes cues from you and reflects your emotions back at you--if you're looking all worried, seeing what's NOT there instead of what IS THERE, your pup will see the concern and worry in your face and be concerned and worried about you.
Luckily you're in complete control of your attitude (unlike if your pup doesn't pee or want to eat, or if the surgery doesn't go as planned . . . that's all out of your control).
Put a happy 'everything's fine' expression on your face and fake the new normal until it becomes normal. Cry in the shower when you're second guessing your decision (that's what I did) but when you're around your tripawd be the most positive version of yourself you can be. Our surgeon passed along the advice he learned from one of his mentors, "dogs are born with 3 legs and a spare". The dog will figure things out--it's our job to give them the most supportive positive environment in which to do that.
We kept as much as possible to the normal dog routine during those first days-as in, all dogs go outside to do business first thing in the morning and last thing at night, and we expected Robert Barker to adhere to this routine. We cut him slack during the day, but made him go out those 2 times when the other dogs went out-I think having some amount of normalcy helps.

Ice packs during the first 3 days, then heat packs after. Massage was always appreciated-it helped ME to feel like I was helping him, especially when he’d just melt against me after I started the massage.


It helps to keep tripawds thin. I cut Robert Barker's kibble by ⅓ when he came home from the hospital since he was not very physically active. He didn't miss it and it helped me feel very comfortable giving him extra treats and tidbits without adding to his weight. He wasn't stocky but he's very lean now.


The vet oncologist helped me know how to taper the gabapentin. At peak pain we'd been giving him 2 capsules 3x day (every 8 hours). We went to 2 capsules 2x/day (every 12 hours) for 3 days, then 1 capsule 2x/day for 3 days, then 1 capsule 1x/day for 3 days (I think we picked at night, to help him rest).
There are tripawd groups--if you're on FB look for one there. It helps to have folks going through it to vent to/get advice &ideas from. I know I didn't touch on raised food & water dishes, floor mats, or harnesses in my video.