Posted by: Lois Lindemann on: January 13th, 2008 
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Should you become a three legged cat you will still be able to enjoy your pampered cat lifestyle. Here is some advice for the newly three-legged cat:
1. Prepare to become a local legend
Everybody loves three legged cats. Absolutely everybody. Even the man next door who didn’t like you at all when you had four legs will say “Ah!”. Make the most of your fame and use it to your advantage.
Train the paperboy. He will think you are so cute that he will turn up with little treats for you hidden in his pockets, you will hardly be able to keep up with him as he does his round because you have to keep stopping to eat them.
The two children across the road will fall in love with you and worship you. Allow them to pet you, then they will feed you bits of chocolate biscuit when they think no-one is looking.
When your human pet has gone to work, hang around looking very sad and neglected. You will be able to persuade the nice lady who lives up the road to set out early for work, just so that she can stop and make a fuss of you. When you sneak into her house later on, she will feed you little dishes of tuna fish, allow you to sleep in front of her fire and play with her own cat’s toys.
2. You will discover just how stupid some humans can be
Some foolish people will completely fail to notice that you only have three legs. They will make stupid remarks such as “I think your cat’s limping, is he alright?” Do these humans really think that you can’t run about on three legs? They seem to manage, even though they only have two. Do not allow these idiots to rub your ears, for they are not worthy of it.
3. Develop some new climbing techniques
At home, you may need to be more imaginative. When your human pet thinks that an unattended dish of trifle is out of your reach, you can prove her wrong, by climbing onto a chair, then jumping onto the table, before finally launching yourself at the work surface. Mmm custard, your favourite thing in the world…
However, it is best if you do not attempt to climb any tall trees, this will result in an undignified failure. Instead hang around on the ground looking disinterested and mock the four legged cats who attain more height, but who look most ungainly as they clamber upwards.
4. Play cat and mouse.
Hunting birds is more difficult when you have only three legs, it is so much more effort to leap in the air. You may prefer to develop a taste for mice instead. When you get really old and lazy you might even try hunting worms. Or slugs. (But don’t let your human pet see you do that, or she will shout “Yuk!” and decline to cuddle you.)
5. Train your human pet to pander to your every whim
Your human pets will worry greatly about your three legged status and will be acutely aware of your every difficulty, so make the most of their feelings of guilt and use them to your advantage.
In the first weeks after your operation, decline to eat anything apart from the finest cuts of meat. Your humans will be extremely vexed about your health and will happily serve your choice of food.
When you begin to recover, pull your claws wildly on the carpet of the bottom step of the stair and on the base of the sofa until your dozy humans get the message and provide you with recumbent scratching facilities.
Once you are fully mobile, remember to look as if you are struggling from time to time, this will allow you to keep your human pets’ undivided attention. If you see one of them walking home laden with as much shopping as they can carry, hop out pathetically to meet them, making sure that you appear to be struggling to walk, then ride home in state, sitting on their shoulder whilst chuckling inwardly at how much they are struggling to carry you and all those bags. Once you have reached home in this manner and been placed gently back at ground level, run off at top speed with no difficulty whatsoever.
You will quickly discover that your three-leggedness is not necessarily a disadvantage as some humans might think; in fact it often makes it much easier for you to train the local humans to worship you and do your bidding.
Dear Kate
Please don’t beat yourself up over Abby. All our tripods have been in similar situations where we wonder ‘what if…’ but the truth is that what is happening right now is the most important thing.
I still reflect at times on what I could have done to prevent JJ’s situation. I was chatting to a friend on the phone in the garden one sunny afternoon when the most horrendous cat fight was going on in the next garden. My friend commented that it sounded like ‘JJ was giving some cat a hard time’. We laughed, as it was typical of JJ to look for trouble – then I saw JJ limp into the house through the cat flap. Two hours later having thought he had gone to sleep on my bed, I called all the cats for their tea. No JJ. On going upstairs he was lying in the middle of my bed in a pool of blood with his back leg at an awkward angle. By this time my wonderful vet surgery had closed and I had to go to the on call vet who was absolutely hopeless. Two weeks later after failed tendon surgery, the leg died and my lovely vet had to amputate.
What I am trying to illustrate is that I agonised for months about what a terrible mum I was, why had I laughed and joked, why had I not checked him earlier, why had I left it too late for my own vet to see him.
Like most incidents in human life, unless there is a frame of reference to apply, such as previous experience, we have no warning and can only deal with things as they occur. We only have the ‘benefit’ of hindsight. You weren’t to know that on this occasion Abby would be trapped in the curtain, it was an accident. Otherwise we would all be inspecting our homes for potential feline accident blackspots and getting neurotic in the process. There are some things that we can predict with knowledge (like not having vases of lilies around which cats could eat and get poisoned). I’ve heard of a cat that had to have a leg amputated because it fell off the top of a cat climbing post! Who could have predicted that?
As you say, Abby is a fighter – she will get on and cope with this – and so will you.
Best wishes Anne
Thanks for the words of wisdom Anne. As it’s still very early days i’m only just beginning to get my head around what has happened. Just rang the vet and she’s pulled through surgery well. So now onto the next step which is thinking positively and giving all the love and help she needs to recover. Can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate you responding to my post. XXX
You’re welcome, sorry if I was a bit preachy – it was 5 in the morning so wasn’t fully awake. I’m pleased she’s now over the surgery and there are loads of tips on this site for the next stage…
Anne
I also have a rescue kitten who sustained an injury requiring her leg to be removed. Honestly I still feel guilty, that’s normal, just know that kittens will be curious regardless of our best acts of prevention. If she’s anything like Ella Catticus she will be back and even better in no time. Try to allow yourself to take in the emotions, just don’t let them overwhelm you, your kitten has already gotten over it
My 3 legged cat loves being outside so several times a day i walk him round the garden on a leash. I want to know if its ok to fit a cat flap and give him the freedom he wants and live normal life again. I rescued him a month ago he is well settled and is familiar with his territory.
Hi Dawn, The hardest thing for me to do was to give my tripod the freedom to go back outside because of my fear. However, she now comes & goes as she pleases when the weather is warm and she is very happy about it. They are normal cats, they just happen to have 3 legs. Give your kitty the freedom, everything will be okay. Keep a close eye the first few days but I’ll bet that as soon as he figures out he has some freedom, he’ll be very happy to take advantage of it. Hugs from Sonja & Tre’pod
Dear Sonja
Thank you so much for the reassurance i know he will be so happy to have his freedom again he would rather be out than in. Many thanks, Dawn
You are very welcome Dawn, hardest thing to do as a tripod mama is to give them their freedom back, you are so afraid that they will get hurt, again. My little Tre’ (we call her Tre’pod now) lost her front right leg to cancer and for several weeks I kept the stairs blocked off. Then one day I saw her going down the deck stairs like she owned them, took the gate down right then and there and she goes up and down like nothing now. She hit her 1 year anniversary at the end of March and still, every day, I’m amazed at her. She has just taken her adversity in stride and gotten on with life. It has taken me much longer to get over her cancer and I still worry about her every day but she’s amazing. You’re boy will teach you lots because they don’t see themselves as handicapped, it is just what life has given them and they just live it. Enjoy your boy. Hugs from Sonja and Tre’pod
Sonja
I took your advice had a cat flap fitted and set my cat free. He loves his life now, no more leash. He doesnt wander too far from house and always comes back he is never in now loves his freedom it was the best thing i ever did and would advise others to go for it. I phoned the vet as well and they said the same as you. I feel that his life is enriched he can do normal catty things, nighttime is his favourite time. It has changed both our lives for the better ive actually been able to get some housework done, when i wasnt working i was walking bertie round the garden 5 – 6 times a day. Thank you so much for giving me the confidence to do it. Take care
I am so happy for both you and Bertie! We love our babies so much and want the best for them and sometimes it’s scary because it means giving them a little freedom that we aren’t sure we want to give. My little Tre’ loves to go outside so I try to leave doors open a crack so she can come & go as she pleases. Loving a tripod teaches us so much about adapting. I’m so happy that your Bertie is out and exploring like a kitty should. Sitting here smiling, I’m so happy for you. Hugs from Sonja & Tre’pod
Hi just to update lucky is hoping around madly on three legs now and ambushing the door any time anyone come in or out he is doing amazingly well.
Love pads x
So happy for you, your son and Lucky, he truly is a lucky cat. They are amazing animals and he will only get better and better. Hugs from Sonja & Tre’pod
Hello! I was happy to find this website…i am about to adopt a rescue cat from the RSPCA who has recently had his entire back leg removed due to a bad injury.
I wondered if you have any advice on pet insurance? Does your insurance consider this a pre-existing condition?
How have you dealt with this?
Thanks!
Yes having an amputation would be a pre-existing condition – but nothing else can go wrong with that leg once it isn’t there! So hopefully all the treatment will have been done by the time you adopt the cat. Once that is over then it is convalescence and progress all the way.
Thanks Ann… i am tyring to find insurance for him but no luck so far. Do you know of any pet insurers who will take on a cat with this physical disability?
Congratulations on your new addition!
Dear Rachelle
Try Petplan. A bit more expensive than some but they cover for life not just up to a certain age. The excess I pay has gone up a bit over the years but they are now eleven so bits are dropping off them as they get older LOL. One set of teeth and eleven legs between the three of them.
My original four, now three cats, have been with Petplan since kittens, Tara had treatment for a upper respiratory tract infection before I insured them so that is classed as ‘pre-existing’ but she hasn’t had one since! Given they’ve all had pancreatitis (Amber died) and teeth extractions, plus Jaspurr had an abscess and cat flu, JJ had a dodgy tum from birth and has since had treatment for asthma including Liverpool Veterinary Hospital stay 2 years ago and monthly inhaler prescriptions since (counted as continuing claim), behavioural treatment for spraying round the house plus the amputation, they have certainly all had their money’s worth. Thousands!
My vet says that Petplan don’t quibble over the forms as some companies are prone to do. Also he just gets me to sign the form and the payment claim amount is made direct to the vets so I don’t even have to pay up front.
Thanks! Very helpful. I will look into Petplan.
Hello. I needed some advice possibly. We have a 6yr old rescued cat named Lazarus. He isn’t normally an “outside” cat but he got out Friday before last (now 9 days ago but came home after 6 days…) and we had been searching shelters (he’s microchipped) and posting flyers looking for him. He came home this past Saturday with a badly broken front left leg and missing 2 toes on the outside of his paw. We and the dr’s have no idea what could of happened. It looks as though they’ve been sheared off,bones and all. Its not jagged or mangled,just a clean slice. Anywho,it must of happened right after getting out that Friday because infection had set in and the smell OMG it was horrible. But no other wounds,cuts,breaks,scratches or anything anywhere else on him. The dr’s want to amputate his front left leg. What I’m worried about is it being a FRONT leg. If it was a back leg I could see it being easier for him to adjust to it. He’s in the hospital right now and I’ve been watching him hobble around and he is having a terrible time. Another thing is that he LOVES being outside and its getting harder & harder to keep him indoors. Once his leg is gone there would be no outside for him. I’m wondering if maybe it would be in his best interest to do tis to him? Not only would he have to re adjust to life missing a limb,but he would lose his outside time as well. Any advice? Thanks.
Charlotte, I have a now, 12 year old, baby that has made it wonderfully to her 1 year anniversary of having to have her front right leg amputated due to cancer. PLEASE believe that Lazarus can go through this and be a perfectly happy, healthy, normal cat. They are amazingly adaptable animals and once they realize that the leg is gone, they just get on life. They have no idea that they are handicapped because they aren’t in their mind. I cried buckets over having to make such a terrible decision and it was harder because my little Tre’ was 11 but it was the best decision I could have made. She is now a happy, healthy, beautiful baby and I don’t look back and say “what if” because she is perfect to me. Your love for your baby is obvious but know that your love will allow the amputation and then you’ll just love him all that much more because of his special circumstances. I allow my Tre’ to go outside but she has never been much of a wanderer. She’s seldom out more than just a few minutes and seldom out of sight but you may have to make the decision to put a shelf in front of a window where there is a nice breeze and that will be his outside. You may also have to make steps in places where is is a little high as getting down with 1 front leg can be tricky. We have steps all over the place and Tre’ has learned to use them both going up and down. I know this is a really hard decision but believe me when I say, to amputate the leg is your best decision and you won’t regret it once he has healed and is on the road to his new normal. Look at the picture that comes up with my post and you’ll see that my Tre’ has healed beautifully. Good luck with your decision and please keep us posted we are a happy community with a lot of very special cats. Hugs to you all from Sonja and Tre’pod
Dear Charlotte What has the vet said? Is he planning to amputate? Please be reassured that it isn’t the end of the world. My JJ had severed tendons in his back leg and the leg died over a couple of weeks, the smell was awful and my vet had no choice. I cried all over the vet and JJ. It was the best decision ever. Hope this site can help you as there are cats losing front and back legs, that are still going on to have full lives. They adjust a lot better than we do and once he’s over the surgery and worked out what’s possible, there will be no stopping him. The first few weeks are traumatic as you will find from other people here, who have their own stories to tell of good recoveries and how their cat has adjusted. Mine climbed an eight foot wire fence yesterday trying to catch birds.
Anne,thanks. The dr wants to amputate. I’m lucky to work at a veterinary clinic here BUT our vets don’t handle the major trauma cases. They do surgeries for basically everything else and even did an exploratory abdominal surgery on my OTHER cat a year ago this month =/ But a docter from another hospital would be the one doing the amputation. Basically what worries me the most his how happy would he be afterwards. He LOVES going outside and its almost impossible to keep him in. But we have absolutely no idea what happened to him. Whatever it was sheared the toes right off his left foot and broke his leg. Since I have no clue how or where he went to get hurt like this,and the fact that without all his limbs,climbing or defending himself would be a physical impossibility,he would be forbidden to go outside. =( I don’t think he’d cope well with that. My kids and I love him to death. He loves belly rubs and even drools when you do it lol. He LOVES dogs and plays with them like he was one. He is a cool cat. I’m just thinking longterm here and if id be doing him any favors by removing his leg and taking away the main thing he loves which is going outside.
Dear Charlotte, my little Abby injured her front right leg after getting her claws tangled in a curtain and falling off the window sill. It was horrible seeing her hurt and in so much pain. She too LOVES going outside and playing in our yard. Our vet told us her best option was to amputate. It was the hardest decision we’ve ever had to make. Yesterday was exactly two weeks since she had her front right leg amputated. I was worried how she would cope and how she would move about, use her litter box and clean herself. So far her recovery has been exceptional. While it’s been hard for us watching her adapt, she doesn’t seem bothered at all. Once she was allowed out of her cage (10 days) her mood improved and she is happy getting on with life. She still forgets that her leg is missing and you can see her trying to use it in her litter box but as soon as she realizes nothings happening she quickly switches to her left. She had her first afternoon outside on the weekend and LOVED it. As she has no idea that she’s ‘disabled’ i’m sure it won’t be long till she’s up to her old tricks and trying to escape over our back fence! So don’t be too worried. Once you’ve gone through the normal emotions of feeling upset and worried your little Lazarus will show you just what a clever and adaptable cat he is. I really feel for you as I was in the same situation only a fortnight ago…but I can assure you things will get better and quickly! xxxx
And thank you for your response by the way =)
My cat had the same injuries and they took the whole limb
It was horrible to think about but anatomically it’s the best option for the well being of the cat
My cat is unstoppable and it’s only been 6 months
Read back on these posts it will make you feel much better
One day at a time…….I can appreciate you are looking long term but see how he is once the leg is amputated. He will need you to be calm and care for him as he recovers. You will be making adjustments in the house to help him get around and he will work things out for himself, including those first wobbly steps outside. Do you have a garden or yard? Or does he go straight out on to the street?
A familiar feeling to all of us here is shock and grief and all those fears of how he will manage and how we will cope. At the moment he needs you to be brave and strong as you would be if the kids were sick. Look after yourself, have a cry, talk to your kids about what he will be like once he’s had the surgery, discuss what he will need to get better (like peace and quiet) and so on. Take care.
please read all back posts, to amputate is to give them their life and freedom. they will adjust it doesnt matter front or back…. we must give them chances and they will amaze you with their ability to adapt.
Just thought i’d post an update on Abby. It’s now two weeks since she had her front right leg removed. She is healing beautifully. And while it is still a bit sad to see her adapt to life without her leg she doesn’t seem too fussed at all. I have put a few little steps for her to use but so far I haven’t seen her use them once! Little champion, she has no idea that she’s now ‘handicapped’! I let her outside for a few hours on the weekend which was a little nerve racking. She’s been trying to get out for days and gets quite cranky when we don’t let her! She has this naughty habit of escaping over the fence into the next door neighbors yard. I originally thought the three legged situation would stop her but somehow I think i’m gonna have to keep a close eye on her! I’ve attached a photo of her in her cage at day 7 post surgery. Her fur is now beginning to grow back and the stitches don’t look so puckered. Pretty soon she’ll be looking her glossy beautiful self. xxx
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/p480x480/546493_10150717321462903_608127902_9487444_1453067561_n.jpg
I’v read all of the posts on here and whilst I’m delighted to hear that all the cats seem to be adapting my cat’s situation is slighlty different. His name is Panther and he is more or less 3 years old, he is one of three cats that have been abandoned by my house so I feed them daily and look out for any problems they may have (and had them all ‘done’). They all sleep in the garden on the couch at nightime (when the dog has gone to bed) and spend hours running round the aloe vera fields that surround the house. Panther had a swollen foot and after many different diagnosis the vet opened the foot up and found a tumour, I have been advised that it is likely he will lose the leg but out of the three cats he is the only one who doesn’t like human contact he’ll come close but he doesn’t like being touched and he won’t stay indoors he becomes very agitated when a door closes so I guess you could say he is a true ‘streetcat’. I am just worried about him being outdoors, his two friends miss him so much they look for him each day and he has been gone a month. After the surgery he will be spending time recovering with the local Cat charity who can offer him the best post-op care and then a decision will be made on when/if he can come home. I just keep wondering if he’ll be able to adapt to a life on three legs as he doesn’t want to be a housecat, will his friends be able to look after him, will he still have an enjoyable life, I will always look after him as best as he will let me but I don’t want him to be in danger when he goes out on his daily rounds. As for his friends, well he bumped into one at the vet yesterday (the little scab on Minstrels ear diagnosed as cancer not a good day lots of tears) and as soon as he realised who it was they just sat staring at each other and trying to touch (I think he may have staged a breakout had Smudge turned up too they really are the three amigos) another reason why I don’t want him to not be allowed home. Sorry for droning on but what I really would appreciate is any advice/opinions I have been tossing and turning all night thinking about him.
Hi to update on lucky he has had his stiches out now and he seems fine, think my son is going to take him out into the garden to see how he does.
Dear Claire.
The Vet told us the main reason cat’s need help is to find food, ie a wild cat might not survive because its hunting ability would be more limited. However if you provide food I can see no reason why your cat would not adjust, my son’s cat has adjusted wonderfully. The vet said there have been instanses of cats climbing tree’s with only one front leg and they manage fine.
See how it goes but I hope you all will be reuinted soon.
Love pads x
Charlotte,
Our Bonnie had her right front leg amputated in January and you wouldn’t know it if you saw how she races around the house. She is constantly climbing and jumping all over everything. She is much faster than our other larger cat and more than holds her own in their wrestling matches. Her fur has grown in and there is just an empty furry space where her leg used to be. She is such a sweet and lovely kitten with loads of personality. She had some issues adjusting to three legged litter box during a bout of diarrhea right after we brought her home but she managed to figure that out as well (thankfully!). There have been a couple of times where she’s reached up for something with her claws and gotten her paw stuck because there’s no other paw to push off with and I have seen her fall off things while climbing or walking because she just ran out of paws. She just deals with all these things. She’s a trooper and a love and I’m so grateful to have her with us. Your cat will adapt and be back to herself soon. Don’t worry!!!
We are not going to let her outside (we promised the shelter where she came from that we wouldn’t) but she has access to a screened in porch where she can take in the sights and sounds of the outdoors.
Charlotte,
The cat i am planning to adopt had a similar incident. He was found by the RSPCA with a badly broken leg last Oct. They tried to mend it twice but was not healing so they amputated the hind leg in March 2012. I visited him last weekend and he was already walking about and seemingly quite good natured. In fact he was the most friendly cat at the RSPCA adoption centre!
The only thing is he aquired a nervous “over-grooming” as a result of the trauma and being kept in a shelter with other cats. This would go away once he was in a home and feeling more settled.
Basically he seemd to be almost normal after only 2 months! He was a very happy cat with only a few little stumbles now and then.
I thought you would like to see this movie of our 3-legged cat, Pumpkin, playing with his new iPad app! Pumpkin lost a back leg when he was hit by a car while crossing the street. He is doing very well, as you can see. We love him so much!
http://youtu.be/wsk0p3AeG54
Hi again. My three-legged cat has now come home from the RSPCA where i first met him. He had his entire back leg removed on March 5. At first he was very happy to be in his new home, but now after 2.5 days he has suddenly showed erratic signs of distress and imbalance. He was playing and runnning about with a little toy mouse and then he suddenly flipped out and started screaming and trying to climb things as if in agony.
I wonder if he has over-exerted himself and maybe bruised his stump and other back leg from falling/running too much. He has only been in a shelter since the amputation so not much exercise.
Has anyone experienced this?
I called the emergency Vet as its Sunday and they said to monitor him and try to keep him contained in only part of the house so he can manage with the new/large/awkward space.
I have all hardwood floor which might be making him extra slippery for him. he is also shaven from the waist down so probably not enough padding( fur) to ease the shock of falling on the boney stump.
Can anyone recall similar behaviours with their cat after a couple of months of surgery?
He is probably also ajusting to having a home, in addition to the fact that when he was in a cage, he had little freedom to move around. He now has lots of space and things at different heights.
I plan to call the RSPCA on Monday as soon as they open…but any reassurance/similar scenarios would ease my worry for him.
He is sleeping now…but doesn’t like to have to walk anywhere.
I should also mention that he has not defecated in nearly 2 days. He has finally urinated this morning in his litter box…
Any thoughts?
Me again – i finally got an out of hours number for the RSPCA and they said this behaviour happened a few times while he was in their care. It’s due to falling and hurting himself. He’s not quite mended so he’ll need to slow down a bit.
Poor guy.
Thanks everyone. This blog has been really helpful.
Hi Rachelle,
Don’t panic! My three-legged cat was exactly the same following his surgery.
It took him a little while to adjust to balancing on three legs. He fell over when he was playing fairly often. Sometimes he seemed to lean on the leg that wasn’t there just before he toppled over. He adjusted fairly quickly, give it a few weeks.
I can’t remember how long it took for normal bodily functions to resume, but I remember being worried, so it must have taken a while.
Thanks Lois! It’s been anxious start to Sunday morning…but i feel its under control now. I love him soooooooooooo much and was worried i had extended his abilities by getting him to chase and play with his toys.
I think he will just need to slowly build up his strength on his other back leg. There are so many things new for him right now even beyond the amputation.
The RSPCA said it happened a few times in their care and they put him on pain killers.
He’s a handsome black cat just lust yours! Would post a pic if possible.
