Hi. I'm currently fostering a rescue Jack Russell who came into the kennels with a fractured pelvis and back legs.
She is doing really well but is likely to end up a tri-paw due to the extent of the damage on the one side.
My parents are going to apply to adopt her so I'm looking for suitable harness recommendations. She is only a young girl and I'd like to make sure in the future she doesn't over stress her remaining back leg especially as that has been been damaged too.
Suggestions welcome!
My tripod dog was missing a front leg, and 50 lbs, so worse off than your girl, as the rear legs bear less weight, and smaller dogs tend to fare better less a leg than their larger counterparts. My dog used a regular collar for much of her life, but I did switch to a harness to help support her weight while walking when she got old and creaky. Initially I was using a fitted walking/joring harness (y front, but padded) I had from my other dog, but when that wore out and her mobility decreased, I got her a Ruffwear Webmaster, which was better due to the extra strap and centrally located handle.
I will also mention that keeping her lean will probably make a much greater impact on her long term mobility than anything else. My dog spent a couple years as a bit of a pudge, and being a heavier breed already, that didn't help her in the long term. If she enjoys swimming, that is also great exercise, but it would be wise to have her wear a life jacket to help balance her since one side will be less a "paddle" (FWIW my dog could swim fine, though she hated swimming). Also, I would try to limit high impact jumping/landing, and sharp turns/stops, as these tend to be more common things that result in torn cruciate ligaments, which would be a major issue for a dog with only 1 hind leg. Good luck with her!
This is the walking harness I had- you can see it would twist around a little, but for a dog with 2 front legs, should do it less- it also was made for my other, slightly larger dog, so was a bit loose:
And this is the Webmaster- it stayed in place better, but could still twist around if conditions were right:
I would think either type would be fine to offer a little support for a dog missing a rear leg
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