Tenacious Tripaws

A common reaction when people see a three-legged dog is sympathy (“Poor thing…”), or admiration. (“What a brave pooch!”). Both are understandable. For humans, amputation can involve complex psychological and emotional issues. For dogs? Less so. Dogs have no notion of body image, no mental image of what they are supposed to look like. What they care about falls into two major categories: One, whether they are in pain. Two, whether they can do things they love: go for walks, play with toys, eat yummy food, get belly rubs, snuggle on the couch, etc. A pain-free, well-fed dog with a loving home doesn’t give a hoot that her daily walk happens in the characteristic tripaw hop instead of a four-legged lope.