Histiocytoma?

Apparently that's what he's got goin on on his paw. Doc's gonna do cytology on it anyways (i.e., she's going to take a sample to the lab) just to make sure that it's not a mast cell tumor. She thinks it's much more likely to be a histiocytoma.

Apparently, this is relatively common amongst young adult dogs, and manifests in a red, large, benign tumor, usually on the face or limbs. They tend to emerge almost overnight (um, yep, that's what happened here) and will dissolve on their own after a few months. Here's Otis's.

It doesn't seem to bother him much, but it will bleed at times when he's running on rough surfaces. For instance, when we were at the park on Christmas Eve, he ran through the snowy woods chasing daddy. (They like to play hide-n-seek in the snow.) Then he realized it was stinging and sore and went a little lame. Poor guy. I think the ice and salt irritate it some.

Doc will come back to our house next week to take samples. 'Tis one drama-filled moment after another with Otis, isn't it? I swear...

Oh well, guess that's just our lot in life with him. Luckily he brings us such joy that it's worth any drama that he brings with him. And luckily he seems oblivious to the drama, for the most part. It's only mom and dad that get to enjoy the knowledge of the extent of his problems. Truly is like having a child, I suppose.

Anyhow, here are some more pics of my man-man. Such happiness--reflects what the season means to me. Living in the moment, moving forward without looking back, and finding joy in the simple things. Ah, Otis--what a philosopher you are! ;-)

Updates: again

I tell you what--this dog...

Just when things are looking up, something ALWAYS happens. At least this time it's pretty minor, I suppose. He's got this weird little bump/growth on his front paw. He licks it occasionally, and it bleeds at times. It doesn't seem to really bother him, but still. Really? *curses at the doggy gods*

:-)

Anyhow, otherwise, things are looking up. It's getting colder, but he's loving every second of it. In fact, he just dragged me outside in 10 degree weather to sniff and explore. (He's a sneak, because I took him out under the pretenses of relieving himself, but he had other intentions!) I hope that next spring I can get him in obedience classes--finally--so we can work on his listening skills. He may look like a big boy, but man does he like to act like a puppy!! We want to make sure that we continue to keep him well-socialized, too. We can't go home for the holidays this year, but we have been having some little holiday parties here and there, and Otis is always the center of attention.

 Notice how he just HAD to sit in the middle of the kitchen floor while the boys got their food. He also decided to walk amongst all 17 of them to beg for food. He puts on the cutest face when he's begging...

All in all, 2010 has been quite the year. Never thought having a golden retriever would lead to so much drama! On top of that, we've bought a house and held our new jobs for the first full year. What a whirlwind...can't wait for a little R&R...

And on that note:

HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM OTIS AND FAMILY!

The holiday season.

I've seen a great improvement in man-man lately. He's getting some "junk in the trunk" now (i.e., his hip muscles are growing) and he's very spry in the snow. He's gaining confidence too--he'll jump and run and play on the ice in ways I hadn't thought he would.

This thanksgiving, my mother-in-law and brother-in-law brought up their 11-year-old golden to play with Otis.

 These two were inseparable. Max acted about 10 years younger and Otis showed his newfound strength. What a great holiday we had! Hikes and playtime...it was wonderful.

Then when I put up the Christmas tree, he and our kitty Butchie loved watching me decorate. Apparently the excitement of Christmas was too much for Otis, because he could barely stay awake as I tried to find places for the last of our ornaments...

I really hope that I continue to see this improvement through the snowy season. I worry a little that he might get a bit of arthritis when it gets bitterly cold--but our first accumulation last night (and his first rambunctious snowy playtime) went off without a hitch. I hope that as we approach the one-year anniversary of surgery number one (in February), he'll be inching closer to 100%...

Now if he'd only jump up into the car and go up the steps...

:-)

A collage

I totally created a collage of Otis. And because I love him, and I'm bored, I'm going to share it with the 2 or 3 people who randomly arrive at this blog.

Getting better and better...

Today I took a look at man-man with a critical eye. Could I still tell that he's recoverING and not recoverED? I checked his gait, his musculature, his energy. Good news? He's better than ever. But I can still see room for improvement.

Otis runs great. His gait is strong and light. He trots along like a champ--and you'd never know he'd had surgery less than 9 months ago! When he plays with Loki (his favorite of the neighbor dogs), he sprints and cuts like a running back in the NFL, and although you can tell he's quite a bit slower than Loki (with his lab/greyhound genes), he still manages to keep it close. Part of that is his smarts--he cuts Loki off and takes shortcuts. :-)

When I bribe him, he'll jump in the air. Sometimes, his back legs will come a good 2-3 inches off of the ground. But that's on a good day. He still hates to jump. And this means that mom or dad has to boost his rear into the jeep when we go on hikes or to the dog park. He also still struggles with steps--he bunny hops less on the way down--sometimes (meaning that he's starting to alternate back feet instead of hopping both at the same time), but he always takes his time going up. He's got this weird mental thing with steps. You really have to coax him about them. That's a good thing for the kitties though...Butchie will just go up or down a few steps and flaunt his independence by giving himself a bath. Oh the whining that ensues! haha! (below you'll see a video of Butchie and Otis in a typical encounter...)

Overall, I really see improvement in his movement, strength and mobility. And we'll chase each other and run and play all afternoon, and he shows no indication that he's in any pain at all. He's currently on no medication but his daily chondroitin+MSM+glucosomine pills (just a supplement to lubricate the joints). We're gonna keep working him and making sure that his movement is improving...I think he's got more room to grow and I'll keep nudging him forward until I think he's gotten as good as he can get. He's so happy now, though--and I don't regret choosing surgery at all. It's been a bonding experience--and one that proves the resilience and strength of a puppy (and his humans).

One year ago today...

Otis came into our lives and changed them forever. The trials and tribulations we've gone through with Otis were unexpected, but it's all served to solidify our love for him and his place in our family.

Health-wise, Otis is really improving. We're weaning him off of the tramadol gradually...from three pills at a time to two. He's walking better, running better, and just acting better in general. Today we took him to the dog park again (we took him last Sunday as well). Last week he acted somewhat timidly--he mostly ran around and sniffed and smelled. And when he finally got pooped, he laid down and we took that as a sign that he had had enough. This week, he was a social butterfly! He played with dogs--and not just a little bit, either! He wrestled and ran and acted a fool. It was so heartening to see! He would fall down when a bigger dog would tackle him and I'd think, "ok, here we go, now he's gonna shut it down," and he'd get up and tackle the big dog right back! Such a proud mama, I am.

These little things are the things that you hold onto and notice after months of recovery and PT. You watch his stamina improving gradually and his running get smoother. You look for his confidence to return and his attitude to shift. Sometimes you go weeks without thinking he's getting any better. And then there are days like today...when you see your hard work beginning to pay off.

I know it's going to take more months of massages and exercises and patience before he's at his peak performance. But there's something a little bit invigorating to see improvement right in front of your eyes.  Here Otis is, fresh from the groomers. Love the bandana in honor of Halloween! He walks so proudly after he's had a bath...

Updates...

This week Otis had his third appointment with the physical therapist. Great news is that he's improving greatly! Thigh muscles grew from 14 1/2 to 15 1/2 on one side and from 15 1/2 to 16 on the other. Range of motion is 140 degrees on both sides. His "roaching" in his back is gone (apparently that's when the back is curved because the back legs are too far under the body--think cat pose in yoga). She thinks that he's doing so much better...and that makes momma happy. :-)

We are to continue his medication for the next two months and continue his massages and stretching. Apparently he still has tightness in his sartorius muscle (runs down the front of the thigh) and he needs to build up his hamstrings. He also needs to improve his range of motion (our goal is 155 degrees, I think). So, continue the exercises from the first post, and try to get him walking backwards up hills more. That will stretch his back legs the way they need to stretch so he can walk up steps and jump in the jeep. We're going to continue to be vigilant. Man, if by the first snow he can be "normal"? Mom will be thrilled! Hiking the trails around here in the snow is unparalleled...and we want him with us like last year. Last year, the first snow was the day we brought him home to us. Love.

On a side note, Otis lifted his leg and peed yesterday on our walk. He's never done that before! Since it requires balancing on one leg, his surgeries haven't allowed him the confidence to lift his leg before. Guess something clicked and he went for it. Hasn't done it since, but I wonder if it'll end up as his new "thing" before long. Interesting. He's also jumping OUT of the jeep now, for the first time, by himself. Little improvements. Momma's pleased.

We went to Cape Cod a couple of weeks ago and brought him with us to trounce around in the surf. He's a beach bum of a dog, let me tell you!! And if you ever need a dog sitter in the area, try Tina at A Happy Pet. She's UNBELIEVABLE. Even with Otis's special needs. I wrote a recommendation for her. You can check it out here: http://ahappypet.web.officelive.com/references.aspx

Our regimen

I realized that it might be helpful for some of you out there (if you are out there) to know our PT regimen for Otis. You might want to start it immediately after your puppy gets clearance, regardless of whether you take him/her to PT him/herself. But this is just what we do, so don't ever do anything you think might hurt your puppy...when it doubt, ask your vet if this is okay.

1. Massage: We give each hip a daily massage. Starting with long strokes down each back/hip/leg. Then strong circular motions. Then we do the "deep" massage. Each hamstring and quadriceps gets a deep kneading motion (like if you put the muscle between the forefinger and thumb and gently squeeze the tension out). Get to know your dog's muscles--know his hip (which is in the middle of the side, not on the backbone), know his quad/thigh, his hamstring, his calf muscle and his achilles. Know his knee from his ankle, etc. It'll help you to diagnose issues.

2. Stretches: We gently manipulate each affected joint. When his knee was tight, we would force him to extend his knee. For his hips, we support his knee (NEVER put pressure on the joint itself!!) and push on his thigh, backwards (like if he had his leg extended out behind him). He hates it and fights us, but we stay firm and reward him greatly. He gets very agitated with the stretching, but it's super important. If he doesn't get back his range of motion, he won't be able to jump up on the couch or into the car, or go up/down the steps normally. He needs to be able to extend his back legs at 165 degrees each. Or so we're told.

3. Exercises, Easy: Sit/stand. He sits and then stands. Voila. Pretty simple, but works those back thighs. Just like if you or I were doing squats.

4. Exercises, Easy: Walk in circles/figure 8s. When he goes on his daily 5-15 minute walks, we walk him in circles (counter and clockwise) or in figure 8s. The inside leg's muscles work harder that way.

5. Exercises, Easy: Balancing. I support him under his belly and lift each back leg. He is supposed to get 7-10 seconds on each leg. Right now he has 7 on the right and 2 on the left.

6. Exercises, Harder: Walking backwards. I mean, it might be easy for some, but Otis hates walking backwards. We're supposed to be walking him backwards up hills.

7. Exercises, Harder: Obstacle course. Put pvc pipes on aluminum cans to raise them up a little bit, about 2 feet apart. He walks over one pipe, then another, etc. This helps him to pick up the back legs. Eventually you raise up the pipes, narrow the pipes, etc. Haven't tried this yet. :-)

8. Exercises, Harder: Water walk. The physical therapist uses a water treadmill, but we can't afford that. :-) So we take him to the lake. Walk him through the surf up to his shoulders back and forth. Let him swim a little in between. The resistance is good for his muscles but easy on the joints.

There ya go. :-)

Update from the physical therapist.

On Monday we returned to the physical therapist's office and heard good news. Aside from the fact that we all got stuck in the elevator...yikes...the pt thought Otis was doing well.

She thought he was walking better and his weight was distributed more evenly. On a normal dog, about 60% of the weight is borne by the front legs and 40% in the back. Otis, last time, was about 80% front and 20% back. She feels he's about 75/25 now. Which is an improvement. His left hamstring is no longer too tight for his knee to straighten and he has gained 15 degrees of movement in the hip. He's also gained 1/2 inch of muscle on the middle of that thigh and 1/4 of muscle further up the thigh. Apparently our exercises, massages and stretching are making a difference.

But the bad news? The right side shows no improvement. But seeing that our hard work is paying off just motivates you to keep going. So we're gonna focus in on that right side, keep up the exercises and medication and hope for the best when we go back next month.

Again--I can't stress enough the importance of physical therapy. Do it! Even if it means your puppy has to chill next to the hot tub instead of running around in the yard...it's only for a couple of months. With what we've already been through, what's a couple more months??

:-)

Update

So it's been 10 days--how's he doing? Well, better and not better, I suppose. :-)

His range of motion seems to be getting better--he is tolerating the stretches much longer, which is good. His left side is getting stronger too, as he can balance for a while on it! The right side, not so much, unless it's directly underneath him. We do a lot of the "sit" then "stand" exercise. And we also try to make him walk backwards quite a bit. I think he's starting to improve. But I'm also an eternal extreme optimist, so take that with a grain of salt!!

The only problem we've had? He's developed some diarrhea. Bleck. For the first time since he was a three-month old puppy, he had an accident on the floor. Well, multiple accidents. Poor guy. He's rounded the corner, now, but that was tough on his body. And because he wasn't eating, we couldn't medicate him yesterday either. That means he had a tummyache and sore legs. Yesterday was a bad day.

But this morning is a new day, and we're off. He's eating better (still exhausted from yesterday's trials), and we'll be back to our regimin in full force. We go back to the physical therapist in 2 weeks and his 11 month "birthday" is on Wednesday. Can't believe my baby is getting so old. :-)

Small setback.

So Otis has had a small setback.

He's been acting a bit crazy lately--laying down, not wanting to walk. And sometimes he favors his back legs and shuffles along after a long day. So I took him in to the vet on Monday. She was concerned that his back end looked too thin--she noticed some muscle atrophy. At the same time, she wanted to rule out the Lyme disease reoccurring, so she took more blood. Today we saw the Physical Therapist to see what else could be the matter and how to fix it.

We went in and told her what a normal day in Otis's life looks like. Three walks, a lot of playtime, some swimming, etc. She told us we're doing way too much with him. Did measurements on his thighs and on his hip range of motion. He's supposed to have 160 degrees in both hips; he has 120 in the left and 130 on the right. He also has tight hamstrings and atrophied quadriceps. Poor boy! We've been unwittingly hampering his recovery by pushing him so hard. :-( Bad mommy and daddy.

Apparently he wants to play and do stuff with us so he's been shifting his weight to his front end, making those muscles extremely strong--but keeping his back end weak.

The remedy? Back on pain meds (she says he's in a bit of pain when exercising) and rest. He can do two 5-10 minute slow walks a day, massages, damp heat treatments and stretching. Next week we start daily exercises like balancing, walking in figure eights, walking slowly in knee-high water and walking a small obstacle course. It could take 3 months to get his thighs back to a normal size and he may never get back full range of motion after surgery, but we are to follow this procedure for at least 3 weeks. Then we will go back and see if we've made progress and then we can go from there.

Live and learn, I guess. Note to all: take physical therapy seriously. We should have started this 6 weeks ago. After you've paid so much for surgery, it's difficult to justify really expensive physical therapy, especially when your puppy seems to be so much better and even normal in many ways. But fractures take 6-8 weeks to heal, and then it could be 2-3 months until the muscles and ligaments get back to normal--especially since he was probably favoring those same muscles even before surgery.

Sigh. At least we know now. And maybe we'll save someone out there the guilt? :-)

Otis at Salt Point

He's a swimmer!! We've finally gotten a chance to take him to the lake, and he's loving it. The retriever in him is shining through. We just throw a stick out there and off he goes. He runs until he can't touch anymore and then he doggy paddles. It's super cute. He drinks as much water as he can, too. Which is also hilarious.

Otis definitely enjoys bounding through the water without a care in the world. I'm so happy to see it!! He's really progressing so well...his fur on his haunches is still short, but that will come back over time. He's almost finished with his Lyme antibiotics. Hopefully that will take care of all of his ailments and he'll live an uneventful life from here on out. *fingers crossed*

I don't know if anyone will ever read this blog, but if you do, I hope you get an idea as to what to expect throughout the "hip dysplasia" process. Ultimately, we're happy we put him through it, and three months later, he's like a brand new dog. And he's still not 100% strength yet! I'm also glad that we chose to have the surgery in the winter. Because it's a lot easier to keep a puppy from acting crazy when it's all wintery out than when it's gorgeous and the critters are outside. 

Well, off to play in the yard before it gets dark. Those big brown eyes are staring up at me...I think he's had enough rest. :-)

Ciao!

Long time, no see.

Sorry for the delay, folks (if anyone's out there, anyways!). Things have gotten a little crazy lately--husband's place of work went through a major transition, my semester is ending and we bought a house. In the midst of all that, Otis is still, well, Otis.

He got castrated and radiographed last week (April 28th) and Doc said that his hips look great! He was "very pleased" with the x-rays. I hope we can get copies again. Dr. Ross says that we are to gradually up his activity over the next couple weeks until he's at full strength, but other than that, he's perfectly fine. So within the next 2-3 weeks, he'll be allowed to run, jump, play and swim all he wants! We're already treating him to long walks and romps at the park, and playing in the surf at the lake. Yay! What great and wonderful news.

BUT...we also had them do some blood work, since we hadn't given him his heartworm meds in a while. Glad we did...because Otis is Lyme positive. Sigh. Another adventure, I guess.

Apparently, Lyme disease comes from ticks, especially deer ticks. They're tiny--like no bigger than the head of a pin. And they love to live on mice, rabbits and deer. We have multitudes of all three around our house. Go figure. We have never found a tick on him, well, not since last November, but apparently there was one at some time. Lyme is a bacteria and causes fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and limping/sore joints (great, huh?). It can also cause acute pain and kidney failure. We've caught him limping here and there and having trouble standing every now and then and that's probably why. So here we were scared about his hips and some of the limping may have been due to the Lyme. Craziness.

Treatment is pretty simple. Antibiotics twice a day for a month. He'll be retested in September to make sure he's "Lyme-free". If so, we'll get him the Lyme vaccine. Should help some. In the meantime, we'll be treating him with both frontline and interceptor and hoping for the best. Would use Advantix, but apparently it's toxic to cats.

Guess our little journey will go on a bit longer...

Still going strong

As he chews on his rawhide at my feet, I am happy to report that Otis is doing well. He no longer has to be helped around with his sling and he can go up and down the few steps to the backyard with no problem. His muscles are getting stronger and he's really working them well on his walks.

It's been over 3 weeks since surgery 2 and over 7 weeks since surgery 1, and it think it shows. It was right about this time after the first surgery when I saw him start to flourish--he's feeling less stiffness and pain and he's feeling stronger. I can't wait to see him continue to improve. Hopefully, in 18 days, we'll get Dr. Ross's blessing to let him run free, and when that day comes I will be ecstatic. And considering how he fights us when he's outside and we ask him to come inside, well, I'm sure he'll be ecstatic, too!

Check up and stitches out

So man-man had his post-op today with Dr. Ross. My dear husband took him in. Here's the scoop.

First, Dr. Ross asked how he was doing, then asked to see him walk, unassisted, up and back down the hallway. Then, he palpated and manipulated both hip joints while my husband held Otis still. He said that we no longer have to give him pain meds and we can start walking him about 1/4 of a mile a day, or so. Next week we can scrap the sling (yay!). He now needs to start building up those muscles. Apparently he's healing splendidly!!

His final (hopefully) x-rays and castration have been scheduled for April 28th. Fingers crossed that, at that time, we'll get the all clear for his full activity. April 28th will be 10 weeks from surgery 1 and 6 weeks from surgery 2, so we'll be at the early end of the 6-8 week estimated recovery time. Our little man is a fast healer! He'll have to take it easy for a little while after the neutering, but he'll be running and playing in our new backyard by May. What a great spring it will be!

X-rays

Thought it'd be fun to share his x-rays with the world...so here they are:

Above: First x-rays showing dysplasia in both hips. Notice that his right side (our left) is worse.

Above: This is a different view of his hips before surgery. Notice how his sockets aren't perfectly round around the femoral head.

Here you can see x-rays from surgery 1 (on the right hip--the worst one) and from surgery 2 (with both sets of plates and screws). He's laying somewhat sideways on the surgery 2 photo. 

Home again.

Our man-man has returned from his second (and hopefully final) surgery! Right now he's laying at my feet chewing on a bone. It's amazing how much I missed him. He's just such a joy to have around!

Our puppy just loves to chew, let me tell ya.

Anyhow, same deal as last time...strict rest, ice, pain meds, sling walking. We've got it down pat now. The doctor put in seven screws this time instead of eight, but this side wasn't as severe as the other. Same degree of rotation, though. Doc says that Otis is progressing nicely, and doing better than expected. That's excellent news--we're an overachieving family anyways (haha)! The vet techs and assistants at the hospital are all so amazing. They just adore him and give him so much love! I'm really lucky to have such great people helping our little man. In one week he'll have his stitches removed and in 3-4 weeks he'll go back in for a post-op exam. At that time we'll schedule his final x-rays (and his castration)--they'll do them both at the same time since he'll need to be sedated anyhow. Hopefully, 6-8 weeks from now, he'll be cleared to run and jump and play (that brings us to between April 29th and May 13th). I have my fingers and toes crossed. 

Recovering from surgery #2

Otis is at the hospital now...feels like we've gone back in time four weeks! The vet techs say that he came through surgery well--just like last time. He apparently is being weaned off of the IV pain meds right now, and we hope he'll be coming home on Sunday.

I haven't been able to talk to the surgeon yet, so I don't know how much they rotated this hip, or how the x-rays looked (other than the "good" message I received as relayed through the vet tech last night). I'll get to see the x-rays on Sunday, so I'm looking forward to that. Another (six week) odyssey begins...

Otis at 3 weeks post-surgery

Otis is doing great! He seems to be healing well--he's not limping at all and he's putting normal (or close-to-normal) weight on his affected leg. The musculature is getting stronger around his hip as well. Sometimes I'll catch him sitting back on his haunches like a "normal" dog sits. It's quite heartening to see that. He lets me rub, pat and manipulate his hip--and I think I can feel the metal plates in there. Pretty neat. He doesn't seem to have any pain at all. And I mean none.

We still use the sling to help him around outside, and since the snow is melting, it's nice to have a little support to keep him from going belly-deep in the soft snow. The animals are starting to come out for spring--deer, rabbits, birds, skunks--and Otis smells them all when he goes outside. It's like controlling a mack truck to keep him from running after the scents. Sometimes he'll get a crazy streak inside and break into a run to chase our cat, Butchie, and we have to practically tackle him to get him to settle down. Then we offer a firm warning--"do you want to go in your crate, hmm?"--and, chastised, he'll start to chew again...this time in a seated position. 

He's started to develop a bad habit of whining and barking in his crate at sunrise. He has all that pent up energy and no where to expend it. The lack of sleep is no fun around the house, but between my husband, me and my mom (in town to help paint the new house), we manage to get him taken care of. I hope that habit fades once he can play at his full activity-level again.

My thoughts? I think he feels like a million dollars right now, and he's just terribly confused as to why we won't let him play. It's very hard as a puppy parent to stay strong. Otis doesn't understand--he doesn't get it. But yet he still has 7 weeks of this to go (surgery 2 in one week and then 6 weeks of rest and rehab). It's gonna be a LOOOOOOOOONG spring. We will be strong--and we will take him to the promised land.

And when May rolls around? Sweet sweet victory will be ours...

;-)

Follow up appointment.

I just got word from my dear husband that Otis's appointment to get his stitches removed went splendidly. Apparently, our surgeon confirmed what I had hoped for--that he is healing ahead of schedule! So great news on all fronts--no more cone of shame for our little man-man, and the second surgery is scheduled for March 18th--exactly 4 weeks after the first.

See mom? Barely a scar!

Apparently, we are to continue heat treatments, massage and anti-inflammatory medication. We are also to continue using the sling to help him around outside and to monitor his activity. We can do that--that's for sure! If all goes well, he will be cleared for normal activity in early May...right when the semester dampens down and the warm weather ramps up. Perfect timing.

To be perfectly honest, I can't believe how well it's been going. I mean, yes, he's a handful to keep calm, but boy is he a joy to have around. He's just handled this whole thing so well. I like to credit our awesome puppy-parenting, but maybe it's just luck. ;-)

Can we please play something OTHER than "sit and catch without running or jumping"?

Anyhow, back to work. Just wanted to share the good news.

A week out.

Otis is doing phenomenally well. As I type, he is chewing (what's new?) on a pressed rawhide bone. That boy's jaw is so strong we can barely find anything that will last longer than a day or so for him to chew on--in front of me right now I see a pet bed, a skinneeez penguin, a huge rawhide (that isn't huge any longer) and a pressed rawhide. I just hope one of those will keep him from being bored out of his mind tonight--it's really one day at a time on the boredom front!

His incisions are healing nicely. The large incision with sutures is no longer swollen or red, and you can see his hip muscles again (the hip area was so swollen for awhile there that you couldn't see his musculature. His inner groin incision (closed with surgical glue, I believe) looks the best it's ever looked--finally not red any more. We're now supposed to be applying heat to the affected area, so we'll be trying that tonight. He takes his medicine well--especially his flavored one-a-day pill and his flavored glucosamine. The three-times-a-day pill he doesn't like at all--it's very bitter--so either we put it in a cheese cube or mix it with yogurt. Good tricks, let me tell you. To be honest, we probably could stop giving him the medicine--but I'd rather not until we've spoken with the surgeon on Monday. Best to leave that decision to the doctors, I say.

As in the last message, it's really the strict rest order that's the hardest to follow. He's not in pain any more and he just wants to play. He begs you with his big brown eyes--"please, mom, PLEASE can I chase the cat?" We're in the midst of a snowstorm, and the winds are so strong that we have 12+ inch drifts out back...boy is it difficult to handle a rambunctious puppy--in the snow--with exercise restrictions and a sling--when you're maneuvering through foot-high snow! Inside, sometimes he acts like he's stretching and then tries to pounce on a toy. When that happens he gets crated immediately with the "cone of shame". He *really* hates that cone. We'll all be happy when Monday rolls around and those stitches are removed.

As well as he's doing, I'd love for them to do surgery 2 as soon as possible. I also wonder, as well as he's walking, if the left hip isn't all that bad? Wishful thinking, probably--since he's not being active, it's no wonder that hip looks perfectly healthy. But a girl can hope, right?

I cannot stress enough just how ecstatic we are about his progress--I think we're both pretty surprised at how well he's doing. He's a little champion. You know, you go through these moments where you wonder, "why our puppy?", especially when you hand over the plastic to pay the hospital bills...but then you get your morning kisses from your little man and you remember that it doesn't matter at all. All that matters are his health and happiness.

First night and full day at home.

Otis was an angel last night. In his crate for a full night and not a peep from him. His pain medication had worn off by the time we woke him up, but you wouldn't have known it by the way he greeted us. We fed him, gave him water, and gave him his pain/anti-inflammatory medicine, which must be taken with food. He went out and used the bathroom, and then we iced his wounds to reduce the swelling. He doesn't mind it at all (in this photo, he's watching the cat run around...which makes for a good distraction, but a tempting one):

And then we gave him his massage, which tickles him, I think. It's adorable. Notice his low, submissive ears? He just loves when daddy gives him his massage three times/day.

We then went to work all day, and when I returned home in the afternoon he was just as sweet and just as wonderful...

Well, OK, so let me be a little honest...he's a bit of a handful outside, I must admit. He was trying to drag me around the yard and when I tried to get him to go inside he put on the brakes and I had to do a major correction to get him to keep going. I think that's the only time he's really starting to rebel against us, and I imagine it will only get more difficult as he continues to heal.

One day down on our road to recovery...many more to come!

Photos

Here, as promised, are early photos from the road to recovery. Remember, this is only 3 days after the surgery:

In his crate with his cone of shame.

See the two incisions? There's a third on his inner groin. We are to ice the swelling around each incision daily.

Here's dad helping him around the yard with his sling. We don't lift his rear end, rather we just give him extra support should he slip or fall.

Here he is seated, relatively normally.

You'd never know he had surgery...here he is chewing his busy bone on his orthopedic bed.

He's home!

About an hour ago, we returned home with our little man-man. After paying an exorbitant bill (yikes), we got to see him; and let me tell you, our expectations were well exceeded. He came in the exam room on a leash with a blue sling under his rear (pictures to come) and was so super excited to see us that he was wagging his tail, lowering his head, and trying to jump all over us. He was bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and not out of it at all. We were thrilled to see his normal, happy-go-lucky self coming at us--we'd missed him so! Except for the shaved rear end and stitches, you'd never know he'd had surgery...in fact, we brought him home and he tried to run and jump throughout the back yard! We're really gonna have to keep an eye on him to keep him from doing too much too soon.

Our marching orders are:
1. Give him two types of pain medications/anti-inflammatories every day.
2. Only let him out to go to the bathroom, and always on the leash.
3. Keep the cone of shame on him whenever he's unsupervised.
4. Do daily massages of the hip and leg area.
5. For the next two days, apply ice packs to the wounds twice daily--then apply heat for a week after that.
6. Come back on Monday, March 1st, to get the sutures removed.

We are up for the challenge. Right now, Otis is sleeping in his crate...and when he wakes up, we'll feed him, ice his wounds and give him a massage (and I'll take some photos). I'll be posting them soon.

Day 2 Post-Op

Otis is not yet home with us, but I've been speaking with the hospital every day. Here's a rundown of what we heard yesterday and today:

Friday morning--Otis was doing very well, and he was still on the IV pain medication. The techs were using the sling to help him get around and he was putting a tiny bit of weight on his right foot, which was expected. He wasn't eating well, but that's normal. They adjusted his pain medication in case he was nauseous.

Friday evening--Otis was *still* doing very well, and by the evening, he was eating and drinking normally. The tech told me that he was the sweetest puppy, and very mellow. That's our Otis. :-)

Saturday morning--Otis is again doing great. He's using his leg, eating and drinking normally and was on oral pain meds finally. Apparently, you need to walk him very slowly so he's forced to use the leg, and when you do that, he puts a bit of weight down as he should. Our little man has gotten curious about his boo-boos, though, and he's licking them--so he's got one of those "cones of shame".

That's good news though, since we'll be crating him while we're at work. Better to be safe than sorry, I say. Lindsay told us that he loves to squeak his little skineeez rabbit, and she's surprised that he hasn't ripped the squeakers out of it yet. (That's because our baby loves his rabbit and doesn't want to "kill" it...he's a lover, not a fighter!)

On another note, he's being started on a new medication to "increase the contractility of his bladder". Apparently, a short-term side effect of this surgery is minor nerve damage. This nerve damage can cause difficulty with urination, such that he has a weak stream when he goes (sounds like a commercial for prostate medication to me, lol). This can cause damage to the bladder if it gets worse--but at this point, the medicine is just precautionary, and we'll have to keep an eye on him at home as well. We're on schedule for him to come home tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon. I can't wait to see my man-man!

Note: Found out last night that some colleagues of mine have an 8-year old Bernese Mountain dog who had this same surgery 7 years ago from the same surgeon. I played with her all evening, and she was jumping and bounding about. That makes me very hopeful and very happy. :-)

Very Big Exhale

For those of you who don't know me, I'm Otis' dad, J.V. Obviously you know that our dog Otis just had TPO surgery today which lasted 2 hours. Thankfully my saint of a wife, Beth, has done a great job keeping tabs on Otis through inside info with one of the tech vets (Erin) and the doc.

Otis is now on the road to recovery (At least that's what I'm calling it). It's been pretty tough since we got the news that Otis has this terrible genetic disease, especially today, but we are ready to help him get back on the road to recovery. Making it even more difficult, I'm currently on the road heading to Boston (work related of course). Even worse, I won't be back till early Sunday morning (BOOO). Good news is, when I get home, it will be time to pick the little fella up and start, that's right, his road to recovery! Well that's it for me. Wish us luck.

The surgery is complete

Well, I just spoke with Dr. Ross. Otis is out of surgery and awake. He's on an IV with fentanyl (a narcotic painkiller) and will be until the morning. The surgery took about 2 hours, which was less than expected, but it went well. Also contrary to expectations, the surgeon ended up rotating the hip socket 35 degrees rather than 25 degrees, which means (a) the hip joint is tighter and (b) there is a greater risk (from what I've read) of complications later on (e.g., degenerative joint disease, limited movement, etc.). But those risks are still really low, regardless. The steel plate was installed with all eight possible screws implanted, which the doctor seemed pleased about. Apparently, the soft bones of young dogs do better with more screws, which also lines up with the research I've read. About 25% of TPO cases have screw loosening--often in young dogs or due to improper post-op care--but the more screws you have, the less chance that this loosening will impact the recovery process.

Anyhow, the doctor says that things look "good" (his words), and that's what I'm hanging onto now. I'm to stay away from the hospital so as to not over-excite the little man, but I'll be calling every morning. The goal is to get him off of narcotics and onto oral pain medication, and when the morning comes, they'll start taking him out to go to the restroom and get moving; we'll get detailed instructions when they send him home. He'll be in my thoughts all night, I'm sure.

But for now, I'll just prepare the house for his arrival and watch the new Michael Jackson documentary. At least I'll have some good tunes to serenade my cleaning...

(btw, my last post was actually me [momma], not "daddy"...gotta remember that we share a computer sometimes!)

Night before the big day...

So I'm sitting here with man-man while he chews on a Busy Bone. I love those things. They are work-at-home lifesavers... without them, he'd be like a child pulling on his mom's legs, "play with me, play with me" all the time. So, thank you whatever-company-that-makes-busy-bones. Much appreciated.

Anyhow, Otis goes into surgery in the morning. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't apprehensive. But I'm also more confident than ever that this is the right decision to make for his future. I suppose we're lucky that we can give him the treatment he needs--not everyone would be able to do so. Struggling with the decision is probably the component of this surgery that is most overlooked when you research the process. I, of course, went along with the doctor's recommendations on this option, but that decision followed the expectation that it would come down to this (and hours of online research). Even as prepared as I was, I wasn't 100% sure that we were doing the right thing. And regardless of the facts you know, you sometimes can't keep your emotions from telling you that (a) it's your fault or (b) there has to be another way to "fix" him. My husband and I talked a lot over the past week, and I think we're invested in our decision and ready for what comes next. We're going to try our best not to be distracted by the pain that he's feeling or the frustration that comes from being restricted--and we're going to try to remember that you do what's best for the creatures under your care, even if they don't like it.

Tomorrow night will be the first night since we got Otis that I'll be away from him, and we won't be able to visit until we pick him up on Sunday night (the doctor doesn't want him to get too excited). In the meantime, I'll be preparing the house for his recovery--cleaning, buying a rug to cover the slippery floor, etc.--while trying to ignore my worries. I'll be anxiously awaiting news from my favorite vet techs in the meantime and trying to mentally prepare for the hard work ahead of us.

When he comes home, we'll be trying our best to follow the immortal words of Cesar Millan: "live in the moment." We'll take every day one day at a time...and by the summer he'll be swimming in the lake with mom and dad. I'll sign off now, until then, enjoy some more pictures from last weekend.

About TPO...

After my first post, I realized that it might not be clear what a "triple pelvic osteotomy" entails. I didn't know either, and after hours on the net (thanks, google), I found a lot of information. I'll include some links if you want some more info, and when we get our x-rays, I'll try to upload those as well.

In the most basic terms, hip dysplasia means Otis has "loose hips". So, when he moves, his gluteal muscles (and others) have to work to keep his femoral head (the ball) in his hip joint (the socket). As it is, the ball doesn't really fit in the socket right. So Otis has been limping because his poor leg muscles have been working over time...especially after a trip to the dog park or a romp around the yard. Over time, the rubbing of ball-on-socket results in arthritis. And with a dog like Otis, it wouldn't be but a couple of years until he'd be completely crippled. That's not a life we want for our man-man. Some dogs who are dysplastic never need surgery. Unfortunately ours does.

The TPO surgery involves three "osteotomies" (bone cuts) around his pelvis and the insertion of a steel plate and screws to reshape the hip socket. Ideally, this preserves his natural hip socket and allows for the hip to move as it should. Voila--no more dysplasia. Our doctor says that the max rotation they can do with success is 40 degrees. Luckily for us, Otis only needs between 20-25 degrees rotation. This (plus his young age) makes him a good candidate for full recovery. Not to mention our surgeon is one of the most sought after in the nation. :-)

Anyhow, here are some links (not from our vet, but just some that I found online) that show x-rays, etc. I found them helpful as I was learning about the procedure. I'll be posting "Otis's last rambunctious weekend before surgery" in a few days.

http://www.dcvets.org/surgical/tpo.pdf

http://www.veterinaryspecialty.com/TriplePelvicOsteotomy.aspx

X-rays after both hips have been done: http://www.lbah.com/images/canine/Hip_Dysplasia/TPO.jpg

As a researcher myself, I have a soft spot for research...so here's some research on the successfulness of the surgery:

http://old.vri.cz/docs/vetmed/48-2-41.pdf

The beginning.

We got Otis, a golden retriever puppy, from a very reputable breeder in October of 2009 when he was 9 weeks old. He was the largest of the litter--my choice--and the husband let me choose which golden ball of fluff we would call our own. He named our little man Otis--after a dog he used to own years ago. When we first got him, he looked like a fat little manatee...and on the first night he collapsed in his water bowl. Adorable.

I've not been what you would call a "dog person". In fact, I've never had a puppy/dog. We currently have two cats--Butch and Jasmine--and I was perfectly happy with my feline companions. But 'tis true what they say...there is nothing like a puppy, and I was smitten from day 1. And my husband truly found a best friend. We were in heaven. Well, at least the kind of heaven that includes cleaning up accidents and saying "no!". From that time, Otis has been our constant companion...rambunctious, happy, kind and gentle. A perfect golden. He especially loved playing in the autumn leaves.

But not long after Christmas 2009, we noticed Otis having trouble standing up from a lying position and limping after vigorous play. Concerned, we got x-rays in early February which confirmed our suspicion...Otis was dysplastic in both hips. Our reaction, of course, was serious devastation.

This is our documentation of Otis's journey dealing with hip dysplasia. Next Thursday, February 18th, Otis will receive the first of two Triple Pelvic Osteotomies (TPO) on his right hip and we will embark upon a 10+ week adventure. We're in it for the long haul, and we think the sharing will be therapeutic for us, and hopefully informative for anyone dealing with TPO. To be honest, we have no idea what to expect, and we're a bit apprehensive, but I suppose we'll deal with that in time.

For now, here are some more photos of our Otes-man (affectionately known as "man-man"):

"Stay, Otis, staaaaay..."

Soon he'll be running through the grass just like he used to...