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.