Last Hip Surgery

This is Max's last hip surgery!!! Poor little guy has been through so much at such a young age.  Hopefully this should take care of this and in 6-8 wks he will feel like a million bucks!  I should back up a bit and tell you that some of this makes sense now looking back.  When we bought Max I had hoped for him to be a therapy dog and STILL DO! When he was old enough I enrolled him in puppy classes and he excelled.  In fact, he was class valedictorian!  Okay, he was the only puppy in the class! However, he was a very quick learner in all the qualifications.  We then moved on to the intermediate class.  He was not the only dog in the class and was not the top dog!  Abigail was the top dog and overachiever. She already knew all the commands and even had a therapy vest.  She was the envy of all of the dogs (really the owners).  I secretly would love if she disobeyed her owner, but she is wonderful and rarely would.  This is where Max started slowing down, as in not going down.  I would say 50 times down...... nope not gonna happen.  Max sit......... really, not gonna do it.  Max wouldn't go on walks or would stop in the middle of a walk.  His training came to an abrupt halt.  I thought he was being obstinate or maybe we needed a different training method.  Now I realize it was his hips, they were hurting him.  It hurt to sit over and over again.  It hurt to go down over and over again. I never could have imagined his hips were bothering him at this age.  After Max heals from surgery and is ready to resume training, I hope to continue on a path as a therapy dog.  If not he will be my personal therapy dog.

Dr Tangner called and Max did very well.  The plan is for Max to come home on Monday.  The vet assistants will come in through the weekend and check on Max and call me each day.  Oh the thought of him being in the surgery center over the weekend makes me very sad.  Love you Max.

The Day After Surgery

The next morning I couldn't wait to call up and check on Max.  Good news!!!!! He was able to get up and put weight on his leg! That makes your mom sooo proud.  They use a sling to help him out to go out to use the potty because he is not ready to be on his own yet.  But surgery was yesterday and he already put some weight on his leg!  They give him pain meds and a sedation med plus other meds.  If all continues he will have his other hip surgery on Friday.  Again, I want to make sure my little boy Max is getting some rubs behind the ear and some puppy kisses.  Yes, they do love the babies there.  Still nervous about the next surgery.............

Surgery Day

The decision is made and Max is having surgery.  Even though you have talked to vets and read everything online you second guess yourself.  It's an expensive surgery and a long recovery, what if it doesn't work?  The entire day while Max is at the surgery center my heart is in my stomach.  I can't wait to hear back from Dr Tangner to hear that Max made it through surgery and is okay.  This little guy is our fur baby and we need him back with us.  Of course, he's a trooper and did just fine.  I want to know if he's wagging his tail and if they're going to love on him, not as worried about the medical issues.  I'm just worried about my baby!  Jokingly, Dr Tanger said they even give them food and water.   

It was a rough night for us at our house without Max.  Although, I think Molly our 10 year old golden was enjoying being the princess again.  No Max chewing on her and taking her bed.

Big Decisions for Max

After getting over the initial shock of our sweet puppy Max having CHD, he is recommended to have  TPO surgery.  This is all foreign to us and all we hear is how much it cost $$$$.  Yikes, is this necessary?  Also, we are told we have a limited time to decide because of his age and weight.  He's young and a good candidate for this surgery now,  if we wait till he's older he would need hip replacement.

With TPO there is a long recovery for Max.  There are 3 cuts on the pelvis to realign the pelvis and the hips.  This isn't an easy decision to make.  This consumes me for about 2 weeks with reading articles and calling vets.  Also, I reached out to the breeder, Julie MacKinnon from Nautilus Goldens.  I wanted her thoughts on TPO.  She had her opinion on Max's CHD, which we will address on another post. After reviewing Max's x-rays Julie and her vet, Dr Kathy Sneider both agreed Max has CHD   Finally, the appointment is made and Max's surgery is scheduled.  March 26, 2014 is his appointment for first hip.  If all goes well, then he will have his second hip surgery on Friday, March 28th.  Keep Max in your prayers.  Love our little guy.  

Diagnosis..... Canine Hip Dysplasia

We first noticed Max's limp after a family walk on a beautiful Sunday afternoon.  He took an extra long nap after the walk and that is when it first appeared.  We thought maybe he was just a little sore from the walk but we would watch him over the night. Still limping over the next few days and having difficulty getting to the standing position.  I went in the very next day to see our vet, Dr Mauldin.  During the examination Max had looseness and laxity in his hips.  Upon moving his right hip Max yelped and was very uncomfortable with being manipulated.  He wanted me to bring Max back the next morning for x-rays to confirm hip dysplasia or an injury.  Unfortunately, the call came the next day that it was hip dysplasia.

Immediate thoughts running through my head were how does a 6 month puppy get hip dysplasia?
We bought Max from a good breeder and both his parents were OFA.  We paid a lot of money for Max not to have this happen.  Doesn't this guarantee that he will be clean from CHD?  All good questions, but I have bigger things to look at now.

TPO....Triple Pelvis Osteotomy

What is that?????