I am hoping and praying that Kirk has a good day, today, Kate. :)
Logan
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I am hoping and praying that Kirk has a good day, today, Kate. :)
Logan
Heavenly Father- we ask you to bless this surgery. Relieve the fear in the owners heart, add diligence to the surgeon, and give relief to our precious pet. We ask this not for any worthines of our own but through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you Lord for this day, may it be of a true blessing. Thank you. In Jesus Name - amen..
Replies ~~~~Amen~~~~~
Thinking of you both!!
Today is friday- how did it go?
Kirk did not end up having surgery on Thursday. Upon viewing the x-rays they discovered that he had bent his plate, thus narrowing his pelvis significantly. I can't say this came completely unexpectedly-- we did not follow post op instructions to the letter and I know that. However, I did not have complete control over that and what my father did; he did it with the best of intentions. But the surgeon told me he put in the LARGEST plate he could (thus the strongest) and he has had 60 lbs. dogs (twice Kirk's size) not bend this plate. This little dog has atrophied tiny back legs and is only 32 lbs, so I'm still not totally sure how the bending happened. Perhaps I should have expected as much from a border collie. I don't know...
At any rate, the plate is bent and one screw is slightly loosened, however at this point, 6 weeks out, the bone has healed around this. Thankfully it is not something that should cause him pain (and there is no reason to go back in and 'fix' anything), but it does affect the likely success of operating on the second hip in the same way.
The narrowing that has happened will leave only a TINY margin of error (for bending and thus greater narrowing) and this all GREATLY increases the chance for complications that could affect his ability to urinate/defecate in the future. This is a no-brainer for me; there is no reason to risk that IMO. They called me post x-rays and asked me to decide, TPO today or do we call it off (and maybe do a FHO later). I said wake him up, we're not doing the TPO! I felt some ambivalence just because I do not like to make decisions under time pressure, but after calling home and bawling to my Mom my reasoning kicked in and I realized that I made the right decision, no question.
One sad thing was of course they had shaved him already. He looks soo pitiful and skinny. He has been licking his butt area as a result of a close shave and now has some hot spots back there, so I had to put the cone on him. Little dork!! I'm washing the area with Hibiclens twice a day, and I will ask the doctor today if there is any reason to bring him in or if I can continue treating at home.
Well, there is GOOD news...
He can start walking now and we have been doing 10 mins. of leash walking (on flat ground only) twice a day for this first week. Then we will increase the time by 5-10 minutes each week. This may sound extreme, but if you could see his completely atrophied back legs, you would understand. We want to build up the muscle slowly and carefully. Oh wow, he loves being back to his walkies again. I love to see him so happy!! :D :D
Now if we can just get his butt healed and his poopies back to normal.... I have him on acidophilus and gave rice with his first couple meals home, but I may pick up some stronger antidiarrheals from the clinic. I would try pumpkin, but he has been picky about it in the past, finicky eater that he is...
So, the long term plan? Build up muscle first. See how well he does with one 'good' hip. Consider an FHO for the left side in the future. This procedure is not age sensitive and so we are free of the 'deadlines' of the TPO at this point. Thankfully he is a small dog, so the FHO is a feasible option. I am not sure how I feel about it yet, because I really spent all my time researching the TPO. The descriptor "salvage procedure" attached to it is certainly an unattractive term. :( Again, thankfully, there is no time pressure to make the decision, except in the case that he were in pain that we could not control with other methods. This is not the case as he seems very happy and mostly pain-free at this point (as far as I can tell). :)
I am trying to do my best to see the positive and not dwell on the negatives or the mistakes we may have made. We love him and we're doing the best we can by him.
Sorry I took so long to update, it has been a crazy and emotional week for many reasons. Thank you for thinking of us!!
{{{HUGS}}}
Kate & lost-his-breeches Kirk ;)
Poor little Kirky. You made the right decision! I hope his muscle and hair come back quickly. :)
Kate,
Praying for ALL of you guys.
Johanna
Kate, I am sure that you are doing the best you can for Kirk, and I will continue to keep that little man and you in my prayers. {{{Hugs}}}
I am so sorry to hear of the complications. :( Please give Kirk a big
smooch from me. (((HUGS))) to you.
Ohh no Kate i am sorry you had to much such a quick decision :(. You are doing all you can to keep Kirkie happy & pain free, you will all be in my thoughts {{Hugs}}.
many hugs to you both!!
Hello PT. I wanted to post an update on Kirkie.
On January 12th I took Kirk into the vet because I had noticed he was showing signs of increased pain. That week he had started lifting his left foot off the ground for short periods, something which I had never seen him do before that-- prior to that he was weight-bearing on his left leg, but obviously still favoring it while walking. (FYI --He had the TPO on his right side, and the left had not been operated on at all.)
At that point I did not have him on pain meds and was relying on supplementation with Hyaflex daily and Adequan injections weekly. Both of these are chondroprotective agents and the Adequan especially was providing obvious relief. However, that week I took him in I did not notice any marked improvement in the beginning of the week after his Adequan shot.
Anyway, we performed x-rays because we knew that dislocation of the hip was a real possibility. X-rays clearly showed that his left hip was completely popped out of the socket (the femoral head popped completely out of the acetabulum). This is incredibly painful and it is a testament to the absolute stoicism of dogs that he was continuing to weight bear on the leg. Crazy boy!! Anyway, this has always been something we knew was likely to happen to him after seeing his initial x-rays, but we certainly hoped that he would be older before this happened. :(
At this point we called the board-certified surgeon (who performed his TPO) and asked him how to proceed. His first recommendation was to wait until he was a year old (2-3 months) before operating and in the mean time keep him on high doses of pain meds and work on building up his hindquarter musculature. Then later, after sending the surgeon the x-rays, he informed us that the hip had been dislocated longer than a week. Hearing that made me feel like the most terrible Mommy ever. :(:( I swear, dogs are just so stoic!! He also amended his recommendation and felt that we should try to work on building his muscle for just a month before operating, unless he became any more painful and then we could operate sooner.
Well, Kirkie lasted two weeks on the high pain meds routine before things got really bad. Around the middle of last week he started hop on his back leg alone about 80% of the time and slowly all but ceased weight bearing on that left leg. I was afraid he had blown his left knee, or would be in danger of blowing the right knee if he continued the full on bunny hop. :eek: I upped his pain meds a bit more, but when I saw no improvement I notified my vet to let her know that I wanted to schedule the surgery.
He had the FHO (femoral head osteotomy) on his left side this Friday and the whole operation went VERY smoothly. I actually watched most of the procedure...which proved a bit difficult at times. I watched through a window outside of the operating room--- I couldn't be *in* the OR.
He came home Saturday night. He has lots of pain meds on board and I'm sedating him to keep him calm. In about 2 weeks he should be back to walking. I cannot wait! :)
The leg is hardly swollen. The sutures/staples are very neat and not looking red or inflamed in the least. He is much easier to look at than he was after the TPO. He is not whining or crying much at all, which is so much easier on everyone.
Here he is looking pathetic in his cone:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...krkkieeee2.jpg
Thank you for reading. Please send us good thoughts for his recovery! I hope after recovery he can run, hike and play like a normal pup. He has been through so much already and he's JUST 10 months old. :(
Ohh Kate i am sitting here in tears reading what your poor little man has been through.. he is so brave. Sending lots of healing vibes and gentle {{Hugs}} Kirkie's way... and a few {{Hugs}} for Mama too.
Thankyou for updating us.. i dont get to live journal too often to check up.
Oh Kate! I had no idea Kirkie was going thru this! :(
I'm soooo sorry!
HIP DYSPLASIA SUCKS!
Keegan breaks my heart with her's and she's 5 1/2! :( I can't imagine such a young dog.
Give him a kiss from me and a big hug to MOM!
Tears here also. :( I will keep Kirk in my prayers.
I can't believe he's been through so much, and still, manage to stay upbeat & happy (you can't really tell about his suffering by looking at his pic). There are so much we can learn from our dogs..
I 'm praying for his speedy recovery!
You've been through so much in your short life, Kirkie! We're all praying that the rest of the procedures and recoveries go as smoothly as possibly so that you can enjoy your PUPPYHOOD in the future. :D
Looking as handsome as ever, Kirk. ;)
Oh Kate, I am so sorry to hear all of this. I hope this is the start of a healtier time for Kirk. {{{Hugs}}}
I am in tears here as well. Poor little fella :( He is the bravest boy in the world. Lord knows, he has been through so much in his short life.
It's really scary to know how stoic dogs are. I always worry what they might have wrong and they don't show any signs of discomfort alot of the time. It makes us love them that much more. They're such wonderful creatures aren't they? Only if we could be so tolerant.
I wish Kirkie all the best and hope he can live a normal life very soon. That beautiful boy deserves it for sure. {{{{{HUGS}}}}}
I am so sorry to hear this. Poor Kirk, he has been through so much at such a young age. :( I hope that he recovers well and will be able to enjoy life like any other young pup. Get feeling better soon Kirk!!
Kirk looks good in his cone picture. Bright eyed and comfortable. I am so
glad that you have had such good Doctors to count on during this whole
process.It sure helps so much.Lets hope no more setbacks now and Kirkie
can grow stronger from day to day. It won't be long till that sweet boy can
run all he wants. :)
just read the news on LJ- so glad to hear the sx went well and that he should be walking in just a couple weeks!! hopefully this will be the end of his repairs and he can enjoy a long life of running!!! ^__^ give him a kiss for me!
It has been 3 weeks since Kirk's latest surgery. I'm sad to report that he has not bounced back as quickly as expected. He may have irritated or even torn some of the underlying muscle. :( We're going to continue supportive care and therapy before we take xrays or contemplate "going back in." I don't know why this puppy always has post-op complications. It's frustrating when we are trying our absolute best to follow post-op instructions and end up keeping the poor thing sedated for months at a time. *sigh* :(
On the upside, tomorrow is his first appointment for hydrotherapy. It has been hard to schedule because the two women that do canine hydrotherapy locally are fairly booked up and both have had recent vacations. Anyway, we're finally gonna get him in the water!! Yay!! He really needs it; his poor little left leg is about as atrophied as it could possibly be. I'm going to try to take pictures to share.
Otherwise he is as much of a love bug as ever. Even though I stress about him a lot (all the time!!), he is really quite the happy fellow. I just know he misses his walkies, his doggie friends, and all the normal puppy stuff he is missing out on....
He makes 1 year next month. I pray that he is well on his final 'road to recovery' by that time…. And if he's doing well I want to have a big BBQ to celebrate. He would just love it if I brought over dozens of people to dote on him!! :D
Thanks to those of you who continue to follow his progress. I appreciate the support.
Trying to stay positive!! :D
Kate & Kirkie
Good thoughts are often sent your way Kate and of course Kirk. Cmon mate get better for your big 1st Birthday {{Hugs}}.
Yes, try to stay positive, even though somedays it may be hard. I am keeping Kirk in my thoughts and prayers. Here's hoping for that celebration BBQ. :)
Oh Kate, I am so sorry to hear that Kirk is not making the progress we had all hoped for. I hope the hydrotherapy helps and that he finds that swimming is his real passion and what will help him get well. Early Happy Birthday wishes for Kirk, and I hope you get your barbeque.
I hope and pray the hydrotherapy helps him.
Please know that you and Kirk are in my thoughts and prayers.
{{hugs}} to you both!
I'm keeping you both in my Prayers!
Stay positive, things may get hard but they will get better!
~Ceph
Kirk, I'm so sorry to hear you're not recovering quickly. :(
I hope the hydro therapy perks you up! *hugs*
I'm so sorry that Kirk isn't doing as well as expected. I've got such a soft spot for this handsome man. As I've said, he reminds me so much of one of my son's dogs. Hydrotherapy is the best thing out there today. It's proven to be so beneficial to so many people. I hope that Kirk will become a new man and see better days ahead. After all, he'll be wanting to flip some burgers and hot dogs at the BBQ won't he?? ;)
You're both in my thoughts and prayers as always. Bless you for going all these extra miles to help him :) He's a very special boy :)
Here are the swimming pictures I promised. Kirkie was in the water for about 10 minutes, after a nice session of Healing Touch and massage. The land work opened up all his major chakras (heart, brow, crown, throat, solar plexus, sacral, root) before the hydrotherapy. ;)
She measured corresponding parts of his leg muscles (didn't see what part exactly) so we can better track his progress. His right side measured in at 49 mm while the left was only 32 mm. That's a lot of atrophy for one month (although he has actually been favoring the left side for longer).
He is soo trusting and very good with letting people touch him all over. It was amazing to see her calm him (at first he was all over, sniffing, chewing her plants, etc.) and eventually fully relax him to the point where his eyes were closing. Only when he was fully relaxed did she want to get him in the pool.
In the pool he made about 6 laps total against a low level current. It was so cute - he carried the octopus toy around the whole time!! He took to the water like a lab, if you ask me. ;) I'm so proud of him!! :)
Here he is swimming:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...2-19-07002.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...2-19-07001.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...2-19-07007.jpg
Short video:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...2-19-07010.jpg
I'll probably get in the water next week so I can practice doing the exercises with him. I have (dog-loving) neighbors who have offered their pool for Kirkie's therapy (it's the same type of heated therapy pool with current). So maybe next week I can get him in the water a second time! For now, I just want to gradually build him up and be sure I am comfortable with the exercises before I attempt them myself.
She talked a lot about the importance of positive thinking and its impact on healing. I know she is totally right, but it has been a frustrating 6 months, and I can admit that I have lost sight of this. However, now that I feel like I have another great supporter on Kirkie's "team" I hope I can better maintain the positive thinking I know he needs. Pet Talk prayers are great for this too...so keep them coming!! :)
Thanks so much for reading! :D
aawww how cute!!!
I am praying for you and Kirkie!
Despite everything, Kirk still has his handsome, adorable, wide eyed look. He looks precious in the pool, holding his octopus.Always praying for the sweet dear. You, Kate are a wonderful mother! Mommies never give up on their kids!
I'm sorry to hear that Kirk isn't healing as well as expected. :( I hope with time he'll be feeling better. I love the water pics, he sure loves that octopus, what a handsome boy!
Triple Awwwwwwww!!!!! What a good boy he is in the water!! Him just loves him little octopus. Gosh!! I love that boy!! I hope you don't mind if I tell my son to look in on the new pics and video. He'll get such a big kick out of it. Kisses to you sweetheart!! I'm always praying and hoping for both of you!! :)
It's good to know you have great, supportive people on your side to
help Kirkie get better. May be slow, but it's sure he will benefit from it.
I can't wait for pictures of the big celebration in his honor. You both
deserve it. ((HUGS)) :)
Aww look at the handsome man swimming :). Good vibes on the way as always, and some {{Hugs}} too.
Hello PT...Kirk is still having problems and I am getting more and more depressed.
I didn't post about it, but they had to go in AGAIN surgically on the left side and sand down his femur MORE. Yes, he managed to have major complications with the hip surgeries on BOTH sides. This last surgery was about a month ago on 2-26. Then his left leg was in a sling for a little more than 2 weeks. The sling was removed at the same time as the sutures and staples. It took a while, but eventually he started using the leg and I was so happy that he was no longer a hopping triped. He is very very atrophied and weak on the left side, but up until last night he was walking on it consistently (albeit carefully). Hydrotherapy was going well and he could last for 15 minutes in the water with regular breaks. After he warmed up, we would see great extension and full kicking with both back legs.
Then I went to pick up someone from the airport last night and came home to find him obviously injured. :( :( He would barely walk to me, whined in pain and could not comfortably lie down. This morning he is a bit better, but now he's back to hopping again and I'm left wondering what damage has been done. I know I have to call the vets today, but I am not up for more xrays or surgery....and I don't know what other options we have. I never expected that this ordeal could go on for six and a half months, but I am damn near breaking point. More than anything I want this poor puppy to move on with his life and start having FUN......
This is beyond unfair and I am so frustrated I hardly know what to do. :( Please pray for us. :( :(
Here we are in happier times a few days ago...He looks so dorky cause there was a treat on top of the camera :)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...3-30-07031.jpg
Here he is now, all drugged up on pain meds :( You can see his surgery scar here- the white line where the fur is slightly parted...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v8...4-02-07001.jpg
Poor baby, he will be in our prayers again. An immobile Border Collie is NOT a happy Border Collie, poor baby!