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Collapsing Trachea and cruciate ligament damage
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Found this yesterday! 4 years ago on the 25th of Oct - poor aul Bailers 4 hours after his leg was cut in two and stuck back together with a plate and pins!
That bandage and splint had my heart broken. I was constantly having to add padding to it because it cut into his leg and foot, it slipped down the day I went back to work when he got stressed and wouldn't lie down for hours and THEN had to be replaced at our own vets that evening as he lay down with his head in my lap! First time I ever refused for him to be taken off me/into the back room because I thought he was stressed out enough...it wasn't/won't be the last either lol! :rolleyes:The vet was delighted when it came off - I let them keep the spint :pac::pac::pac:
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Found this yesterday! 4 years ago on the 25th of Oct - poor aul Bailers 4 hours after his leg was cut in two and stuck back together with a plate and pins! That bandage and splint had my heart broken. I was constantly having to add padding to it because it cut into his leg and foot, it slipped down the day I went back to work when he got stressed and wouldn't lie down for hours and THEN had to be replaced at our own vets that evening as he lay down with his head in my lap! First time I ever refused for him to be taken off me/into the back room because I thought he was stressed out enough...it wasn't/won't be the last either lol! :rolleyes:The vet was delighted when it came off - I let them keep the spint :pac::pac::pac:
He's beautiful
And he rocks that pink too 
One of our cats had a similar op after his leg was shattered by the fan belt in the car. I remember the nightmare of bringing him to have the screws and the wound cleaned, dressing changed etc. And also having to keep him in a crate 
I found another vet today (following someone's recommendation) that is coming in at 500, as opposed to the 700 that our own vet ahs quoted but I don't think I want to change the appointment at this stage. Then again, 200 is a lot of money. Don't really know tbh. Good thing is this second vet also recommended the standard extracapsualr repair given her weight, so I am not just going on my own vet's recommendation. She is booked in for tomorrow morning.
...nervous 0 -
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Oh good luck to her and you! Try not to worry too much - once you get the operation and recovery started it flies by!
I hope so! I know it will be difficult, but I just keep telling myself it's a couple of month's sacrifice for the sake of the quality of the rest of her life. Just miss having her bomb around the place, and when I walk the other dog, I actually cry a bit when nobody is looking. Still, animals are great in that way because no matter what happens, you cant sit around and mope because they still have their needs! And I was saying to my mam last night aswell, our last dog had a degenerative condition that got worse and worse until eventually we lost her. There was nothing anybody could do for her (she had the equivalent of MS). At least now, we CAN do something! 0 -
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My rottie bitch had a TTA done and only that she's ever so slightly lame now due to a small bit of Arthritis in the leg, shes absol fine and lives a full and normal life. I cant show her now due to her lameness, which to be honest unless you were really clued in to lameness, you would hardly notice.
So don't worry too much. Just follow the recovery step by step, don't try and rush anything. Give her plenty of time and i highly recommend hydro for afterwards too. Im sorry i didn't get it done straight after her recovery as i think it would have helped in the long run.
I have a little sling type thing that goes under the belly to help take the weight off the leg while going out to the toilet etc straight after the op. If you would like to borrow it let me know and ill post it to you :-)
Wow thanks that would be brill, I'll PM you. She's terrified of water so not sure if she'd appreciate hydro. But then if it helps.... lesser evil and all that We actually did hydro for our previous dog to try to stop the muscles degenerating. We had one of those intex pools in the front garden and a lifejacket for her so she could keep up with the program in between her weekly hydrotherapy sessions. Neighbours of course thought I was loopy as I'd often get in with her.
How long did it take yours to return to full activity?0 -
I found hydro brilliant. He wasn't bearing weight on leg #1 until we started it then we started again 12 weeks after leg #2 was done. We kept it up until last year for fitness and I found it really helped to relax the muscles in his back where he'd be quite tense. He didn't like being lifted into the pool anymore after the operation on his jaw 0
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Oldnot wise flo was 6 weeks full crate rest then around another 6 weeks on lead only walking. I was worried to let her off lead running for a good while so I think it was a good whole before I let her off running with the other dogs.
Even if she doesn't like water you should still try the hydro. Mine wouldn't be big fans of the water apart from paddling in it but flo loved it when she was in it. Used to fly around the pool. Where are you based yourself?
6 weeks full crate rest sounds like a nightmare but if that's what needs to be done then so be it. I was wondering what to do about night time. She is used to sleeping in the bed with me. She burrows down under the duvet and sleeps at my feet. I'm guessing that will be out for a while? I'd worry about accidentally hitting off her and, more importantly, that she'd jump off the bed during the night (as she sometimes does) for a drink of water or to dance around the bedroom doing her "I need to peepee" dance Leaving her crated at night will be difficult.
She's just gone in this morning. I am sick with worry in case anything happens under sedation. God love her, she's been confined for a week with the exception of toilet breaks and I could see the excitement in her little face when she realised she was going out in the car. She grabbed her toy and ran out, jumped onto the passenger seat before I could stop her - that's the problem with trying to keep them quiet, they are so mad to begin with.
I'm in Dublin but I have been known to travel miles for hydro. I used to bring our last dog to a hydrotherapist in Louth 0 -
We were told 4 weeks for crate rest by the surgeon - the vet discharging him didn't agree lol. First time around it was too soon for him - he was still in a bit of pain and then got injured by another dog jumping up on him - 2 more weeks of crate rest and waiting for the surgeon to tell us if the bone surrounding one of the pins was broke Second time around I did 4 or 5 full time and then maybe another week or two part time - so in all day while I was at work, out for a while in the evenings and back in for the night and I think after that I started with 5 min walks and built . I let him off lead for a few mins after the 12 weeks and built it up bit by bit - terrifying the first time lol!!
Fingers crossed for her.0 -
We were told 4 weeks for crate rest by the surgeon - the vet discharging him didn't agree lol. First time around it was too soon for him - he was still in a bit of pain and then got injured by another dog jumping up on him - 2 more weeks of crate rest and waiting for the surgeon to tell us if the bone surrounding one of the pins was broke Second time around I did 4 or 5 full time and then maybe another week or two part time - so in all day while I was at work, out for a while in the evenings and back in for the night and I think after that I started with 5 min walks and built . I let him off lead for a few mins after the 12 weeks and built it up bit by bit - terrifying the first time lol!!
Fingers crossed for her.
That's the concern, that they will tear it during rehab. Would they need surgery again if they do that?0 -
OldNotWIse wrote: »That's the concern, that they will tear it during rehab. Would they need surgery again if they do that?
I'm not sure tbh? Bailey's surgery/condition like everything else about Bailey was unusual and a special case! My vet thought she could see a crack around the pin but the surgeon said it was 100% normal and fine. One thing that drama did bring home was the fact that his bones hadn't healed yet and it takes time- there was still a space between them where the two ends hadn't joined up yet (they cut a wedge out to get rid of the curve).
It's easy to forget that they adapt so well and are experts at hiding their pain!0 -
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I just had a call from the vet (mild cardiac event when I saw their number on the screen!). They are just doing x rays on her and wanted to know if I wanted the chest xrayed too (presumably for the suspected tracheal collapse). Since the quote I am working on actually included that option, and I've managed to scrape together the full amount, I thought why not since she is already sedated. Now I am worried about what that will come back with though, even though all the voices of reason on here say that it can be managed and is not life limiting! 0
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Just spoke to the vet.
So, the good news is that her right leg (the one we thought she had torn the cruciate in years ago) is actually showing as perfect.
The left (the one she tore on Friday), the cruciate is completely gone and she can see fluid in the joint so it is as we suspected and vet is going ahead with surgery as we speak. She said it should be done by around 2 30.
Bad news is there is some flattening of the windpipe, so we were right about the collapsing trachea. She did say that it can get worse with age but a lot of small dogs have it and all the usual about treating flare ups and using a harness, keeping the weight down etc. Really hope this doesn't get so bad that it affects her quality of life.
Good news about the right leg though, although she did say often the other leg goes too.
Fingers crossed that I will see her again at 7 30 and can take her home. She said they could keep her in but I want her home with me (and we will need to bring her back for injections tomorrow)0 -
OldNotWIse wrote: »Just spoke to the vet.
So, the good news is that her right leg (the one we thought she had torn the cruciate in years ago) is actually showing as perfect.
The left (the one she tore on Friday), the cruciate is completely gone and she can see fluid in the joint so it is as we suspected and vet is going ahead with surgery as we speak. She said it should be done by around 2 30.
Bad news is there is some flattening of the windpipe, so we were right about the collapsing trachea. She did say that it can get worse with age but a lot of small dogs have it and all the usual about treating flare ups and using a harness, keeping the weight down etc. Really hope this doesn't get so bad that it affects her quality of life.
Good news about the right leg though, although she did say often the other leg goes too.
Fingers crossed that I will see her again at 7 30 and can take her home. She said they could keep her in but I want her home with me (and we will need to bring her back for injections tomorrow)
That's good news about the other leg. I wouldn't worry about the other one going as it often doesn't happen. It hasn't happened with Flo yet anyway.
I know with Flo, they wouldn't let her home until she was bearing weight on the leg, so they might be the same. But hopefully you will get her home soon.0 -
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She's getting on really well. We collected her Friday night and she seemed very out of it, and just slept. I was surprised that they had made such a large incision on the leg though - although the wound is clean and stiches are very neat. They had the buster collar on her and said she is to wear it for two weeks, in case she tears stitches. I know it's not the most comfortable thing in the world so we are leaving it off her while we are with her (and there is someone with her most of the time) and if she starts at her leg or if she is going to be alone, we can put the collar back on. Saturday morning she didn't seem great, I guess she was groggy and pain probably returning and she was likely stiff also but I got a fright when I brought her outside to pee, she just buckled. So, I held her while she did her business then carried her back inside.
Saturday evening she was much improved and had taken some foo, her meds, water and was able to walk out to do her pee. She is going back to vet this evening so I must check with them what we should do at this point - if she is allowed to walk out to the garden and back in, for her business, or if she should be on a lead. I'm reluctant to put the harness on her in case it interferes with the leg.
We've sectioned off an area in the sitting room as my Dad has the log burner going all day and she loves sitting beside the fire. I have the area to the right of the fire so she is not in front of it (even though that is where she normally chooses, I'm aware that in this instance she cant move away, so I don't want her directly in front). She has a nice comfy bed and her water bowl and rawhide, and she seems happy enough in there, and my parents are there to take her out for pee pees. We also have a spare room that we have taken all the furniture out of and put up a baby gate, so that if they go out and it's just my (highly irresponsible) brother there, they can put her bed etc in this room until one of us returns. My co-worker let me down with the crate but I think we are managing ok.
She is sleeping in the bedroom with me at night, I have her bed made up on the floor, with a hot water bottle 0 -
love the tidy shaved straight line at the end of her paw
Her leg looks just like my boys - we are 7 weeks post op and its starting to grow back now.
We didnt have a cone, which would have been a major issue for our dog - great that you can leave it off too. Our dog was never crate-trained, so keeping him contained/restricted post-op worked out very well - no new stress.
You're lucky to have the log burner going - nothing like a bit of heat to keep them happy in their beds
P.S You could try her with a little dish of nice cold natural probiotic yogurt with a bit of honey in if she gets a bit cough-y with the stove lighting - used to give it to my boy - the honey soothed, and the yoghurt cooled - and good for his tummy too - plus he loved it!0 -
Oh she is VERY cute... what a face!
That is a really neat-looking scar too, and I'd echo aonb's delight at the lovely straight clipper-line
Sounds like everything is going well, great that she's able to toilet so quickly... I had a post-op dog here who took 3 days to pee, and TWO WEEKS to poop after the operation 0 -
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Yeah that clipper work was very well done. Bailey had bad razor burn on his tummy and it was really bad on his face after his operation last year - that seemed to bother him more than the wound in his mouth! :P At least she has short hair - it won't look so crazy while the fur is growing back lol!! Bailey's came back really really thick but he had a baldy bum for a good while. On one hand a dressing is peace of mind - they can't get at the wound and it's protecting it but on the other and especially this time of year it can be a PITA keeping it dry when they're going out for walks or clean when they're inside. Bailey used to balance his kong on the leg - we quickly learned to cover it with a sock and a towel when he was eating! poor little guy. My little one's belly is a little red lower down so now that you mention it, that must be why. My Mum called and said she is not eating, so I bought her some salmon at lunchtime. Salmon is her favourite food (when she is well anyway), she'd kill you for a piece, so I am hoping she eats this. If not, then it is a concern. She is due in for a post op check this evening so I will mention it to them. No pooh yet either! 0
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Oh she is VERY cute... what a face!
That is a really neat-looking scar too, and I'd echo aonb's delight at the lovely straight clipper-line
Sounds like everything is going well, great that she's able to toilet so quickly... I had a post-op dog here who took 3 days to pee, and TWO WEEKS to poop after the operation
She looks like she is wearing an ankle sock :P0 -
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Barely a wink of sleep last night as my little one was fussing for most of it. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. Tried pee pees, food, water. She was having none of it. I suspect she was annoyed with the buster collar (but she is licking the stitches at every opportunity now so no choice), and also she is used to sleeping in the bed with me, and I don't think she is happy with her bed on the floor. I cant risk having her in the bed though, in case she accidentally gets a kick or shove, and more importantly, in case she decides to jump off in the middle of the night for a drink. Eventually took her into the bed with me around 5 but had to stay dozing in case she tried to jump
Had her at the vet for a checkup and the vet is pleased with how she is doing. She will be going back in ten days to get stitches out and start physio program. She had to endure a rectal exam as she hadn't "performed" since Friday, and a performance quickly followed when we left!
Still not too pushed on her food, which concerns me. She ate two grilled salmon darns last night, and is drinking ok, but very very fussy towards chicken, mince etc.
Has anyone any ideas for fussy post op divas? 0 -
OldNotWIse wrote: »Barely a wink of sleep last night as my little one was fussing for most of it. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. Tried pee pees, food, water. She was having none of it. I suspect she was annoyed with the buster collar (but she is licking the stitches at every opportunity now so no choice), and also she is used to sleeping in the bed with me, and I don't think she is happy with her bed on the floor. I cant risk having her in the bed though, in case she accidentally gets a kick or shove, and more importantly, in case she decides to jump off in the middle of the night for a drink. Eventually took her into the bed with me around 5 but had to stay dozing in case she tried to jump
Had her at the vet for a checkup and the vet is pleased with how she is doing. She will be going back in ten days to get stitches out and start physio program. She had to endure a rectal exam as she hadn't "performed" since Friday, and a performance quickly followed when we left!
Still not too pushed on her food, which concerns me. She ate two grilled salmon darns last night, and is drinking ok, but very very fussy towards chicken, mince etc.
Has anyone any ideas for fussy post op divas?
My fella had TPLO at the start of the summer. He was really odd about his food for the first week or so, not really interested in it at all.
I got a few bags of sweet potatos in Lidl and mashed them up with chicken breast and gave him this for the first few days, then slowly started mixing in his usual kibble with it. It seemed to do the trick. I was giving him really small portions and keeping note of it every time he ate and drank.
The first few nights he was home were tricky too. He did this low whine all night long. It was super sad. He was really disorientated and confused. I slept on the floor beside him for a couple of nights and he stopped. I had two old duvets laid out over each other and it fenced off with two old clothes horses. It was actually pretty comfortable :pac:
I also found icing the leg sporadically really helped him. He loved it.0 -
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My food-centric dog had no interest in his food after his surgery either. Tiny bits of tempting treat food was all he ate for the first several days. If she likes salmon (eating two grilled salmon darnes is seriously plenty!!) you might try her on tinned salmon, easier on your wallet, you could put it and its juices over some cooked rice or potato?
After any anaesthetic my dogs would 'whine' like that too - not sure if its pain or disorientation from the drugs - I suspect the latter. Its very hard to listen to 0 -
I also found icing the leg sporadically really helped him. He loved it.
Am I the only one who thought you meant icing, as in icing on a cake: I did a bit of a double-take until I copped on to what you meant
ONW, I think two salmon darnes is plenty for her too, remembering that she's not burning off anywhere near as much energy now so won't be feeling as hungry. And as others have said, anaesthetic really can knock their appetite to shreds. You could try a bit of mashed spud and/or carrot mixed in through it, or sweet potato (must try that with my fusspot), but from experience, I'd advise that you trial small portions before committing to a full meal portion Jimf here also swears by Vit B12 supplement to restore appetite, which I must try here too! 0 -
Moved a mattress into the bedroom last night and made up a bed on that for her to sleep on, and thinking if she did start fretting during the night, that I could just take my pillow and bunk down with her however she went the night without fuss (at least, I hope she did, I'm worried that I was maybe too tired to hear her if she did make noise)
She didn't eat anything yesterday, and I am starting to worry. Offered her salmon and chicken that was super moist as I slow cooked it in a roasting bag but she was having none of it. I even put a cat in front of her bowl (poor sacrificial cat), which usually gets her to eat but all she did was try to bury it 0 -
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Assuming it's metacam aka loxicom I was always told to feed that with food to avoid tummy upsets? How are you managing if she won't eat though?! Poor thing
With difficulty! It is Loxicom. She's on a daily dose at night (which is when she normally eats) so she had one on Monday night after her salmon darnes, but I didn't give her a dose last night because she hadn't eaten and I didn't want to make her worse.
Is it normal for this to happen to the appetite? 0 -
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My boys appetite was really gone after his op - think the pain plus the meds plus the effects of the anaesthetic caused it as he usually loves his food. Dont worry about her yet, she has been thru a major surgery - anaesthetic whacks us as well as our furry pets - and takes time to get over. Plus she is doing nothing all day (exercise) to make her hungry. If she likes probiotic natural yogourt, you could give her a little dish of it, to help her tummy in case its upset. If you are giving her liquid meds and shes off her food, you could get a little plastic syringe, mix meds with a spoon of yogurt/honey, and squirt it into her mouth from the side of her jaw, hold her chin up a little bit and rub under her chin afterwards to make her swallow! That way you know its in!
Thanks I will try that. 0 -
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Oldnotwise, i have that sling in with me today, i totally forgot to bring it the last 2 days with me to work, but it will be going in todays post for you.
Just got the sling, thanks so much. I'll return in a couple of weeks if that is ok?
Had a mild panic attack his morning when she jumped on the bed. Couldn't believe it. I had the mattress and duvet made up for her on the floor beside my bed, and she had slept there without a problem the night before last but last night she actually jumped from it onto my bed. Kicking myself now for not crating her, but really didn't think she would try that. Is there any way of knowing if this might have caused damage? She will have to be more confined now, as I think when they start to feel better that is the time they can do damage. This morning going for a peepee I had to carry her out because I knew by her she would run out the door, and had to stop her from jumping at my legs yesterday when I came in.
So, it's lockdown now I think. Crate and only out of it on lead
I just hope she hasn't already damaged the surgical work.
Appetite back to normal 0 -
Hehe I've posted many times before about what happened with Bailey when he was recovering with the first leg! I can laugh now but at the time it was terrifying
So a few years ago when we had all the snow I brought him out to the loo and to cool down on Christmas eve while my mum was out having a cig. He had finished crate rest and then out on a walk a dog jumped up on him (multiple times :mad:) leg swelled up and my vet thought one of the pins had cracked the bone etc etc so he was back on crate rest until we heard back from the surgeon who was on chrismas holidays.. He started messing trying to pull the lead out of my hand - so I stood on it like I'd been thought at class... TK1 - Bailey 0...except it just went down in the snow and slid from under my feet!! Off he went around our small garden with zoomies :eek: My mum ran in crying thinking his leg was going to snap and I managed to catch him but it was very scary. The vet called a few days later to say everything was ok with the xrays - I told her I'd guessed as much because he'd been tearing around the garden lol! 0 -
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from what i understand of the vets explanation of my dogs cruciate ligament replacement, the artifical ligament that has been used in the repair, is outside the joint. The joint builds up scar tissue. This is what will hold the joint in place in the future. The artifical ligament will eventually become obsolete. Does this make sense to you knowlegable veterinary types out there?
That is my understanding of it too 0 -
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