First of all, I would like to thank Mother Nature for a glorious soaking that has begun the "little" creek roaring again, giving us over 4 inches of rain, so far. Much obliged, Madame, much obliged. The powdery soil in that low spot, out back, went from crunchy "perma-frost" to goop in no time but honestly, I am so very happy to have this bounty for my trees and well that I don't mind it ONE BIT. My Chinese horoscope devotee dad, was right about the timing. He said that the year of the metal dragon was going to be refreshingly wet for our land and our souls. Alrighty, then...
We knocked off from work yesterday at 2, so that Lorrie could follow me over to the house and exercise her poor middle finger with some MUCH needed scissor work on my mop. When she got hurt that day that Trixie arrived, I knew that a haircut was out of the picture for good length of time but yesterday morning, she announced that she had brought her scissors and that I REALLY needed a haircut. Hah! Nothing like having your hairdresser/friend/assistant/dog sitter stare at your overgrown hairdo to get her recuperated enough to wield the scissors again. I, for one, am mighty happy to get the hair out of my eyes. :o)
The dogs had no idea of what was coming, as they hung out in Hairdo Land. They were just happy to be with us. When Lorrie left, it was time to get the car ready and the leashes hidden until the last minute before the first car ride with Trixie and her buddy, Tank. No WAY did they want to just "hop in", even though she can bound like Superman. No WAY would they try the ramp and so Rod had to lift them up into the back of the Pilot. Tank was the only one getting worried, as we drove the 10 minutes to the Smith Flat clinic and by the time we arrived, he had worked himself into quite the tizzy. Trixie was calm and quiet.
Doctor Kennedy is a bay area transplant, like us, and loves to be a teacher to his patients people. He worked with Trixie, who was pretty nervous when he came to her with the microchip reader but by the time she was done with HER exam, she thought that he and his treats were ok. All of the time that she was being worked with, poor Tank was hyperventilating and acting like a goofball. It really was embarrasing, to tell you the truth. (here come those Souza's with their two ring circus) but after he was checked by the doctor, I had a better idea of why he was acting like a nut.
The Doctor had asked why Tank was in and I explained to him that he had an episode of pain, while playing with little Myles, right around Christmas. They had been "rough housing" (Tank was doing tug-o-war and those juking moves that dogs do, in play) when he cried out, fell down and held his leg out at an odd angle. At that time, I was worried that he had pulled his hip out of the socket or something and we watched him and when he seemed to improve in a day, I let it go. It happened again, to a lesser degree, and when I saw him recover, I put it in the back of my mind. It happened one more time, when he and Trixie were play fighting outside and I knew that I needed to alert the doctor. I honestly just thought that it was arthritis or something like that.
Upon examining Tank's knees, the doctor told me that he was worried that Tank not only had arthritis in those knees but that he may have torn his ACL's in one or both knees. (!!!) This dog has been hiking with us and trying to keep up with Trixie heading up the hill but really slow on the way down. He is only 6 but a purebred Lab who was diagnosed with an elbow issue, as a pup and this was and was not shocking. We did get scolded a little for his extra 10 pounds, which we vowed to whittle away, as we did once before, when he and Sasha came in a little too well fed, years ago. (knock off the treats, Mama.) The doctor said that this would help his joints but we have to take him in on Tuesday to be sedated, x-rayed and evaluated, to see if he needs surgery. Surgery.
We came home with a bottle of Nsaids for his pain and were told to up his fish oil to 8 capsules a day as well as get some Sam-e and human Chondroitin (he said not to trust the dog formula) and to look into Nutro-max for more joint issue treatment. Dogs can be so stoic and I can only imagine the amount of pain that he has been suffering, now that we have been clued in to the doctor's suspicions. Poor Tankie! It is just good to know that if the worst case is a reality, he can still have that surgery to keep his knee from slipping and wearing and can have a good quality of life. At this point, I will hope for "just arthritis" but prepare for the worst case scenario.
I guess that it took these younger dogs coming in for a romp with him to expose the flaws in this big boned dude. I just want him to have a happy and healthy life as a grown-up Lab, being able to play with Trixie and be her walking companion for years to come.
Take it easy, Tankie...you are on a diet, buddy.
Lisa
Thanks for the font change. It appears HUGE in the google reader preview that I get when you post a new entry. But, when I go to the actual blog the font is not HUGE but is manageable. I appreciate you taking the time to do the change.
Posted by: Joyce | January 21, 2012 at 07:14 AM
Aww poor Tank. He was just trying to keep up with the new Forever Dog.
Posted by: Janice | January 21, 2012 at 08:42 AM
Aw, poor Tank! I have a friend whose dog needed both ACLs repaired, and other than keeping her calm and relatively quiet during the recovery period, it was straightforward and she seems to be good as new with no more pain. I bet the hardest thing for Tank will be not jumping and running to keep up with Trixie during the recovery.
Posted by: Datagoddess | January 21, 2012 at 02:00 PM
Oh, thanks for the vote of confidence about the surgery. He will have to be on a leash during his recovery but it is good to know that the prognosis will be good. I will wait to hear from the Vet, on Tuesday. I can really see him favoring one leg, on our abbreviated walks so it will be good to gitterdone, if needs be. The blessing about Trixie is that she can settle down, in the house. She is just that good. Whew!
Posted by: Lisa Souza | January 21, 2012 at 02:29 PM
Best wishes for an easy and Tank-full recovery.
Posted by: AlisonH | January 21, 2012 at 04:30 PM
Is there doggie PT too? Thank goodness for diagnosis and potential for a fix!
Posted by: Laurie | January 21, 2012 at 06:09 PM
One of our dogs tore her ACL last summer and she had surgery to repair the damage. It wasn't easy keeping her calm during the 8 week recovery period but she's back to normal now. She is a small dog and you know how much crazy energy those small dogs can have!
Posted by: Kelley | January 21, 2012 at 06:18 PM
8 weeks of recovery? Of course, I am going to do whatever it takes but that should be quite the interesting bit of time with somebody like Trixie egging him on. Ai-yi-yi. Thanks for the input! The doctor said that he would have to be on a short leash, whenever going outside. I'd like to put his rear end into a cart! Haha.
Posted by: Lisa Souza | January 21, 2012 at 07:31 PM
I posted on your Facebook wall in response to this. Freia's had two TPLOs so I've been through this and know the drill. I HIGHLY recommend my dr, dr. Andrew SAMs in Mill Valley for the surgery. Call me if you want to know more, also read my blog (Freia and the knitwhit) to read about Freia's op and recovery, it will help you a lot.
Posted by: Tina whitmore | January 21, 2012 at 10:17 PM
Sorry wrong blog addy https://knitwhits.wordpress.com/
Posted by: Tina whitmore | January 21, 2012 at 10:22 PM
Thanks T! We will know, for sure, this Tuesday. The surgeons that come in to do the work at my local vet are specialists in this kind of surgery and my vet had them work on his own dog. I feel confident that Tank will get the best care. Dr Kennedy calls himself a GP and makes certain that we go (or stay) for the right specialists.
I love how, in this blog-o-sphere, all that you need to do is put out the call and info just flies in. Thanks SO much for sharing! I feel SO much more at ease.
Posted by: Lisa Souza | January 22, 2012 at 06:36 AM