As a rule, I stay away from any clinic that begins with the letter "A". There is a reason they start with that letter.
Got huck?
As a rule, I stay away from any clinic that begins with the letter "A". There is a reason they start with that letter.
Got huck?
My dog, Sophie, has been in and out of the animal hospital, after she dropped to the ground in the park on Sunday. She has now been diagnosed with a completely torn ACL in her right rear leg. She is usually a very active dog, and it just kills me to see her unable to move much at all. She is a 4 year old, 60 pound Dutch Shepherd/Boxer and the sweetest thing you'll ever meet.
We are told that the operation is fairly standard and most dogs bounce back from it. However, it is very expensive and there is a 80% chance she will tear the other side within a year, due to overcompensating with it. I really hope she doesn't get the double whammy.
- Has anyone else on the boards dealt with this procedure in a dog?
- Any recommendations for vets? Possibly a more reasonable option than the one we've been quoted? I am not willing to compromise on the surgeon, but if there is a good vet with a lower price it would make our xmas a little easier this year.
- Any ideas on how to play with an immobile dog and at least keep her mind active during the downtime?
- Any recommendations for the recovery period? We've been told to expect 6 months, and that we might have to get a harness for the first little while. Lots of swimming and no fetch obviously.
Heard back from my friend, info he gave sent via PM.
Well, Sophie had her operation on the 4th of this month. She spent a few days on the bed/couch before the bandage came off and had to be carried everywhere. The second night sans bandage she decided to remove 15 of the 20 stiches on her own, so the scar will not be as pretty as it could have been - but this is the least of my worries. On Saturday this weekend, she started to put some weight on it again, and she is now begging to go outside and play. It is so nice to see her old self coming back! The surgery was worth every penny, and contrary to what we were told, we received nothing but excellent treatment at the animal hospital. Now we are looking at 3 months of progressively longer walks, lots of stretching and plenty of love. By 6 months she will be as strong as she will ever be. Thanks for the good vibes everyone!
Congrats, good to hear Sophie's doing so well.
fungle, my daughter LOVES sophie.
when we got home she was laughing constantly. we asked her what was so funny and she said "fophy" took us a while but she was (and has been since) re-enacting the whole night.
she says "fophy owie" and limps then goes to the ground and says "shh. fophy sleep"
i say "did sophie kiss you" and she sticks out her and rubs her hand on her face and starts lauging.
she even hugs our dog and says "awwww, fophy"
:lol:
but the classic was the walk slow limp. i now say "how does sophie walk" and she does this crip walk , it is PRICELESS
turn off sigs…it will change your life
Aawww - what a sweetie! Too funny!
Just make sure the do-rag is on the crip side!
That's great news! :clap: :dog: I was wondering how she was doing. Glad to hear all is well!
Recovery is more important than the surgery so don't push it even though she want's to run jump and play a slow steady recovery is the key. My dog strained one of her a few years ago and favoured the leg and did her other one a couple of years later. She now lives with my folks in a on floor house with no stairs she is diong well at Eleven and is a little slower and it takes her a ittle more time to get up but she is still happy. I was quite a bit younger when it happened and couldn't afford the surgeries but I wish I had she wasn't quite the same dog after. But even without the surgeries the slow steady recovery helped out a lot the vets say that her current condition could have easily been the same with the surgery. A picture of Jesse and my new dog Mango to aid the healing vibe to Sophie.
I'm the best at being modest !
Hey, it's good to see Sophie. I wish her the best. (such a cool dog)
"X is for x-ray. If you've been bikin' and you haven't had an x-ray, you ain't goin' hard enough." - Bob Roll
You have a cool dog, Johannes.
Well, everything was going really well, untill Wednesday last week - when she tore her ACL on the left side. So now we are back to square one again. Poor thing is so depressed and bored. She can barely get around as her right side is still very weak, and spends most of her days in her bed sulking.
She is scheduled for surgery on Thursday this week, but then somebody told me about Atlas in North Vancouver, and they are quite a bit cheaper than what we paid for her first surgery this year. Does anyone have any experience with this clinic? I am not willing to compromise her surgery, but they come highly recommended so if I can save a few bucks I am all for it.
Nope - they won't cover it once one side has torn.
Well, everything was going really well, untill Wednesday last week - when she tore her ACL on the left side. So now we are back to square one again. Poor thing is so depressed and bored. She can barely get around as her right side is still very weak, and spends most of her days in her bed sulking.
She is scheduled for surgery on Thursday this week, but then somebody told me about Atlas in North Vancouver, and they are quite a bit cheaper than what we paid for her first surgery this year. Does anyone have any experience with this clinic? I am not willing to compromise her surgery, but they come highly recommended so if I can save a few bucks I am all for it.
it's probably too late, and if saving a few bucks is your priority, likely irrelevent… but i have seen several very simple procedures completely botched by atlas. bc has very lax licensing regulations. many of the vets there are unable to practise anywhere else in canada. i wouldn't take your dog there. you get what you pay for.
i hope she gets better. :)
if things don't go well i would really suggest you get in touch with the specialist that was referred to you by several people on here.
ride a horse! 1200 pounds of raw muscle, power, grace, and sweat between your legs…
but riding bikes is still fun!
Yupp - too late now, however, the surgery seems to have gone very well. We met with the doctor and he has done a lot of these in the last year. She is recovering fine (even faster it seems), and the stitches/cut look even cleaner than last time. 2 expensive surgeries in 4 months, and no insurance, kinda put a bit of a damper on the ordeal, but it seems like she will be OK after all.
dude your dog looks a little baked
meh
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