Pooh Bear is having a sleepover at the vet's (update)

[JackieMaya]

The surgeon wanted to get another set of x-rays done on Pooh Bear's hips, so I took him back out to the vet that the rescue shelter uses, which is about 45 minutes away. My vet is two blocks away. I didn't know until after Pooh Bear ate his lunch today that they wanted to take x-rays. For hip x-rays, they have to be sedated, and they shouldn't eat for like 5-6 hours before they're sedated. So they're either going to do the x-rays as late as possible today or first thing in the morning. I could have had the x-rays done by my vet, but I don't know if the shelter would have paid for it then. This way, everything is paid for by the shelter.

The vet said that the surgeon is guardedly optimistic that the TPO (triple pelvic osteotomy) will be a good surgery for Pooh Bear. That's the one that we were hoping they would be able to do. But he didn't feel comfortable making a decision based on the x-rays that were taken before.

I just can't believe how wonderful Pooh Bear is in the car. I use my pick-up when I take the girls somewhere, but I used my SUV today for Pooh Bear (just covered the back seat). The SUV has a better viewing level for Pooh Bear than my pick-up does! And he was so happy to go to the vet! He is just an incredibly happy puppy!

So it's just me and the girls at home tonight.

I'm going to take Pooh Bear out to the barn with me tomorrow after I pick him up from the vet. I want to show him off to everyone there (and see what he thinks of horses), since after his surgery (which will probably be pretty soon), he'll be homebound for a long time. So I thought it would be a fun field trip for him.

[Crystal]

Well, I hope he is to sad being alone tonight. It is all in his best interest though. Hope he enjoys his field trip tomorrow.

[Horsefeathers!]

A sleepover at the vet, huh? You make it sound like a fun thing. :P

Seriously, I'm sure he's resting comfortably and will be glad to get back home. Still keeping him in my thoughts for whatever his future holds.

[JackieMaya]

LOL, HF. I wanted Pooh Bear to think he's having a fun sleepover. And he will be sedated, so it'll REALLY be a sleepover!

But I'm going to miss my Pooh man tonight! It'll seem real strange to only have the two girls tonight! I'm going to take them for a walk in the morning. They'll love that!

[nadooshkinz]

Sleepover at the vets! yay? :lol: I hope all goes well JM, and that field trip sounds fun! :wink:

[JackieMaya]

Pooh Bear was still sleepy from the anesthesia when I picked him up from the vet today. I took him out to the barn, and he slept the whole way. He only barked at one horse, which I thought was great. I tried to get him to go up to my horse, but he thought that was too scary. He was very well-behaved out there, but of course he was still sleepy. One of the real playful German Shorthair dogs out there wanted to play with him, but Pooh Bear just rolled over on his back and said he was too tired.

Jackie and Maya were SOOO happy to see their little brother when we got home! When I put Pooh Bear in his crate when I had to go to work, he didn't even bark. He's going to sleep real well tonight.

The vet said that he didn't think that the TPO (Triple Pelvic Osteotomy) would work for Pooh Bear, and that the FHO (Femoral Head Ostectomy) would probably be the surgery that the surgeon will want to do. And from what I've read, that's the best one for an active dog who weighs 50 pounds or less. And that describes Pooh Bear! He sent the x-rays off to the surgeon today, so I'll find out the beginning of next week what the surgeon wants to do.

[quote]Femoral head ostectomy is removal or excision of the ball portion of the hip joint. After removal, the bone is smoothed so there is no bone to bone contact occurring between the pelvis and the remaining portion of the femur. Removal of the portion of the femur that articulates with the hip joint then causes formation of a false fibrous joint.

Post-operative care following FHO surgery is very different compared to most surgical procedures. Physical therapy is crucial to the success of the procedure. Swimming, running playing with other dogs, retrieving, etc is all encouraged starting 7-10 days after the operation. The fibrous false joint that will replace the hip joint will heal with a greater range of motion.

Recovery time may be relatively prolonged; often requiring 4-6 months before the dog is using the leg well.[/quote]

Oh, the vet said I should change his name to Houdini because he kept getting out of his kennel! They finally had to put him in a big crate. Goofy boy! The vet just loves him.

[Horsefeathers!]

FHO surgery is what my Tucker Lab had. It did seem to help him a lot for a good year or two. Bear in mind that Tucker is aging and that he has some other old damage to his rear end, so arthritis is starting to kick his butt, but I fully believe FHO bought him a bit of relief while it lasted. Since Pooh is so much younger and (I assume?) has no other damage (old injuries), he'll probably be just fine and before too long, you'll be wishing he'd get somewhere and lay down. :roll:

I was lucky enough to get to stand in for the surgery. It's really quite simple, in concept, but quite gruesome to watch :-?. I had to go home and take a Tylenol for the sympathy pains. I'm kind of a weirdo, though, because I saved the bone. I still have it. :oops:

We also had to almost immediately make him begin using that leg. That's really hard because you feel so sorry for them... especially having seen the surgery. It's so hard to do something intentionally that you KNOW hurts them. Who wants to deliberately hurt someone they love? Still, you gotta do whatcha gotta do. I reckon it's a form of tough love.

Sounds like Pooh is getting a plan of action. Will be sending him all the luck in the world. Recovery is tough, but you'll do what you have to do.

OH! By the way, it's probably a good idea to start thinking of a place where Pooh can rest during his recovery period where other dogs can't tromple him. We don't typically mind our dogs on the furniture, but Tucker doesn't usually get up on it. We set aside the love seat specifically for Tucker. With so many other dogs in the house, we needed to be able to have him somewhere that was comfortable and where he wasn't likely to be trompled by other dogs. We didn't want to just put something soft on the floor for him because we were afraid the other dogs might jar him or step on him or just land on him. Just be kind of tossing the idea around of somewhere Pooh can rest undisturbed, yet not necessarily isolated away.
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