 Poor Dixie
I am so sorry to hear about your poor sweet little Dixie's broken leg. We are just finishing up a six month ordeal here at our household where my little Willow was dropped at Christmas by some little boys that came to visit us resulting in her breaking her fibula and tibia bones in her back right leg. We were given no choice of casting vs. surgery. She was immediately taken into surgery three days after her accident to place a two inch plate and six screws in the bigger bone to allow for healing. We had no cast, just a shaved leg that looked like a popcicle stick with an open incision and lots of stitches. Willow had to stay in a small kennel that she was only allowed to stand up, turn around, and lay back down in for at least 6 weeks. It was horrible, but strict orders from the Orthopedic surgeon. After 6 weeks she was allowed to be in a tent that she could at least lay around on one side in and potty and eat on the other side. This went on for another 10 weeks. After 15 weeks we were under the impression that she would finally be done with everything only to find out that due to loss of bone density the plate and screws needed to be removed. So on April 16th they operated again to remove the plate and screws. This time she had a hard cast for two weeks and three soft casts every week after that. She just went back to the Orthopedic Surgeon at the University of Minnesota and we have finally been given a clean bill of health. She is still in confinement until June 28th but x-rays showed that the breaks are completely healed and the screw holes are filling in and the bone density is starting to come back. We are so blessed that after all these months and two surgeries Willow will have a 100% recovery. The entire staff at the University of Minnesota Small Animal Hospital was amazing and we couldn't have asked for better care. Our orthopedic surgeon Dr. Seamans was absolutely wonderful . . . and handsome too. Willow loved him.
I hope our story helps you in the care of your sweet little puppy. |