[poohbunners]

I just joined YorkieTalk today and am hoping to get some help, feedback, on a surgery that has been recommeded for our 8 year old Yorkie, Tuffy. Tuffy had surgery 2 years ago for a collapsed trachea in his throat area after medication failed to help. Rings were put around his trachea, the surgery went fine and he has been great for the last 2 years. However, a couple of weeks ago, he began "honking" and choaking for breath like he had done in 2006. We went back to the surgeon who had done the 2006 surgery and had a florascope done which showed that his trachea is collapsed again. The ring surgery is still doing fine but the collapse now is in the chest area of the trachea where another ring surgery is not an option. She put him on allergy, cough, and antiboitic medication which is working as long as he doesn't get excited at all which is hard to do with an active little guy. His breathing is labored but no coughing or honking. She told us that there is a new surgery that is being done at a couple of universities in the US (U of Penn and Texas A&M) that can be done in the chest area of the trachea where stents are inserted to hold the trachea open. I have read what I can find on the internet about this surgery and would like to have any help you can give me if any of you have had personal experience with this kind of stent surgery. This is so scary and we want to make sure we do the right thing.