 Pickles has FHO surgery tomorrow!
Hi everybody!
It's been a crazy summer around here with a family medical crisis, and although we knew our little rescue pup, Pickles has Legg-Calve-Perthes (LCP), we had to put off surgery for about a month and a half due to the family issue -- and me being out of town as a result. Pickles was not suffering and actually rarely ever limped or held his leg up. We used Rimadyl as needed, but probably only one or two doses over the past month.
Now, I've been back in town for a week and a half and Pickles started sitting strangely last week, as well as picking up his leg quite a bit, which he hadn't been doing previously. Took him for x-ray Friday and we found the degeneration in his femoral head had increased significantly, to say the least. Poor guy.
We're having the same doc that did P-Nut's femoral head ostectomy surgeries do Pickles' -- tomorrow. I'm not nearly as nervous as with the first two (P-Nut's surgeries), but, still, Pickles is just a little guy, (6.5lbs) and though I know this surgery will help him enormously, it's still nerve racking. In good news, P-Nut's done so well, you would never know he ever had a problem with his hips! We love our vet.
In P-Nut's case, the LCP was definitely due to bad breeding - people breeding pets without doing the appropriate testing and not having in mind bettering the breed (thanks, YT, for teaching me about this!!). In Pickles' case, we're not sure as Animal Control picked him up and he was injured, limping and swollen, living on the streets of San Jose. He may have been kicked, thrown out of a car or any number of scenarios that boggle my mind. On the other hand, the LCP could be genetic. In any case, it's clear he's not a product of responsible breeding, either. It's so sad, so many little yorkies and other animals suffering due to human greed.
We're committed to taking care of these guys for life, they've changed my life dramatically - I never had any idea what the love of a dog was like, really. And Pickles is such a love, though clearly he was abused before we got him - all he wants to do is give love. He's precious! All good thoughts are greatly appreciated, YTers! I've attached a couple of photos of Pickles. |