FHO Surgery
 

Hello everyone. It has been forever since I posted and life has been on such a whirlwind of disaster I feel just drained. I apologize to everyone that I might have hurt in the mean time. I really hope life starts spinning in the right direction soon.

I need a little advice. Our little Annie started favoring her left leg about 2 weeks ago. She wasn't putting as much weight on her right leg. At first I atributed it to the fact that we lost our other Sheltie "Nugget" in October and Annie has been depressed and not eating as much as she should. So, I took her to our Vet and after x-rays it was determined that she has Leg Perthes Disease. I was so sick. Another blow to our family. I was in shock. I have taken her to two other doctors this week and they both confirmed the problem. The only way to correct it is surgery. I am pretty nervous.

I am also out of work due to a change in corporate policy not allowing spouses to work together. Oh, I have been there for 23 years. I am also out of work from my other job as I was replaced by the owners sister. What a quinkydink.

I have been trying to stay positive but it is so hard. Annie needs to have the surgery now and I am doing everything possible to make that happen. She goes in tomorrow at 8:30. I have even volunteered to work at the Vets office to pay some of the bill. I know things happen for a reason right? It just seems like it has been one blow after another since March. Please Lord let this year come to an end quickly.

Sorry got off topic. If anyone out there can share their experience and what to expect after we pick her up from surgery and also what are the best exercises that help our little ones recover it would be greatly appreciated.

I did contact our breeder and she was very nice. She had all ready had the Mom x-rayed and she has no problems and she was going to have the Dad x-rayed. She said they are now both spayed and she wouldn't want this to happen again. She did offer me options to help out. Wondering if any of you can advise me what the best option would be.

1- She has a puppy from a different litter that is a male and she volunteered to give him to me free to charge. She said he might help with with the recovery.

2- She offered to split the cost of surgery with me. But would have to wait until she sold this puppy.

What in your best opinion is the best option for me? She said she would send me pictures of the puppy if I would consider it. She lives out of state. In one way it might be good as Annie has been depressed and all the Vets suggested we get another fursib for her and it might help with rehabilitation. I will make our budget work no matter what. Amazing what I have learned to do when it comes to money now.

I have attached a copy of Annie's X-Ray for you if you would like to see.

I appreciate all your advice it is treasured.

Thanks.

I don't have any suggestions for you, but want you to know that your Annie will be in my prayers.

I am so sorry about the loss of your job's.

As for the breeders suggestions, I'm not sure what to tell you what to do.

Thanks so much for your love and prayers!!! It means the world to us and I know Annie is going to need that little boost tomorrow morning!!

I am so sorry that thinks are difficult for you. As for the FHO surgery, I have had a few pups in my care who had this surgery and every one of them did very well. My own personal pup, Adina, had it this past year due to hip dysplasia and she is fine...running around as if nothing ever happened. The little ones really do very well with this surgery. Some of them will continue to limp for some time, but I have never had to do any special exercises or anthing with any of them.

I will be praying that things will go very well for Annie. Please keep us updated.

That's a tough call. I'm not sure I would take on a new puppy given your job situation. I think if your breeder is willing to help financially that's the direction I would go. I know another puppy is hard to resist, but I'm not sure that now with the potentially long rehabilitaion process after the FHO surgery a new puppy would be best in the rehabilitaiton process for your baby. JMHO. We've been through the FHO too, hugs, it's a scary surgery but usually has good results.

I'm sorry that Annie and your family are going through this. Prayers going up for a successful surgery and for your family in general:love: I've seen quite a few pups on here that have had the surgery and they all seemed to do super well afterward, so that's good news:)

I don't know what I would do in your situation re: the breeder's offers, but honestly this IS a genetic condition that she should be 100% responsible for, in my humble opinion. I really hope that she comes forward with a better offer than another puppy OR half the surgery cost. I feel really badly for you having to make these decisions. Thank goodness it seems that your vet is being very flexible about payment and will help your baby get better.

I agree.


I am so sorry to hear about Annie. Good thoughts and blessings go out to her and your family during this time. Hugs

My Zoey had this surgery last year in Oct. The vet took her home and kept her for 5 days until she was up and doing well. She was still on pain killers when returned to me. We started rehab immediately. The dr's wife (also his assistant) worked with us until I felt that Zoey didn't need any more rehab. It was a long series of walks and exercises. She finished in April of this year. The rehab was no extra cost - it was included in the price of the surgery. There are some threads about this surgery. I explained in detail what Zoey did for rehab in a few of them.
Good luck with your little one. I'm sure the surgery will go well.

Sending prayers

I'm sorry to hear about Annie. My teddy has LCP disease also but isn't clinical and therefore not a surgical candidate (yet). I have no experience with the surgery (yet) but our surgeon does follow Teddy and he says that these dogs do very well after FHO, as others pointed out. I hope your luck (and Annie's luck) turns around soon. As for the breeder, I am glad she's concerned and offering some assistance. I don't think taking on another pup right now is right for you (just my opinion).

Thanks for your support!!! Just want to tell you I love your pee pads!! They are amazing and we use them every day!! I haven't found much information regarding Yorkies and this surgery. I am going to try and keep a log of how it goes. I plan on taking videos here and there and uploading them to youtube. We have hard floors in our kitchen and I didn't want her up there so went to the store and bought waterproof fabric then covered it with fleece for comfort. Tied it to the sides of the xpen for security. Have the XPen set up in our family room and in one corner there is one of your pee pads. We are going to keep her there for a while as our house is 4 levels and I don't want her thinking of trying the stairs. Thanks again for your support.

What a great idea that rehab was included in the price. I am not sure how our vet works it. I am just trying to get as prepared as possible. Thanks so much for your support it is great to hear positive.

Thanks everyone for all the support. I will try and update everyone with progress.

Keeping Annie and you in my prayers....

Praying for Annie. I'm sure she'll do fine based on other posts I've read on this subject.

I would have to agree with the others on not taking on another pup right now. I know Annie wants a brother or sister but your hands are going to be full right now with taking care of her post-op.

Best wishes and again she's in my prayers.

So sorry to hear about your jobs and the LCP issue. Our 14 month old pup is recovering from FHO surgery #2 right now for the same disease - he had it in both legs. Each time, it's taken about a month and he starts using the leg a lot. We closely followed rehab protocol and started doing short walks/hops after the first few days. I recommend asking for specific rehab suggestions/protocols from your vet so you are confident about how to help your dog handle the recovery. I also took notes about how many walks and excercises we did and for how long to make sure we built up slowly. P-Nut 's dad is in charge of carefully massaging the legs, with vet approval and input into the process; this has also helped. We wish you all the best and I'm sure your doggy will be feeling better soon!

Again, I would like to say this: I have had a few pups with this surgery and every single one of them recovered very well and needed absolutely no rehab afterwards. Not that rehab is bad, but it is costly and for this surgery not necessary in every case. I use a board certified surgeon and he has sent me to his physical therapist for other surgeries....so it is not that he is not into rehab. My Adina was up and walking on her leg the next day. Her incision was only about 1" long (very small) and she did fantastic...but of course, I think the surgeon I use is awesome. I hope all goes well.. I saw your plans with your floor...sounds like you have all bases covered well for after care. :)

To clarify, I was talking about rehab at home done by me -in terms of walks and exercises rather than going to physical thetapy/other rehab.

To clarify: I did nothing but let the pups progress at their own speed and they did terrific. I have seen a few people mention rehab and I am merely saying that in my experience it was not needed.
Just sharing my experiences is all. :) Not saying anyone else is wrong.

That's great they did so well and the 1" incision is SO much smaller than both of "ours". There's lots of hope for LCP babies leading happy, pain-free lives!

His incisions are always smaller than some I have seen on others; but the one he did on her was amazingly small. He is an awesome surgeon. I have a feeling that is why she has done so well...I don't know that for a fact, but she really did fantastic.

Oh, and yes, these pups do very well and go on to live very active and happy lives. The first one I had done had me SO worried as it sounded like a barbaric procedure until I understood it......it was amazing to me how well they do.

This is all so encouraging!!! Thanks everyone for all your input!!! I have the best trust in our Vet that is doing the surgery. She is an amazing lady with lots of experience. She has an Orthopedic Vet on board at her practice that she owns and he is assisting her with the procedure. Everyone of you have made my heart fill so much better regarding the surgery. I will be glad I get the call tomorrow and know everything is done and we can start focusing on the recovery period. Thanks again. I will keep everyone updated.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Looking for an update on Annie's surgery. Hope that all went well!

Prayers for your sweet baby's speedy recovery and prayers for you and your family.

Annie Update
 

Well everyone finally got a moment to give everyone an update. Annie made it through the surgery!!! YAY!!! She is home with us now. :D She went in this morning about 8:30am. I hadn't heard anything by 1:00 so I called. They said it took a lot longer than expected. The bone was really decayed and large. They couldn't believe how well she had been walking. She was quite slow to wake up. But seems to be doing relatively well now. She continues to whine a little bit but not that she is in a lot of pain. Doctor said that is expected. Great news is her appetite is amazing, she wants chicken and I have had to portion it so she doesn't eat too much. Took her outside and she even went potty on her own. All is looking good. I am going to upload some pictures. Thanks for all your love and support. :) Trying to resize pictures but didn't want to leave you hanging. I will post them here in a few. Thanks again!!

Wonderful!!! She really sounds like she's doing great..an appetite is always good :thumbup: Thanks for updating...looking forward to the pics:)

Hope this works. I will try and keep everyone posted how the recovery is going.

One picture is this morning right after her bath before the surgery. She is all dressed in her Christmas outfit. Then I have uploaded one of her resting in my daughters lap and also one of her incision. Thanks again for your support.

Happy to hear that all went well! She is adorable!! :)