It’s been a busy week! We’ve celebrated a birthday, a wedding anniversary, and Piper had an operation on her leg.
Anyone out there have a pet who is part of the family? Oh man, it’s hard to see them suffer in silence.
Last March, just before the pandemic hit, my hubby took a quick trip away for business. He came home right away when we discussed what was happening in the world and the impending threat of an unknown virus.
He returned later in the evening and Piper, our golden retriever, was so excited to see him, she dashed over to him, skidded to a stop and then proceeded to run circles around him.
It was fun–until it wasn’t anymore.
With an out of this world squeal-scream, Piper fell to the floor in pain and cried.
She’d torn her cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) which is similar to the human ACL. If you want to know more you can look here.
The CCL supports the dogs knee and hers was completely annihilated.
She was brave and didn’t complain but her movements and mobility were definitely impacted.
We saw the vet, x-rays were taken, and surgery was recommended.
Ugh. Hubby and I didn’t know what to do. We thought of our parents and how they used to deal with pets out on the farm (don’t ask–it ain’t pretty).The thing is that Piper is a member of the family and not quite five years old.
At the suggestion of the surgeon we put off the decision to consider all the different avenues and also to get some weight off her.
In March, Piper was about 38kg (about 83.6 pounds). With a strict diet and no snacks we were able to help her lose weight and she now weights 32 kg (70.4). So that’s a weight loss of 13 pounds. That’s a lot of weight that she no longer needs to bear on her legs.
With the prep and the prognosis of successful surgery, we went ahead. She had it done Thursday and came home the next day.
She’s a bit woozy and hungry but in good spirits. Her left hind leg is all shaved and has a 12cm (5″)long cut and a bunch of stitches…and of course the cone. Sigh. She needs to be kept on a very short leash–literally–for two months. TWO MONTHS…..holy moly.
I won’t post a pic of her surgical scar until she can stand and pose for me. lol. In the meantime, wish me luck in caring for her. She’s such a sweetie.
Don’t forget to check out all my other posts this week! Make sure you don’t miss anything. Listed here for your convenience.
- Hey! What’re You Reading? Here’s a Couple of Quick Book Reviews.
- Come See My New Signature Thing…
- WWW Wednesday #78 Do You Know a Writer in Your Life?
- A Built-In SuperPower You Didn’t Know You Had…
And, don’t forget that April is Poetry month. I’d love it if you went to my post and wrote a piece of ABC poetry with me. You can find it here.
Sending good thoughts to Piper for a quick recovery.
Thanks Sally. It’s a little rough going right now but it’ll get better. ❤️
I wish Piper, the beautiful dog a speedy recovery! 💕
Ah Thanks Heather. That’s so sweet. I’ll pass your good wishes on to her. ❤️
Well done for persuading her to loose 13 pounds. Not easy for a retriever. Glad she is OK.
Thanks Jo. It was really tough. She is so motivated by food it’s crazy. Now with all this down time we need to make sure we don’t start giving snacks etc. 🤦🏻♀️
Aw , hope piper feels better soon
Thanks Beth. 😘
Good luck Faye! She will recover. She is such a cutie ❤️
Thanks Azilde. Yes she’s a really sweetie. ❤️ It’ll just take some time.
My cocker spaniel had the same thing! She was squatting to poop one moment, and the next she was frantically screaming and trying to straighten her leg. She’s nine years old now too, so that wasn’t her only surgery. It sucks seeing them go though all this, but that’s life, hey? Wishing Piper all the best!
Thanks for sharing Stuart. I’m thinking this will be the only and last surgery for Piper. It’s crazy. She’s actually doing fairly well. It’s going to be hard to keep her down and calm for two full months. One day at a time tho. Thanks for stopping by Stuart. Always a pleasure.