Post Op Day 7

So I thought I would start this blog to record my journey during Diesel's ACL surgery and recovery.  And if I like it, I may just continue.  I started mostly to help those out there like me that have questions, or are searching for answers.  I have been feverishly searching the internet for answers myself, and what if found is that there are lots of information on the technique, lots of pictures of what the veterinarian does, lots of instructions that the vet wants you as a pet owner to hear for the recovery- but no real information.  No real life answers, and so I created the Husky Den...

Rewind to the spring of 2012, I notice my Big Guy- Diesel (he is wearing the red bandana) come in from a Sunday morning run around the yard with this siblings limping.  As a nurse, and having sat in lectures on veterinary surgery I feared the worst, it could only possibly be his ACL.  My husband disagreed, he had never heard of such a thing... so we let it play out a few weeks.  Decided to watch him and see how he progressed.  We gave him supplements- you know the ones; glucosamine, condrotin, MSM and lots of advil.  After about 4 weeks he wasn't getting any better, no worse, but no better.  So we took him to the vet office, by the way our vets office is awesome, and they confirmed what I already suspected, he had ruptured his ACL ( in a dog it actually is called a CCL cranial cruciate ligament) but it basically is the same thing, functioning to hold the knee (stifle it is called in a dog) in a stable position.  We left the the office with answers, the only real treatment they told us was surgery, and $250 poorer.  Dr. Brown ( at Hickory Veterinary Hospital, who by the way are the awsomest animal hospital- from the doctors to the staff) said because he was still walking pretty good on the injured leg, she felt the ligament was probably only partially torn.  So we decided again to wait it out.  You see the only way to fix this problem in a dog is to cut the bone, create a new angle for the tibia, and force the remaining pateller tendon to act as the CCL and stablize the knee.  WHAT?  yep that was my reaction... you want to what? Cut my 1.5yr old dogs leg?  WHAT?  NO THANK YOU!!   I was left with these two images in my head.  

Because they cut the bone and that bone must heal, the dog must be kept quiet for 8-12 weeks post operatively.  I just couldn't bear to do this to him, he would have been stuck inside all summer, no pool, no walks.  And I just wasn't convinced surgery was the what he needed.  Being an OR Nurse, and understanding what these vets were going to do was my downfall ( in other words i knew to much).  And the fact that it was going to cost over $3000, we thought he was doing ok.  He was not a race or competion dog, he didn't seem to be in pain, and was getting around just fine.  Knowing that probably he would need the surgery some day, but not today and not before summer.

During this time I kept researching the procedures that were available, I kept asking questions- not just to veterinarians, but to my Orthopaedic doctor friends, and I began to understand the mechanics and reasoning for the surgery better, but I still wasn't ready to put my baby through this procedure. Fast Forward to September 2012...

At some point in time, and the injury I still don't know.  You see, from what I understand this is the most common injury in dogs.  It is the most common surgery performed by veterinarians, I guess I was lucky, Diesel was dog number 7 in my personal life (these are dogs I personally owned, not all the dogs I knew) and I had never even heard of such a thing.  He must have been just playing in the yard again and it would seem he completely ruptured the CCL (we only found that out after the surgery) and now he was really lame in that leg.  It broke my heart, I felt like a bad mom.  I hated myself for not taking care of him sooner, but then my husband reminded me- he wouldn't have enjoyed the summer.  He could barely go up & down the steps now, and as stoic as he looked- I could tell it was very painful for him.  So we bit the bullet, we scheduled the surgery.

In the weeks leading up to the surgery date, I was sick to my stomach.  I thought of everything that could possibly go wrong (again I knew too much).  The night before I just laid with him, telling him everything would be ok- and Wednesday morning Kurt and I dropped him off at the vet hospital.  I anxiously awaited the phone call..... which came around noon.... Diesel is doing fine, he is waking up, the surgery went well.  I could breathe a sigh of relief now, little did I know the hard part was coming... the recovery.

We specifically scheduled the surgery for a day before I was going to be gone a few days, so we could let him stay at the vet hospital and recover a few days before we brought him home to be bothered by his siblings.  And so we picked him up Sunday, just 4 days ago.  We were given all the instructions to his care at home, medications to give him (an antibiotic and 2 different pain meds) and most importantly he could have no physical activity for the first 8 weeks.  This is what his leg looks like now, robodog....

Sunday- he was pretty groggy still. I spent most of the day just sitting on the floor with him.  Putting ice on his poor bruised leg when I could and just pampering him.  Only taking him outside to go "potty" a few times, because he had to be on a leash at all times.   By Monday we had this Hurricane named Sandy heading our way... And let me tell you- I was not feeling going outside to take him potty with 90mph winds, luckily he was ready to go out around 7:30 pm, and shortly after that we lost our power and the brunt of the storm was upon us.  My hubby picked him up to lay him on the air mattress ( yes I have been camped out in the living room with him since we brought him home) so I wouldn't be so scared.  Still, most of this day Diesel was pretty groggy and didn't act to interested in even trying to be active.  

his bruised incision

By Tuesday am, as we still are without power, the big guy is showing signs of feeling a little better .  He is reacting to his siblings as the pass by the baby gate and check on him.  The one thing the vet did not tell me is he may not be interested in food, so mommy spoiled him by cooking up some hamburger and rice (before we lost power) he is moving around a little bit more, and tries to jump on the couch when I turn my back.  UGH!! and now I start to freak out.  Knowing it is critical that he is kept quiet, I feel I have failed him again by not keeping him crated this whole time so he has not temptation to jump.  My husband tries to reassure me, he has been jumping only using one leg for almost 2 months, he doesn't even realize that leg is better and is not using it, but I am not so convinced.  Again fearing the worst.  At this point he seems perfectly fine, and I fear it is going to be a long 8 weeks, make that 12 weeks, of trying to keep a 95# husky quiet, and two other huskies away from him..... to be continued.

Polar checking on his brother

giving me the "quit fussing over me look"