Rozzie the Labby

Rozzie got her staples out today, day 14 following ACL surgery.

All looks good. The cone stays on for 2-3 days more (we’ll remove it on Friday night and open a bottle of champagne!). 

Roz is progressing following surgery called TPLO for a blown ACL. It is day 5 today, the first day w/out pan meds and she is doing well. I gave her a bully stick today b/c its really the only exercise she has. I held one end and she gnawed on the other - she loved it. She’s eating well and having bone broth-enhanced water following meals. What breaks our hearts is that it is 100% confinement to her ‘pen’. 

Here’s Rozzie home from the vet following TPLO surgery. Day 1 at home has been a long one and still going. 

The vet prescribed an arsenal of meds: Celphalexin antibiotics, Tramadol for pain, Carprofen for anti-inflammatory.

Going out to pee was a challenge, she can't yet put weight on the leg (right rear) and the cone of shame is bumping into everything. No poop yet, but vet said that could be day 2 or 3.

Roz ate her dinner, no problem and has been taking the meds with the Greeny brand pill pockets, also no problem.

Hi everyone or anyone who likes animals, in this case, Black Labradors. Our 7-year old beloved Rozzie tore her ACL (CCL for dogs) on December 28 and she just underwent TPLO surgery. Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy is basically the defacto standard and was developed in 1995. The purpose of the TPLO surgery is to eliminate the cranial tibial thrust (the tibia bone thrusts forward when the dog walks and w/out an ACL it literally causes it to slip off of the femur.

The procedure involves changing the angle of the top (plateau) of the tibia to prevent it from falling off the back of the femur. So the tibia has to be cut, rotated and then held in place with a stainless steel plate and screws.

So, it’s a pretty big deal, but the prognosis has shown that there’s greater than a 90% chance of return to pre-injury function.

My intention here is to provide a daily post of Rozzie’s recovery, while understanding that I’m sure others have already done this type of thing. Maybe, however, this blog post will be viewed by others, shared and maybe this community can exchange tips, hints and other ideas that can help get the pet owner and the dog through this tough period.