Labrador Toby

In one of the first posts I said it was hard writing a story where the end was unknown. This has been a tough post to write as Toby’s story took an unexpected turn and it wasn’t what we wanted or expected.

As explained Toby developed a limp on 27 December. This improved quite a lot over the next few days, we were booked for his assessment with the surgeon on 9 January so we hoped he would tell us what the problem was and how to put it right.

On 9 January we went back to West Midlands Referrals. Toby had to walk up and down the car park and then be checked over, the limp was noticeable but Andy said he hoped it was just soft tissue trouble that could sometimes flare up. He took Toby off for an x-ray.

He returned with bad news. Toby had somehow dislocated his hip, something that was really unusual at this stage. Somehow, also unusual, he had coped with this and was walking and didn’t appear to be in pain. We had two options, neither were great.

We could operate, this would be difficult but as it was almost two weeks since the dislocation it would be even harder, it would set him back to the beginning of his convalescence again, it might mean a permanent weakness in his hip so there would be a risk of future dislocations, and it would be expensive.

Or we could leave it as it was, he was coping and should improve. Exercise and hydrotherapy would help strengthen him and, though he would always limp and might not be as active he could be happy enough.

To add to the difficulty we had to decide quickly, with every day an operation to relocate the hip would get harder to do. We decided to leave it as it was for him and left in some shock and very upset, it seemed that all the efforts we had made to give him a normal life had failed. We still can’t really think about his second leg and what we do, though it will be at least two months before we could do anything with that as we need to strengthen the dislocated leg.

We’re still, over two weeks later, very upset. Toby is happy enough, he is going for short walks and can go out in the garden without a lead, he had his first hydrotherapy session a couple of days ago and that went pretty well. We’ve ordered a joint supplement for him hoping this will help too.

Everything was going well until December 27th, 7 weeks and 2 days after the operation.

Late that afternoon we were settled watching television, Toby had steadily improved and we’d been for two walks with him that day. I had just started to write another post here saying how pleased we were with his progress. We were going away to Cornwall with him for a few nights the next morning. It was Christmas, our daughter Fiona was with us and we were happy.

Toby was lying in the room with us, then he stood up and immediately we could see he had a severe limp, we didn’t know, and still don’t know, the cause. He struggled to walk, took a few stumbling steps and lay down, he didn’t want to move. After the initial panic and disbelief we called the local vet, surgery was just finishing so we took him down there. He was in such discomfort they couldn’t tell what the problem was, he had an injection of anti-inflammatory and painkiller and we made an appointment to take him back the next day. The trip to Cornwall was cancelled, everything had changed in an instant.

The next day the vey examined him and still could not be sure, he wasn’t limping as badly but he was still struggling. It could be his hip but it could also be a pulled muscle or cruciate ligament. Tablets for another week, total rest, no walks and an appointment then to see them again.

Over that week he improved slowly but the limp was still there. On this next appointment the vet was pretty sure the trouble is related to his hip. His return visit to the vet who carried out the operation, for what a few days ago we were sure would be a sign off and planning for the second leg to be operated on, is next Tuesday. 

Some really good news today!

Over the last week or so Toby has grown stronger and walked better. He’s a real problem to keep quiet as he has times when all he wants to do is to play and he can’t understand why he isn’t allowed. He’s had to have the dreaded cone on his head too, he hates that and blunders around crashing into everything.

Well today we sent a video of him walking and a photo of his scar to Andy, the vet. he’s replied saying that all looks to be going well, there’s no need to wear the cone and, best of all, Toby can now go for 3 twenty minute walks a day! Seems like we have to keep at that level of walks until his final check up in 5 or 6 weeks but right now that is a great relief to us all, especially Toby.

We’re so glad we are through this last week and so far so good.

As I write this Toby is laid at my feet happily looking up the garden. He seems to think he’s fine and wants to run and jump so our challenge is to keep him calm. The last couple of nights we have gone back to our own bed, leaving him at night.  Last night in protest he ripped up his bedding though!

His patch is getting dirty and starting to come off. We tried the cone on his head in case he licked it but he did not like that at all, we left it off and he isn’t a problem so far.

Over yesterday, the first full day at home, he seemed to improve steadily. From needing lots of support to walk earlier in the day he ended by walking carefully but without much support, his movement generally became easier.

Overnight things have changed! We all had a good night’s sleep, we were on a mattress next to his crate and we all slept pretty well. Toby woke and walked out on a lead with minimal support, this is great but also a worry as it feels that in his head he thinks he is fully recovered. Much to his annoyance we are now keeping him in his crate, if we didn’t I’m sure he would want to be charging about and jumping and we cannot let that happen. He’s crying and whining pretty much all the time but he has to get used to it.

We took him to the vet at 8 yesterday morning. A call at 2 that afternoon told us all seemed ok and we could collect him at 6.

At 6 we were there and we met Andy who had carried out the operation. Apart from saying he was a buffoon as he wriggled so much and made the sedation difficult everything had gone exactly as it should. We had lots of instructions about when he could walk, how we should support and carry him, tablets he needs to take and optional tablets, the lampshade to stop him licking and probably lots more I have forgotten already.

Toby is calm and happy, we are not. We feel guilty, frightened and uncertain.

We’re guilty because he is so trusting and we are going to put him through something that will hurt and upset him. We’re frightened because so much is unknown, will it go ok, will there be problems, will we cope afterwards? We’re uncertain and right now it is tempting to cancel it all and avoid the situation we have created.

We won’t back out now though, he’s got through the last few weeks but has limited mobility, still can’t walk far and can’t run or jump at all. We know there is a very good chance that this operation will set him on course to be able to enjoy a much more normal life and we are determined to give him that.

We’ve got him comfortable with a crate, we’ve built a ramp so there is no big step at the back door, we’ve made a sling from an Ikea bag so we can support him in the early days and we’ve covered the tiled kitchen floor in a patchwork of rugs so he doesn’t slip. I have a week booked off work and we are going to move a mattress so that we can sleep downstairs with him while he needs us.

We went for a few nights in Cornwall last week to relax and charge our batteries and because he loves it there and seems to walk better and further. We’ve filled the store cupboards and the freezer so we don’t have to go out shopping, we have a note asking people not to ring our doorbell, we’re prepared for a siege! We’re trying to prepare for the worst but hoping things will be easier than we are planning for.

The reality of the hip replacement operation and the importance and difficulty of the rehabilitation is sinking in properly now and we are starting to prepare.

We ordered a 42″ crate from Amazon and that arrived yesterday, we need to get him comfortable with being enclosed in there well before the operation. Judging by how he went straight in - see the photo - that may not be too much of a problem. He was in there before we had finished reading the guide on how to encourage him in!

He has always sat on the sofa with us, we’re having to stop that now as he must not be jumping after the operation. He hasn’t even tried the stairs recently but a child gate is ready to make sure he doesn’t once he’s had the replacement.

There’s something unsettling and quite scary about writing a story when you don’t know the end.

After losing our fantastic Jack Russell, Paddy, in March 2017 we found Toby, he was born on 20th February.

We’re just back from this visit, Toby had x-rays to check his condition and suitability for treatment. We’re all feeling shattered.

In a way it is good news, Toby’s hips are still described as “horrendous” but Andy Whittingham confirms that he seems very suitable for a hip replacement operation and to cut a long story short we have booked him in for 6 November. Andy repeated that we may find that if the first hip goes well we may not need the second, we’ll see.

He’ll need to be kept calm and quiet for several weeks after 6 November, he’s never been in a crate but we are getting one as soon as we can so he’s used to it before his operation. We are also going to have to keep him from jumping on furniture and we’re feeling cruel but we have started that immediately, he is not happy with us at all!