Surgery

[gilliwigs]

Join our free community today.

Connect with other like-minded dog lovers!

Login or Register

Awww, that's really good news. Hopefully he'll make a full recovery now and be running about as good as new :thumbsup: Hope you're having a lovely time.

 

[shane]

Weather here in West Wales brill!!!, been to beach but difficult keeping smartie calm!!, he wants to run!! :wub: :wub: he is being kept on the lead however tempting, using leg nearly all the time, it's great news for us all, just have to be ultra careful xx

 

[Lal]

:thumbsup: That's brilliant news that he is feeling more confident and using his leg. Don't envy you trying to keep him calm on the beach though!!

 

[shane]

Been to beach every day, Pete his brother chasing stones thrown in the sea splashing in the water :wub: Smartie wanting to play so has to stay calm but jumping up on all fours!!!, trying to spin!! but on the main keeping him under some control :wub: Leg still holding and looking good now week 5 will be 6 weeks next Wednesday time has flown, but worried about ever letting him off he will EXPLODE like a missile!!!!!!!

 

[eve]

I am so pleased that Samrtie is doing better. Obviously a holiday and change of environment has taken his mind off his leg

 

[shane]

This weekend they r both enjoying the sun, his leg still good, off to specialist Thursday I hope for the all clear and then short walks xx

 

[Sarah86]

Aww bless him in that picture, you can tell he just wants to have some fun and run, so glad to hear he is doing lots better :huggles:

 

[shane]

Off to vets today, feel mean as they are both hungry but Smartie can't have anything due to sedation for x rays so can't give on with out the other!!, poor Smartie hope this is the end to it all!!, will let u all know results tonight, he seems fine seems unfair to put him through this xxx

 

[Lal]

:luck: :luck: at the vets today. Be a brave boy Smartie :huggles:

 

[FeeFee]

Everything crossed for good results today :luck:

 

[pat cope]

Hope all goes well for Smartie.

 

[LibbyandSam]

Would you care to share the cost of all this? We have a dog with back disk problems and the costs of surgery is very expensive. We don't have pet insurance.

 

[shane]

No more back to specialist for smartie unless need to, and onlyl back to ours if problems (though a big scab has come off leaving a hole :angry: so have dressed it and will check again tomorrow) not to come off lead for 3 months at least :blink: but can start going out for ten min sessions in next week or so building up to 45!!!, he seems well though he was crying yesterday evening but reacts badly to sedation etc xx poor mite :wub: thanks for all the well wish's and good luck etc THANK YOU it has help through the up's and downs xx, will still post now and again till he fully recovered )

 

[shane]

It has cost nearly 4 grand!!!! :wacko: they say u can't put a price on love!!! :blink: :wub: :wub: :wub:

 

[meddling]

I'm so glad he is doing so well, please do keep posting

 

[Lal]

Would you care to share the cost of all this? We have a dog with back disk problems and the costs of surgery is very expensive. We don't have pet insurance.

I have a dog with a cervical spinal disc problem. Obviously I don't know the nature of your dog's problem but my advice would be to research the surgical options very carefully. After long consultation with a respected orthopaedic specialist he advised me to think very carefully about subjecting my dog to surgery. It may not be the same op we are discussing (my dog is insured so finance wasn't a consideration) but, from what I was told there is a fairly high mortality rate, little guarantee of success, and an absolutely horrendous post-op period where the dog is temporarily paralysed, the usual method is to nurse them post op lying on their chest (in the specialist's words 'Not an option with most sighthounds, it would be like balancing them on a knife edge!')

Good luck with whatever you decide to do, I have chosen the conservative route. I treat Rifle for pain as and when it is apparent, he is only a youngish dog at almost 5, but I don't think I could consider the surgical option after the information I have been given.

 

[Lal]

You truly cannot put a price on love...... cynical as I am I do think that some vets capitalize on this! So plesed that things are looking up for Smartie and my previous post was only because you cannot compare costs for surgery regarding an injury such as Smartie's and something totally different such as spinal disc surgery...... And in any case, nobody can predict what will happen and one op, albeit similar in nature, may cost more than another...... A case of 'how long is a piece of string?'

:huggles: :huggles: for Smartie xxx

 

[eve]

You cannot put a price on love, but you have to consider just how much you are prepared to put your dog through and judge if the sucess rate is great enough and the eventual quality of life is enough for it to be truly the best and kindest thing to do. Every case is different.

 

[Lal]

You cannot put a price on love, but you have to consider just how much you are prepared to put your dog through and judge if the sucess rate is great enough and the eventual quality of life is enough for it to be truly the best and kindest thing to do. Every case is different.

I agree with this wholeheartedly Eve. When Rifle saw the Orthopaedic specialist he was simply great, didn't give me a load of bull about how he could do this op and that op, he outlined the options, told me that he didn't feel that Rifle's condition had reached the point that surgery would be the 'only' option, and then went on to detail the risks of surgery, the post op care etc and said that 'should we reach that point' then he would urge me to think long and hard about Rifle's quality of life. I made my mind up fairly quickly, I can manage as long as he has adequate pain relief when he needs it, if the surgery was the only option left then, having had it explained to me, the risks etc, then I honestly think I would opt out...... It is too painful to actually say it but I think I would choose euthanasia over the risks involved with the spinal surgery.

Sorry, I feel we've gone a bit 'off topic' here............... x

 

[shane]

Smartie has done well, I wanted to give him a chance to run again rather than take his leg off both which would have involved surgery, when he did have a bad reaction after the op and went off his food etc we sat and thought long and hard about continuing if he didn't pick up, it was very hard but wanted what was best for dog not us, if amputation or putting him to sleep was our only options we would have gone for that, all we wanted was for Smartie was to be happy and PAIN free happy xx, and he is x, :thumbsup:

He has been out for a little walk to end of road and wouldn't stop barking!!, think he was happy to be out and letting everyone know he's back.

WELL DONE SMARTIE :wub: :wub: :wub: