HOW IT STARTED:

July 8, 2006.  Zena ran away chasing another dog and I had to drag her home, limping.  I thought maybe she had been kicked by the other dog's owner but she didn't get better after a few hours' rest so I brought her in to our vet, who diagnosed a cruciate ligament tear in her left leg.  The same injury Worf had two years ago. (see Worf's page)  Because she is 20# smaller than Worf, the vet felt he could do a "traditional repair" instead of the TPLO surgery that Worf had.  She was scheduled for surgery for July 27th at our local vet's office.  I emailed Worf's surgeon and told him what had happened and he recommended TPLO surgery (see Worf's page for more info).  We decided to go with the traditional because if it didn't work, we could always do TPLO later.

July 25, 2006.  Zena had been hobbling around on her "good" right leg pretty well the last two weeks.  But today she was not able to stand on either leg.  Our vet diagnosed ANOTHER cruciate tear in her right leg.  He said he couldn't do the traditional surgery because she needed to have one good leg to stand on.  I called Worf's surgeon at the University Hospital and he was able to get Zena in for an appointment on July 27th. Normally there is a several week wait to get in.

AT THE HOSPITAL:

My mom and I drove Zena down to St. Paul. She could walk if I supported her with a towel, but at the hospital, they gave us a wagon to pull her around in.  She liked it - really acted like a princess in her royal chariot.  The surgeon agreed that she had cruciate tears in both back legs.  He  recommended that Zena have TPLO surgery on her left leg right away and then come back in 4-6 weeks to have surgery on her right leg.

Zena stayed in the hospital that night and my mom and I sat there the next day while she was in surgery.  The doctor came to see me and said everything had went well.  They put extra sutures in to hold the plate.  The next day we picked her up.  She was really out of it and in a lot of pain.  She cried most of the way home.  I layed in the back of the 4Runner with her the whole way.  She was able to put some weight on her left leg right away.

AT HOME:

Zena is restricted to a small pen/area in the house.  For the first four weeks, she is only allowed outside to go potty and has to be on a leash at all times.  Then, for four months, she is only allowed two 20-minute walks a day.  All on leash.  No running, jumping, or playing!  It's a little easier than when Worf had his surgery because she is older and sleeps a lot anyways.  I stayed with her 24/7 for the first week because she had staples in and I didn't want her to chew them out.  She wore her conehead for a few days but was really good about not licking.  The big concern was that she didn't poop for 8-9 days.  But she finally did.  She is being very picky about food and won't eat kibble unless it is mixed with canned food or yogurt.

She got her stitches out on August 7th.  Her suture healed up well.  Just a little licking the first couple days.

August 12-13:    She is walking better and better so we decided to try to go to the cabin.  I had been avoiding it because of the stairs.  She was great on the car ride there, LOVED the boat ride, and just climbed right up the stairs - no problem.  The big problem turned out to be the slippery floor in the kitchen.  She wanted to lay there because it was nice and cool, but it was really hard for her to stand up.  I forgot to bring her pain pill so she was really sore by the time we got home on Sunday.  Had to support her walking for a couple days.

August 20: She has been walking really really well all week.  Last night and today she seems to have a bit of a tummy problem.  Not sure if it's related to her medication or just something she ate.  She will eat chicken and rice, so that's good. 

September 1:

Sept. 14 - Zena got her stitches out on Monday.  She has a little bit of irritation so she still has to wear her cone at times so she won't lick her leg. But it is mostly healed up. She is walking REALLY well considering what she has been through.  She only needed support for the first two days.  She wasn't sleeping through the night, but that seems to have gotten better the last two nights (maybe it was the full moon).  She isn't eating like usual so I have her on a high fat diet.  Gotta pork that girl up!  She is peppy and wants to run and play so we have to keep slowing her down.  Two more weeks of just short walks and then we can start going farther.  She's ready to go now!

Sept. 18 - I spoke too soon.  She WAS doing really well until the weekend but then went downhill.  On Saturday, she started limping a little and holding her leg up.  By Sunday night, she wasn't walking on it at all.  Her leg seemed a little swollen and hot. There is still one sore spot from where her sutures were that she keeps trying to lick. We went to the vet this morning and he took xrays.  Her plate and screws look fine but she might have an infection.  Or she could have sprained it.  So she is on antibiotics for 10 days.  He said we should see some results by the middle of the week.  This is so depressing.

Sept. 25 - She didn't show much improvement all week. Maybe a little but not much.  I was back to supporting her on walks.  I emailed the surgeon and he said if she wasn't better by this week to bring her down to the hospital so he could check her out.  She finally seems to be a little better today and is able to walk without support.  So I will wait a few days and see how she does.

Sept. 28 - Zena got progressively better through this week.  She is still limping a bit but she can walk on her own and wants to go, go, go again.  Her appetite improved and she is eating better (still not great, but better). She has gained weight so she is not on the high fat diet anymore. The antibiotics are done now.  The surgeon recommends that we do bend and flex exercises with her leg 20-30 reps twice a day - to the point of discomfort.  She shows discomfort at about 15 reps.  But I will keep trying to do more each time.  Tomorrow is her 4 week mark - we should be able to start longer walks - but she is at least a week behind now in recovery so we will have to take it slow.  Another unfortunate side effect of this whole ordeal is that Worf's leg has gotten worse.  He's not getting as long walks as he used to so his leg is stiffening up and he is limping more. He has lots of energy, though and wants to play all the time. They both will need to work up gradually to longer and longer walks again. Gimpy dogs!

Oct. 22 - She is finally getting better.  It has been very slow going.  We did slightly longer walks during the last week and two really long walks on the weekend at the cabin.  She is tired but happy.  We never really did do the exercises because she really hated it.  Walking seems to help.  She has her energy and pep back and wants to run and play.  Eating is back to normal. Worf is happier too.

Oct. 26 - Long walks again for a couple days but she started limping more today.  We had a vet appt. scheduled for today for her followup xrays.  Not so good news... the bones don't appear to be healing right.  Our vet is sending the xrays to the surgeon for review.  We should know more next week.  There is a chance that she will have to have additional surgery.  Back to shorter walks again... This is so depressing.  But Zena is a happy girl and has been so good throughout this ordeal.

Nov. 1 - The surgeon reviewed the xrays and said "Basically the xrays look good."  He noted some fluid and inflammation but said that was normal.  He asked me to send videos of her walking so he can get an idea of what her limp is like.

Nov. 10 - The surgeon finally reviewed the videos and said "as you have suspected, the degree of lameness is more than I would expect at this timepoint.  Second, unfortunately (or fortunately), I do not see an obvious reason for the lameness.  She doesn't have the shifting like Worf did, or any internal rotation of the tibia at the end of the stride that would indicate pivot shift.  The tibia is not translating cranial (as it did before surgery), so we do not have an inadequate amount of rotation.
 The bottom line is I don't know why she is this lame, and the best chance at determining the cause is to see her in person.  I am speculating, but I would imagine that after performing a thorough physical exam, I would want to repeat X-rays, obtain a fluid sample with a needle and syringe from the joint, and possibly a fluid sample from around the plate. We would be looking for infection.  I may suggest removing the plate provided radiographs show a healed osteotomy.  I am unable to guarantee finding a solution that fixes her immediately, or coming up with a definitive diagnosis.  If it looks like it isn't an infection, then perhaps rehabilitation here for a few weeks is what she needs."  So I am making an appointment to see him next week.  Staying there for rehab is out of the question, but hopefully he can figure something out to get Zena back to normal.

Nov. 16 - Saw the surgeon again.  He did more xrays and a thorough exam.  He can't find any medical reason why Zena should still be limping.  She may be having a reaction to the steel plate.  He said the surgery to take it out isn't that major and there is only a 2-week recovery time.  We elected to wait another month, increase her exercise, and see if building up muscle helps the limp or not.  If not, we'll go back and take the plate out.  Zena has been such a trooper through all of this.  She is still a happy, loving girl. (Although she was a barking brat at the hospital, but that's another story!)  So we wait...

December - She seemed to get a little better and then started limping A LOT again. She is not putting full weight on her leg. We will have to wait until after the holidays to make a decision on another surgery.

January - After talking to a veterinary chiropractor and a human chiropractor, Connie decided to try chiropractic treatment on Zena.  It's a non-cracking form of treatment using a tool called an "activator" that just "taps" different areas on the spine. It's called "veterinary orthopedic manipulation" or VOM.  Zena was good for the first treatment (although Worf peed in the doctor's office!) and it seemed to make a little difference.  She had a week off and then went back 3 more times in one week.  She got more nervous each time and barked her head off.  She almost snapped at the doctor.  But it really seemed to make a difference.  She started putting weight on her leg again.  She needs to build up muscle but can't do that if she doesn't walk on it.  Both dogs had to stay at a kennel for 5 days when "mom & dad" went on vacation at the end of the month.  No exercise and laying on a cement floor didn't help.  Plus the temperature dropped significantly and that seems to affect her mobility.  We will try a few more chiro treatments and see how it goes.  We want to avoid more surgery if possible.

July 2007 - It has been one year since Zena's surgery.  She made a MIRACULOUS recovery after the chiro treatments in January/February!  She really started using her leg again and built up a lot of muscle.  She still gets a little stiff and sore once in awhile but she is doing MUCH better.  The vet said her legs are better than Worf's.  I really believe the chiro treatments made a big difference.

July 2008 - It has been two years since Zena's surgeries.  She did seem to get better after the chiro treatments last year, but she has been limping off and on, especially on her right side.  She never did seem to gain back the same old spunk she had before.  She won't play fetch, run, or climb up on the couch or bed.  Then, this month, she developed a sore on her left leg right over the plate.  I brought her in to the vet because I was concerned that the plate or screws were pushing through.  He did xrays and said the plate looked fine but that she had an infection.  He suggested trying 2 weeks of antibiotics and if that didn't work, to consider having the plate removed.  He said she may have a chronic low grade infection.

August 2008 - The sore doesn't seem to be going away.  I made an appointment for her with the surgeon at the University Hospital.  I am really torn about this because she really isn't that bad - she can walk fine, just limps a little once in awhile.  It might just be arthritis (which they told me she would get) and surgery won't do anything to correct that.

August 21 - Saw the surgeon at the Vet Hospital.  He watched Zena walk, felt her legs, checking out the swelling, etc.  (Of course, she didn't limp at all there because she was so pumped up with adrenaline...)  He said that the infection in the left leg would not go away unless the plate is removed.  He said we could try antibiotics again but it would keep coming back.  He suggested removing BOTH plates to avoid future complications.  Plus it's cheaper and easier to do both at the same time instead of scheduling two surgeries.  I was still torn.  I hate to put her through something that may or may not work.  But the surgeon assured me that it wouldn't make her worse.  It might not make her better but it won't make her worse.  And it's the only way to truly cure the infection.  With trepidation, we decided to go forth with the surgery.  (As an aside - we stayed in a hotel and she was really good - even on her first elevator rides.  My sister came over and we all went for a walk along the Mississippi River.  Zena was good but limpy.)

August 22, 2008 (Friday) - Zena was the first patient of the day and had surgery at 8:00 a.m.  My mom and I waited around until we heard she was in recovery and doing fine.  Then we walked over to the State Fair for a few hours (it was hot & crowded!).  We went back to the hospital and waited.  The doctor came to see us at 6:00 p.m.  He said she was doing fine and we could bring her home that night.  He said there were signs of infection in both legs so it was good that we removed them both.  They will have results of the plate cultures in a week or so and we might have to adjust the antibiotics then.  Since it is a 3-4 hour drive, we were anxious to get going.  The brought her out and I was shocked to see her walking so well.  Both legs were bandaged up, but she was walking really well (and crying).  We got her in the 4Runner and headed home.  My mom laid in the back with her the whole way and she slept off and on.  The morpheine made her cry and all confused, but she hardly moved the whole time so we just kept going - no stops.  Got home a little after 9:00 and got Zena in the house.  She was happy to be home but still doped up.  I "slept" with her on the floor (neither of us got much sleep).  I gave her 2 Tramadol (synthetic morpheine) because I thought it might help her sleep but it just seems to make her cry.

August 23 - Took her bandages off this morning and her legs look really good.  No swelling and the incisions look good.  A little flap of skin on top of the right one, but that should be ok. (I hope.)  I gave her 1 Tramadol in the morning to see if a lower dose would help her sleep, but she was just agitated all day until it wore off.  She did eat a little and drank water so that is good.  We finally got about a 2 hour nap in the afternoon.  She hates wearing the conehead!  I had to ice her legs a few times - it's hard to get her to sit still long enough, but she does seem to like it once it's on there.  Her legs look so skinny and bare!  Hope the fur grows in before winter.  It really cooled off outside today so it feels like fall is in the air...  She has restrictions of "no running, no jumping, no playing" for 2-3 weeks. Worf is being very gentle with her.

August 24 - Slept much better last night.  Zena was in her little pen (with the conehead on) and I was on the couch.  No more of the Tramadol for her.  She takes Rimadyl and antibiotics twice a day.  We went for a few walks outside.   She seems to be walking really well - better than before surgery already!  She wants to walk fast and run already - it's going to be hard to keep her slowed down. No poop yet, but she is eating well so it's only a matter of time. The stitches come out in 10 days - things will be a lot easier after that.  Lots of nice long naps today.  I have to go back to work tomorrow so my mom will come sit with her for part of the day so that she doesn't have to wear the conehead the whole time.  I hate to jinx it, but things are looking good!

September 2 - I would like to report the most uneventful surgery recovery that I have been through with my dogs! (and we've been thru 7 surgeries, including spay/neuter) Zena did GREAT!!!!!
She only tried to lick/chew her stitches for a few days but then gave up and didn't have to wear the conehead for the last 5 days. She had her stitches out this morning and the doc says both incisions look great. No swelling. She is still on antibiotics for another week and I am waiting for the culture results, but things are looking GOOD! She was walking better than before the surgery just about right away. Her old spunk seems to be back! She is eating better than before. Wants to play (still on semi-restrictions) and has even tried to run a little.
I am sooooo happy! (and so is Zena!)
We had company over the weekend and after minimal barking, she was really nice to everyone. Usually she barks her head off and stays away from everyone.  I think she really feels better and is a lot happier.
If anyone has a dog who had TPLO and is not 100% after 6 months, please consider having the plates removed. It has made a world of difference for my little Zena!
 

MORE UPDATES TO FOLLOW...