Dudley's TPLO and Recovery...

[zakatak]

Hi everyone!

Dudley had his TPLO today at Cornell University. The vets there are amazing! :icon_bb: He is resting now and may come home tomorrow or Thursday depending on his incision.

The TPLO went well. They did find an oral mass in his mouth and removed that. He has been very, very sensitive about his mouth the last few times at the vet so that has me a bit worried. They are sending it off to the lab to be biopsied. We'll know about that in a few days time.

I have the bathroom ready for him - all carpeted and baby gate in place. Ramp is built, leashes are ready for potty breaks.

Any other tips or suggestions?

 

[Angela]

Glad to hear it went well and hope that the mouth mass is just benign.

 

[shellyk]

A couple of large bags of frozen veggies to ice his knee. We would sit with our Lab when he first came home and use the veggie bag wrapped in a towel to reduce swelling. At first he didn't like it but then he really seemed to enjoy us sitting with him during his confinement. We used peas and corn. They seemed to be pliable and easy to use and re-freeze.

 

[zakatak]

Thanks, Angela!

Thanks, Shelly. I will stop and get some peas and corn tonight. That is a very good idea.

 

[zakatak]

Day 2 update: Dudley did well overnight and I'll be heading off to pick him up later this afternoon (discharge at 5pm). No results yet on the biopsy. He's buckling a little on the knee from the anesthesia block but that should disappear in the next day or so.

 

[ElvisTheNewf]

Just a reminder to you to keep it slow and steady. If Elvis had it his way, he would have been cleared for walks long before the vet released him. They have a recovery schedule for a reason (5 minute walks, 10 minute walks, etc) but the better they look, the harder it is to remember to stick to the schedule. You don't want to overdo it, even if your dog is giving you the saddest, most bored look ever.

Elvis has really sensitive skin and even though they were extremely careful when they shaved him he still broke out a bit, so I sprinkled some gold bond on the front side of his leg - no where near the incision, of course - but it helped take the itch away. He only needed his cone for a few nights which was such a blessing because he hated that thing.

I hope the mass comes back negative and his recovery continues to go well. Please keep us updated!

 

[lmfoltyn]

Good luck to you and Dudley! I am sure it will be difficult for him to be confined therefore more difficult for you! Hoping the biopsy is negative...

 

[zakatak]

Day 4: Dudley is getting used to being in the bathroom. He didn't ask to go out in the middle of the night but he hit his fan twice so I had to get up to fix that. I'm sleeping in the living room until I can be 100% he'll be fine over night (before i go upstairs).

We switched the fan so hoping for a full night's sleep tonight! Whoop Whoop!

Still not putting much weight on the leg but is weight bearing some, so that is good. His leg swelled up quite a bit yesterday, including the hock but the Vet said that it was normal (I sent photos).

He laid in the living room with us last night watching TV. He seemed happy!

Tonight, I'll try to get him outside on the patio a bit to get some more fresh air.

Day by Day... we'll get through it.

 

[shellyk]

Happy that you are all doing great! Your post about watching TV reminded me that I used to leave the TV on for our Lab while he was confined to keep him company if we weren't right there with him.

 

[Murphy]

From experience. slow and steady....... don't give in... :nono:

 

[R Taft]

If you are interested i do have some info on TPLO's......pm me and send your e-mail addy. i had Katy done in 2012 and she had a great recovery, we followed the instructions to the letter and she went back to water training full on after six months...no swimming for 14 weeks was hard though, but she did walk in the water for physio

 

[zakatak]

10 day Post TPLO and Dudley is still not walking well on the leg. Very gimpy at movement and when he stands still, he lifts it up so it's not touching the ground (or just the toes are touching).

I am getting concerned as all the videos I see online look much, much better than he is 10 and 11 days post op. I do have a call in to the Vet at Cornell and am waiting to hear back. I may call my regular vet as a backup, too.

Can anyone here that has had it done tell me how long it was before your dog was walking stable on it? Or at least standing on it?

 

[shellyk]

Our Lab was just starting to wean off the pain meds and was still in some pain at that point in his recovery. Even now at 20 weeks post op when he first gets up he holds his back leg up a little. Then after a step or so it looks like he is using that knee. My husband worked with him daily on exercises to help him pick up and lift his leg walking over a short pvc pipe ladder like thing. Then he added weave poles and increasing longer walks.

 

[R Taft]

Katy was only on pain meds for three day, and walked out of the surgery the day after and ever since. I do think it depends on how old the injury was, how soon the surgery was after and what exactly was done, So sometimes a bit hard to compare. katy did her injury on a Saturday and was operated on the next wednesday, she had no lameness before and we were there when she did the actual injury and heard the snap. The vet said that it was like a football injury and the easiest to fix, because there was no old injury at all. So you need to speak to the vet and the injury history.....I have Yussie now with her injury, which was longer term and she is 10 days post and only just puts her foot down, but still keeps it up when she moves (rather fast)

 

[takemebacktotulsa]

We had the toe touching for quite a long time after surgery. My guy was using his leg from day one, but with a big limp. I wouldn't be concerned about the lifting the leg up when he first stands or toe touching while standing, but I would suggest you take photos and videos each day and be in contact with your surgeon if you are unsure about ANYTHING. Listen to your instincts and get help right away if something doesn't feel right.

 

[zakatak]

Day 13 Post TPLO

Dudley is still gimping quite a bit on the leg. I called the Vet on Thursday and they said to put him back on the pain meds (150 Tramadol 2x day). So I did and there has been no change as of today.

He prefers no weight on it and will jog 3 legged (when he gets away with it for the few steps). He is still on leash and using the sling in and out of the house. I give him free legs when he is in the grass.

The muscle is definitely atrophying as there is a distinct canyon in the leg. I am doing Passive Range of Motion exercises daily with him which doesn't seem to cause him any pain. He seems to like the massage and stretching!

He has a regular check up tomorrow for his incision (looks good). Hopefully, the Doc will be able to give me some hope. I will take a video of him and try to send it to the Vet at Cornell just to be sure we're on the right path.

 

[Angela]

Hope you get some good news tomorrow, let us know.

 

[zakatak]

Day 14 post TPLO

Dudley's regular vet is very happy with the incision and wants to start him on PT. He was surprised that Cornell didn't send me home with any info on PT! We are to start walking him a bit longer at Potty Breaks to start forcing him to use the leg and gain muscle back.

It's a good thing that Dudley likes to lay around and do nothing most of the day!

 

[R Taft]

I think in the long term you are better of having Dudley calm and quiet, compared to what i have with yussie.mad and wanting to rush everywhere. juming and rolling in her crate, doing all sort of stuoid things in her crate or on lead. She is mad, and on sedation and it make no difference. If not for the puzzles and wobble Kong, she would go insane..........Good luck with it all

 

[zakatak]

4 weeks Post TPLO!

So, here we are 4 weeks post surgery. Dudley is walking better but still limps. He is doing well in the bathroom still when he's not in the living room with us. He did get a UTI last week which put a damper on his recovery for a few days. A lot of squatting to pee for a few days does a number on your leg.

He is still on antibiotics for that but no other pain pills.

Slow but surely we move on...