gazehund

I have not, but he is already on Reglan and Pepcid for his tummy. I think it is safe to add probiotics yes? We did hose the shoulder to remove some of the leakage, but we won't do that again. Thank you all!

Cathie that is my worst fear. He is on a heavy duty antibiotic so I am hoping that will keep him well. :lol Yes he should.

Extraordinary isn't it? Doc did say it was a bad break, but he has seen and repaired worse. Holy crap!! I am thrilled my boy is still here.

I still cannot get the flipping things off this disc. I have never seen a disk / program like this. It is some kind of medical imagery thingy. So...............I took a picture of it for ya. Best I could do, I am tired. I would never willingly put my dog through this. It is extraordinary that it can even be fixed at all. This is a 13 hole stainless steel plate and we are using all 13 holes. Before: Sort of lower left hand side you can see several (five actually) pieces of bone going every which way. After: All lined up back the way it should be with a little help from modern science and a very gifted surgeon. Bones is going to make it and live out his normal life span. By the grace of God. Please be careful everyone!

UPDATE: We are getting more organized. After Jenn's suggestion I discovered I only had Arnicia drops, not the gel. off to the health food store while DH took a nap with DaBones. Picked up the Arnicia Gel, some Comfrey leaves for a warm compress and some Milk Thistle to support his liver while he is on all these drugs. Went to the hardware store to pick up a small plastic tarp. Back home it was time to get Bones outside to pee. We call him up and up he gets! We were given a sling. We use that to support his front end and help him down the 2 stairs to get outside. Once he gets outside he is full weight bearing and actually can walk pretty well. I hosed his entire leg /shoulder per Heathers suggestion. He has a LOT of swelling and bruising. While DH had him outside, I put the tarp down, swapped out the two dog beds he had been on for 2 crib mattresses that I use in the van. Covered them with clean bedding and brought Bones back in. He has no interest in food tonight, but he is staying hydrated so I am not too worried about that. Made up the Comfrey compress and applied that. DH stayed with Bones while I walked the other two dogs. Came back from our walk, refreshed the compress. Finally took the compress off, applied the Arnicia gel and our boy is sleeping like a baby. For last out tonight we are going to hose the shoulder / leg again, repeat the comfrey compress and Arnicia Gel. He is doing very, very well!

Audrey this is what was written back to my vet as follow up. Anesthesia, surgery and recovery were all uneventful for Dem Bones. Overall prognosis for a return to normal to near normal function on the limb is excellent. Some degree of stiffness or lameness after increased activity is expected. All hardware can remain in place unless complications (<10%) occur. Dem Bones will be rechecked at 2 weeks (staples come out then) 6 weeks and 12 weeks. Restricted activity is recommended for the first 6 to 8 weeks. Me again. I am hoping the fact that he has been on Fresh Factors for the whole 8 years I have had him and the fact he gets a lot of exercise and is very fit will help him to be not lame or stiff eventually. Doctor B did take me aside and told me he is happy I decided to try to surgery. He had no qualms about Bones' age because he is so fit and healthy. He felt certain he could do the surgery with no problem and Bones would recover well from it. He just felt it would be unethical to sway me in any direction. The decision had to be mine. More respect. Oh for God's sake, yes!! I HAVE some of that. You guys are great. Thanks Jenn, I didn't even think of it.

Great minds think alike. I was thinking hydrotherapy too. They recommended hot packing it. I have never been a fan of hot packing, but I will try it for a day or two and see how it goes. They know their stuff, I don't . It is. It comes off Monday.

I have a CD of before and after x - rays. They are truly astonishing. I can't seem to figure out how to get them off of the Cd bit I am going to keep trying. I think you would like to see them. Awesome job of restructuring. The gal who did the estimate was off, by about $1200.00. The hospital capped the bill at the highest estimate I was given and ate the $1200.00. They didn't have to do that, I offered to pay the whole amount. It is their policy to not charge the client if they underestimate the bill. I have a lot more respect for this practice than I did on Thursday.

Good morning everyone. DaBones is.......................HOME!!!! :yay Guys, somewhere in the back of my little pea brain I knew this but in all the goings on I just..........I don't know.......forgot? This is not a leg break, it is a shoulder fracture. So..........no cast, no dressing changes.........nada. The vet tech who took care of him (Lisa, yikes is she good!) told me he was awake and TRYING to get to his feet 30 minutes after surgery ended. It took him 2 hours but he finally succeeded. She said they do not see a lot of greyhounds there, but DaBones has changed the staff's opinion of them. This place is very high tech and very good. I would not hesitate to go back there again. People skills are lacking, but I am not a people person either. I am not paying for pleasantries. I am paying for skill and I got that, in spades. Bones had a good night. He had a little spit up this morning that concerned Lisa, but he regurgitates at home too. He was just so anxious to get out of there.Hhe heard our voices as soon as we walked in and he started howling at the top of his lungs. He used to do that when I would try to leave him with someone else at a M & G. He has not done it for a long time, but he reverted back under these stressful conditions. O.K.................if you are squeamish..stop here. I am going to post a picture of Frankendog. He is bruised and purple and a mess. And this didn't have to happen. Many, many thanks to all of you and hats off to Dr. Thomas S. Bowersox DVM ( who came in to discharge his patient) and the staff of Veterinary Specialties Referral Center, LLC.

PM GT member Madera. She has the information you need as she is dealing with this at this very moment. Best wishes to you and Caesar

Jordan, thank you! I am going to wait and see what he comes home with before I take any of you up on your very generous offers. Guys, it's been a day. I am signing off and going to bed. I can not thank you enough for your PM's, e-mails, phone calls , support and responses in these two threads. I am thrilled my boy is coming home. I thank God he has four legs. I will make him right. Above all, if we have learned anything from this. Please, please be careful with your gates and doors. I don't want to ever see a thread like this again or any dog have to go through what my brave boy is going through. Please, be careful. G'night and thank you all!

Me too!! I am a bit worried about the fact he is so determined to be on his feet. He did that when I moved him from vet to vet. He had had morphine and some other drugs. He was cross eyed, his tongue was hanging down to his knees ( from the morphine I was told?) and he was really out of it, but still he staggered to his feet and stood the whole way there. I am HOPING when he gets home and realizes where he is, he will calm down. He has to be exhausted from all this as well as in pain. I just want him home. We can deal with the rest. Thank you Cathie. I have an image in my mind of the boot. We used to have one for the horses that made hosing their legs more effective. It was not closed at the top but I think I know what you are talking about. I will ask him for one. He is an orthopedic specialist, hopefully he has them. If not, I will let you know. Thank you!

Oh I wanted to tell you guys. Doc called at 5:00 PM. Bones is coming home at 9:30 tomorrow morning. He said when he went back to check on Bones he was very surprised to see he was punch drunk stoned out of his mind...........and on his feet. 2 hours post op. I HAD to say it........."Not so WUSSY is he?" He just laughed and said no, not at all. Lametard!! But a good Lametard. I know Bones will be much more quiet at home. I think he just wants out of there and to be here. He is doing great so far!

Thanks Wendy!! Protocols vary from surgeon to surgeon. Make sure you're clear about how Dr. L wants to deal with follow up care and specifically the frequency of soft cast changes and wound care. Sometimes the cast can slip down and then it starts rubbing somewhere that causes a sore. Or Bones might chew at the top of the cast, causing it to loosen. Might have to do an e-collar to prevent this, at least initially. Would suspect that Bones will probably be on an antibiotic like Clavamox for 3+ weeks to prevent bone infection. BTW, which leg was broken? Edited to add: nevermind... I see that it's the right front leg. Yep, IV bag to cover that leg will protect against pee. Done! We have hardwood floors through the whole house. I can add more rugs if he needs them. Got the muzzle. Keeping his wound clean and dry is my biggest concern. I do NOT want an infection. I have 4 decades of experience wrapping horses legs so I am good with that. I just need to see how best to do it and I can do it every day if necessary. Your experiences are invaluable to me. Please keep them coming and thank you!!

See you guys have all have had experience with this. Bones is 10.5 years old but he has always been quiet. He quite often sits out our daily walks unless we go in the car. He very rarely runs flat out anymore or even really runs at all. He also is the first one to take very good care of himself. I am thinking plastic bread wraps would be good to cover the cast. I will get some more vet wrap, thank you for that. I have some, I will need more. We can do this. Pat, yes he does have hardware. Infection and pain control is the most crucial thing to manage. I know he will be so happy to get home. That in itself will be a huge help to him. Us too!

Ohhhhhhhh, yes laser therapy. Thanks Jenn, that is what I need. Things I don't know and won't think of on my own.

Wonderful news Audrey!! Please keep us posted on her progress. :bighug I know Bones is going to be beyond thrilled to be home.

I will see how that goes. Bones is naturally a very quiet boy. He loves his dollies (stuffies) so I will leave him with a couple of his favorites. I imagine at first he will have some pretty heavy duty drugs to help him with what I hope is not a lot of pain.

O.K. here we are. Bones has made it through surgery, he has four legs and he is coming home! I know he will not be able to move around much. My plan is to x-pen him in the kitchen. Future still needs to get out the back door (he will NOT use the doggie door). Pearl can use either / or. Bones cannot use either. He will have to get down two small steps out the front door to get outside. I have a firewood sling rigged up to support him if he needs it. During the day when we are not there he will have his x - pen area in the kitchen with his bed, water and puppy pee pee pads. He can see out the door and it is warm in that room. We will have to close off the upstairs when he is out of the x-pen. He hangs out up there and I don't want him to try that. So............what else do I need to do or prepare? Please discuss and thank you!

No flames from here. I am so very sorry for your loss.

Oh no!! What a devastating shock. I am so sorry for your loss.

Rest well Miz Foxy. I am so very sorry Janet. :grouphug

Hang in there Audrey. Please keep us posted as you can.

Checking in.

Good night Miss Janet and Miss Foxy. I'll be checking in first thing in the morning when I get to work. Thinking of you this evening. :grouphug