We've found the surgeon who we want to do Terra's TPLO. He's based in Caledon but he will come down to Westside, our vet office. The vet there would not be able to see Terra until well into April so this seems to be a better option. Still, we have to wait
In the meantime I've been trying to find out as much as I can about the surgery and any other options. Another dog handler with whom I work has had two dogs with the same injury as Terra. They did the surgery for one, for the other they practiced what is called the "conservative approach" No surgery, they put his leg in a brace for a year and did physio. She told me that the latter case seemed to work better in that, that dog had a fuller recovery
Two caveats though: That dog's ligament tear did not show up on an xray whereas Terra's did, meaning it was not as severe. Secondly, both her dogs were huge, around the 100 pound range
Size is a significant factor in surgery recovery, as is activity level. Smaller dogs seem to do better in general but more active dogs need more monitoring during recovery. Terra is what I would call a medium sized dog, around 50 pounds and very very active
I've been reading many testimonials on the web but sometimes it's good to have a more personal approach, with the opportunity for feedback. One of Collette's co workers has a brother who is a highly regarded vet in Florida. His name in Michael. Collette e mailed him the details of what Terra is going through and he was gracious enough to call her back
He thought that our vet's plan seemed logical, the surgery seemed the way to go. He also thought that Terra's weight and her physical condition made her a very good candidate to have an excellent recovery. This surgery is harder on larger dogs and although Terra's activity level makes me worried about her possibly hurting herself during recovery, Michael felt that it was also the thing that would would help her get back on her feet (literally) quickly.
He also understands border collies. He knows that Terra's work drive will motivate her to have a good recovery but he also knows that working dogs are sly; they will hide their pain, they want to "work" and as always want to be in control "Yes, I'm fine, let's go play right now" That's the good/bad thing: The power struggle will continue
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