Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: 7 month anniversary

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM ELLIE!

Ellie just had her 7 month anniversary post TPLO and she is doing fantastic. On that same day Ellie turned 8 years old! This past weekend Ellie was able to easily complete a 6 1/2 mile trail run and showed no ill effects of the workout. No limping, no gimping, no hoppy-skipping, no nothing at all except wanting to sleep the rest of the day. Her weight is staying below 80 pounds and her reborn muscles are rippling and sexy.

Ellie sends a big thank you and warm wishes to all of you and your four legged friends and hopes that you have a safe, healthy, and Happy Holiday Season. Many thanks to all of you that followed her recovery this past summer and fall.

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: 6 months- Life is good!

Well, it’s been two months since I added to Ellie’s Blog documenting her entire TPLO recovery process.  I had not planned on blogging anymore after she reached the intial 4 month point since that was the end date from the beginning. However…..Ellie is getting so many emails from all of you out there dealing with this type of injury that I had to bring you all up to speed.

Ellie, as of today, just had her 6 month anniversary of her TPLO Surgery. Amazing is the best way to describe her abilities and activities. Her weight has stayed constant around 78 pounds and she flies around like Usain Bolt running the 100 meter dash. Keep in mind that Ellie will be eight years old next month so considering her age makes her recovery all the better. We had a great surgeon, excellent post surgical care, followed all the steps for a speedy and healthy recovery, and Ellie did the rest. She is truly doing just fantastic.

The Synovi Chews are still a twice daily supplement for her and she has less stiffness when awakening and after exercise than ever before. I can highly recommend these with an ‘Ellie Seal of Approval.’ (Ellie gets no sponsorship money so she is not just giving a sales pitch) There are all kinds of good and bad stories of TPLO floating around and we are just thankful that ours has turned out so positive. Many thanks go out to the folks at West Hills in Corvallis, Oregon for their outstanding help in Ellie’s recovery.

We still continue to take it easy with a lot of activities and she certainly is not allowed to jump for frisbees or dance around on slippery surfaces or rocks. Not to say that she could not do this if she tried but better safe than sorry. If you have questions about this process still feel free to contact me through Ellie’s blog and I will be happy to provide whatever information that I am able. All the best to you and your canine pals-

Russ Milstein

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: 17 weeks- That’s all folks

The final act begins:  The lights are dim, a single muted trumpet plays the opening notes of ‘My Funny Valentine’, the curtain slowly rises, and in the middle of the stage there is a dog standing in the spotlight smoking a cigarette and sipping scotch. Bit by bit and piece by piece the dog removes clothing in a temptatious flirting with the audience….Wait a minute…Ellie does not smoke, drink alcohol, nor does she wear clothing. I must have been thinking of something else. Let’s try this again…

This is it folks, the final entry in Ellie’s TPLO Recovery Blog. I have to first thank the hundreds and thousands of readers that became loyal followers of the mutt’s daily adventures while recovering from her surgery. My running dialogue (or some may say diatribe) was tolerated by all of you for 119 days and I can only hope that in some way it was beneficial. Since I had a tendency to lace the daily updates with minor attempts at humor I only hope that no one has been scarred for life. For those of you that do not know me personally you can now see what my family and friends have to deal with on a daily basis. It is amazing that the majority of them remain fairly well adjusted human beings and do not find themselves regularly sitting in a corner with towels over their heads trying to figure out the best way to separate themselves from me while they weep uncontrollably. At least my dog has an I.Q of somewhere around twelve so maybe she is able to just deal with me as long as the food keeps coming on a regular basis.

While writing the Blog my feeble attempts at humor were obviously a way for me to deal with what was/is/has been a very difficult situation. Ellie is not just a dog to me nor does she fall into the often used terminology of ‘they are members of the family’ or ‘they are your children.’ Ellie is so much more than that and for me to truly describe her place in my life would be impossible. Everyone that has an animal companion develops that specific connection, or bond, that is unique between the two of them. I like to think that I did not train Ellie but rather she trained me. Great sculptors have often said that what they do is not difficult and that anyone could create the same masterpieces from stone. The masterpiece is in every chunk of marble but the key is to be able to see what is inside. I guess that the key for Ellie and I has not been me seeing what is inside her but more so her seeing inside of me and then polishing in all the right spots. I think she has me just the way she wants and it has only taken eight years. It is quite possible that there are some people that may not like me however, Ellie likes me and in my mind that is good enough for me. There I go again, waxing romantic.

The heart wrenching part of this ordeal was seeing Ellie sustain such a devastating injury. I personally damaged my knee many years ago and in no way did I suppress the pain like Ellie did. It was almost as if she did not want to show some weakness that might make me not like her anymore. As tough as it was to watch her prior to the surgery that paled in comparison to seeing her that afternoon when Shandra and I picked her up at the hospital just a few short hours after the procedure had taken place. That evening listening to her do a canine version of crying while she came out of the anesthesia was brutal and Shan and I both questioned whether we should have subjected her to the whole procedure. You ask yourself if you did it for your own selfish reasons or if you truly did it so that your dog would be whole again. The amazing thing was watching the resiliency of Ellie and how fast she bounced back and began to heal. My eternal thanks to Dr. Faulkner the surgeon and Dr. Ahmsberry, Dr. Moore, Lindsay, Trina, and all the fabulous staff at West Hills Animal Hospital in Corvallis, Oregon. Without all of them Ellie’s recovery and continuing rehabilitation would not be possible.

Many people out there will unfortunately have to deal with their dog sustaining a CCL or Meniscus injury and if you read the varying research and stories on the internet you either will have the crap scared out of you or you will come away feeling confident in the procedure. The surgeon and hospital are key however, the actual surgery is just a fraction of  what it takes for this to be successful. Your dog must be in good health, you must be prepared to make changes in your life and daily routines, you must realize that this is going to be expensive, and above all else you must absolutely be prepared to be patient. Have faith in your dog and don’t ever think that just by having this surgery everything is going to be all better. Your dog is counting on you to get them through this so show them what you are made of and do not let them down. You cannot just lock them in a room to heal and figure that time will take care of things. On an hourly/daily basis be involved in helping your dog get around safely, do the exercises, keep things interesting for them so they are stimulated, make certain they eat and drink, and always be sure that they take care of their bodily functions. If you think that your dog gives you unconditional love and devotion right now, just wait until you go through something like this with them and show them the patience that you are capable of displaying. Do not let them down.

Today is a great day since once again Ellie and I had our 5:00 am walk and finally, we found a prune plum tree that was loaded with ripe fruit. Tomorrow Ellie gets to go to the market and on Sunday she is getting her first sojourn into the mountains since this whole episode began. Fall is in the air and this morning I actually think I saw steam rising when Ellie was peeing on a lawn. Things feel good and as they should be. I do not foolishly think that there will not be any setbacks in the future regarding Ellie’s rehab but I am hopeful that they will be few and far in between. My many thanks once again to all of you that followed along with us and whether you find this Blog today or even in five years if you have questions about this procedure just send an email and I will happily respond. All the best to you and your animal companions-

Russ Milstein

Corvallis, Oregon

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: Day 118- Hit the bricks Jenny Craig!

Ellie did it! When we went to West Hills yesterday to have urine sucked out of her for culturing Ellie hopped up on the scale, sat right down, and…..drum roll please……..she weighed in at 78.8 pounds! That’s right! Goal weight achieved. Far out freakin’ fantastic! What this means is that she has dropped a total of 12 pounds since she originally injured herself the first week of February and she has dropped 8 pounds since we switched her care to West Hills this past spring. No Jenny Craig, no Weight Watchers, no Slim Fast just plain old hard work and RD food. It was a happy moment for our little tribe and we celebrated by feeding Ellie a Six Dollar burger and milk shake from Carl’s Jr. (just kidding)

Prior to taking Ellie to West Hills for pee extraction I received a call from Dr. Ahmsberry. I tell you, the fact that he takes time out of his day to check up on Ellie every third day is just incredible and I cannot say enough about West Hills Animal Hospital and their dedication to pets and owners. I explained to him that she was feeling and acting just phenomenal since being on the Baytril. He said that this indicates that she was probably really struggling with the cooties and, like most animals, will not typically show you just how crappy they are feeling. I guess animals tend to be rather stoic in that department. Maybe I should take Ellie to a pet psychiatrist so that we can explore the spider webs and deep recesses of her mind to find out why she hides her feelings. You know, get her to “talk about her feelings” and maybe have a touch of intervention. Maybe I have scarred her by making her aid and abet whilst I poach fruit from lawns on our morning walks. Or, maybe the fact that she watches me snatch her poop up in plastic bags has provided her some canine form of empowerment that has manifested itself into some kind of twisted emotional maelstrom. We may never know. Actually, who cares? We bombarded the pee bugs with drugs and it seems to be working. In the words of Lewis and Clark, “…Oh, the joy.”

Ellie’s return to normalcy, well, her version of normalcy, is analogous to Clark Kent running to the phone booth, dropping the suit and putting on the cape, then re-emerging as a supercharged being. Her head is up, shoulders are broad, tail wagging like hummingbird wings, and she moves around like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I just love that dog and now that tomorrow marks 17 weeks of surgical recovery and approximately 14 million dollars in veterinary bills I can say resoundingly that it is well worth the coin and effort. Our buddy and best friend is back!

The biggest obstacle for me continues to be pulling in my own reins so that we just stay slow and steady with her continued rehabilitation. The temptation to go for a one hour hike or long drives in the Jeep is always front and center in my beady little head. I want to rough-house and roll around with that dog like we always did and turn her loose in her favorite park so she can hunt tennis balls in the bushes. Actually, she has had a slight return to tennis ball hunting albeit very monitored and fairly subdued. When we allow her to do this she acts like an ex-smoker sitting next to a pack of Camel Unfiltered. You can see her fighting the temptation to go nutsy-fago and just dive head first into the shrubbery like some crazed kid bobbing for apples at Halloween. That’s our Ellie.

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: Days 116,117- ‘Labnormality’

Woosh! That is the sound of a galloping 82 lb svelte Chocolate Lab flying through lawns at 5:15 am. She keeps her nose to the ground and is managing to juke and jive like a running back working out of the option offense. Ellie is bright eyed and bushy tailed and really feeling just great and moving exceptionally well. Her repaired leg is looking strong and there have been no ill-effects from the Baytril. Actually the Baytril has turned Ellie into a member of the Jamaican Track and Field team based on her flat out speed. It is kind of funny when she is galloping around since once in awhile she skips a step with her repaired leg and it looks like she is pulling on a hand brake. Next up: The 110 meter high hurdles.

Today Ellie goes in for a urinalysis/pee culture from Dr. Ahmsberry at West Hills. Unfortunately she is going to have a needle stuck in there so they can draw a sterile sample. This gives me the creeps just thinking that some Lil’ Shop of Horror’s sized needle will be part of the process however, the folks at West Hills said Ellie was just fabulous with this procedure several weeks ago. Ellie’s pee habits seem just fine and there have not been any abnormalities in her routine or the color of the actual pee. I just hope that this is the wave of the future.

Since I was in and out and all over the place for four days it sure was nice to get back into the normal daily rhythm with Ellie. I missed the little knuckledragger. Here’s a crazy one: This past Saturday we took Ellie and my visiting buddy to the Farmer’s Market on the riverfront. This was the first return visit to the market for Ellie! She sniffed butts with several dozen dogs and generally stayed out of trouble with the exception of veering towards the homemade pretzel booth. Actually, I think I was subliminally leading her towards the pretzels but I blamed it on Ellie. Amidst all of the wandering and sniffing I spotted what at first I thought to be a mirage but what actually turned out to be The Hairy Democrat! That’s right, we actually saw him during the daylight hours instead of the normal 5:15 am at the coffee shop! We had a great visit and The Hairy Democrat introduced Ellie as the Greatest Dog.

Sadly, there will be just two more entries in Ellie’s Blog. The last one will be this Friday unless something big comes up that I feel just has to be documented. I have not told Ellie about this coming to an end since that would probably spurn a call from her agent resulting in some type of litigious action. The Canine Web Diva is just going to have to learn to adjust to normal life once again.

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: Days 113,114,115- Ellie Usain Bolt

In the words of Dave Matthews, “so much to say, so much to say..” However, it is just going to have to wait until tomorrow. I have been being lazy and hanging out with a buddy of mine and the little fishies are calling me to chase them down in the river today so Ellie’s Blog update has to wait 24 hours. I can say that Ellie is doing spectacularly well and there have been zero bad effects from the Baytril medication. Since I have been slumming the last few days and doing things like going to UFC 102 in Portland (got to see Randy “The Natural” Couture), driving the Oregon coastline, and now heading to the mountains to fish Ellie has been in the capable hands of Nurse Shandra. I think they have enjoyed not having the testosterone container around. I believe girly stuff has been the norm since I have been on my ‘dude vacation.’ More to follow in the next day……….

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: 4 months – Supercharged!

Holy Crackers! The mutt should definitely have a tinfoil helmet on her head because she is in overdrive right now and seems to be controlled by beings from outer space. Her leg is just fabulous and she has really hit her stride. On our 5:00 am walk this morning she was off to the races and constantly mule kicking and backfiring. Ellie looked like a brown missile flying through lawns and following raccoon and deer tracks. She kept going after fruit from Sweetgum trees that were lying on the ground as they look a lot like tennis balls. It must have been like Christmas for her thinking that the sky had opened up and dumped hundreds of tennis balls all around.

Yesterday afternoon Ellie got her first dose of the Baytril medication for the Proteus bacteria in her urine. I gave her the first pill very reluctantly and just hoped that she would not turn into a big lethargic brown lump. Well now, I gave her the medication at 5:00 pm and at 9:30 pm last night she was doing floppy rolls all over her bed and barking with joy. I think it had some kind of puppy upper effect on her. She is supposed to get one pill every twelve hours for 21 days. That is a lot of pharmaceuticals but Dr. Ahmsberry is very worried about this bacteria and I trust his judgment. He told me that they rarely have any adverse effects with this medication however, every animal is different meaning a reaction is possible. Watching her flop around last night and then seeing her attitude this morning was quite a relief. Dr. Ahmsberry also wants her to come in for a urinalysis on Tuesday so that they can do a culture and see how the old pee looks after four days on the drugs.

I think that tomorrow might be the big day for Ellie’s triumphant return to the Farmers Market. As long as she is feeling good and her Gentle Leader is in place on that slab of chocolate lab head I think she can safely walk around the booths and enjoy the experience. The theme from ‘Rocky’ will probably be playing in her head as she strolls the waterfront tomorrow morning. The crowd will part and all other canines will bow to the ‘Queen of Much Ado.’  We finally made it through four months of recovery and Ellie’s hard work is looking like it has paid off.

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: Day 111- Happy Dog

Tomorrow is the big day, 16 weeks since the surgery and Ellie looks great and feels great (knock on wood). It seems like she has really come into her own since finishing the rounds of meds for the collateral problems with the Colitis and bladder nasties. I am really amazed at how well she is moving and it was evident again this morning on our walk as she blasted up and down sidewalks and cruised through lawns. I did not let her go overboard with enthusiasm but I did let her enjoy the added freedom. It is almost like she finally synced all four legs and learned to trot and canter all over again.

I spoke with Dr. Ahmsberry yesterday and gave him the condition report regarding Ellie’s exuberance. He suggested that since she is feeling better it would be a good time to begin the Baytril to go after the stuff that was evident in the urine culture from a few weeks ago. Rats! I really hate to go throwing pills down her throat again with the chance that they will make her feel like crud and dampen her current mood. It is a tough decision but I guess the best thing to do is side with the Vet’s since there is still nasty stuff lurking in Ellie’s pee. I’ll pick up the meds today and start her on them tonight. If she has a nasty side effect I am going to start poking my eyes with sharp objects. If she shows one slight twitch I’ll go bananas.

The best part of Ellie feeling so much better is that I can visualize a return to somewhat regular activities like hikes. We sure miss having Ellie along on the strolls through the hills and woods. I know she misses it as well and for several months she just accepted the fact that she could not come with us when she would see us lacing up the hiking boots. Now, with her recovery progressing so well, she is definitely getting more rambunctious when she sees us packing the Jeep or grabbing the hiking gear. She perks right up and gets that excited bark in hopes that maybe this time she will get to go. If this Baytril med does not flame her out like a Zeppelin then I foresee tree lined paths and longer trails in Ellie’s very near future.

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: Day 110- Remote control

If I had a remote control that worked on Ellie I would have pushed the pause button this morning, then hit rewind and play. I would have set the whole scenario on a continually playing loop. It has been one hundred and ten days since her TPLO surgery and I can honestly say that this morning was the absolute best of her recovery. The energy level and all around attitude of Ellie was perfect this morning and not only did she trot smoothly but she also did her slow gallop without a hitch. There was no barfing, no burping, no butt faucet, and no sign of cooties. The dog accompanying me on my walk this morning was the dog from January and it was like popping in a favorite dvd to view.

As smoothly as Ellie is moving she still has just the slightest sign of a “lean” to her good side. It kind of makes her walk and trot like John Wayne. I guess a better description is that she ambles and I don’t know if The Duke actually ever trotted so I guess I cannot compare the two. She will probably always have a slight tilt towards port but it really does not seem to bother her. Once in awhile she starts off with a skip just to kind of get going but then she looks pretty close to normal. After all we have been through, if a little skip here and there is needed I can happily accept that as long as Ellie is not in pain.

I plan on speaking with Dr. Ahmsberry of West Hills today so that we can discuss whether or not Ellie will go on the Baytril to nuke any proteus bacteria left in her pee. I believe they want to do a culture to see if anything is still swimming around in there. Ellie has not exhibited any signs of having a relapse but I and the folks at West Hills certainly want to ward off any possibility of it reoccuring. Making sure that Ellie is drinking plenty of water has been of the utmost importance so that she keeps things flushed.

The initial time frame for keeping this Blog was through four months of TPLO recovery. I get a tremendous amount of feedback and emails from people which has made this whole process very satisfying as well as cathartic for me. I am going to continue updating Ellie’s Blog through 17 weeks. Ellie has gotten used to her new status of a ‘Web Diva’ and I would hate to prematurely do something that might fracture her fragile ego.

Ellie’s TPLO Surgery Recovery: Day 109- Labapalooza returns

Sometimes I think that my dog stole the pin number for my debit card. Either that or she has managed to forge my signature and use one of my credit cards. Since neither of these is possible due to the fact that Ellie does not possess thumbs, and keeping this in mind it must have been me that signed my name for the supplements, pee cultures, antibiotics, special food, water therapy sessions, surgeries, psychiatric evaluations, tarot cards, etc. I almost made a colossal mistake yesterday by adding up every freakin’ receipt that I have in possession since this whole escapade started in February. Fortunately I got smart and stopped myself before I actually started hitting the add button on the calculator.

As promised Dr. Ahmsberry called again yesterday to check up on Ellie. The service from West Hills Animal Hospital is just amazing and very much appreciated. I gave him the “no barf” scenario and we both decided to wait a couple more days to make sure Ellie’s Colitis was cleared up before starting her on the meds to wipe out the possibility of the urinary thingy still hanging around. Ellie is definitely feeling well and her energy levels are way up as well as a return to somewhat nutball Ellie behavior.

Yesterday evening Ellie and I went for a post-dinner walk for about 25 minutes and she trotted the entire time! This was a first since the surgery and she moved along pretty darned smoothly. Her renewed muscles were rippling in the repaired leg, tail was wagging, head was up, and her ears were pointed like a fruit bat homing in on a mosquito. It was very gratifying to see all of this after almost adding up all of the receipts. Even if I would have toted up all of the dinero spent I would have felt it all worth the expense when seeing her trot along for the whole walk. I know that Ellie appreciates what Shandra and I have done for her and we certainly appreciate what she does for us on a daily basis.

This morning Ellie showed very little signs of stiffness from last evening’s trot/walk and she was ready to roll at 5:00 am. No good morning barfing to greet the day and she had slept through the night. She patiently stood guard while I liberated a couple pounds of plums from a tree and I rewarded her with a treat and ear scratch for aiding and abetting. Nothing quite like encouraging scandalous behavior in your dog but I think Ellie likes to live on the edge and she secretly enjoys the Winona Ryder-esque thrill of the whole affair.