:: NEW surgery
update and photos
::
Words
cannot express what this girl has done for my life. Being
my first dog, we learned a lot together and were
absolutely inseparable (and still are). The fact that she
was born on Mother's Day the year my mom died was further
proof that this relationship was something special. As soon
as we got her I was in charge of training, and was hooked
immediately. I would train her to do a new trick
everyday and yearned for my Dad to come home from work to
show him what she learned next. We were a great team and
she knows over 30 commands on top of basic obedience. Everyone
that has ever met her says they think she is quite possibly
THE perfect dog!
At
13 years old I was interested in something to "show
off our skills" so to speak and stumbled onto dog
shows and instantly fell in love with the sport. I showed
her in Junior Handling for a few years, and while we were
both very new at it all we had so much fun. In fact, if
you ever ask Maple "do
you want to go show" she instantly starts barking and
howling as she runs towards the door raring to go. She had
a go get 'em spirit that has never ceased.
Unfortunately
she was diagnosed with Lyme Disease a few years back, and
has recently been diagnosed with Erosive Polyarthritis.
This is a fairly rare disease that attacks multiple joints
and produces irreversible degeneration. In short, her
back hocks have collapsed on her and she walks entirely on
her "ankle" bone. Recently she underwent surgery at Tufts
New England Medical Center, and her road to recovery can
be read below.
This
little love lights up everyone's day with her wonderful smile
and wagging tail. Her name will live on through my kennel
name as tribute to her beautiful presence in my life. I thank
God everyday for her and always smile - Mom left me in good
hands...
May
6th :: Maple is admitted
to Tufts for a Tarsal
Arthrodesis in both back legs.
May
9th :: Maple
returns home after surgery. Both her back legs are in a
large (and very fitting) bright pink cast and she needs
to be walked in a sling for a few weeks. She gets a bandage
change every 2-3 days and will have her stitches out in
the next 10-15 days. Once stitches are off, she may or
may not still have her casts on. In 8 weeks she will return
to Tufts for x-rays to see how her bones have been healing.
She
will need a lot of physical therapy and will go to work
with me where she can get regular hydrotherapy and acupuncture
as well. She will be on glucosamine supplements as well
as vitamins and possibly enzymes to help her heal during
this important time. It
will be a long road to recovery but we are very hopeful
that our little girl can walk again and enjoy a long
healthy life! :)
October
22 :: Photos were added
below to show the DRAMATIC change in Maple's back hocks.
It has been a long 5 months, but the fact that I can walk
her on a leash is something I truly never thought
would be possible again. She is still rather stiff, so
we are trying Fido-Wobenzym to ease her inflamation/pain,
as well as giving her plenty of Omega Fatty Acids to keep
her immune system up and help with future arthritis as
well. We are going to start regularly swimming her every
week to work on muscle tone, as well as basic myotherapy
to ease her muscles.
The
biggest improvement of all are her bright hopeful eyes and
her trademark smile. They have been lost these past few years
with so much discomfort and hopelessness.. but the following
pictures truly illustrate the beautiful girl that I have
grown up with and love to death.
Thanks
to everyone for the support, and we will keep you updated
on her as she continues to improve! :-)
Look at the dramatic difference before and after surgery!
One
of the perks of working at a
Veterinary Hospital! Our favorite doctor
decided Maple needed some designer casts
while she recouped :)
|
We
couldn't resist an informal photo shoot...
Taken
10/1/05
 
|
