OMG...ACL...TPLO?

My mom and dad went off to Texas last week in search of another emergency veterinarian to join the S.A.V.E.S. team at the Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society meetings. I think they should have brought me. Mom said San Antonio was in need of a few dogs. She only saw one or two the whole time she was there. She also mentioned that the temperature never went below 100'F.

She even saw some cowboys! In the mean time I was left back here in Vermont with my brother and sister. I hate when she leaves, it feels like she is never coming back. I can deal with it, I know some dogs can't and they go crazy. Some of my dad's patients when left to their own device will destroy their parent's home!

I just do a lot of sleeping.... and thinking....

Sometimes I dream of Petunia.....or that really cute golden retriever I met yesterday.

Sometimes I think about why my brother and sister talk in letters? I understand lots of things my family says. I love when they say "Want some breakfast" or "I'm taking Oli for a walk". I love the word "wanna", "wanna have dinner?", "wanna go for a ride?", "wanna play ball?".  

My sister is always saying "FYI", my other sister constantly says "OMG".

Dad is always talking about ACL's and TPLO's. Even when I am at the hospital I hear our nurses like Carmelita say to my dad, "are we doing the TPLO next?". I almost expect to see her break into dance like when my brother talks about doing the "worm" (a very strange dance indeed, I always get in trouble for jumping on him when he acts like that).

Turns out an ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) is a ligament in our knee that stabilizes it, keeps it from sliding in the wrong direction (ouch). Sometimes this can be "ruptured" (broken) by a sudden leap off the porch or even a fall. Some breeds are more prone to this problem then others. When this happens most of us dogs need to have surgery. There are many ways to fix this problem, my dad fixes many each week with a procedure called a TPLO (Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy). He was one of the first veterinarians in Vermont to be licensed to perform the procedure way back in 2001. He has done so many of these it is crazy!

Check back if you want to learn more about how my dad finds out if the ACL is damaged and then what happens!

Tata for now...

living on the edge

Today I hear is the first day of spring. Exactly a year ago I arrived in Vermont a small scared puppy. I cried a lot at night in the beginning, Petunia growled all the time when I came near her, and I almost drown in our pond!
Today I weigh 80 pounds, I snore instead of cry at night, Petunia LOVES me, and yesterday I accidentally almost drown my mom in our pond! Some advise, don't run up behind someone while they are standing by a half frozen pond and bump them..... not a good idea.
On the menu at S.A.V.E.S. this week was some pretty odd things. The first was Violet, a very (did I say very) pretty boxer. I wish we had met under different circumstances, I know she would have fallen for me. Instead Violet arrived with a strange appetite for razor blades.

Disposable Razor Blade

Violet was having a hard time keeping anything down, she wasn't eating and really felt awful. She came to S.A.V.E.S. because her veterinarian diagnosed  a foreign body in her stomach. Violet had eaten a disposable razor blade and it was stuck in her stomach. The first attempt to remove the object was performed by endoscopy. Endoscopy involves running a very small camera down into the stomach, locating the object and then retrieving it via the same equipment's "grabber" tool. Violet's razor did not want to come out in this manner.

Removing the Razor Blade

The next step was to surgically remove the blade. My dad took Violet to surgery and performed a gastrotomy. Once the stomach was located he made a small incision into her stomach wall and retrieved the razor blade.

Surgical Monitoring

It was pretty cool, I get to watch all the surgeries through the observation glass, someday I think I want to be a surgeon like my dad. My mom monitored the anesthesia with all sorts of machines that beeped and made funny sounds. Air kept filling the blood pressure cuff with a whoosh, the heart monitor showed every heartbeat on the screen, and another monitor showed how much oxygen was circulating in her bloodstream Really cool stuff. The table is even heated! Who would figure!

Violet Recovers From Surgery

After surgery Violet recovered in the recovery stall with Carm (that's what I call her but her real name is Carmelita) one of the nurses at S.A.V.E.S. She had lots of blankets and a big heating pad full of warm air. The nurses stay with the patients until they are fully recovered.

Violet My Love

Violet is home now and probably the only way I will ever get to see her again is if she decides to eat another razor. I know it sounds awful but I kind of hope she does so I can talk to her again! She was so pretty!

Appetite for Lingerie

This poor guy swallowed a bra! It also had to be removed with surgery! Think I will stick to my canned and dry food! Tata for now!

#1

Happy Birthday to meeeeee. I just celebrated my first birthday! My family gave me a big, soft, cushy bed. It is huge. I still try to crawl into Petunia's little pink bed in the kitchen (everyone laughs at me, I'm not sure why). Boy have I grown.

Guess I'm not a pup anymore. I have learned so much over the past year. I don't poop in the house anymore (Petunia still does if she is mad at someone), I only chew on my toys (and my little brother because he teases me a lot), I really try not to jump on people,  most of the time I try not to pull too hard on the leash, and I can sit in the recovery bed at S.A.V.E.S. and not jump out for hours!

I love my life in Vermont. I have the best family, my dad is the best doctor and surgeon, I adore my mom. I miss my oldest sister and love visiting her at college. My oldest brother is so patient and takes me in the truck for rides every chance he gets. My other sister knows me better then anyone, almost like she talks dog talk. My little brother is the best to play with, maybe by the time I turn two I will be able to accept that he is higher on the hierarchy chart then I am!

I love snow, chasing cats and flies, stealing mittens, and sleeping by the warm wood stove! I just love my life! I spend most of my days at the emergency hospital. Soon we will be celebrating S.A.V.E.S. birthday. I have met so many friends. Probably the biggest mistake I see each day is pets that don't stay out of the path of cars!

My dad fixed this broken leg with a thing called a bone plate. During surgery he re-aligns the bone (puts it back together correctly) then drills and screws a bone plate onto the broken part (fracture site) to hold all the pieces in place until the bone heals.

My dad fixes lots of broken bones each day. After surgery Judy Coates does rehabilitation on the injured limb. She is so nice and gentle. All of her patients love her and she makes them feel so much better with this laser thing and her stretches and stuff. Even Petunia had an appointment with her the other day. Petunia had been hit by a car years ago and now she has developed some arthritis. Mom says if she lost some weight it would be easier on her joints! Petunia loves to eat.
Tata for now!

dandelions, paint, and a sign

Spent some time helping the family paint this week!

My sister entertained herself making a hat for me, I helped her by eating the hat!

I really think I look handsome with my maturing white "moustache" and tribal headdress.

My sis thinks so also!

Progress at S.A.V.E.S. has been fast and furious this week! First "sign", the building is no longer called "Honda".

Now it is officially labeled! I really like the sign, that's me on it (everyone who knows me KNOWS how much I like to shake a hand!). Hoot is also on the sign (heck if I know who the turtle is?).

A bunch of official men (must be a men's club) stopped by and looked really serious. They were checking to see that all the builders did what they were suppose to. Phew, they did! S.A.V.E.S. is officially open!

I am sitting in one of the padded "recovery" stalls. This is where I would go with my nurse after surgery to wake up. It is soooo comfortable. My mom even climbed in one on Sunday to test it out and she fell asleep instantly. (I think she is really tired also!).

I think it is so great how many people have stopped and helped get S.A.V.E.S. finished up. Everyone is so nice, and of course they all LOVE me!

Stay tuned for my next post, you'll get an insiders view of the new emergency and critical care hospital!