Wednesday 18 November 2009

TPLO

My love, my darling, my wondrous hairy beast. There you lie on your cushion, like Cleopatra or Caligula on a good day, receiving nibbles of banana and general worship. Your leg is shaved, soft and bare, vulnerable and naked, a neat stitched wound on either side. I smear on iodine gel, treacly and thick. As soon as my back is turned you lick it off with toddler glee, no sign of the geriatric years. Even the vet said he couldn't believe your age; like my mother you've been fiddling with the date on your passport.
I carried you home early, knowing you couldn't abide a night away, and there you lay, stiff, sore, drunk on anaesthetic, sleeping unnaturally, doped up, suffering. Your whole back end was unstable, the good leg twisted askew and I lurched inside; had they done something irreparable to you? In the middle of the night I crept down to check on you and your tail wagged, my fears of paralysis daft, unfounded. By morning you were willing to have a go at standing, by the afternoon you were hopping about gamely on three legs, brain clear, eyes bright.
A month lies ahead of taking you outside on the lead just to go to the toilet, absolutely no exercise allowed. For two further months it's light exercise on the lead only. It'll be mid-February before you can hurtle round the farm, roll in snow, leap with Fenn. By then your hair will have grown back, and you will be my shaggy haired monster, not my delicate girl.

More on TPLO here and here.

12 comments:

Heidianne said...

Good health and sound recovery to your wonderous hairy beast of a dog.
The hard part is when they start feeling better but are not really mended yet. They want to romp and play, it's so easy for them to re-injure themselves.

Scriptor Senex said...

Hope all goes well for her.

Whispering Walls said...

The dear doggie

Flowerpot said...

Darling girl. Big sloppy kiss from Moll!

Yorkshire Pudding said...

Well at least Mopsa has a great nurse to help her into the new year. Give her a doggy treat from me.

mountainear said...

Hope she mends quickly - the worst part is perhaps not being able to explain why they went to the vet and came back hurting but non the wiser.

Our young (3.5yrs) wire-haired pointer had this op nearly 3 years ago - so know what you are in for. Keeping a young dog at rest was a challenge.

Anonymous said...

Oh Mopsa, Mopsa thou art indeed glorious, even in your sad shorn state...I shall bring thee titbits of amazing delicacy and I shall minister to your every need till once more thou canst (?) leap with joy...

John Going Gently said...

been there, worried too!

animals and injuries.......!


just had Albert the cat with similar injuries and looks......

my blood pressure doesn't need the aggravaton

Mopsa said...

Thank you FK; amazingly she already feels better and wants to romp, and her 9 1/2 years old and all! It's hardly decent.

Thank you too SS

WW - she is teh dearest

Ta Moll!

YP - she's just had a lick of some lamb roast gravy..

M'ear - she had the other leg done 6 years ago, but she seems as lively now as she was then!

All tidbits welcome as fara s Mopsa's concerned Locks Park!

John - it's a mighty strain, but fingers crossed..

Eurodog said...

Oh dear, what happened?
Poor little doggy and poor you.

Mopsa said...

Eurodog - she's recovering brilliantly - just one of those things that happens to big dogs..

Robynn's Ravings said...

It's so hard when our aging loves suffer. She is absolutely gorgeous. Love the tri-coloring.

I have an older border collie/McNab - black & white - who is losing her ability to use her back legs. We will roll her out on wheels soon because she isn't in pain and has a splendid attitude. Our younger border collie/Australian shepherd is only one year old and is all bounce and vinegar. Can't imagine life without them so, I don't!