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Hi, need some serious advice..
Serge is a 10 wk old GSD puppy, that we took in from the breeder, who was born with no hock in the left rear. He scoots around, with his lower limb (foot) flat on the floor with no problems. The foot is just flailing around. The vet recommended amputation, primarily because of the potential for injuring his flailing foot when he is fully grown, leading to infection, etc. I realize that there are a number of different types of hock splints available, that would give him some measure of support on long walks, and I am now leaning towards this approach.. Around the house and running/hopping around the back yard, we can make some padded boot/shoes for his foot, (with something like Velcro strapping) that would keep it clean. Our 4 1/2 yr old female GSD has bonded really well with him, and herds him everywhere. I do not want to put him through the surgery unnecessarily. He is in no pain, and the vet agreed that unless he injures his foot, he will be pain free. I am retired and he has 24/7 attention. He will always be a "3 1/2" legged dog. I would welcome any advice you can give us. We initially agreed to the surgery, that is scheduled for 29 April, but having watched him closely over the last few days, we are deeply concerned that we may be putting the little guy through an unnecessary traumatic experience. The rest of his leg and hips are perfectly healthy..I've attached a picture of his x-ray, vs a normal hock...
Thank you all,
Richard
Top picture ...Serge....Lower picture...a normal hock
"No matter how eloquently the dog may bark, he cannot tell you that his master is poor, but honest".....Bertrand Russell
I'm wondering if there isn't some clever man (or woman) somewhere who could make him a false hock. Even if it didn't have full movement and maybe at some point might have to be fused, it might still be better and give him good support.
Poor little guy! Still, he doesn't know any different, and dogs are sooo accepting, aren't they?
This is an article about osteochondritis, which sometimes necessitates total joint replacement, and this vet does do hocks. Of course, I don't know your circumstances or where you are based. It might not be an option.
Jay said
I'm wondering if there isn't some clever man (or woman) somewhere who could make him a false hock. Even if it didn't have full movement and maybe at some point might have to be fused, it might still be better and give him good support.
Poor little guy! Still, he doesn't know any different, and dogs are sooo accepting, aren't they?
Hi Jay,
Thanks for your support. As he is in no pain at all, we do not want to cause him any, due to surgery. He scoots around with our GSD Raven quite happily. As long as we are careful, and make sure his foot is clean and injury free, he should be ok. As I said earlier, a home made padded "bootie" should cover that eventuality. Companies like Ortho Vet make really good looking rear leg braces, that should help him on walks. He will always be a "3 1/2" legged dog, but other than the missing hock, the limb is perfectly healthy.
Regards
Richard
"No matter how eloquently the dog may bark, he cannot tell you that his master is poor, but honest".....Bertrand Russell
Just wamted to lend support and let you know we are all here for you!
Yes this is a tough decision and allofus here sure do get that!
My only "concern" would be about doing an amputation at such an early age. NOT concern about the amputatin itself...just so young. When puppies here hsve had to have this type of surgery for whatever reason, it seems the ortopedic surgens wait 'til at least six months for muscle and bone browthintheother limbs. I could be waoff on this, but this seems to be the trend.
And if you haven't already, we're REAL big on second opinions around here!
There is a great "journal" on here about a dog who started with a partial amp. and ended up going full amp. Now, it may be an entirely different scenario, but it is a fasci ating success story, as the dog is also blind and has some neurological "damage".
You ave time to do your research, get seco d opinions, etc. Even id you don not go forward with amputation now, it is so ethingnyou can do down the road.
Would LOVE to see pictires of your pak! They all sound wonderful!! And so are you for being such a caring advocate for Serge!
Hugs to all!
Sally and Happy Hannah
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
Hi Richard, I hope you don't mind that I moved your post to this "Beyond Cancer" discussion area but it fits in nicely with this area, which is all about animals who are (or may be) Tripawds for reasons like birth defects and deformities, accidents and such.
Who can blame you for hesitating? I know I would! Rehab vets have told us that while puppies can adapt to being a Tripawd, in general older dogs adapt more quickly to life on three legs because they've already had plenty of time to develop neuromuscular coordination, balance, proprioception (awareness of one's body in space), etc. So there's plenty of good reasons to take a wait and see approach.
Have you checked out Eddie the Great Dane's blog? His pawrents have been in a similar situation. Eddie is older now and just had his amp.
Also, I've saved these search results for you, which show discussions about others who have wrestled with the decision to amputate because of a birth defect. What we've found here is that many dogs who have limb deformities into old age, generally experience more challenging mobility issues than their amputee counterparts. These issues result from so many years of improper balance and alignment while trying to use the limb. This is what their pawrents have theorized, I'm not a vet so I don't know if it's the reason why they had mobility issues. But you may want to speak to a certified rehab vet about the possiblity of this happening with Serge, it may not be an issue if he never attempts to use the leg.
If you have the time and financial resources , I would look into options for prosthetic devices. These Orthopets interviews discuss how they can help dogs in Serge's situation.
I hope these ideas help! And yes, more pictures!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
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