We're new here so please excuse mistakes.  Our dog is a mixed breed who adopted us.  He is Bernese Mountain, Great Pyrenese (sp?) , Rottweiller, and Lab.  He looks like the biggest lab ever with a white blaze and painted toes.  He was 4 months old and 50 lbs. when we brought him home, and I guess we should have known that he would be huge, but dumb we are and we didn't.  He will be 8 in January.  In September we brought him to a new vet who dropped the bomb.  The X-rays were not pretty - the leg had to go.  This was Sat -the surgery was set for Monday.  Pumba (we kept the shelter's name) was 174 lbs. and it didn't seem like this could possibly be a good option.  Pumba is an active happy dufus kind of dog, and I could not imagine a very positive quality of life scenario.  But, freaky-deaky bone transplant options were risky as well.

After the surgery things initially were horrid.  He had been on steroids for a bee sting and his liver #'s were not good so he had to take alternate pain meds.  The fentynal patch was great as a pain reliever but not so good otherwise.  It was pitiful to see him trying to understand and cope.  He liked to be outside, so that is where he spent most of the day.  Hard part was getting him in.  You can't just pick up a bundle of muscles that outweighs everyone in the house.  Often we ended up putting him on a rug and sledding him to the door.  I think he was screwing with us.  Time moved along and today it's hard to remember those first weeks.  Tonight, in fact he was bouncing off the walls excited just to be going for a ride with his peops.  He tires easily and it is murder trying to not only keep his weight down, but reduce it as well, but to see the utter puppy joy in his face makes it worthwhile for us and I think for him as well.

I sure wish he would grow his fur back - the shaved area was like, 14 x 12 (and that is just part of his side), and only a bit has grown back.