Well, out pup is back from the vet. He had a complete examination of this knees and hips, which included a series of x-rays. We're being referred to an orthopedic puppy surgeon in Anchorage, but it appears as though Dawson has Cruciate Ligament Damage (CLD). He indeed destroyed one of the ligaments that holds his Femur and Tibia together. Thankfully after the initial injury there isn't much pain. It will, however, require surgery in the coming weeks, but we don't know quite when yet. Our vet said that Dawson may be prone to such an injury because of his genetics, but what I found online disputes this claim, saying that such an injury just happens in labs because they're so high energy. The vet said that we should have both knees worked on, but I'm not sure I agree, at least from what I've read online. Sometimes dogs just blow out their knees. If you're interested in additional information here are a few good links: http://www.vetstoria.co.uk/templates/cruciate_ligament_rupture_in_dogs_symptoms_and_diagnosis-8-391-familypet.html and http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/ccl-injuries.html.
I'm thankful that Brian and I will be able to financially deal with this injury. (I suspect that some of you are thinking that he's just a dog, but he's our dog to take care of, so we're going to...at least as much as we can.) Dawson is only 11 months old and has such wonderful, kind personality. It would be very sad if he wasn't able to have many, many adventures with us. He's also Mattie's best friend. We're going to get him fixed up. Looks like this is going to require a trip to Anchorage in the coming weeks.
Wish us luck!
2 comments:
oh my! Poor little guy. Keep us updated on events in Anchorage. Hopefully the doc can fix him up.
Hey you guys!!! I've tried emailing you both, but maybe I have a bad email address. I just ran across your blogspot address in an old saved email and thought I'd see how you guys were doing! I miss you guys a ton and I'm glad you have this blogspot so I can see how you guys are. I am so sorry to hear about Dawson and I don't blame you for a second for spending whatever it takes to get your little one to 100%. I don't know if you're interested, but Dr. Stuve at Aurora is one of the best surgeons in the state for that sort of thing, it wouldn't hurt to see what he has to say. Best of luck! We would LOVE to hear from you guys!!!!
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