6 weeks after TTA surgery

A good week. Walking is good. Other than the telltale short hair on his leg you wouldn't know he'd had cruciate surgery if you saw us in the street. We can walk quite quickly, but have kept it calm so I have no idea yet what a trot or run would look like. 

Standing, he still has a preference for his good leg but he can put weight on the operated leg if he chooses, normally when he is distracted through eating!

The wound, which had some problems along the way, is still a little scabby in parts but they are starting to fall away leaving clean looking healed skin underneath. 

The main event this week was stairs. We have avoided them completely until now, which has been a bit of a nightmare given he has always slept upstairs. Sleep deprivation has affected all of us!  This week I bought a couple of portable barriers from Mothercare meaning we can block him from going back down the stairs and also from the bedroom so he can sleep on the landing with no risk of him jumping on the bed. I helped him get up the stairs with a sling, although he looks as if he would cope without. Coming down was a case of carrying him as he wasn't up for trying a descent. Whether that was because it looked hard or whether he just didn't want to go downstairs I have no idea! 

From tomorrow we are up to 25 minute walks 3 times a day. Maybe in the next week we will give him a bit more of a 'supervised' free reign in the house. 

A sunny evening at Longton Brickcroft

Every day gets better. This weekend each walk has been up to 20 minutes. Recovery continues to be incident free, not least as the dog is still in his cosy pen much of the time so he stays safe with our tiled kitchen floor.

We took the opportunity for a walk at Longton Brickcroft, not too far from home. The dog seemed delighted to be in different surroundings but with lots of sniffing and admiring of views going on 20 minutes wasn't going to get us round the lake. Pretty much perfect for an evening stroll though and feels like things are starting to return to normal. 

5 weeks after TTA surgery

A largely uneventful week. To be able to do 15 minute walks has been brilliant. Tomorrow we go up to 20 minutes so plan a few trips out to Longton Brickcroft where we should just make it round the lake. It will be wonderful to go somewhere different!

His walking has noticeably improved this week. He walks more quickly now and if you didn't know he'd had a recent operation you'd not realise how fragile he still is. Fortunately most of our local dog walkers know, and we won't go anywhere where dogs are likely to be off the lead, so other than one boisterous puppy we've not had any dogs trying to leap in him!

When standing you can still often tell that he has a preference for his 'good' leg, but he can put a lot of weight on the other, most noticeably when he cocks his leg. 

Our indoor setup remains the same. He has a matted pen downstairs to avoid the floor tiles. We need to find some steps this weekend and start to build some strength before tackling stairs. 

All in all a good week other than rather unpredictable bowel movements, but I put that down to getting some more exercise and coming off all of his medication. 

Our TTA recovery plan

A few people have asked what we were advised for our dog's TTA recovery plan. I imagine that all advice is unique to your dog's circumstances so the best plan is the one you agree with your surgeon!

Ours has been very simple. The immediate aftercare was not an issue for us as he was in overnight and most of the next day. When we picked him up he had a weeks worth of antibiotics, some pain killers and anti-inflamitories. 

For exercise it was up to 10 minutes walk 3 times a day for 4 weeks. Toilet visits as needed. Everything on a short lead and absolutely no running, jumping or stairs. 

For week 5 to 8 we increase the duration of each walk by 5 minutes each week. So by week 8 we will be up to 30 minutes 3 times a day. 

After 8 weeks he can be off lead at the end of a walk, but not go mad. 

No physio, manipulation, heat pads, cold pads, hydrotherapy etc were advised for us. I like simple!

4 weeks after TTA surgery and the next steps

We passed a major milestone this week. After last weekend's setback with the dog exposing an internal stitch it was a relatively quiet start to the week. The cone of shame was back on, the superglue did its job, as did another dose of antibiotics, so we headed back to Rutland House at St Helens on Thursday for his 4 week checkup. 

Having dropped him off about 8.30am I got the call early afternoon to say he was back from X-rays and all was looking good. I met with one of the surgeons about 5.30 who talked me through the x-Ray photographs. The metalwork is all where it should be and he showed me where the new bone growth was taking place. No apparent problems and the wound itself now looks much healthier. 

Moving forward we yet again have a very simple recovery plan. His walks can now increase by 5 minutes per walk each week. When we hit 30 minutes, in a months time, he can have some controlled off lead time at the end of the walk. 

He hasn't tackled any stairs in the past month but, under control, he can now tackle them. We've not yet done that as we have a good downstairs routine and set-up, but will try a few steps this weekend. 

Lots of posts I've read have talked about swimming as therapy. Whilst I didn't get a 'no' to the suggestion the surgeon's view was that it can cause tendon problems, so given its not something we've done previously I won't be trying it. I am perfectly happy to build his strength through gentle walks. At the end of the day he's 10 now and I'm not looking to get him out doing agility or fly ball! 

The extra 5 minutes already makes a world of difference and means we can go a nice little circular walk from home and can probably get round Longton Brickcroft. If we don't get there tomorrow or Sunday we will certainly make it next weekend. 

The pen and non slip mats stay for a few weeks yet, but that's fine. 

It certainly feels like we are well on the way to recovery now. Whilst it has been a tough month it feels worth it. We can already walk further than we did pre-op and the dog looks so much better. Hope it continues! 

23 days after TTA surgery - Wound not healing well

The dog is 10 years old today. To celebrate this momentous occasion he decided to bite and lick his leg, stripping off what remained of the scabs and finding some internal stitches which are being rejected to pick at. Fortunately my better half spotted it soon after waking so we were able to get an appointment at our local vets to get it cleaned up, the exposed stitch removed and the wound glued up. 

Not the best shot in the world but you can see how much his hair has grown now and a hit of the mess he'd made of the lower part of the wound. 

He is now on a further dose of antibiotics and the cone of shame is back on. I recall the vet saying a few weeks ago she wasn't particularly happy with the way the wound was healing, which she repeated when we went back earlier this week. She was right as usual!

Happy birthday 🐾🍰

3 weeks after TTA surgery

It's been a long three weeks!  In some ways it seems like a lifetime ago that the dog was booked in for TTA surgery. I can vaguely remember the relief of the phone call confirming everything had gone ok. Since then it has been a case of taking each day as it comes and taking great care not to do anything that risks a setback. 

After three weeks he is still walking well. His leg appears stronger now, and the occasional shakes and trembles we saw in the first few weeks have gone. He looks stead when walking and turning. Best of all, he has started to put more weight on it when standing, although it is very clear he has a preference for his good hind leg. 

For the most part he has been easy to keep calm. He is happy to slowly sniff round his 10 minute walks, which is good. We just have to be in guard for any sign of rabbits, birds or cats leaping out of the bushes!

He went back to our local vets yesterday for another checkup, a week after the stiches came out. The wound has healed but is still pretty scabby, so we have another week of antibiotics. It doesn't look swollen or infected, but still happy to err on the safe side. 

One week to go the we head back to the referral centre for X-Rays. I imagine we will get the next set of instructions regarding his recovery then. Hopefully we'll get another 5 minutes on his walks!

Happily, the sun has returned today so we got to sit outside for a while after work. His nose was doing overtime so think he enjoys the fresh air. 

16 days after TTA surgery

16 days on. Still appears to be going well. Leg is bearing weight when walking and continues to look better when standing. 

Today was the first close encounter with one of his four legged friends on our estate. He was desperate to play and I had to hold his collar tightly to stop him springing around. Guess he has hit the point now when he feels much better. From what I read we have in some ways hit the time of highest risk, when dogs feel better and owners relax. 

We left the dog without cone on Friday whilst we were out. The 'dog cam' revealed he spent several hours preening himself, including a good lick of his knee. I suspect all that licking made him queesy as his dinner came back up almost immediately last night - something that has never happened in his 10 year life before. Although the stiches had been out since Monday I decided to put the cone back on last night. Tonight is his first coneless night so we'll see how he gets on. 

Still in his pen most of the time but we've sat in the lounge, which is carpeted rather than tiled, for much of the day. The kitchen floor is tiled and very slippery for him so the foam mats we got to make his pen are a 'must'. Having said that, with his nighttime setup (see photo) he has a choice of beds which look good enough for a human to sleep on!

2 weeks after TTA surgery

It's 2 weeks today since I left our dog at the referral centre for his TTA surgery, and 2 weeks tomorrow since his operation. Time then for some reflection on the first two weeks after surgery. 

At this point in time all seems well. The stitches were taken out by our local vet yesterday. She thought there was a little swelling on the knee so a further weeks antibiotics were prescribed and we have a follow up with our vet next week. I wasn't concerned, the swelling, very slight, around the stitches, wasn't a great concern, but I agreed with her that better to err on the safe side given the implications should any infection take hold. It's a bit scabby where the skin has joined so again better to know that the healing process gets a helping hand. 

He still doesn't put all his weight on his leg, particularly when standing, but there are now times when his pad is properly on the floor, with some spread of his toes, the best sign we have its bearing weight. In a nutshell, it no longer looks 'lame', which is great. 

Walking wise, he is still on three walks a day, up to 10 minutes. They are very slow and we don't get far obviously, but he generally looks ok, far better than he did pre op. We are very very careful and avoid close contact with other dogs, holding his collar to stop any possible jumping if we can't. His walk isn't perfect, a long way to go yet, but better than I had expected. 

He remains in his pen whenever in the house, other than an occasional trip to the lounge (where it is carpeted) but still on the lead. You'll see photos of the pen on this blog. It has been great!  He has space to move but has been completely protected when someone knocks at the door, friends are round and when we are just getting on with stuff. 

Between me and my better half we have taken holidays to ensure he hasn't been on his own for the past two weeks. To be honest, I think we could have left him in the past few days. We did go out for an hour or two on Sunday to get him used to us not being there 24/7. For my birthday this year (before the problems started) I got a 'pet cam' which means we can keep an eye on him from our phones, it is proving really useful to check what he gets up to, which in the main is sleeping!

The comfy cone has been great, and is still on when he is unsupervised. Hopefully we'll see the back of that by the weekend. 

Perhaps the biggest challenge of the past two weeks has been nighttime. We have a 'soft' dog who has sleep upstairs in the bedroom for most of his 10 year life. Being left downstairs just doesn't work for him so we have a choice. Sleep downstairs, carry him up every night, or let him howl and cry all night!  For the past two weeks one of us has taken the sleep downstairs option. It's not a good long term option and at some point we or he is going to have to do something different. Yes, of course I could just leave him and apply the method I used when he was a pup, with a quick squirt of water when he whines at night to shut him up, before going back upstairs to bed. Not an option I'd choose after 10 years though. We made the choice to have him with us so now we need to take some ownership of the consequences. Imagine if you'd had your leg broken and pinned a few weeks ago and you were told you had to stay on your own in the kitchen all day and all night, and if you complained you got water squirted in your face!  Not going to happen in our household! 

 

9 days after TTA Surgery:

It's a week and a half since the dog had TTA surgery for a partially ruptured cruciate ligament. 

Progress still seems good. Outwardly, the hair on his shaved leg has started to grow back so it's less obvious he has had recent surgery. His knee looks fine. No redness or swelling and stitches still fine. Hopefully they will be out the day after tomorrow. He seems happy, other than the confinement to his pen. His pen has though been one of the most important features of the last week or so. He has always had the run of the house, and slept upstairs. Stairs are a complete no no and our kitchen come living area has tiles which can be slippery. The foam mats and pet pen from Amazon and eBay have been a godsend. Without them we would not have coped with people coming to the door without serious risk of him injuring himself. 

He now sleeps well. The comfy cone is on whenever we are not watching him. The hard plastic cone is redundant but still there should he take a persistent liking to fussing his stitches. 

We have stuck well to three 10 minute walks a day. It is enough, and at times I continue to worry whether his is straining other legs. Walks feel relatively low risk though. It's when he gets in a boisterous mood in the house that he bounces around the most. As I've said, he is in a pen so we have done what we can to limit the risk, but it still makes for a tense moment when he senses food is about to be served. 

Whilst walking he bears weight on his leg but still tiptoes a lot when standing. It does look better than it did, but I will be glad to see him put his foot fully flat and put weight on it over the next few weeks. 

My better half has three more days off, after which we'll both be back at work. Happily we have our friends at Home Comfort Pets who will look in on him a couple of times and take him for a lunchtime walk later next week.