More research for Sammy's surgery

I continued searching online to understand the surgical options a little more. I am not going any further with the non-surgical options anymore since it seems to be an agreement that Sammy could not get better without surgery.

I searched the Slocum Enterprises web page for licensed TPLO surgeons. Luckily there are more than just the guys from the awful Cascade Referral Center.

I also found very good information about a new technique called Tightrope CCL developed by Dr. James Cook from MU.

Dog Knee Injury

Human treatment applied to dogs

Article in the Missourian

Arthrex

KTVZ article

I contacted the manufacturers of the products for Tightrope and obtained a list of veterinarians that use the technique in my area and started calling them. I found one in town and one relatively close in Washington.

Hawthorne clinic

We took Sammy to the Hawthorne Veterinary Clinic today. Dr. Wyss, even before seeing Sammy for the first time, called the Cascade Referral Center and got the records and opinion from the surgeons there, so we pretty much wasted the visit. 

We got some natural medicine to help Sammy until the surgery, but we were not offered any kind of help. Surgery or nothing is what we are facing.

Ikea round

We went to Ikea and got some comfy cushions for Sammy and Negra.

Andres.

The finished work

The finished work

Andres.

New rugs

We got rugs to prevent Sammy and Negra from slipping in the hardwood floors. We covered the office, most of our bedroom and the hallway between them.

Working on the side of the house with Lito

Lito and I worked on the side of the house to finally get rid of the mud pit that forms every year during the winter.

Julie and I had already leveled and created a 1/4 minus compacted gravel layer on the side.

Andres.

Getting help from Argentina

My mom talked to her veterinary in Argentina and she agreed to help
me decide how to take care of Sammy's injury over the phone. I woke
up at 5 M to call Sonia in Argentina during her office hours, but she
wasn't there.

I took the dogs out to the yard again today and Sammy's knee still
has that awful loud clicking, which is probably the meniscus.

We got an appointment with the Hawthorne Veterinary Clinic. Monique took Abby there when they lived in town because they do naturopathy for dogs. We got an appointment for 10/30 with Dr. Wyss.

Andres.

Sammy's leg

Today I noticed that Sammy started using his leg a little bit, but it makes an awful noise as soon as he puts any weight on it.

Surgeon consult for Sammy's knee

Today we visited the surgeon in a beautiful office right off Barbur Boulevard. We had to listen to a 45-minute sales speech after paying $95 for the consult. The doctor barely touch Sammy's leg to confirm the injury and completely ignored him throughout the entire consult. He even got defensive when I started asking some educated questions about the risks of surgery and the option of Conservative Management (CM) the non-surgical option. He insisted that for a dog of Sammy's size, only Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy (TPLO) would work. 

Research, research, research for Sammy's surgery

I started researching about CCL injuries in dogs.

The Pet Health Library

When knees go bad

Tigger's history

TPLO information page

First vet visit with Sammy

Since Sammy was still limping, we took him to the vet. 

He had a limp on his front leg before after a big effort, so we thought it could have been the same. At that time, the vet just gave us some anti-inflammatory and sent us home. 

This time, the vet told us that Sammy very likely had hurt with Cranial Cruciate Ligament (CCL), which is the equivalent in dogs to the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) that many football players hurt.

She recommended a surgeon that works with the clinic, so we made an appointment for Wednesday with Dr. Flynn from the Cascade Veterinary Referral Center.

Sammy hurt his knee (stifle)

Today Sammy hurt his right back leg knee jumping on the yard while chasing a squirrel. We were going outside, so I hear him getting hurt when he jumped and he didn't put the leg down when he landed. I had to pick him up and bring him back to the yard. He limped inside and that's when the research started.

And one more piece of furniture for the office

I finally installed the new cabinet above the computers. Now it looks like an office.  ;-)