While Matthew is still super keen to suggest that Kenz has her internal suture removed I have, in consultation with John, opted for plan b for the moment which is to put her back on some pain relief and see how she gets on and whether there is any improvement. John and Penny both don't think its the internal suture bothering her so it could be a unnecessary operation with little to be gained. Apparently its a relatively straight forward process though and takes about 20 minutes but Kenz will need to be rested for a fortnight after.
Today has been a remarkably good day for Kenz. She seemed reasonably keen on both our walks (well so long as we end up at the school oval) and has come up and down the stair case quite a few times voluntarily.
I took her out training tonight and she did a fairly nice job of things. Its a little rough around the edges but on the whole she is working enthusiastically, with plenty of drive and focus and loving every minute of being back in training and getting to tug. I was hoping for a video from tonight so I could have a closer look at how she was moving but it wasn't to be.
Her retrieves are looking very nice. Her presents and finishes are spot on. Her heelwork was a little bouncy and needs a lot of work to build duration as she tends to try and pinch the toy when she decides its time for a reward.
The only exercise I really need to work through is working out why the first time on a DOR she struggles to drop. If I set her up again for a second one she nails it - albeit she doesn't drop quickly but she does go down.
I did some short stays alongside Ness when we had finished up in the ring.
I am so proud of where she is come. Not bad for my nervy timid BC. She even went straight up to spooky Keith for a pat.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Back to obedience training
In what has seemed like an eternity Kenz finally got back out to do an Open round at club and she didn't skip a beat. OMG distractions WHAT distractions. So proud of my baby girl.
There was no hint of dropping her bundle with the strange dogs or strange people around. She was 100% eyes for me and 100% full of herself. Not even with classes being in full swing while she was working.
She was tugging/working/taking treats/having a wow of a time. Almost as though it was just like the local park
I was a little rattled off the start peg. I guess its been a while since I have done any called heelwork. Her heelwork was a little crowded but reasonably nice. No missed positions and they were all great. Attention was good.
Her SFE was solid. Her DOR – hmmm we have lost the lead up sit and the first time she didn't drop but the good news is she was solid as a rock on her sit so huge progress. Her ROF was as picture perfect as it was last night.
Her ROH was good (not 100% on the present it was slightly squiffy but no issues). Her COP was good but I wasn't convinced she was doing to do it as she was a little bit inattentive. However once I got the down she even managed a signals only sit (not deliberate but she went to go on my hand signal anyway so I didn't bother with a verbal).
We did a few short stays after we had finished but I didn't put her in a group stay.
No hint of any soreness/lameness issues.
Proud of my baby dog. Lets hope I can get her back in the ring and 2013 is her year to shine.
There was no hint of dropping her bundle with the strange dogs or strange people around. She was 100% eyes for me and 100% full of herself. Not even with classes being in full swing while she was working.
She was tugging/working/taking treats/having a wow of a time. Almost as though it was just like the local park
I was a little rattled off the start peg. I guess its been a while since I have done any called heelwork. Her heelwork was a little crowded but reasonably nice. No missed positions and they were all great. Attention was good.
Her SFE was solid. Her DOR – hmmm we have lost the lead up sit and the first time she didn't drop but the good news is she was solid as a rock on her sit so huge progress. Her ROF was as picture perfect as it was last night.
Her ROH was good (not 100% on the present it was slightly squiffy but no issues). Her COP was good but I wasn't convinced she was doing to do it as she was a little bit inattentive. However once I got the down she even managed a signals only sit (not deliberate but she went to go on my hand signal anyway so I didn't bother with a verbal).
We did a few short stays after we had finished but I didn't put her in a group stay.
No hint of any soreness/lameness issues.
Proud of my baby dog. Lets hope I can get her back in the ring and 2013 is her year to shine.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Another email from John
Well John confirmed today that he had reviewed Kenz's records and he did in fact place a non-dissolvable antirotational suture so at least that clarifies what on earth the abnormality that can be felt in her knee. He doesn't think this is what is causing the problem though and isn't keen to suggest removal unless we go ahead with a further LH surgery.
He did reiterate that there is nothing that will make the luxation worse but I may notice it more often when I am doing more.
His comment on x-rays was he could understand why Penny would request them but they wouldn't in his opinion change anything.
Kenz has her ups and downs. Yesterday she barely managed 10 min at the beach before she had had enough. Tonight she was lame and then shut down by the time we got as far as the corner. She is still not happy over the stairs.
Do I know what the solution is nope. Life sucks and I just wish I wasn't on this cycle of getting no where. When she isn't hurting she seems her usual full of life, million miles an hour, always wanting to do stuff just like before.
He did reiterate that there is nothing that will make the luxation worse but I may notice it more often when I am doing more.
His comment on x-rays was he could understand why Penny would request them but they wouldn't in his opinion change anything.
Kenz has her ups and downs. Yesterday she barely managed 10 min at the beach before she had had enough. Tonight she was lame and then shut down by the time we got as far as the corner. She is still not happy over the stairs.
Do I know what the solution is nope. Life sucks and I just wish I wasn't on this cycle of getting no where. When she isn't hurting she seems her usual full of life, million miles an hour, always wanting to do stuff just like before.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Where things are at.....
Had a conversation with Penny now I have time to reflect on what has been uncovered this week. Penny did suggest if Kenz was hers she would go ahead with x-rays but appreciated my hesitation in doing so. If I had a spare $450 that would be my best option but reality is I don't.
The advice she did have to offer was if I wasn't going to consider doing anything further - surgery wise, then that might not necessarily be so urgent. If there is a potential cruciate issue it will only progress further and while you could go in and do surgery to repair it at this stage, it doesn't greatly improve the outcome over waiting until it goes completely.
We talked about the need to increase the thigh muscle mass on the RH so as to prevent the RH patella from becoming an issue.
She seemed supportive of my suggestion re a progressive return to normal exercise at this stage and see how things went.
I am not sure I am really any the wiser for the moment. I feel like I am going around in circles a bit but its all part of the complicated decision making process.
Kenz barely managed 15 min at the beach this morning, wasn't keen on swimming and stood on the beach watching me retrieve her toy. She seems a bit of a walking mess today. Soooo frustrated.
The advice she did have to offer was if I wasn't going to consider doing anything further - surgery wise, then that might not necessarily be so urgent. If there is a potential cruciate issue it will only progress further and while you could go in and do surgery to repair it at this stage, it doesn't greatly improve the outcome over waiting until it goes completely.
We talked about the need to increase the thigh muscle mass on the RH so as to prevent the RH patella from becoming an issue.
She seemed supportive of my suggestion re a progressive return to normal exercise at this stage and see how things went.
I am not sure I am really any the wiser for the moment. I feel like I am going around in circles a bit but its all part of the complicated decision making process.
Kenz barely managed 15 min at the beach this morning, wasn't keen on swimming and stood on the beach watching me retrieve her toy. She seems a bit of a walking mess today. Soooo frustrated.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Appointment with Penny
Kenz ended up having an appointment with Penny (the other ortho specialist in the state) first thing yesterday morning. Matthew felt it was warranted under the circumstances before committing to any further surgery.
Penny had a good examination of both legs.
She felt that the RH MPL was going to be able to be managed conservatively at this point in time. It was only in certain instances where she could actually get it to subluxate at all and she seemed to think they were only fairly specialised circumstances.
As for the LH MPL repair she could hardly get that one to subluxate at all either. She mentioned the possibility that she might have damaged another small tendon near the repair site but all the usual palpatable tendons to check for subluxation seemed to be fine. She did suggest that normally when she does a MPL repair she would always do more then soft tissue alone.
She put up a few suggestions on the abnormally felt lump in the surgery leg. Her thought was it could possibly be a bony growth or a crimp leftover from the surgical repair. She didn't however feel that was the cause of the lameness.
Penny did feel that the degree of lameness Kenz was still currently experiencing doesn't completely fit with the MPL situation. She offered a few other suggestions for explanation of the LH lameness including degeneration of the cruciate or even meniscus damage.
Her suggestion as to a next course of action was that it would be best to x-ray and try and determine what the abnormality is.
I spoke with Matthew yesterday afternoon who seemed to agree that was an appropriate next move and that I really couldn't do nothing.
I also had an email from John to confirm the cost of the revision surgery on the LH should it be necessary as well as an explanation as to why the RH MPL was missed.
24 hours later and I am still not sure what I am doing and still very much struggling to get my head around it all. If I had a spare $500 I would go ahead with the x-rays but I just don't at this stage :(.
Penny had a good examination of both legs.
She felt that the RH MPL was going to be able to be managed conservatively at this point in time. It was only in certain instances where she could actually get it to subluxate at all and she seemed to think they were only fairly specialised circumstances.
As for the LH MPL repair she could hardly get that one to subluxate at all either. She mentioned the possibility that she might have damaged another small tendon near the repair site but all the usual palpatable tendons to check for subluxation seemed to be fine. She did suggest that normally when she does a MPL repair she would always do more then soft tissue alone.
She put up a few suggestions on the abnormally felt lump in the surgery leg. Her thought was it could possibly be a bony growth or a crimp leftover from the surgical repair. She didn't however feel that was the cause of the lameness.
Penny did feel that the degree of lameness Kenz was still currently experiencing doesn't completely fit with the MPL situation. She offered a few other suggestions for explanation of the LH lameness including degeneration of the cruciate or even meniscus damage.
Her suggestion as to a next course of action was that it would be best to x-ray and try and determine what the abnormality is.
I spoke with Matthew yesterday afternoon who seemed to agree that was an appropriate next move and that I really couldn't do nothing.
I also had an email from John to confirm the cost of the revision surgery on the LH should it be necessary as well as an explanation as to why the RH MPL was missed.
24 hours later and I am still not sure what I am doing and still very much struggling to get my head around it all. If I had a spare $500 I would go ahead with the x-rays but I just don't at this stage :(.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
What a Nightmare.....
One can only describe this morning as a bit of a nightmare. Kenz went back to John for an assessment on where things were at with her LH patella.
Kenz weighed in a nice and respectable 13.5kg and is in fine shape. As per usual I took her outside and had her walk up and back and her gait was nice and even and well balanced. Back inside for an examination.
John started to examine her as normal and all was fine - her shoulder checked out ok, no sore spots in her spine that he could find but he gets to examining the RH and then disaster struck. He said she had a Grade 2 MPL luxation on her RH!!!! Hmm ok so that left me somewhat puzzled and confused. He then got onto her LH and he felt it wasn't as bad as the RH but when it luxated it wasn't in any particular hurry to go back in. Certainly not the outcome you would have expected post-surgery. He again mentioned the option of a revision surgery.
John also commented on the fact she had fairly sizeable muscle wastage on her LH when compared with her RH. He did feel whatever it is Matthew had felt in the knee but said he didn't think it could be suture material at this stage and wondered if it was scar tissue.
I came home and jumped on the phone and called Matthew who felt that it was worth taking Kenz back to Penny for a second opinion before committing to any further surgery.
I am feeling completely overwhelmed right now and keep breaking out in tears :(.
Poor girl all I wanted was the performance dog of my dreams and what I have is the performance dog of my nightmares.
Kenz weighed in a nice and respectable 13.5kg and is in fine shape. As per usual I took her outside and had her walk up and back and her gait was nice and even and well balanced. Back inside for an examination.
John started to examine her as normal and all was fine - her shoulder checked out ok, no sore spots in her spine that he could find but he gets to examining the RH and then disaster struck. He said she had a Grade 2 MPL luxation on her RH!!!! Hmm ok so that left me somewhat puzzled and confused. He then got onto her LH and he felt it wasn't as bad as the RH but when it luxated it wasn't in any particular hurry to go back in. Certainly not the outcome you would have expected post-surgery. He again mentioned the option of a revision surgery.
John also commented on the fact she had fairly sizeable muscle wastage on her LH when compared with her RH. He did feel whatever it is Matthew had felt in the knee but said he didn't think it could be suture material at this stage and wondered if it was scar tissue.
I came home and jumped on the phone and called Matthew who felt that it was worth taking Kenz back to Penny for a second opinion before committing to any further surgery.
I am feeling completely overwhelmed right now and keep breaking out in tears :(.
Poor girl all I wanted was the performance dog of my dreams and what I have is the performance dog of my nightmares.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Second Acupuncture Session
Kenz had her second acupuncture treatment today. Poor girl - more needles then she had last week.
Matthew asked how she had got on over the last week and was a little surprised when I said she was doing better with the stairs but picking up the LH leg more then she had previously. Not quite the expected outcome.
On the positive - her hip extension had improved (her right was much better then her left) and she wasn't quite so sore or reactive when he put the needles into her spine this week compared with last week.
The patella apparently seems fairly stable (although he didn't push it) so its a bit of a loss as to why the 3 legged behavior. Matthew did say you could feel a huge knot over the joint which may be causing issues and may need removing (depending what on earth it is).
I was also told that I shouldn't be happy until she can go back to both AGILITY (yee har) and obedience and he wouldn't accept a dog her age with physical limitations.
So the plan for the moment is to see how she gets on over the next few days and to call him early next week to work out where we go from here.
If she is still having the same level of issues she had this past week then it will be back to see John and work out what is going on with that left hind. If things have improved then she will go back to Matthew and have another acupuncture treatment.
Matthew asked how she had got on over the last week and was a little surprised when I said she was doing better with the stairs but picking up the LH leg more then she had previously. Not quite the expected outcome.
On the positive - her hip extension had improved (her right was much better then her left) and she wasn't quite so sore or reactive when he put the needles into her spine this week compared with last week.
The patella apparently seems fairly stable (although he didn't push it) so its a bit of a loss as to why the 3 legged behavior. Matthew did say you could feel a huge knot over the joint which may be causing issues and may need removing (depending what on earth it is).
I was also told that I shouldn't be happy until she can go back to both AGILITY (yee har) and obedience and he wouldn't accept a dog her age with physical limitations.
So the plan for the moment is to see how she gets on over the next few days and to call him early next week to work out where we go from here.
If she is still having the same level of issues she had this past week then it will be back to see John and work out what is going on with that left hind. If things have improved then she will go back to Matthew and have another acupuncture treatment.
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