Lefty: On the Road to Recovery

Hey, my eye looks GREAT!

Lefty / Cap'n Jack had his femoral head ostectomy (FHO) on Friday. FHO is a major surgery in which they remove the ball joint (femoral head) part of the hip/leg. This leaves the femur free-floating. While this sounds extreme, Lefty is much better off without the fractured, dying, inflamed part of the bone. Leaving the femoral head in place like that would invite prolonged pain and infection. So, in a small dog like Lefty it's much better to just remove the damaged bone.

The vet told us that Lefty's leg injury was worse than they expected. Once in surgery, the vet found that the fracture continued farther down the femur and caused a great deal of inflammation. He had to burrow into the bone and smooth out the fracture line in order to prevent continued inflammation and spurs. This meant cutting into a lot more of Lefty's muscle and delicately navigating around nerves. Needless to say, this is very painful. Lefty was originally slated to come home on Saturday, but due to the amount of bleeding and extensive incision the vet thought it'd be best for him to stay another night. So, I picked Lefty up this afternoon. Aside from his hind end being shaved and the line of staples running down his leg, you'd never know he went through so much trauma. Good ole Jacky came around the corner with the same feisty grin on his face he had when I dropped him off. In just a few short weeks, Lefty will be able to function fully despite missing part of his hip. Just goes to show how remarkable and resilient dogs truly are.

Lefty's FHO incision 2 days after surgery

While he was under, the vet went ahead and neutered Lefty. He also had his eye stitches removed. The eye looks fantastic. I am so pleased with how everything has turned out for Jacky so far! He did great during all of his surgeries and has been an absolute recovery champ. I'll begin helping Lefty do some physical therapy in a couple days. The vet recommended simple balance and weight shifting exercises to help him begin using his leg again. All I have to do is lightly press on his good hip so he'll shift his weight to the recovering hip. That's it! That's enough to stimulate the muscles for now. He's still mostly on crate rest and confined to short slow leash walks, but in a week or so the vet said I can expect to see him tip-toeing instead of carrying that leg. That will be an exciting moment!

Look at that handsome face!

More pawsome news: Jacky can wear the comfy cone now that his eye is healed! No more sharp plastic e-collar! Everybody is so thrilled about this, although I already miss his fancy pirate tape. But check out his super cool brindle striped skin where they shaved him! Wacky Jacky's got tiger blood in him...no wonder he's such a tough cookie! And have you noticed his adorable alfalfa?! Squeeeeee!

Lefty goes back to Village Vets to have his staples removed in about two weeks. Then he'll be all ready to head up north to the amazing PPR folks, weather and health permitting. I can't wait to see him all healed and happy in his forever home! He is going to make somebody a wonderful companion.

To help PPR with Lefty's vet bills, please click here: http://www.perfectpetsrescue.org/donations-and-how-you-can-help.html