TPLO Day 112 (16 weeks)

 

Sixteen weeks have come and gone since Jedi's TPLO surgery now. We're currently in a holding pattern until our consultation with Dr. Eide. We have our pre-consultation on Monday afternoon to determine the best solution for going forward. Until then, we continue plugging forward with what we're doing. In the morning we do our leashed walk. Jedi and Ren get five laps on their own, which takes about 25 minutes, and then I keep Jedi on leash for the three laps that the old dogs get. That's super fun since the Klee Kai are also on leash, but it does get him up to about 40 minutes of walking in the mornings now.

We have returned to hill work,which is also super fun given that we are at the height of our summertime temperatures right now. We've been going up and down the hill at the side of my parent's house about 4-5 times in the morning, and a couple more times during our evening walk.

We also continue to do our "fitness sessions" for both breakfast and dinner. That's what I will mostly be looking for guidance on from Dr. Eide. There is no rhyme or reason to the exercises we do, but at this point I hope that something is better than nothing.

 
Jedi is otherwise allowed off leash, but I have backed off any additional work the last few days. Earlier this week I was doing circle work, where I ask him to run clockwise through some hoops or wings to force him to actually run on the right lead. Later that day he was really favoring his leg, even holding it up in the air after rising. I haven't even swam him the last two days to give him a break, which Jedi thinks is a terrible travesty. He has seemed more comfortable again today, so maybe tomorrow we can give him his swimming back. The running will probably wait until we have more guidance. I feel like I may as well go ahead and pull him from the upcoming AKC trials, but I am awaiting official word from our consultation. We are not going to be able to qualify for AKC Nationals, so I may as well just remove the pressure and not push to return too early. I am still hopeful for Cynosport in October.

Here is today's video, which I made a bit lengthy in the event that I have to have something to share with Dr. Eide. It is in chronological order, and you can see that it gets worse as the walk goes on. He actually starts out pretty decent these days. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/Ge3v-ndTgcA )

TPLO Day 105 (15 weeks)

I had so hoped that we'd be well on our way to the finish line by this point, but unfortunately that's just not the case. This week, after so many weeks of obsessing over "the wobble" in Jedi's leg when he walks, I finally learned that it has a name. It's called a pivot shift, and it's seemingly a very uncommon phenomenon that happens in a small percentage of TPLO patients. Some reports make it seem like a very small number of dogs, like <5% experience it. A vet in a Facebook group where I posted said it's probably more like 30%, but your average pet owner probably doesn't notice it.

So here we are, 15 weeks post op, still dealing with something that I have been expressing concerns over for the last 10+ weeks. Everyone has always said, "give it time." This week I swear it has been worse than ever, which is what prompted me to really start digging online. I saw someone in the TPLO group mention the term pivot shift, so I started to dig through the group to see if there were any other conversations about it. I'm really a bit surprised by how very little there is to find. I made a post on a canine conditioning page, though, and that's where I got a lot of good responses. One of the professionals on the page has a dog who had TPLO done in both legs and ended up with pivot shift in both (from what I did find, it seems as though it's more common in border collies).

The news doesn't seem all that encouraging from the people who have been through it. It is possible to correct the condition through very specific and focused exercises that build up the correct muscles to support the leg. This conditioning then has to be maintained. For some dogs, the only way to correct the condition is by going in and doing a lateral suture, which is basically a whole 'nother CCL surgery.

Given that his leg seems to be getting worse, not better, Jedi has returned to being on leash for our walks. He still has freedom in the yard, in the house, and when we're out back setting up for classes, but he's on leash for walks to ensure that he gets focused time each day where he's using his leg correctly. I'm quite sure that his off leash time on walks have not been helping to build up muscle as hoped, or at least not the correct muscle. For example, he lopes around on his left lead 100% of the time, so clearly he is compensating.

I reached out online to Dr. Leslie Eide, a rehab professional who does virtual consultations. Unfortunately the earliest time slot I could get to meet with her was Monday, August 2. I'm not even sure if I meet with her at that appointment, or someone from her staff, as it sounds like more of a information-collecting meeting to determine the best way to help me. My hope is to get a very specific exercise plan to build up the correct muscles. Until then I will keep plugging along with the stuff I've found online for canine fitness work. I am now working Jedi for both breakfast and dinner.

I have no idea what this means for his return to agility timeline. I'm hoping that Dr. Eide can help to answer that question. I'm also hoping that she has experience with this issue and will be able to tell me at what point we need to contact our surgeon to discuss those options.

Here's our video from today. It just really bothers me to see his leg moving like this.  (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/hlCSUVeWId0 )

TPLO Day 98 (14 weeks)

We're now 14 weeks following Jedi's TPLO surgery. That's almost 100 days! In the above photo Jedi is posing with his daily castoffs. I've been combing through his coat pretty much daily while we are on the floor doing his PT and I seem to get about this much hair out of him every day. It's crazy. Our daily swims have given him a pretty crazy hairdo and I figured that the daily grooming will hopefully help to blend in the new growth. Overall I think he's looking pretty good!

I have more or less given Jedi freedom to do whatever on our morning walks these days. He overdid it on Sunday, unfortunately. Because we take Sundays off from our morning PT exercises, I decided to let Jedi & Ren stay out to walk extra laps with the old dogs. We have been doing five laps lately (about 20 minutes), and on Sunday we did four and then I got the other dogs, who get an extra three laps. Jedi was running around like a loon the whole time and just as we were finishing up the last lap I noted that he was standing by the gate holding up his surgery leg, and then he continued to favor it the rest of the way back into the house (without a leash on him, good luck getting him to just walk....). I gave him some Deramaxx that morning and we took it easy that day. He's been doing well since, but it is not uncommon for him to be stiff for a bit following activity. I definitely can't skip his nightly massage or I notice a difference the next day.

Jedi continues to be allowed to do more agility in short spurts. I had hoops and a barrel out for class on Monday, for instance, so I let him run through those some. On Tuesday I let him run through some 8" jumps on the course I had set. The turning was a bit much for him, I think, because he did seem sore after that. I have started to do some short 1-jump drills of offering the jump back and forth at 20". That's where I really see weakness and lack of power from his hind end. Finally, I let him play on the short training teeter some, because I still think the full sized teeter has a little more bounce back than I want to see for him right now.

We still have the "problem" of the right leg toeing in, but it's not 100% of the time so I still hope that it continues to improve. It hasn't seemed to bother Jedi at all, I just worry about long-term soundness from it. But other than that I'm really quite happy with the way he's carrying himself and he seems to more or less be weighting his legs equally when standing.

Here's our video from today. It includes our morning walk, Jedi's water workout (I stand in more shallow water now so that he has to push through it a bit before swimming), and a demo of where he's at with "agility"work. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/flPt1UtENEs )

TPLO Day 91 (13 weeks)

Today we are 13 weeks out from Jedi's TPLO surgery! Jedi is very much enjoying his continued freedoms and activity since being "released" by his surgeon last week. We traveled up to Indianapolis over the weekend, which included a hotel stay and our very first time back in a bed since Jedi's surgery. The dogs thought it was awesome, whereas I pretty much slept as well as I always do in hotels. We've been back in the bedroom since arriving home, though, and it's been very nice.

Note in the above photo that Jedi got his tug leash back. This makes him exceptionally happy. I switched him out to a leather leash at the beginning of his recovery to discourage him from his jumping/leaping/tugging habit, and he's been very good about not going after the leather. As soon as his fleece leash came back out he was a tugging fool. He really missed it.

We were able to take several nice walks on the streets around the trial facility during the day, but that was the extent of Jedi's rehab over the weekend. Thankfully we got home in time on Sunday that he could go swimming! He did get in lots and lots of tugging while ringside at the trial, too. The poor guy was ever so hopeful that he was going to get to go in the ring every time we came back inside the building.

This week has largely been about learning to let go. For the most part I'm letting Jedi go outside by himself now, although that's more self-serving than anything. He did one of his leap & spin maneuvers off the porch this morning, so I'm going to have to put him back into his harness for that first trip outside again. I didn't like that move even before he broke himself. Otherwise he's been pretty much free and only under verbal control (he is a good boy).

Here's the hair growth situation as of this morning. I comb through his coat most evenings during his massage & stretching sessions. Right now he's carrying about the least amount of coat that I've ever seen on him, but it helps to blend in the shaved bits.

I have been slowly reintroducing agility to Jedi, mostly with the goal of safely adding in speed again. I had a straight tunnel set for class on Monday night, so I recalled him through that a couple of times. This week I have recalled him over some 8" jumps a few times, and today we did 12". Everything is just in a straight line right now. I let Jedi do a teeter this afternoon and cringed a bit at the force with which it hit the ground. This evening we played around on the tiny training teeter that I have out for the beginners and I felt a lot better about that one. He's so happy to be playing again! We are entered in a trial in Ohio that is six weeks out, so we'll see if we're ready come then.

Here's our video from today. It's our morning walk, some of his morning workout for breakfast, and swimming. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/sz1Y85hg79I )

TPLO Day 85 -- Released!

We are home from our vet visit with a glowing report! Dr. Wearing said that Jedi's bone is 100% healed and that he is released from all restrictions. I probably asked at least five times if he really meant ALL restrictions and each time he said yes, but that if we overdo it then it is likely that Jedi will be lame for a bit. I know that I'm going to struggle letting go all at once, so there will still be certain restrictions in place. When we got home today, though, Jedi got to be off leash while I prepped for class, and then I let the boys out the back gate to go potty. Jedi took off running to the weeds, and then (likely because I wouldn't let him this morning because I didn't want him to be wet for his appointment....) he went and jumped straight into the creek.

We discussed the toed-in gait and Dr. Wearing explained to me the mechanics of the CCL and why we're seeing that. Apparently there is another type of plate that claims to help stabilize the rotation of the leg, but it has a much higher incidence of causing infection and needing to be removed. Dr. Wearing feels like what we're experiencing now is normal, and the improvement that we've seen lately is proof that we're going in the right direction. He told me that someone I know had found a rehab specialist that he felt was a miracle worker, so I'm going to reach out to her and get some info on that.

But big news, I guess we all get to sleep in a bed tonight for the first time in 12 weeks.  😁

TPLO Day 84 (12 weeks)

If Jedi looks happy in the above picture, it's likely because he's loving the continued increase in activity and privileges that come with being 12 weeks post op! Our xrays tomorrow will hopefully confirm bone healing, at which point we can start to do even more. I'm thinking we'll stay on leash for certain things, like going out doors and through gates, for some time, though. Mostly out of laziness, I have graduated Jedi to a flexi lead for some of our walks. I can't say he's really taken advantage of it, though, because he's still generally just moving at a walk or trot. He has loped short distances while off leash in the front or back yards, but I haven't allowed him to be in a situation where he would have the opportunity to run. He's been very well-behaved with his supervised off leash time.

It's possible that our daily exercises are finally starting to have an impact on the wobbly leg. On our walks today I really tried to get video of his leg at its worst, but it really wasn't that terrible today. I will take my phone with me tomorrow morning (provided it's not raining) so that I can catch it if he goes wobbly again, but right now I don't have a whole lot to show Dr. Wearing as a current example.

Here's a current side profile shot to show the progress we're making in blending in Jedi's hair! Much to his dismay, I continue to brush and comb him regularly because I feel like it helps to promote growth and tame down the wild stuff around the new growth. There is actual definition in his leg again, no more chicken leg for Jedi!

I have by and large been focusing almost exclusively on hind end strengthening exercises for our morning PT. Jedi is starting to rock the sit to stand with the front feet raised. We usually do it with the front feet on something stable like the giant disc or the donut. I did pivots again the other day and he really struggles with that. But really, so did Ren, so that's something we should work on.

I still plan to talk to Dr. Wearing about our PT options tomorrow to see if he has any opinions or suggestions, but I've asked around and have not received much response to whether or not we have any PT professionals who specialize in return to sport rehab. There are some online options that I can pursue, but then I would miss out on someone actually putting their hands on him.

Tomorrow afternoon we will hit the road for Indianapolis, where Ren will get to run in a USDAA trial this weekend. Jedi is along for the ride and I still have no idea what we're going to do about the sleeping arrangements. Do I have him sleep in the fleece harness and tie his leash to me to keep him on the bed? Do I pack an xpen and a dog bed and keep him on the floor? Hotel beds are just always so darn high...

Hopefully I'm able to jot off a quick blog post about our vet visit before we leave, as I am not planning on packing my laptop. Here is our video from today. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/WnLXqq16Njw )

TPLO Day 77 (11 weeks)

Today we are at 11 weeks post op from Jedi's TPLO procedure. The once per week update seems reasonable these days given the overall repetitiveness of our daily routine. I had hoped to have a good update following our latest vet appointment, but I got a call earlier this week saying that Dr. Wearing wouldn't be in the office this week so we needed to reschedule. That was a bummer. I have a dentist appointment Thursday morning, so we will be going in on Friday next week. A 12-week followup seems standard for many, and hopefully it's just another week to solidify bone healing for us.

I had hoped that a good set of xrays would mean some additional activities for Jedi this week, but honestly, I've already gone ahead and increased his freedom about as much as should be allowed. He's doing well with house freedom, although today he scaled the couch and jumped into the dining room while I was in the bathroom, so I guess that's a thing again.... No more leaving him in the living room behind a baby gate. I've let him drag the leash a bit in the agility ring while I'm out there and he's been pretty good about things, and I've also started to tug with him some, which makes him very happy.

Our fun addition to the household is a pet scale! Now I don't have to wait for vet visits to get a weight, which I've been obsessing over during Jedi's recovery. The whole family is going to do regular weigh-ins, and now I can stop guessing at their weights. Jedi was 40.4lbs this morning, which means he's about where he was at for his 7-week vet appointment, and surely he's put on some muscle since then. One of these days I will have to wean him off the morning lickimat routine. I think staying in the 39-40 lb range is where we want to be, but it's hard to judge since he's going to lose muscle mass from being neutered at the same time as his TPLO.

Today's video includes our morning jog along with some walking to show the current level of instability that I'm still seeing. I will do an updated video prior to our vet appointment next week to show the vet, and to see if he feels that it would be appropriate to refer us to a physiotherapist. I also included some of our morning fitness stuff. We've also been doing rear paws up, side paws, and individual paw exercises, but I largely focus on "front paws up" to work on weight-shifting to the rear. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/vN_bMoDw9Pc )

TPLO Day 70

It's been ten weeks since Jedi's TPLO surgery! Ten weeks seems like a literal lifetime, but yet I continue to have people remind me that "it's only been ten weeks." This week I put entries in the mail for an agility trial at the end of August, which was hard for me to do given that it seems like we have a long, long road ahead of us before we can even consider that. But then I realize that, given that the trial is 20 weeks post op, we are only halfway through our recovery and rehab to meet that date. Ten more weeks.... How much can change in ten more weeks?!

We are at the stage where I feel like things are changing at a snail's pace. Jedi has been doing well with all of his rehab exercises, but the leg continues to twist and bend in ways that really bother me (cue all of the people who say, "it's only been ten weeks"). At some point I feel like I should make an appointment with a rehab specialist down in Chattanooga just to get another opinion and a plan to move forward. Based on their website it seems like I need a referral to do that, though, so I figure I will wait until our followup appointment next week and ask Dr. Wearing.

As much as I'd hoped that this would be a celebratory "we're rocking it" post for the 10-week mark, we've taken a bit of a step back the last couple of days. It started yesterday, when I had Jedi in his outside pen while I worked Ren through the agility course I had set up for class. We have done this many times with no issues and I have no idea what might have happened, but when I came to collect Jedi for our trip down to the creek he was holding his leg up. As we walked towards the creek he was putting weight on it, but the twist was so bad. We still went down to the creek, but I didn't throw his toy for him. I let him carry it and swim around on his own, mostly to see if he was using his leg (he was). I iced his leg and did an extra light pad session yesterday afternoon. I also gave him some arnica.

Although he seemed to be doing well last night, I'd already planned to keep things low-key today. I kept us to a walk this morning instead of trotting our laps, but something was going on that had all of the dogs going nuts (deer in the thicket, maybe?) which resulted in a LOT of pulling from Jedi. Perhaps because of that, he was favoring his leg again later. I did let him swim today, but for a shorter period, and I cut out our normal p.m. walks. He just seemed very tired this afternoon, and when he's tired the wonky leg is always worse. My guess is that tomorrow morning we'll stick to a walk again. We're still doing the fitness routine for breakfast, too.

Just a short video today, to keep up with the habit. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/9QKY6WDTiFM )

TPLO Day 63

Today we are nine weeks out from Jedi's TPLO surgery! That seems like a crazy amount of time when you think of it. It also marks nine weeks of sleeping on the couch in the living room.... This week I sent entries for a USDAA trial in Indianapolis that will require two nights in a hotel over the 4th of July weekend. Clearly Jedi is not running at the trial, but I do plan to take him with. I haven't quite figured out how I'm going to manage that one yet.

To celebrate the 9-week milestone, I've started to let Jedi have some free time outside of his xpen while supervised. For the most part I've kept him confined to the living room or have him in the office with me during a work meeting. I have a baby gate propped up against the couch to keep him from jumping up there, but he can get up there via the steps if he wishes (which he did once so far). The only "oh crap" moment we've had thus far is when it was time to lock the dogs up so that I could go out and teach a lesson. When Jedi saw me reaching towards the treat jar he ran down the hallway and used the ramp to go up onto the bed. I mean, I guess it's good that he used the ramp.... Since then I've been sure to put him into his pen before grabbing for the treats.

The goal of the extra free time is to encourage more use of the leg in situations where he's not all hyped up about going for a walk or a swim, and where his gait is not influenced by myself or the leash. Jedi is not generally one to pace about a room so he's not been super active during his free time, but I've been happy to see that he seems to be putting weight on it well when standing.

We've taken it a bit easy the last couple of days because I was just getting the feeling that Jedi was tired and we were doing too much. Between the jogging, the fitness work, the hills, and swimming I do think we might overdo it some days. Yesterday we walked our four laps and did not get to go for a swim due to rain and high water in the creek. This morning I let Jedi do "intervals" on our morning walk, in that I didn't jog, but I let Jedi trot to the end of the leash, reeled him in as he walked, and then let him trot on again. The water cleared up today, so the boys did get to go for a swim again this afternoon.

Here is our 9-week video from today, just a gait analysis video for this one. (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/OvupXsatu8c )

TPLO Day 60

 

There is not a lot to share, this is just a midweek check-in. Plus we're on day 60 and who doesn't like round numbers?

Most days are a carbon copy of the last. The weather has been a bit warmer and a bit more humid, which might be affecting the dogs' energy levels a bit. Even Ren seemed a bit done in this weekend so we didn't push too hard and took things easy. For the most part, though, we're still jogging four laps in the morning and getting in a 5 minute swim each day. The hill work seems to come and go. If Jedi seems tired (or his leg seems tired) then I forgo it.

We're still dealing with the twist as Jedi walks, which stems from him toeing in and stepping too far under his body. Interestingly, during his nightly massage sessions he also still tries to tuck that leg in tight and crosses his right lower leg under the left. I can still manipulate his stride to get him to place his foot straight, and he strides out wider on his own when he's pulling like a freight train (like on the way to the creek), so I'm still hoping that this will go away with time and the return of his muscle. It sure is a long process, though. On the other hand, I realized today that if the goal is to return to an agility trial after 20 weeks, we aren't even halfway there yet....

I have a couple of videos today. One is snippets from our morning fitness session, in which I chopped off Jedi's head in most of the clips....  (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/fGLRTE9O3fI )

The other video is just our standard progress update video -- trotting, walking, and swimming, since we do it every day! (Link for mobile: https://youtu.be/SKI6z1cGveE )