4/4/09 - 1 day post surgery

Arthroscopy

Normal CCL - from google search for comparison

Jazzy's partially torn CCL - right side is still intact, left side has torn fibers and blood vessels



Again, right side is intact

I picked her up at 11am. She was hopping on her three legs when she came out. They shaved all the way up to her hip and her leg looked like a chinese crested. When I asked the doctor if I should tether her in the house since she is used to getting up on a couch. He told me she wouldn't be getting up due to pain. As soon as she came out of the back, she came to me and hopped up on a chair in the lobby. Great... She will need to be tethered in the house. He suggested not to crate her if I can monitor her. He says it's better to let her move around and stretch her legs. I got to talk to another doctor to go over arthroscopy images. He said that her CCL was about 50% torn. The knee cap was not screwed in but only adjusted. The doctor also "released" (put a small incision) the muscle that was attached to her knee cap so it sits right. He said that her meniscui was in good condition. That made me feel better. I was worried that the delay in the last 7 months might have damaged her meniscui. The arthritis is still mild.

She has her morphine patch on the side. I was told to remove it on the 8th.

Her meds:

Previcox 227mg for pain/inflammation - once daily
Cephalexin 250mg antibiotic - twice daily

On the way back home I noticed that she looked like she was dehydrated. Her tongue was sticking out and she looked like she had no control of it. She enjoyed some ice cubes in the car. I took her to my friend's house tonight since my husband was expecting a guest over at our house. I'd rather care for her where we don't have to worry about anything else. At 12:30 pm, I took her out but she didn't know what to do with the leg. She gave up and sat on the grass whining. I tried it again an hour later and she finally managed to pee and poop. I read it would take a while to have the first bowel movement. I had some olive oil, tuna in oil & can of pumpkin but I didn't have to use them. I was really happy for her! She drank very little water, ate some beef soup and rice.

She slept for 3 hours. I gave her more rice and meds at 8pm. She does not drink water. She doesn't even eat ice cubes. I took her out for potty three times but she didn't pee. She did poop again though. I was getting worried about her being dehydrated. She whined and panted on and off throughout the day. The good news is that she is already starting to put weight on the leg 36 hours post surgery. That is amazing. I have to be very careful not to let her walk fast. I need to go slow on lead so she'd learn to use all four legs, instead of hopping.

I took her out again at 12am and 1:30 am but no peeing. She is wearing a diaper all day just in case but she didn't have any accident. I gave her some diluted beef soup (no salt) and she finally drank! I should have thought of this sooner. She wears the e-collar all day except when I can be with her and watch her closely. She doesn't bother the incision yet. Her tongue is still sticking out. Her eyes are dilated. I think it's from the morphine. I made her really comfy orthopedic bed two nights ago. She looks pretty comfortable on it.

At 3am, I just saw her stretching both legs out like a frog. It's amazing how quickly she is adjusting after such an invasive surgery. I cannot CANNOT wait for the bones to reform so that I can start giving her more freedom again. It's going to be a long 6 months but I feel strong. This is so much easier on me emotionally than the last 7 months. At least I know what to expect. As long as I follow directions, it's almost guaranteed that she will be okay.

If all goes well, they will remove her staples in two weeks. Then they will x-ray in 8 weeks to see the progress. If it looks good, we can start adding some activities and rehab. Luckily, she gets to stay at my second job during the day. It's better than leaving her home. I don't want her removing the e-collar and mess with the staples. And I get to visit her during lunch and check up on her.

She finally went pee at 9am after holding for 19 hours!