As we were driving over to pick up Relay, Mary informed me that she had already taken him to the vet after a night of rest showed no signs of improvement. The vet believes he has a torn ACL. Not the kind of news you want to hear over bluetooth.
Thankfully, the diagnosis leaned towards the chance of Relay healing on his own with rest for 4 weeks as opposed to it being completely torn which would mandate surgery. That rest required us to make some adjustments at home.
I made some very sad phone calls to our rescues to say we had to take a break from fostering. Internally struggling with the idea of not getting back Trixie already, I was unprepared for the one two punch to loose Max and Little One at the same time. I really love those pups and it's like their stories will be left unfinished in my mind. I had not realized how cathartic the adoption process was to letting go. And a part of me feels like I'm letting everyone down.
No one more so than my poor baby. Relay, sorry puppy but your mom's at a loss.
I have been looking into ACL injuries and healing on your own without surgery is normally not advised for dogs over 30 pounds. At 38 pounds, the vet must have thought the injury slight enough to try. But this path could also mean he'll break it anyway or tear his other leg from over use. It's going to be very hard keeping a an active dog as subdued as possible and each time he runs I cringe. Trying to be proactive, I'm looking into some supplements to the medication prescribed by his vet.
In the mean time, I have this nagging question in my mind: why? Certain breeds are predisposed to ACL injuries, but to my knowledge my mutt doesn't have those in his makeup. Dogs that are overweight or under exercised are also prone, but he is very trim and very active. His diet is varied to allow for the best health. What then? One reference mentioned a link to dogs neutered under 5 months. Relay's paperwork at the pound mistakenly estimated his age at 6 months when he was snipped, his real age being closer to 3. But how much stock should I put into that?
Sigh... I'm going to have a nice long pity party / stressing session, and then I need to pull it together. My dog needs me.
October 12, 2012
Relay has a torn ACL
