4TH QTR UPDATE

Hopefully we’re nearing the end of Lace’s state of infirmary.  She’s doing great but it’s been, at times, a tough journey.

Per my past blog, most of you know Lace has been healing from a complex fracture to one of her hind legs.  The accident happened 2 months ago.  She had surgery at the University of Florida Small Animal Hospital in Gainesville where they inserted a metal rod, took bone grafts from each shoulder and installed an external fixator with 9 pins and wires.  This is holding all in place while new bone and callous form inside her leg.  We were told, at the time, it would likely be a 3, possibly 4-month recovery.

The first month was most difficult.  Even with diligent cleaning and care of all pin and wire sites, it’s almost impossible to avoid infection.  We experienced some slight flare-ups but were, luckily, able to reverse this before it became too serious.  During this time she was, of course, on many meds that wreaked havoc on her system as well.  At one point, she flatly refused to take any more pills.  It didn’t matter how we disguised them (hot dog, cheese, liverwurst, chicken, tuna, salmon, steak, ice cream, etc., etc.) she would not take another pill!  As many of you know, Labs just don’t refuse food, period.  So we knew this was serious.  We were able to reevaluate her meds and put her on a low fat diet of rice and boiled burger to heal her belly.  Once we crossed that threshold, things got a little easier.  The extreme change in her backyard freedom, daily schedule and routine has also been difficult.  But we’re hopeful this will change soon.

Today, we’re visiting UF for another follow up with Dr. Lewis.  On our last visit, he was very encouraged with her progress and how the new bone material was forming in her leg.  He indicated it’s POSSIBLE he could remove the fixator on this visit.  We’ll see.

Fortunately, Lace began this challenge as a strong, healthy 12 year old dog and, for the most part, has handled all aspects of treatment really well (sometimes better than her humans.)  She’s a Lab so, thankfully, she has the disposition, resilience and will to deal with this sort of injury and recovery.  She’s an extraordinary dog, class act.

Thank you all for your interest in Lace.  We’ll keep you posted…

ZONK