Incision - It's hardly noticable now.Webber is doing great. But don't just take my word for it. We went for his first physio appt. today and the physiotherapist was, I am not kidding, amazed at how much range of motion he had in his leg and how little atrophy he had in his muscles. There is only a difference of 4 cm between his right and left (surgery) leg. His incision is looking really good and well, I couldn't be happier. He is officially allowed to do supervised stairs and supervised couches. As you can see here ... he is sooooo happy to have his night-time spot back. Although we have put a couple of steps to make it easier for him to get up and down.
So let's start today's note with his end of week walk video. I'm am always so amazed when I look at this and realize that he just had surgery 4 weeks ago today.
WEEK 3 & 4 PHYSIOTHERAPY EXERCISES
Basically Webber has 5 exercises which we need to do 5 repetitions, 3 times a day for a total of 15-20 minutes. And he has been given the OK to increase his walks from 5 minutes (2-3 times/day) to 10 minutes (2-3 times / day). We'll need to monitor that and cut back if he shows that it is bothering him.
Always ice after exercise ... and when resting rub scar horizontally across to prevent the 'skin' from binding to the leg.
1. Shake the Bootie. Place a bootie, sock, bandage, hair scrunchie, etc. on the paw of the GOOD hind leg. As he walks, your dog will want to shake it off because it feels funny. This will make him take more weight on the operated leg. Have him walk for a few minutes until he gets used to it and stops shaking his leg.
2. Balancing. Three-leg stand and Two-leg stand. Always keep the operated leg on the ground. Gently life each of the other 3 paws off the ground, one at a time, so your dog has to shift his balance. Once your dog has no problem balancing on 3 legs, progress to lifting the good hind leg and opposite front leg off the ground at the same time to make your dog balance on 2 legs.
3. Twist and Bend. Cookies at the hip. Hold a treat beside your dog's hip and have your dog reach to get it. Repeat 5 times on each side. Switch sides each time.
4. Sit pretty. Your dog will probably be sticking his operated leg out to the side when he sits. Ask your dog to sit, then gently push the operated knee in so it is in a straighter position. Ask you dog to stand up from the straight position and give him a treat when he does.
5. Walk backwards. Hold a treat at about chest height and slowly walk into your dog, forcing him to back up. Works his gluts.
2 comments:
My weimeraner just had TPLO on 7/10/07 and we brought him home today. I really appreciate your website because we were not provided with much information on what to expect. He has been bleeding quite a bit from the incision and we have been able to apply pressure and stop it, but, I was surprised by the amount. Did you experience this as well w/ Webber? We bought bandages and ice packs and hopefully this helps.
Thanks for your blog and the information it provides.
Hi there, I am thankful for your message. It's exactly why I decided to do this blog. So that any information I had could be shared.
Webber did not bleed at all, in fact the incision was so clean. I would definitely call your vet to check on this, I don't think it's usual. Definitely do the icing. As I mentioned it takes two with our feisty Weim. But I think it was very important in keeping the swelling under control.
Good luck. I post every week so check back again.
Crystal & Webber.
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