Loren

This is Loren, a one year old, 4 pound, female Maltese. Loren was found in a shelter with a massive ear infection and her owners couldn't afford the vet bills to bail her from the shelter. As it turns out, she had a foxtail embedded in her eardrum, which, thankfully had not pierced it.

But, Loren also has a bigger problem. She has Luxating Patellas in BOTH hind legs. If Loren doesn't have surgery soon, she will be crippled in less than a year.

Dr. Mabley feels that if this little girl has surgery soon, she will be as good as new because she's young. He's done many many of these surgeries and we've witnessed the wonderful results.

It's important to have an occasional kiss in your ear while doing computer work!!

Sometimes when your legs hurt, it's just easier to hitch a ride!! Someone needs to tell Sofia that her legs don't hurt!!

Today is Wednesday March 30 and Loren is in surgery right now. She will have both knees done at the same time. OW!! It's going to be a painful week or so, but there was no choice. Loren is having a harder and harder time just standing up. Say a little prayer for our little girl, please.

Loren had her surgery yesterday, March 30 and is doing as well as can be expected. The surgery was much more extensive than first expected and she's not using her legs at all, yet. She is still at the vet's office. We plan to get her tomorrow, along with pics of the surgery. Her recovery will take longer than we expected, but from what Dr. Mabley found in those skinny little knees, it's a darn good thing we were able to do her surgery. We will have to wait an see, but we're hoping for a full recovery and full use of her legs. Time will tell. Stay tuned. We'll have more for you tomorrow.

Sorry, folks for the lack of info on Loren. We've been very preoccupied with our Pepper. Here's what we've got so far.
Loren is doing well. Today, she put a bit of weight on her back legs but is still, for the most part, walking on her front legs. We went to pick her up today, and Dr. Pam Peth thought that it may be better for her, to stay until Monday. Our house is a bit too active for her situation right now, so she'll be able to stay quiet. Arbor's staff is excellent at what they do, and she'll have better physical therapy by staying there for a few more days. We're VERY anxious to have her home, but we want what's best for her. The staff at Arbor was kind enough to take some photos of our little Loren in surgery. Don't click on these, please, if you're queasy. They are graphic. Below is a bit of an explanation of what was done, followed by photos.

LUXATING PATELLA (knee cap) IN DOGS

What is a luxating patella?

The patella, or knee cap, should be located in the center of the knee joint. The term "luxating" means out of place or dislocated.

What causes this to occur?

The patella luxates because the point of attachment of the patellar ligament is not on the midline of the tibia. It is almost always located too far medial (toward the middle of the body). As the thigh muscles contract, the force is pulled against the groove on the inner side of the femur. Over time, this abnormal movement causes the inner side of the groove to wear down and the patella is free to move out of the groove or dislocate. When this occurs, the dog has difficulty bearing weight on the leg. It may learn how to kick the leg and snap the patella back into its normal location. However, because the side of the groove is gone, it dislocates again easily.

Does a luxating patella cause any long-term problems for my dog?

This abnormality predisposes the knee to other injuries, especially torn cruciate ligaments. Also, with advancing age, the joint may become arthritic and painful. The bones may actually curve in response to the abnormal location of the kneecap..

Can a luxating patella be corrected?

Surgery is the only way to correct a luxatating patella. The methods used for surgical repair depend on how far the process has gone before intervention. Surgical repair may include any or all of the following:

1) The point of attachment of the patellar ligament is cut from the tibia and transplanted to its proper location to correct the incorrect alignment.
2) The groove in the femur is deepened so the patella will stay in place.
3) The capsule around the joint is tightened. This last step is important because the joint capsule will have stretched during the period of luxation.

Loren’s condition was so extreme that all three processes were preformed. It was much more complicated than we expected. Lucky Loren that she met Dr. Mabley!!

Loren isn't moving around too much, so she asks all her friends to come to her to give them kisses. Sofia missed her terribly, especially after losing her best friend, Pepper.

Cee Cee was hoping for a civilized introduction. I don't think she expected to be quite so intimate!!

We're going to be taking this recovery slow and easy. Dr. Mabley says that she should be fully recovered, if all goes as expected, in about 6 weeks.

Loren is doing so well. Her only problem is that she doesn't know she's had surgery. It's very difficult to keep her quiet. She's a VERY playful little girl, so she now goes from Cee Cee to Sofia, playing. First she plays with Sofia...when Sofia's tired, she moves on to Cee Cee....she wears her out and on to Sofia It's unbelievable. She feels great!! And she's taught the girls to play with her, lying down.

Loren is doing well today. She's still slow and thankfully, will not stand only on her back legs. This way we can keep her from jumping up on furniture. She must be lifted. She and Sofia play together, but it's normally with Loren lying down and Sofia running around her. Loren spins like a top when Sofia's on the other side!

Loren had her staples removed today and Dr. Mabley says she's doing very well. She runs and loves to play, but at the end of the day, she's ready for her bed.