(TTA SURGERY) Tibial Tuberosity Advancement for Rocco

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Tessa

Boxer Booster
We made it through the first week!! Today is day 8. It's gone by so fast!! Thanks for the heads up on the ankle - the surgeon had mentioned swelling is normal, but we would not have been prepared for how much!! It's gone now though.

Yes, the hard part is taking them out on leash and constantly watching her. She hates the crate so my husband and I tag in and out of staying with her in the living room. Tucker sleeps with her most of the time. She's back at doggie daycare now where she can rest more comfortably during the day while we are at work. She has her own 4x8 kennel in the corner with her comfy bed and blanket from home, away from the action of the other dogs. My husband carries her in/out when we dropoff/pickup, and they only take her for quick bathroom breaks. We can't afford to take off work/be home during the day so we are really fortunate to go to a place willing(almost insistant!) to take care of her post-op needs.

Each day is a little better than the last. This morning was her last round of meds so we will see how she does through that transition. She's putting weight on it, but does pull her leg up when she knows we're watching. The bandage is still on, and the surgeon said it might stay on until staples come out. We moved the staple removal appt. from Friday (day 9) to Tuesday (day 13) to give it more time to heal. We're doing range of motion exercises and she actually does the bicycle movement on her own now!

Crossing our fingers that things keep going like this and we have no hiccups.

How is Rocco doing with his stitches out? Any licking/curiosity with the incision? Hope all is well with him!
 

Rocco's Mom

Super Boxer
Life has been crazy here my dh has been out of town for most of this month so I haven't had a chance to catch up here. After we had the stitches out he wasn't interested in the incision anymore. It would seem as the iritation was mostly from the stitches so after that it healed beautifully. He has been off meds and only the Dasuquin supplement for a couple of weeks now. Up until today he was doing fabulous no limping and even some return of "pep in his step". I am not sure what he did today but he has been limping and favoring his leg most of today. As I mentioned he seemed to be feeling great and yesterday he jumped on our bed :( I had been keeping pillows on our bed in case I forgot to close the door and I walked in and there he was. I am not sure if he hurt it or not but it would seem that way. My husband who has had two ACL surgeries himself said I shouldn't worry so much with surgery sometimes there are brief setbacks because when you feel better you do more and are reminded very quickly that there was a surgery. I gave him a Rimadyl and a tramadol earlier and we'll see how he is in the morning. If he is still limping and favoring, I'll call the vet.

Glad to hear that Tessa is doing so well the first week is tough! Sounds like her recovery should be smooth sailling. So nice to have people that care just as much as you do about your dog isn't it?!? How did she do with the staple removal and how is she now?
 

Rocco's Mom

Super Boxer
Rocco has his first round of follow up x-rays and is healing great. Dr said that the bone is starting to fill in over the implant and all still in tact! Very happy thus far with our decision to do the TTA we have had a great result. We'll have to go back in 3 more weeks for another x-ray then he is free of the "follow ups"! Thanks for all your support and well wishes!
 

Tessa

Boxer Booster
Wow it's hard to find time with one dog not allowed to play, and one wanting to play ball all the time!! Tessa is doing great though. Today ends the first 6 weeks and we saw the surgeon for a checkup. He said she is ahead of the curve and allowed us to introduce full flights of stairs and 40 minute walks. No X-rays this time, but we go back in 4 weeks for sedated X-rays. If everything is ok then, she ramps up to full play over the following 2 weeks.

Her staples came out on day 12. I noticed about a week later that they missed one (it was hidden by a scab), so we had to go back to have it out. She seemed a lot happier with the staples out and cone off.

She's lost 4.5 pounds since surgery which the surgeon was thrilled with. She wasn't heavy too start, but they say most dogs gain weight after surgery due to no exercise. We were instructed to reduce food so the leg could heal without having to carry extra weight.

Glad to hear Rocco is doing well too! I'm curious to hear how he goes back to regular activity(running, jumping around, etc). Sounds like he will start the new year off back to normal! Good luck Rocco!
 

Tessa

Boxer Booster
We Made It!!!!

Tessa had her final X-rays today after TTA surgery and the bone has healed! 72 days LONG days, but we made it! We can ramp up activity over the next few weeks and she can have her freedom back. I'm so happy with our decision to treat her acl tear with TTA surgery. The surgeon said he wish all dogs healed this quickly/this nicely.

We had our "oopses" and set backs along the way, but painfully followed all of the rules during her recovery. All worth it because we get to go for a run tomorrow!! On leash of course.

I did confirm the vet offers a discount for the other knee just in case... :)

Thanks for all the information and support!
 

Rocco's Mom

Super Boxer
Well we are nearly 13 weeks post op for the ACL anyway. Rocco is doing great and has lost some weight close to 7 lbs which was needed and will help going forward. We found a food he loves and feed him just a little less and doesn't seem to care.

We have been back for 6 and 9 week x-rays and the bone growth at 9 wasn't what they hoped. We'll go back next week and hope to get full release for walks and play etc. He has had 2 other surgeries for tumor removal so I wasn't surprised by the slower healing of the ACL. He has been through the ringer and now that all that is over I am hopeful he is good to go.

He is getting his spunk back though and it's been a while since we've seen him so playful and happy so all in all we are very happy with the results over here. He was in good hands of a great vet and I think that helps too :)

Thanks for all the updates and supportive words everyone!
 

BetsyA

Boxer Pal
TTA surgery

Hi, I am fairly new to Boxer Board but have read your comments concerning TTA Surgery with great interest. Molly was diagnosed yesterday and on advice of Vet we are going ahead with the TTA sugery. She is only 2 1/2 years much to young to go through life in discomfort. I am a little concerned about the post-op rehab as we also have VERY active 1 1/2 yr. old male and they play together constantly. If she doesn't want to play he pesters her relentlessly until she does, so we will have to be extra diligent exercising him to tire him out. Probably daycare for awhile until she is a little more comfortable. My daughter Mrsbeeker has offered to take Blaze for a few days so he can play with her Dutch and that will help keep Blaze entertained. Iam quite confident in the Vet who is doing the surgery and hope everything goes well. Glad to hear the posts hear have been positive.
 

Tessa

Boxer Booster
Hi Betsy,

We had the same concern as our Tucker is a very active 4 yr old and constantly wants to play with Tessa. We were quite surprised at how he handled Tessa post-op. He knew something wasn't right with her and did not bother her. He would nap in the room with her and did not try to play. In fact, it was her that we had watch because she would try to instigate play with him!!

I spent a good bit of time running with Tucker outside to ensure he was worn out, and he spent his days playing at doggie day care. Now almost 4 months later, he is back to picking on her and things are almost normal, except we still don't let her off leash outside. She runs too hard and the few times we tried, she would start limping shortly after. I know it's because she isn't getting enough exercise right now due to the temprature and conditions of the roads (icy/snow). The surgeon said it was better to be conservative - come the spring we will be walking a lot more and I'm confident she will be back to her active self.

I recommend cornering off a room in your house (with carpet) for the dogs to hang out in. If you can leave Molly without Blaze either crated or in a room, even better, but separation of our two was not an option. We never left them alone in the house during the recovery time. We kept Tessa on leash in the living room and blocked the couches. If we had to go in the other room, we tied the leash to the couch leg. She didn't try to move around too much. After the first week (my husband slept downstairs with her), we took the frame and box spring off the bed and she slept back with us like usual.

Good luck - the first week is hard and you will have set backs along the way. Don't be discouraged because you will make it through it!!
 
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