Puppy With A Broken Leg Needs Love
Donation protected
It's not hard to get hurt when you're a dog in Alaska. There are moose, polar bears, buffalo, avalanches, and all sorts of other creative ways to get trampled, eaten, or squished. But Hero is special. He didn't break himself wrangling with a bull moose in the front yard (not for lack of trying mind you). No, Hero broke his leg jumping after a toy.
Oh! you think. The puppy was playing fetch! How cute!
No. Not even close. The 8-year-old Hero who should have known better flipped his own toy up in the air and jumped up to catch it because he was trying to show off for the 3-year-old human who gives him cookies for being cute.
Hero landed wrong and now has a spiral fracture where his left femur should be.
The first set of x-rays were not encouraging. There were shadows. Hints that maybe the leg broke because there was another underlying illness we weren't aware of. The vet grilled me about Hero's behavior and eating habits. Had he limped before? Was he acting odd? Did we think he might have cancer?
Finally, several hours and many x-rays and I really don't want to know how many dollars later, Hero was cleared of cancer worries. That cost $859 plus whatever fee there is for overnight boarding.
He is spending the night at the vet's office, doped to his little puppy gills and awaiting surgery. He needs a plate put in to stabilize his leg ($1000). We're looking at 6-8 weeks of physical therapy and carrying Hero up and down stairs. Not to mention the fun of finding a surgeon in town capable of operating on a dig this big. Hero is a 144lb South African Mastiff (Boerboel) and the specialists who treat large dogs don't come cheap.
Our biggest problem is that Hero is no longer insured. The pet insurance company we had doesn't provide service in Alaska, only the Lower 48, which sucks. The low end for the surgery is $3800, if there are complications we're looking at spending over $6000.
Here's the thing... we could put Hero down. Most people looking at these bills would. But he's our rescue puppy. He's been a constant in my youngest kids' lives. He's welcomed the kids home from school every day for six years. He's there to sleep by their beds when they have nightmares and we don't want to give up on him.
THE RISKS: There is a chance that because of his age he might not recover well from the surgery. There's still the dark part of the x-ray which, if it is a cancerous growth, would mean either amputating the leg or letting Hero stay asleep forever. There's a good chance he won't be his happy, bouncy self when he comes home. Breaking a bone does that.
Oh! you think. The puppy was playing fetch! How cute!
No. Not even close. The 8-year-old Hero who should have known better flipped his own toy up in the air and jumped up to catch it because he was trying to show off for the 3-year-old human who gives him cookies for being cute.
Hero landed wrong and now has a spiral fracture where his left femur should be.
The first set of x-rays were not encouraging. There were shadows. Hints that maybe the leg broke because there was another underlying illness we weren't aware of. The vet grilled me about Hero's behavior and eating habits. Had he limped before? Was he acting odd? Did we think he might have cancer?
Finally, several hours and many x-rays and I really don't want to know how many dollars later, Hero was cleared of cancer worries. That cost $859 plus whatever fee there is for overnight boarding.
He is spending the night at the vet's office, doped to his little puppy gills and awaiting surgery. He needs a plate put in to stabilize his leg ($1000). We're looking at 6-8 weeks of physical therapy and carrying Hero up and down stairs. Not to mention the fun of finding a surgeon in town capable of operating on a dig this big. Hero is a 144lb South African Mastiff (Boerboel) and the specialists who treat large dogs don't come cheap.
Our biggest problem is that Hero is no longer insured. The pet insurance company we had doesn't provide service in Alaska, only the Lower 48, which sucks. The low end for the surgery is $3800, if there are complications we're looking at spending over $6000.
Here's the thing... we could put Hero down. Most people looking at these bills would. But he's our rescue puppy. He's been a constant in my youngest kids' lives. He's welcomed the kids home from school every day for six years. He's there to sleep by their beds when they have nightmares and we don't want to give up on him.
THE RISKS: There is a chance that because of his age he might not recover well from the surgery. There's still the dark part of the x-ray which, if it is a cancerous growth, would mean either amputating the leg or letting Hero stay asleep forever. There's a good chance he won't be his happy, bouncy self when he comes home. Breaking a bone does that.
Organizer
Liana Brooks
Organizer
Anchorage, AK
