Murphy’s Law of Recovery

Hi there. I’m Murphy the dawg.

I’m 10 years old and love doing dawg things like chasing tennis balls, playing in the sprinkler, and going for hikes. My absolute FAVORITE thing to do is go for rides with my human in her car with no roof! But over the past year, it’s been harder.

See, I’m a German Shepherd. And big guys like me get arthritis in their hips. My human mom, Maria, took me to the doctor last year when I couldn’t stand up by myself and I started taking medicine every day. That helped a little.

My dog doctor took pictures while I was asleep and discovered I had a torn cruciate ligament in one of my knees and a partially torn cruciate ligament in my other knee. But a couple of weeks ago, I couldn’t stand up again and my dog doctor found they were both completely torn. So I had to have surgery to get at least one good leg.

The vet told my mom surgery will help slow down something called hip dysplasia. Mom says that’s arthritis in my hips that will eventually make it impossible to even stand up or walk. Neither one of us want that to happen any time soon so I got surgery.

I had the surgery on November 7. It hasn’t been fun wearing the cone of shame. Plus, my leg really hurts. I think it’s because somebody shaved the whole thing while I was sleeping. My mom told me it’s because the surgeon put screws and plates in my leg. I guess the why my leg hurts doesn’t really matter. What matters is I know my mom is worried. She stays with me all the time. She gets me to eat by mixing my kibble with peanut butter and giving me bites from her hand. She makes me pretend I’m peddling a bicycle with it for something she calls range of motion. I want to remind her I’m a dawg and can’t ride a bike. But I don’t think she would listen. And if you know my mom, it’s best not to argue with her about these kinds of things.

Anyway, because my mom loves me so much she’s always talking about me. And now there are a lot of other people who love me, too! I’m a really lucky dawg. And the really cool thing is people have asked my mom to create this GoFundMe so they can help her pay for my surgery!!

I really feel special knowing so many people want to help my mom with the surgery costs. I’m glad she has friends that love her as much as she loves me! Because I love her so much.

The surgery cost was nearly $5000. I don’t know how much that is in dog treats. My mom says don’t worry about it. I just know I’m excited to know it should help me and my mom have more time together.

So thanks to the humans who asked my mom to do this fundraiser. And thanks to the humans who didn’t ask but decide to help. You all deserve treats!