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12/25/2008
Christmas day dawned cool and wet. After opening presents we went about our normal routine of feeding 19+ 3
guest horses. We saw our neighbor drive by slowly, I tried to wave him down but was too far away for him to see me.
During the day we saw him drive by slowing down as he passed the dog. We were curious why he kept doing this and walked
over to the dog. Upon approaching her she weakly wagged her tail and looked at us with her soft brown eyes.
That was all it took. I carefully picked her up and brought her into the house.
Since we did not know if she had received any vaccinations we put her in the guest bathroom to give her privacy and keep the
other dogs and cats away from her. I placed her on a dog bed, there was no apparent injuries except
a few scratches on her face and the abrasions in her left ear, my thanks for all this was a kiss on the nose by Holly.
She was very quiet all night long without any pain medication. I checked on her several times during the night,
giving her a little food and water as she would take it.
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12/26/2008
I was up
early waiting for my vet to open, Just before 8a I called and was able to get Holly in around 9am, so off we went.
We had only a short wait before being escorted into an exam room. Dr. Thompson was very gentle with Holly, within a
short time she had found the problem, an instability in the left hip, off for x-rays after a dose of pain medication.
Within a short time, the vet was back with the x-rays. She showed us the fracture on the right which she explained will
heal on its own without intervention but there was a compound fracture of the left pelvis that would need surgical intervention.
Now was the time to make the next decision, did we want her to consult the orthopedic surgeon. Dr. Thompson offered
to keep Holly overnight to further evaluate her, we agreed to this knowing she needed some extra care after her ordeal.
 12/27/2008
Saturday morning brought a long discussion and the decision to bring Holly home knowing that we needed to find $3,000
for the needed surgery for Holly to be able to walk. She came home with us, the decision to move forward was not an
easy one. We asked a friend to post a thread on NC Horse News, there were many supportive posts and some members stated they
would make donatations toward her surgery. This list also helped with encouragement and support. Now to wait
for her appointment at Vetrinary Surgical Referral Practice.
Saturday was fairly quiet for Holly, she layed around
eating and drinking but not too merry. She did not sleep soundly during the night since the pain medication the vet
had given her had worn off and he current medication was not as strong.
12/28/2008
Sunday she began
moving around a bit more, starting to turn her self over and pull herself around a little bit. The early hours of Monday
morning found Holly in definite pain, she had to go to the bathroom and this was very painful for her. After some success
she was able to settle down and slept for the next couple hours.
12/29/2008
During the day on Monday
she also began trying to stand with little success, she did prop herself against the bed once. When I came into the
room after work she had made it halfway across the room. Her appointment was that evening so we bundled her up
into the car for a hour and half ride to the vet.
After an extensive examination which included multiple x-rays
and determining why she could not stand on her own it was determined that besides the pelvic fractures she also has bilateral
scapular fractures. The treatment plan includes the plating of the displaced left ilial fracture and splinting the chest
with a figure-8 bandage.
Surgery was scheduled for the following day.
12/30/2008
Holly tolerated
the surgical procedure well and recovered overnight at the surgery practice.
12/31/2008
Holly was released
from the surgery practice at 3pm with a list of instructions and medications. She also has a medicated patch that contained
her pain medication. Among the usual post op care, observing for redness and swelling, was the instruction that she
is not allowed to walk on slippery floors, cannot walk up/down more than 3 stairs and must be crated when not observered.
She rested well on Wednesday. Housebreaking began if she was going to be an indoor dog. Holly had to be carried
outside and a sling was used to help her stand, one under her abdomen and one under her front legs. She had some success
and was rewarded with a treat.
1/1/2008
Holly continued to improve slowly, she started to stand on
her own and was more successful with housebreaking especially when I had to leave her for a few moments. From that point
on it was only going outside for her potty breaks. Her incision remained intact without redness or swelling. She
was gaining strength and eating lustily.
1/2/2008
Holly has begun walking more, she is very steady on her
feet but is doing little weight bearing on the left rear leg. The medicated patch was removed from her side and
she did not receive any pain medication until that evening as instructed. She continued with housebreaking no longer
needing treats as a reward, this she has done on her own. Holly only slept a couple hours at a time, it's like having
a newborn baby in the house.
1/3/2008
Holly is very active today, getting her pain medication routinely as
ordered for now until she is able to do without it. She is very curious about her new friends, beginning to greet and
tolerated Dar, Chloe and Madison. She is also curious about the cats, touching noses with Gabby and Black Fur without
any aggression. Holly is crated whenever we are not around to observe her, she vocalizes her discontent.
1/4/2008
Holly overdid it yesterday and is resting today to continue to regain her strenght. She is beginning to bear a little
weight on her left leg. Her incision is nicely approximated without swelling. The chest splint has really helped
her to be able to walk. She is gaining weight steadily no longer looking so thin and feeling heavier when carried to
the different rooms of the house and outside.
1/10/2009
Holly had her first vet visit after surgery.
Her stitches were removed, she has gained three pounds and her shoulder splint remained on. As long as the shoulder
splint does not get tight it will stay on until the end of January.
1/18/2009
Holly continues to progress
without set backs. She is learning to sit and lay down, she is doing very well. She no longer requires pain medication as
needed. Holly gets along very well with the other dogs now that she is feeling better.
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