Hello, I'm Chloe and I'm a super swimmer!

[Cedars]

Been taking Chlo to her hydrotherapy sessions, today was her second =] thought I'd show you some photos! She was really scared last week but she leapt out the car today and ran in before I could grab her!

Here are some photos:

And a little v cute video (click on the picture):



And one of the girl at home!:

She's doing really well, she's got a bit of a sharks fin going on with the bad leg, basically they hold it up and don't use it very much, apparently its quite common in dogs that had the femoral head excision. She was doing great today though, she is starting to use it to kick, although just not as far or as strong as the other.

She's making me very proud. All the ladies at the pool love her =]

 

[CorvusCorax]

She's doing super, inspirational

 

[millimoo]

OMG, she looks amazing.
It's just brilliant what they can do these days.

How long before she's fully signed off?

 

[Cedars]

Its mostly a play it by ear thing, but she's definitely going to need something like 5 or 6 weeks doing lessons twice a week, then probably a month having lessons once a week, then a few months doing every other week...but tbh its only £25 a session and she LOVES it so we'll probably continue for as long as we can (NFU will stop paying out after a while - if they pay at all!). But she loves it so much think we'll try and continue even if is just once a month, as think she likes being able to chase etc without any pressure on her joints.

Couldnt BELIEVE how much muscle she'd lost though - 5cm difference between the two legs. Which, considering the op was only a month ago...!

 

[nikicb]

I haven't posted on your threads before but have been following them as I have a young black lab too (Nia, 6 months). So pleased to see how well she's doing after all the heartache you've been through.

 

[MurphysMinder]

She really is doing well, so pleased for you. We had a JRT who had hd (yes honestly, vet didn't believe it either) and had the femoral head removed. She wouldn't use the leg at all and spent months carrying it and swimming using only 3 legs (didn't have hydrotherapy pools then, we used the canal). In the end the vet suggested tying up her opposite foreleg for short spells. After a couple of sessions of doing this the little madam was using the bad leg perfectly, although I wouldn't recommend doing this with a large breed.

 

[numptynoelle]

Clever Chloe, you must be so proud of her! You'd think she'd never had a day's worry in her life Fingers crossed the swimming helps, so pleased she's doing so well

 

[Cedars]

We had a JRT who had hd (yes honestly, vet didn't believe it either) and had the femoral head removed. She wouldn't use the leg at all and spent months carrying it and swimming using only 3 legs (didn't have hydrotherapy pools then, we used the canal).

I have been suprised by Chloe, cos shes been walking on the ground as if there is nothing wrong - literally from day one shes been putting full weight on her leg - but then in the water shes been really quite tender with it so I've been amazed by quite how bad it obviously is, considering how well shes been doing on land.

In the end the vet suggested tying up her opposite foreleg for short spells. After a couple of sessions of doing this the little madam was using the bad leg perfectly, although I wouldn't recommend doing this with a large breed.

Our vet did say that they do this quite regularly to little dogs because they're worse than big dogs - and that big dogs often walk normally quicker cos their bum weighs so much!!

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

So pleased to see how well she is doing

The benefit of having a lab is she won't need any encouragement to get in the water!

 

[Cedars]

Slinky - she was TERRIFIED as she fell in a lake when she was about 4 months old - and she just sank and I had to drag her out! So I was really worried about her, and she was scared til about 2 minutes in to her first session, then the genes kicked in and she now loves it! Haha.