FHO... anybody have experience with it?

[Horsefeathers!]

My black Lab, Tucker, is going in next Thursday to have FHO (femoral head ostectomy?/ostotomy?/oscarmeyerweinie?) surgery done on his right hip. I am familiar with the procedure in the clinical sense, but would like any input from anyone who has ever personally had to have this done to their dog. It's an alternative to hip rebuilding where they basically go in and snip part of the bone off (the femoral head, I believe). Tucker has major dysplasia on that side, but he also has some other damage in his hips and pelvis (old broken bones that healed all wrong... broken pelvis on his left side and broken leg on the right which looks in the xray like it could be what caused the bone to try to back out of that hip socket) and seems to constantly be in a great deal of pain. It has been bad enough to force him into retirement from his "duties" as a therapy dog. The vet believes this surgery may help, though it's no guarantee considering the other damage there.

By the way, regarding the old mended broken bones... Tucker was an adult when we adopted him, so we don't know if there was some accident that happened before we got him and he's only started limping (since healed) as he's gotten older, or if it was the result of what seemed a minor accident a couple of years ago when a truck left the private drive going by our house and hit Tucker standing in our yard (freak thing... our dogs never run loose, but we were in the yard with him and, gosh, never expected a truck to veer off the path and into our yard :-? ). He took quite a lick, but he jumped up and shook it off and ran around as if he were fine. The vet believes that the old injuries surely happened before that as a dog with a broken pelvis on one side and a broken leg on the other wouldn't likely have been walking at all.

Anyway, I'm just wondering if anyone has any insight as to what I can expect, or feedback. I'd really like to talk to someone whose dog has had this done. Positive thoughts are welcome, too. :wink:

I'm really worried about the ol' boy. :(

[Guest Anonymous]

Oh Horsefeathers! We'll be thinking of you and Tucker.

[Guest Anonymous]

Horsefeathers! napisał(a):

snip

Anyway, I'm just wondering if anyone has any insight as to what I can expect, or feedback. I'd really like to talk to someone whose dog has had this done. Positive thoughts are welcome, too. :wink:

I'm really worried about the ol' boy. :(

By all reports it works quite well though the recovery can be a bit wearing on the owner's nerves with worry and all.
It is the 'cure' of choice for dogs that can handle the surgery.

[Guest Anonymous]

Horsefeathers! napisał(a):

My black Lab, Tucker, is going in next Thursday to have FHO (femoral head ostectomy?/ostotomy?/oscarmeyerweinie?

Heh heh heh! :lol:

Anyway, ive never heard of it, but good luck!!!!!!Give him hugs and kisses!!!!!

[mouseatthebusstop]

i have not heard of it either. good luck :) :) :)

[deepseasnake]

well me neither.......Glad I could help......that'll be 350,

good luck and tell us how it all works out

[deepseasnake]

well me neither.......Glad I could help......that'll be 350,

that was funny like the chris farley character on SNL, the home counselor :lol: :lol: hehe

[Guest Anonymous]

Deep, you are a riot! :lol:

Time to take the pups for a walk.....might not be a long once since I'm still getting over this freaking virus of head/chest crud. I can at least walk across the room today with out getting worn out! :) Oh well....maybe I shouldn't have taken that codeine cough syrup yet....should have waited till AFTER the walk! :wink:

[Guest Anonymous]

Gigi, I am telling you that codine is poison to living thoughts!!! :lol:
Good luck Tucker... it's going to be nothing but a blure to him and then the pain will be gone! 8)

[Guest Anonymous]

hazelhover napisał(a):

Gigi, I am telling you that codine is poison to living thoughts!!! :lol:
Good luck Tucker... it's going to be nothing but a blure to him and then the pain will be gone! 8)

Oh I know! I was posting last night on this site and had to edit one of my posts TWICE cuz I would just submit, read it again, and was like........oh duh. That make NO sense!!!!!!!! :lol:

Thankfully, I'll be off it hopefully tomorrow....Sure makes work interesting thought! :wink:

Only got to walk the dogs about 10 blocks. :(

It's funny, cuz I always walk Kika and my hubby walks Kenzo. Kenzo just will NOT heal on the first two blocks until hubby runs wtih him to the end...He's used to hubby running with him down that hill and he just loves to GO. After that 2 block down hill run, he'll heal. :wink: What a goof.

[shorty]

Horsefeathers I wish I could help but I don't know anything about it either. :cry: I hope all goes well with Tucker the poor baby.
Wendy and Shorty

[Guest Anonymous]

Hey I was like that last night... and I didn't even need the codine!! :o

[Horsefeathers!]

Hey, thanks for the positive thoughts, guys! After I posted about being worried about Tucker's upcoming surgery, one of my other dogs (old dilapidated Yorkie) became very ill... some type of internal infection, wouldn't eat/couldn't hold down forced foods, started grand mal seizures (holy moly, what a ride), is ataxic in his back end, and with a newly discovered heart murmur. This is in addition to already being deaf, nearly blind, toothless and having no jaw to begin with. LOL it made Tucker's surgery look like small stuff. Anyway, this little dog (Goober) has been put on a strong round of antibiotics for whatever infection and he is apparently feeling better as he's no longer listless and is eating on his own again. We put him on phenobarbital to hopefully control these seizures and as for the ataxia and heart murmur, we'll just have to ride that out for now. LOL, anyway, I just read back through this string and realized that Tucker's upcoming surgery is nowhere near as scary as this ordeal with Goober. It just goes to show that you should never think things can't get any worse. Anyway, thanks for the well wishes for Tucker in his upcoming surgery (and the input, Guest). I'll keep you updated (you'll get so sick of hearing me whine about it... :oops: ). :roll:

[Guest Anonymous]

Horsefeathers! napisał(a):

Hey, thanks for the positive thoughts, guys! After I posted about being worried about Tucker's upcoming surgery, one of my other dogs (old dilapidated Yorkie) became very ill... some type of internal infection, wouldn't eat/couldn't hold down forced foods, started grand mal seizures (holy moly, what a ride), is ataxic in his back end, and with a newly discovered heart murmur. This is in addition to already being deaf, nearly blind, toothless and having no jaw to begin with. LOL it made Tucker's surgery look like small stuff. Anyway, this little dog (Goober) has been put on a strong round of antibiotics for whatever infection and he is apparently feeling better as he's no longer listless and is eating on his own again. We put him on phenobarbital to hopefully control these seizures and as for the ataxia and heart murmur, we'll just have to ride that out for now. LOL, anyway, I just read back through this string and realized that Tucker's upcoming surgery is nowhere near as scary as this ordeal with Goober. It just goes to show that you should never think things can't get any worse. Anyway, thanks for the well wishes for Tucker in his upcoming surgery (and the input, Guest). I'll keep you updated (you'll get so sick of hearing me whine about it... :oops: ). :roll:

OH MY! I'm soo sorry! :cry: I sure hope everything goes OK with your babies....PLEASE keep us posted.

And don't worry, we'll never get sick of hearing you whine about it. Remember, we are all dog lovers too, who love our babies as much as you love yours.......although I'm sure each and every one of us thinks "NO ONE can love my dogs as much as I do"! :wink:

[Horsefeathers!]

Well, Tucker had the surgery today. I was fortunate in that I got to be present with him throughout the surgery and watch, but I'll tell ya... FHO ain't a delicate surgery. LOL, it involves hammers, chisels and power tools. It wasn't pretty and sounded horrible (all that cracking and popping and grinding), but it actually went well. I'm a weirdo, so I saved the femoral head (bone) that was removed and brought it home :oops: . He had some muscle atrophy (apparently) from favoring that leg so long and not using it much, so we're hoping to get him home (he's spending the night at the clinic with an IV drip) and the vet would like him to use it right away. Poor thing... from the looks of things, he's going to be SORE! Doc says it's a very long and hard recovery, but they do encourage use of the leg fairly quickly. All I need to do is hire someone to ride a motorcycle up and down along our fenceline each day and Tucker will get all the exercise he needs by trying to chase it (wonder what it is about motorcycles and atv's that make him crazy). We are going to take him to the beach as soon as his staples are removed (10 days) and encourage him to use that leg by getting into the water. He typically loves to swim (typical Lab).

By the way, my other little dog (Goober, the Yorkie) is doing better. No more seizures since last Friday and he is more alert and seems to be feeling better. He's old, so it's not like he's doing the yippy skippy dance, but he's as alert as can be expected from a dilapidated old man.

What a ride it's been the last week, or so. Thanks for the well wishes.
OH! And thanks, Jacsmom, for the PM Lab link! 8)