Where to start?

Sampson had surgery to repair a full ACL tear just over 3 months (almost 14 weeks ago).  

I heard from a lot of people whose dog(s) had ACL surgery and was told it was nothing to worry about, their dog was back to running, chasing squirrels etc in no time.

That hasn’t been Sampson’s experience at all.

Western Medicine

The surgery itself went very well.  Sampson’s meniscus was intact, so the surgeon repaired the ACL and made a slight incision in the meniscus to keep it from tearing.  One week after surgery Sampson developed a seroma on his knee, which is basically an accumulation of fluid.  This was treated with hot compresses and it reduced the seroma within a couple of days.

His six week check up and x-ray showed the leg was healing well.

And yet, he was still not putting the weight he should have been on that foot.  When the surgeon examined him he diagnosed him with a strained or sore Iliopsoas muscle.  This muscle runs from the hip to the chest and is a very deep muscle.  It’s also very hard to treat.  The surgeon put him on Gabapentin and he seemed to be doing much better.  When he checked him three weeks later he said, “I think we just have a slow healer.”

Then ten days ago I noticed he was not putting weight on his foot in the house, in fact there were times when he was actually holding it up!  I mentioned this to his physical therapist who said, to speak to the surgeon, maybe it was time for him to go back in there and see what was going on.  Her gut was telling her that something just wasn’t right.

I was very upset.  Besides the fact that I don’t want to put him through another surgery so soon after the first one, as well as the expense of another surgery, I just don’t roll that way.  As luck (fate) would have it, I had a call into my own vet about Delilah and after we discussed that issue I asked her to spend a few minutes discussing Sampson.

There’s a reason I love my vet.  Besides the fact she leans towards the holistic side, she always makes me feel better.  Bottom line, she agreed with not going back in for surgery, she suggested I keep an eye on him over the weekend and if I didn’t see an improvement, she wanted to see him.

She saw him last Monday, she checked his knee extensively and said it seemed fine, she pressed into his Iliopsoas muscle and he whipped around like he’d been pinched.  Yup, the poor punkin, his Iliopsoas muscle is hurting him.  And because of this he doesn’t place his weight properly and because he doesn’t place his weight properly, his Iliopsoas muscle is sore.   Dr. Soutter said a dog with a “Psoas” muscle issue can be very frustrating.

So what to do?

Well to start with I’m stretching his hip out twice per day.  Holding his leg at the top of his thigh and supporting the bottom, I extend the leg and then gently guide it back. 

One stretch, then some rubbies.

Eastern Medicine

Sometimes I was told, sometimes Acupuncture can release the muscle, and as luck would have the owner of the practice could perform Acupuncture AND he had a spot available on Thursday!  So Thursday Sampson and I headed over to our vet’s office.  Dr. Atz examined Sampson’s knee, he asked a lot of questions and then he began Sampson’s acupuncture treatment.

It was hard to see him anxious about the treatment, but I knew it was our best chance at helping him, so I did the best I could to remain calm, and keep him calm and focused.  I gave him lots of treats and lots of rubbies.

Since he hurt himself, Sampson has been hard at work on some lick granulomas, so while we waited for the acupuncture treatment to be completed, Dr. Atz gave Sampson some cold laser treatment on his Granulomas. Dr. Atz also had a pill form of Body Sore, a Chinese herb that I’ve been trying to get him to take in powder form and I haven’t been having much luck.  These pills are smaller than a Tic Tac and all fit into a slab of liverwurst and down the hatch with no problem.

Has the acupuncture helped?

 Well it’s hard to say (and I’m afraid to jinx my dog) but we went from acupuncture straight to the physical therapist and for the first time in six months, Sampson went into the vet’s office and stood on his back legs with his front paws on the counter and announced himself, not once, not twice but three times.  THREE TIMES.

Then when we got home….

He did this.  Yes, he climbed up on his couch.  BUT I notice he’s still, at times holding that leg up.  

It’s like we’re on a hamster wheel, the Iliosoas muscle is strained so he’s not putting the proper weight on his foot, BUT by not putting the proper weight on his foot, the Iliosoas is not getting better. 

I’m not really sure what we are going to do, but he sees the surgeon again on Wednesday, so stay tuned.