It’s hard to keep a good dog down… Millie and her OrthoPets Carpus Device (Dog Wrist Device)
Millie is a 5 year old bitza – she has bitza GSD, bitza Labrador and bitza Collie in her. As you might expect from such an interesting mix, Millie is a dog full of life and energy – maybe at times too much for her own good!Back in 2013, Millie jumped from a 20 foot bridge and despite her owner’s worst fears, she survived relatively unscathed from the ordeal. The worst injury sustained was collateral ligament injuries to Millie’s left carpus.Unfortunately Millie’s over exuberance and energy turned what should have been a relatively simple recovery into a nightmare, with a bad situation going a whole lot worse. Eventually it was accepted that the injuries had worsened to the point that surgery was now the only way forward and Millie underwent an arthrodesis.Again, during rehab from her surgery, Millie’s high octane energy proved to be counter productive. Adequate bone fusion failed to occur and it wasn’t long before Millie had pretty much trashed the arthrodesis plate – her surgery now a complete failure!At this point, Millie was referred to a local Veterinary University for specialist intervention. Initially it looked as if the only options were either revision surgery with bone grafts to re-attempt an arthrodesis or amputation of the limb. Millie’s owners were not happy with either option and with Millie’s history to date, neither seemed to offer a high chance of a successful outcome. Fortunately the specialist that Millie was referred to had worked with OrthoPets Europe on several previous orthotics cases, one of which was not too dissimilar to that of Millie’s.Millie’s owners were very keen to try a non surgical alternative, especially one that could ultimately see Millie back to near normal exercise. Therefore after a few phone calls between her specialist and OrthoPets Europe, the wheels were in motion to provide Millie with a carpal orthosis to support her joint.A few weeks later, Millie was rid of the hard cast that was temporarily supporting her carpus and was taking her first tentative steps in her new orthosis.The past few weeks have seen Millie go from strength to strength, not only from an exercise perspective, but from being a miserable dog to a happy one again - as can be seen from the before & after photos…………
