Little Pixie saw the orthopedic specialist this morning and had an exam, x-rays, and bloodwork done. Thankfully her bloodwork was perfect, which is great news! The doctor states her hunched back appearance is due to the fact that she places more weight on her front legs than her hind legs. She is not experiencing pain along any point of her spine and has good pain perception in both hind feet, with extremely slow paw position sense. She does have overall muscle atrophy along her spine and in her hind legs. His assessment is a chronic UMN lesion to the hind legs that she has adapted to. The x-rays show a massive area of spondylosis at the T12-13 interspace, but no gross narrowing of the disc space. So, what does this mean in terms we can all understand? Pixie’s spinal injury is old and definitely the result of some sort of trauma. There is a lot of calcification and nothing that can be done about that. She is completely muscle wasted in her back and hind legs. The doctor thinks she has a good chance of improvement with physical therapy to build back the muscle tone. She does get up on her hind legs easily and can get around on her own, but with a wide gait. In the x-rays with the 2 arrows, you can see the calcification, meaning both growth. It’s not normally there, which indicates she had an injury and the bone healed itself. She is not in any pain and unfortunately steroids and pain meds will not help. She will need regular, short walks, as well as physical therapy twice a week at a veterinary hospital to help build back the muscle tone. More good news is her mouth is not as bad as we initially thought! She is missing a lot of teeth, but what’s left are not loose or infected, just dirty. The top middle tooth is broken and should be removed eventually. As for her left eye, as suspected it is simply dead and needs to be removed at some point. As she gets stronger and is observed consistently her degree of urinary control can be better assessed. If it is a true neurological incontinence, medical management could be considered. The doctors also feel that Pixie isn’t quite the 12 years the shelter estimated her to be – they put her closer to 10 years old . Thank you to everyone who has donated towards Pixie’s care and recovery so far! With surgery to remove her left eye, the broken tooth, and twice weekly physical therapy sessions, her journey back to being ready to be adopted will definitely exceed our original rough estimate of $2000. If you are able to help us help Pixie with all her needs, no amount is too small. You can donate via our website, pittieslovepeace, or her YouCaring page, https://youcaring/nonprofits/pixie-s-journey/284435.
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 20:02:35 +0000