This is going to be long, so I apologize in advance, but my mind is a jumble of thoughts and writing it out helps me clear my head and put things in perspective, while also giving you an explanation of everything that transpired this afternoon. First of all I want to reiterate my sincerest gratitude for the support you all have shown. I am blown away once again by your kindness and generosity. Today after I posted the update that Rico would be heading to surgery soon, I was lighthearted and optimistic. I actually felt good about the way things were turning out and had high hopes for Ricos full recovery. However, that did not last long. About an hour after I posted that update, Dr. Jones called me. I was surprised when I saw the number and knew it was probably not good. He told me there was more of a problem with the leg than he had originally thought. Once he reviewed the x-rays he took (which you can see here) he noticed that the pin from the first (healed) injury was rubbing into the hip bone. He said this was probably causing a considerable amount of pain. He also told me the hip joint itself was out of alignment, as well as the joint just below the break ( the ankle). He gave me two options. One was to go ahead and pin the break as originally planned, and tape up the joint below the break in hopes that it might heal and manage the pain for the hip, or in his opinion, it might be best to amputate the entire leg. My heart dropped out of my chest. I had just got to an appointment, I was sitting in my car in a parking lot and I needed to make a decision. Rico was already under anesthesia at this point. I asked Dr Jones if I could make a quick phone call to consult a trusted avian friend, which I did, and call him right back. This was simply not a decision I could make in the spur of the moment, nor one that could be made lightly. Taking a limb is something once done, you can never undo. So I told him to do the surgery as planned. Fix the break, and tape the ankle joint. Was it the right call? I honestly dont know. But I wanted to weigh all my options before making such a life altering decision for Rico. The next phone call I got was Dr Jones telling me once they got in there, he discovered that the bone had already started to callas ( heal) and that instead of the External Skeletal Fixator, he did a splint ( cast). He said the leg might have a slight bow to it, but it should heal up just fine. We will have to wait and see if he regains movement and use of the foot, but he is hopeful that he will. I then called him back and asked him if the pin should have been removed from the first surgery once healed, and he said yes it should have. It is a stainless steel pin, and not a plastic pin as he had first thought. i asked him if we could remove the pin now, and he said it would take considerable effort, but it could be done. I asked if this would relieve some of the chronic pain Rico was experiencing, and he said yes, but the hip joint is still out. I asked if the hip joint could be repaired, he said they could stitch it, but it usually did not hold. So there you have it. My emotions have been all over the place today. From heart ache, to sadness to anger at what has happened to this little soul. I dont know if I made all the right decisions, but I did the best I could if the short amount of time I had to make them. So where do we go from here? We will let the break heal. Hopefully the ankle joint too. We will need to go in once every couple of weeks to Dr. Dixon and let him do x-rays to see the progress for four to six weeks. This at least gives us some time to further investigate what other options we may have with the hip issue. I just want to do whats right and what is best for little Rico.
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 01:40:44 +0000
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