Blaze

Profile

7/22/05: Blaze has been with us for 3 weeks now so it's about time I got around to doing an update. Blaze was an owner surrender. He came from a loving family that was very sad to give him up but felt they could no longer afford his medical expenses. Blaze has had a tough Spring. I'm not sure exactly how everything evolved but apparently he tore his ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) in one of his back legs. He under went surgery & then due to his obesity he had to go to physical therapy at the University to do the underwater treadmill. He is on a special diet to help speed up his weight loss. At some point Blaze fell again & tore his other ACL. Since he has been with us he had a general health checkup. He has hypothyroidism for which he is on medication (it is relatively inexpensive though). Then 3 days ago he had his 2nd ACL surgery & is now on the road to recovery & is looking for his forever home. He is currently on antibiotics & pain medication & is limited to leash walking for the next 8 weeks. Since his weight is close to normal now (he only needs to lose another 5 pounds or so) he does not need the physical therapy that he had before. We covered our hardwood floors with throw rugs & he is limited to the main floor. He is also supposed to avoid stairs & slippery surfaces for now until he heals & is able to walk better. He is starting to bear a little bit of weight on that leg. He gets his stitches out in 10 days. He is currently wearing a cone to keep him from getting at his stitches. He also had some torn cartilage removed with the surgery. His prognosis is great. He has some arthritic changes in his leg but given his age that's pretty normal. The vet says the initial recovery period is 8 weeks, but it can truly be 3 to 6 months for full recovery. He should be back to normal soon.

Blaze is a great guy. He celebrated his 8th birthday on the 4th of July & has his AKC papers. He is a darker red with a thick, beautiful coat & is just starting to gray around the muzzle. He looks like a big, cuddly teddy bear. Blaze gets along great with my 3 kids, ages 11,8 & almost 3. He lived with a cat at his former home & they were the best of friends. Blaze also gets along with my 3 goldens, 2 females & 1 male. He hasn't really played with them much & he definitely isn't into retrieving balls. He does however love his nylabones & he is a great helper at picking our raspberries. He'll either catch the berries that you toss his way or he'll pick his own. I can't get him to help fill up the bucket though!

More to come as Blaze recovers.