Aponte's Surgery

Organized by Howard Wu
Aponte is Home!!!
Dear Friends,

Aponte's surgery was a success! He's resting now, so I figured I'd write you instead.

I brought Aponte home from VERG yesterday and he is doing his best to keep his chin up. The first week will be hard on him. He'll be in pain and his activity is severely limited.

Next Wednesday, Aponte will see the doctor again, and if it looks good, he will have his stitches removed and be approved to go for longer walks.

To see photos of him, I've posted them on his Facebook page-

Aponte's Surgery Photos

Once again, thank you so much for being great friends to Aponte. He knows you love him. His surgery is 2/3 paid for and we are planning a fundraiser to celebrate Aponte and to help pay for the rest of his care.

Best to all of you,
Howard
(Aponte's foster dad)
My Diagnosis
Dear Friends,

As many of you know, I started limping on my hind left leg in early October. It seemed to get better, but after the Farm Sanctuary walk a few weeks later, it was more pronounced. Since then, I've been resting up, so bored, only out for short walks and taking calcium supplements. This seems to help, but the limp is still there.


Favoring my hind left.

The next step was to go to VERG (http://www.verg-brooklyn.com/). A top-notch hospital, open 24 hours. Not for people, sorry, just animals. I went to see Dr. Prata, the chief surgeon and he specializes in orthopedics.

It was scary. Dr. Prata grabbed my back legs and I tried to bite him, so I was muzzled and my foster dad held my head. I knew they had me, so I just sulked as Dr. Prata pulled, pushed, poked, and palpated my hind quarters. After removing my muzzle and giving me lots of treats, Dr. Prata explained that I have a torn cruciate ligament in my left knee. My knee is shifting and grinding on the meniscus, causing pain and eventually, I will lose the use of my left leg. But the bad news continues. Dr. Prata believes I've had this problem for at least a year and so, and I've been favoring that leg, putting extra weight on my right leg, causing the exact same problem in my right knee. Eventually, I'll be crippled. No wonder that in my last year at BARC, I gained so much weight and started exhibiting depression and aggression.

What's going to happen to me?

Dr. Prata strongly recommends that I have Tibial Tuberosity Advancement (http://www.vetsurgerycentral.com/ortho_TTA.htm) surgery, implantation of a titanium hinge over my left knee, then after recovery, on my right knee as well. The cost is $3900 per knee. All I want for Christmas is new knees! My foster dad puts it this way, "how can I allow a dog, that's been locked in a cage for half his life, watch him finally get into a home and happy, only for him to lose the use of his legs?" Thanks Papa!

Right now, I'm getting a second opinion. I've also started a new Netflix sub you can help? If you know a canine friend that's been through this surgery, get in touch with me. The more info I have the better. And your thoughts and prayers are always appreciated. Thanks everyone!

Love,
Aponte
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