Rockin' and rollin' in the Rockies!

Moxie and Kokoro and Jenna -- up on Brainard off the Peak-to-Peak Highway

-- stopping for lunch under the evergreens on our way to Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado.

Moxie is doing great! She had her 8 week check up last week and the doctor says all looks excellent. She has pulled a groin muscle in the leg that has been doing all the work, but that's not surprising. It had so recently only just healed when the other knee went, so we're lucky she's only pulled a muscle. Doc says just keep her slowly increasing in her daily walks and continue doing the strengthening exercises.

We had a terrific time in the Rockies for the Autumnal Equinox looking at the glorious golds and oranges of the Aspens and driving up, up, up, all along Trail Ridge Road to above treeline. Later, in the Fall River Valley, Moxie went crazy for the Elks -- we think it was the smell. It is mating season and the bulls are doing their calls. Amazing to hear and watch. (The pics are in a shared facebook album here.)

Onward for more Big Sky Adventures!

5 Weeks Strong!

It's been a few weeks since I posted. All good news. Moxie had progressed well enough by mid-August for me to take a partial week's trip to the east coast for a family reunion kind of event. When I returned, she said, HEY! When do I get to go on an adventure?!  So, we loaded up for an overnight camping trip in Wyoming. She was in heaven. Total travel dog!

We didn't do any hiking, just a relaxing afternoon and night at a campground in Cheyenne, and then a day's scenic drive under all that big sky. We went west into Medicine Bow, in the Snowy Mountains, Laramie range, and then south on back roads back home.

Today, she got to go into her "dipping lake" for the first time in a couple of months -- a nice trail near a little town west of home called Hygiene (named for a tuberculosis sanitarium that once was there).  Things are moving right along :)

3 Weeks Out -- Winning!

The Muncharelli continues to heal nicely, without mishap or mischief so far.

In fact, I feel confident enough in her recovery to go ahead and make the trip this week to New Jersey for a family reunion, with Moxie in Jenna's able hands. Georgie, Jenna's mother-in-law, is also old hat at helping take care of a recovering pup, so Moxie should be fine without me for a few days.

She REALLY wants to just keep walking and trotting along on our little walks, but I have to keep her at 5-7 minutes 2-3 times a day for another week. Hopefully, when I return, we can scoot that up to 10 minutes or more, and perhaps toss in a ride or two.

Amazing, actually, how quickly she is healing from two major surgeries. I hope if I'm ever under the knife, I'm as resilient!

Christina

1st Gate, Check!

A joy ride with Moxie

Well, she did it again! Today, Dr. Perry did Moxie's re-check and removed her staples. He says she is healing very well and her leg has a great range of motion already. He feels there are no issues of concern.

He called Mox an "on or off" dog, so "I can imagine you have a challenge keeping her slow and steady." THAT is for sure! But he cautioned me to keep her exercise to a slow upgrade and keep up the physical therapy.

So! All is well.

With ongoing 4-paws-up thanks to Moxie's Angels of Donation, we are underway in paying down her expense account. I am truly grateful and awed by the generosity of friends. Thank you so much.

Her next x-ray check is in six more weeks. Other than that, it's just the little walks (with a drive thrown in here and there for fun) for the next few weeks. She should be healed enough in time for more fun cooler weather hikes in September and October.

Moxie's Surgery a Success (Again!)

Hi Fans of Moxie :>

The surgeon called today to say that Moxie went through the surgery "perfectly" and is resting well.  He did find that her cruciate ligament had indeed fully ruptured, but luckily her meniscus (a kind of padding cushioning the knee bones) had remained undamaged. He said I could pick her up Thursday morning 10am.

A relief!

Now for a couple of weeks of round-the-clock meds and back to that silly collar. But I'm guessing the time will go fairly quickly, since we both know the routine now. And this time, she will NOT get to sneak an early jump onto the couch or run down the stairs -- I'm on to her!!

Three cheers, once again, to Aspen Meadow Veterinary clinic here in Longmont. They are just excellent at what they do.

I'll post various updates here, as we move through the next few weeks.

Thank you so much for your many messages of good wishes for her surgery and recovery.

Christina (& Moxie the Bionic Dog)

Surgery Take 2: Weds July 25

Update: Moxie blew her RIGHT knee ligament this past weekend, while running like the wind at the dog park. "It's all fun and games until someone blows their second knee out."

She will go into surgery at Aspen Meadow this Wednesday, July 25. I'm not sure what time during the day, but hopefully in the morning, so she has plenty of recovery time at the clinic. She will stay there overnight as before.

I am very grateful there is only a short wait this time for her surgery date, since she has still been unable to use her right leg, and it is hard to see her hobbling around.

I'll post her post-surgery update as soon as possible.  For now, please just keep her in your thoughts for a successful surgery on Wednesday and a speedy recovery over the coming weeks.

Thank you so much!

Christina

Moxie's 8-week X-ray Check

Well... good news is that Moxie's bionic leg recovery looks excellent. Bone is healing well around the plate. Leg is moving well. Her use of it is nearly completely normal.

Bad news is that the surgeon believes her other knee is at a 50% cruciate (ligament) tear, based on what he sees in the x-rays. He wants to do a TPLO surgery (same surgery) on her right leg within two months. He says it's very common for dogs with non-injury-related knee ligament problems to have both ligaments go.

NOT what I wanted to hear.

I've decided to wait on this decision for another few weeks, and watch what happens with her right leg.  Right now, there's some shaking in that leg -- could be all the extra use due to overcompensating for her left leg's recovery, in my opinion -- but overall, she seems to be using it well. 

I have noticed she has not yet returned to using her back legs to push herself up from laying down. She tends to pull herself up with her front legs. So I'm watching that to see if the strengthening exercises I'm doing with her back legs make a difference in that.

Meanwhile, we are really enjoying our summertime walks and hikes and car ride adventures.  She seems really healthy and happy in all other ways, so we're going with that for now.  Let her -- and me -- enjoy some fun times before going through all the stress of a second surgery (if needed).

That's the scoop on Moxie the Wonder Dog for now!  We'll just keep up her excellent recovery progress (and hope the doc is wrong about the other knee) ;>.