Tia was a referral case from a member of our extended family, Dugie Gemall. Tia had a condition called Legg-Calvé-Perthes Disease which is where the head of the femur bone, located in the dog’s hip joint begins to disintegrate. The exact cause of the condition is unknown, though blood supply issues to the femoral head are usually seen in dogs suffering from Legg-Calvé-Perthes Disease. It is commonly seen in miniature, toy, and small-breed dogs. Tia had an operation called a femoral head osteotomy (FHO) which is the surgical removal of the head and neck of the femur. It is the removal of the “ball” part of the ball-and-socket that makes up the hip joint meaning that the bones of the joint are no longer in contact, which eliminates the pain. Once the femoral head and neck are removed, the surrounding muscles and developing scar tissue work to support the area, and act as a false joint.
Tia came for hydrotherapy treatment to aid the use of her back leg with its wonderful new joint!
We started Tia in the aquatic treadmill to allow controlled weight bearing exercise and to encourage placement of operated hind limb. Within a few sessions, Tia was using her back leg significantly better, has been going for longer walks and no longer hoping on three legs!
Tia has built 1.5cm of muscle on her right hind which for such a small pooch is a massive gain!
We are now continuing treating Tia in the pool to further gain muscle and fitness.
We’re so pleased with Tia’s progress and the fact she’s running around happily on four legs!
“About two yeas ago we noticed that Tia would not put her weight on her back leg. We visited our vet who referred us to Dugie Gemall in the Wirral. The ball in her hip joint was mis-shaped and had to be removed. She was coming along well and then we noticed that she was holding her leg up again. We then took her back to our own local vet where she had an x-ray. When we collected her they said that the tow bone were rubbing together and suggested amputation. We totally disagreed! Having heard about the hydrotherapy centre in Mochdre, we decided we would give that a go and what a success! She has build muscle around her hip joints and is so much better. We can’t believe the outcome. The staff have all the time in the world for their “patients” and we would highly recommend it to other people who were considering taking their pets to Mochdre for treatment.”
– review from Tia’s owners