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Things are not going so well right now for my service dog Pebbles and me. We had to take Pebbles to the E-vet last night --I was at a friend's house hanging out and she suddenly started acting funny --holding up one of her hind legs --not putting it down --the foot was trembling.
Found out after x-rays and examination that the e-vet suspects that she has a tear in her ACL. Not sure how it happened. He recommended resting her and restricting movement for 3 weeks.
I called my vet this morning and he said that it is not likely to get better without surgery, but to go ahead and rest for 3 weeks.

Please keep us in your prayers. I will keep you all updated. It just feels like a lot at once --my cousin is getting married, I am still continuing my job search, and now I have to do it all without my best friend. She does so much for me (helping me walk, retrieving things off the ground, etc.) and I wish I could make it all better for her.

I'll be praying. I hope all goes well, even if she has to have surgery.

For what it's worth, my father (veterinary surgeon who does a lot of orthopaedics) also states she'll probably need the surgery based on your description, but it usually comes out very well. I know in *human* medicine ACL tears usually need surgical repair too, and those generally have good prognoses.

*Hugs* I'll be praying as well

Just try to keep Pebbles rested for now. It may be hard (since she's used to being op and going), but it's for the best ^__^

Still waiting to hear back from the vet. She was supposed to call me on Friday but didn't, so I called the clinic today and left another message for her to call me and let me know what the orthopedic vet said.

I'll keep you guys updated.

Just heard back from the vet. Pebbles will need surgery. The sooner, the better. We are being referred to an orthopedic vet.
It's going to be pretty expensive --I pray that we are able to get the IAADP grant to cover the surgery:
http://www.iaadp.org/iaadp-membership-benefits-vcp.html

I am feeling overwhelmed. I have a job interview on Wednesday morning at a pet resort and I hope they will be understanding...

Praying for you and pebbles....

Pebbles' consultation with the vet is on the 24th. The consultation costs $111, but we heard about a church and an individual in town who are wanting to help with costs. So God is totally putting everything together for us.

In other news, I think the interview went well. I will find out in a week if I get the job or not.

Greatest of luck with the jeorb and the operation

I'm sorry : ( I'll pray ^^

^^ I'm sure things will go fine! Meanwhile, don't get tooo stressed and rest in the fact that God will sort things out... XP nooow to study for my finals.... >_<;

I am taking Pebbles to a second specialist today at noon. Please pray for us.

praying for you and pebbles, sheenar

Just to let everyone know the latest news:

Today we saw a surgeon who specializes in the TPLO surgery and he confirmed that she has a slight fraying of her ACL --we caught it before it tore really badly. Pebbles will need the surgery. His office is going to contact the grant program with IAADP (International Association of Assistance Dog Partners) on Monday to see if we can get the grant to help pay for the surgery.
Pebbles will be going back next week for x-rays --he needs to see the knee at a certain angle so he can do the necessary measurements.

Thank you all for your support. Please keep the encouragement coming. It's a very hard time --both financially (still waiting to hear back about that job I interviewed for) and emotionally. It is hard to see my best friend with such a serious injury. God is really stretching my faith.

--Sheena and Pebbles

Awww, I'll continue to pray that everything works out for you guys ^__^

Should hear back by Wednesday about the grant. Please keep praying for us.

Thank you.

You and your family (including Pebbles) are in my prayers, Miss Sheenar.

Here is the latest news: The vet's office called us today with word from IAADP --we can get the grant, but it is capped at $1,000, which will leave us with almost $2,000 to raise for her surgery. I have contacted my church and the Lions Club --I want to get a fundraiser together, but am not sure how (not sure how to get people to come and give them something they would enjoy coming to).

Please continue to keep us in your prayers. And thank you to those who have been praying.

--Sheena and Pebbles

Update:
We have gotten approval for a contribution fund through my bank and I should be able to get an article in the paper soon and make flyers to put up around town. So things are definitely moving along and God is causing everything to come together!

Another update:
Pebbles has an appointment with Texas A&M on August 5 for a consultation. We should hopefully have the funds we need by then.

Still praying for you! I've been wishing I lived nearby.

Great news! I got a phone call today and we now have $2,500 in Pebbles' fund! We had $490 on Monday, so somebody made a HUGE deposit!
Praise God! We now have enough money for Pebbles' surgery!

Pebbles went to the vet school today. They did a physical examination first and then they had to sedate her for radiographs and for another examination of her legs. They didn't find any obvious signs of cruciate ligament damage (which is strange, because the partial ACL tear diagnosis had been confirmed by the 3 previous veterinarians she has been to).
We were told that this didn't mean she didn't have any ACL or other soft tissue issues, but that they didn't show up on the radiographs or in the physical exam. So they recommended a bone scan --they will inject her with some sort of radioactive material which will make everything show up well on the scan and do the test --then call me with the results. She has to stay for 24 hours after the scan so that the radioactivity can dissipate back down to safe levels for her to be around people --she has to potty in a certain area where people/other animals won't come in contact and be in a special kennel--they will even check her over with a Geiger counter before she is cleared to leave --just to make sure.

They weren't able to do the bone scan today --the machine is in use by a horse (which would obvioiusly take a while to complete), so her bone scan will be tomorrow morning.

So Pebbles is currently camping out at the vet school for a couple of nights. She will get to come home with me on Friday. They will call and let me know.

Thank you all for praying for us and supporting us. It means so much.

--Sheena and Pebbles

Well, I got a phone call from A&M this morning: turns out they weren't able to get the radioactive stuff to inject or they couldn't get a tech to come in (something like that), so the soonest they can do the test is probably Monday (if the company they get the stuff from can get it to them). So I am going back today to pick her up.

We will reschedule the test and then they will call and let us know if they have everything before we go back up.

It's frustratiing, but the test is delayed only a little. So no radioactive dog until next week!

--Sheena and Pebbles

Pebbles will be going back to A&M tomorrow morning for the bone scan. God totally provided and they were able to get a tech to come in and get the materials (the stuff they inject) together for it even though there's a huge shortage right now.

Please pray for us. I just heard from the family that has been buying Pebbles' food for me that they will no longer be able to. I also may not be able to get my electricity bill paid this month.
My mom and I are really struggling. I am still looking for work (been looking for 7 months) --have been sending out 2 applications a week. My mom is buying groceries on her credit card because she doesn't have enough money to buy food for herself.
And my food stamps have been cut off and I had to reapply.

I know God will provide and that He is teaching me to trust and not worry --it's still very hard and frustrating to deal with all that is going on.

The latest news on Pebbles is that she does not have an ACL injury, but does have osteoarthritis and mild hip displasia in her left hind leg and possibly "mild T3-L3 myelopathy" (not sure what that means --I copied from the discharge sheet A&M sent me home with). The vet said to put her back to light mobility work and see how she does --and to look for signs of her lameness getting worse or signs of pain. She said that Pebbles will not be able to work for the 2 or 3 more years that I was hoping but should be able to work for a while longer.
Today was Pebbles' first day back working and she seems to be doing well. I can see that her back legs are still not "quite right", but the vet said that as long as she's comfortable, that it's okay for her to work. When I put the harness on her this morning, she sure was ready to go! (Poor thing has been bored out of her mind for 2 months --I bet she was so happy to see that harness come out!) She went right back into working as if she hadn't had any time off --I was impressed.

So I'm going to watch her and give her a few days (or a week) of working and see if her lameness returns like it was the day we took her to the emergency vet in June. So things are still up in the air and we are pretty much just going day by day until we see signs that she should retire. Though I am wondering if I should be working her with her hip problem (the vet said it was okay, but I am struggling with it).

Pebbles is starting supplements to help with her joints --so that may make it easier on her.


Pebbles is my first service dog, so I'm not quite sure how to handle to question of her retirement. Please pray for me. I'm trying to make the right decision.

--Sheena and Pebbles

Will be praying for you and Pebbles both.

I have good news: Pebbles has been cleared to go back to work! She won't have to retire for a good while (hopefully). She'll be on supplements for her joints and, as long as she's willing and wanting to, she can work. This is such a huge relief and a great burden is off of me. I feel much more confident about her returning to work after talking to my trainer this morning.