Cole's story

Owner: Debbi Shaw E-mail: Foregetmeknotz@aol.com Date posted: October 3, 2000 Jacob's Cole Digger is a 3 year old black Lab. He is named after our son Jacob, and after a John Wayne character, Cole. I first noticed him limping on September 3, 2000 and just thought that he just twisted his knee while playing with our 1 year old yellow Lab, and my brother's black Lab. Well, it seemed to get better, but when I took him for a walk and he had a hard time walking, that's when I took him to the vet and found out about the torn ligament. We took him to Dr. Marquis at Tiara Rado Animal Hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado. Dr. Marquis is one of six vets certified to do TPLOs in Colorado. We were scheduled just for a visit, but that morning Cole blew out his knee, and so that meant the surgery. It has been a week today and he is doing wonderful. Very happy with the progress he's made and I feel that I made the right decision on having the TPLO done. He will not hunt this year, but that's okay, we have a back up. UPDATE: October 10, 2000. Cole is doing well, walking and doing things that he shouldn't be doing, considering that he just had to surgery on Sept. 21. At the vet clinic where Cole stays during the day while I'm at work, the doctors are amazed at how well he is doing. He's lost weight, which is a good thing. I'm hoping that by losing weight we won't have the same problem in the other knee. He doesn't go back to see the doctor who preformed the surgery until November 2, 2000. I am hoping that he says he can stay home and in the backyard with our other one. Cole has become quite spoiled. I don't know how he is going to like it outside once he is able to go out back. I will write more as time passes. People are amazed that I would spend this kind of money on a dog, but beleive me, I would do it again if I had to. And anybody who is reading our story, if your dog is in need of such a surgery, please consider it, I have talked to many people whose dogs had the same thing and the dogs are back to 100%. So by next year Cole will be chasing ducks once again. UPDATE: November 1, 2000. Cole is doing great. He's on joint-enhancing supplements. We're headed for our 5-week checkup and hope to hear that everything is OK. UPDATE: April 13, 2001. Howdy all of you TPLO Survivors! Just a quick note to let you know how well our dog Cole is doing. Let's just say that you can't tell that he had surgery back in September of 2000. The only thing is that his hair still has not grown back on the top of his back on his hind end. That is the only lasting sign of the surgery. He went on his first Duck Hunting trip, in December, and did very well. He is back to his old self, running and play with our other Lab, trying to keep up with her. I do believe that if it were to happen again I would do it in a minute, no doubts about it.