navychief 1 Posted June 20, 2004 My Rottweiler, "Chief", is not doing well at all. He is about 2 1/2 yrs old. When he was 7 months old, he had both of his hips operated on to fix a deformity in his hip sockets. His recovery from that was lengthy, but all was fine after about 6 months. Until last night. I took him outside last night for him to go potty before we turned in for the night. He was coming up the hill from our backyard, when he let out a very loud yelp, and then started whining. I ran to him in our driveway, and he was squatting down, whimpering and trembling. As of now, he is on my front porch, laying on his bed. His back legs will not work at all. I have tried to reach a vet, but it's Sunday, and near impossible to get ahold of anyone. The poor dog is in extreme pain. I have posted pictures of him on this site before, so you all know what he looks like. Keep him in your thoughts today, ok? Chief is very special to me. Thanks. Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chaingun 0 Posted June 20, 2004 Praying for him Chief. Hope all goes well. I like you hate to see an animal suffer and it tears my heart out. :( Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GhostDog 0 Posted June 20, 2004 I'm sorry to hear that. Dont you have a vet ER? It doens't sound good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted June 20, 2004 Well, The vet just left our house. Not good. He looked Chief over thoroughly, and is sure that the problem is not neural, or skeletal. He is fairly certain it is a result of arthritis. I was surprised to hear that, because I always thought that arthritis problems were gradual; not a sudden onslaught. The vet said that many animals that experience arthritis have a high enough pain threshold that the symptoms do not appear unless it is very severe; such as with Chief. He said, "This does not bode well." I almost started crying at that point. I don't know how I can take losing another pet so quickly, after losing my beloved Armand last September. The vet did say there's a vet just north of here, in Blairsville (about an hour's drive), who does chiropractic manipulations. He said that she's accomplished improvement in a lot of cases. He said that she would evaluate Chief, and let us know honestly if he is a candidate for such treatment. At this point, I don't want to think of the alternative. Thanks for your concerns, my friends. I will keep you posted. We will be taking Chief to our regular vet tomorrow morning, early. Right now he is sleeping soundly. The vet gave him some injectable Torbugesic, and some other pain med. Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PG_Raptor 0 Posted June 20, 2004 I used to have arthitis, but thank God its disappeared. At least arthitis isn't life threatening (in a good house like yours). But it does cause lots of pain. Sorry to hear that chief. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firehawkordy 34 Posted June 20, 2004 Sorry to hear about Chief. My heart goes out to you, I know how it feels to see a pet in great pain. The treatment for animals has come a long ways from the two choices we used to have. I'll talk to my ex, she worked at a local vet here and I'll see if she can suggest anything.My prayers are with you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted June 20, 2004 Thanks for all your comments. I have a hard time believing the problem is arthritis. I mean, Chief went from running up to the driveway - to completely not being able to use his back legs - in three seconds. To me, a pinched nerve from a slipped disc seems more likely. I will know more tomorrow. We plan to have Chief at our vet's office early tomorrow morning. Thanks again, gents. It means a lot to me to know y'all are thinking of me and "Chiefer". Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Skater 0 Posted June 21, 2004 Chief, (I have trouble calling you NavyChief, since I'm in the Navy, and we are the only ones with Chief's, so it's like an oxymoron or something) I've got a rottweiller that looks a lot like yours, except mine's a girl. Her name is Roxy, and she's my baby (since 1997). I love her to death, and even though this breed looks big and dumb and loveable, she is the best, smartest, and most loyal dog I have ever had. She's a beast of a dog, able to crush the largest, thickest, and hardest bones on the planet in her mouth as if they were made of chalk. Totally awesome! She routinely, when she wants to play, grabs me by the bottom of my jeans and procedes to drag my big ass around the yard. And I'm so small fry at 6'4" and 250lbs! I look like a professional football player, but Roxy could care less. She's the big dog and she knows it! I love that dog to death, and I can't even think how I would feel if anything happened to her. So my prayers are with you, and the other Chief in the house. I can only imagine how you feel, and what is going through your mind. I hope the big guy pulls through ok. Godspeed Chief. -Skater Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted June 22, 2004 Ok folks, here's the update on "Chief". We called the vet who originally did the surgery on his hips almost 1 1/2 yrs ago. She said to bring Chief up, so she could examine him. From what I told her, she initially thought that he might have some form of meningitis. Anyway, her office is in Knoxville, TN, which is about a 3 hour drive for us. We loaded up Chief, and arrived at the vets office about 1 pm, Monday afternoon. The vet took about five minutes to look at Chief, and immediately diagnosed the problem. Chief had blown out both kneecaps. Within a couple hours, Chief was in surgery to repair his left side (the right will be operated on in a month). The cost is not cheap. Without being specific, it equates to probably the most expensive gaming pc system I could put together. But that does not matter. What matters is in a few months Chief will be good as new. Actually, better! It will be a rough recovery for Chief, and us too. When his hips were operated on, he was still a puppy, and only weighed 60 pounds. Now, at just over 2 yrs of age, he tips the scale at 125. Not a easy puppy dog to move around. So the next few months will be difficult. But the Lord didn't take Chief from us, and for that I am oh so grateful! Thank you all for your support. It means the world to me. I will keep you posted on Chief's progress. Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GhostDog 0 Posted June 22, 2004 Its good to hear that he he will well. I wish him a good and speedy recovery. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lexicon 0 Posted June 22, 2004 Strange to see such as dog have these problems. I have a high-breed German Shepard thats huge. If I lost my dog I would not be happy at all. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Beer 0 Posted June 22, 2004 Great to hear navychief! About four years ago my yellow lab mix was given 6 months to live, there was a chance that the surgery could prolong his life (but for how long was unknown) cost was estimated at about $1200. This crushed the Mrs. as "Theo" was her company while I was gone to sea. We chose to have the surgery (removed tumors in the bladder), and "Theo" is still going like the everyready bunny (although he does have some grey like me now...) Here is a pic of him in thats a couple of months old, I made him pose on the "Midgate Deck" I built for him to ride in the truck (can't believe Chevy left the back of the seats metal, poor thing was slipping and sliding in the back of the truck). Unfortunately we had to put down our cat a few weeks ago, had "Nicky" since 1987, got her when I was in Flight School in Pensacola. She made the treks from Pensacola to California to Maine. Anyways, great news on chief navychief! Cheers Beer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MadJeff 3 Posted June 22, 2004 Chief, that is good news! The recovery won't be fun, but it definately beats the alternative... ;) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
+Armourdave 0 Posted June 22, 2004 Good luck Chief. In some ways you are lucky he has this problem with his kneecaps rather than the arthritis, atleast it can be operated on. We had a jack Russell that got arthritis in her left rear leg. It got progressive worse to the point whereby the leg was cocked out at 30 degrees. There was nothing we could do but have the dog put-down. :( Cheers Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted June 23, 2004 Beer, Theo is a beautiful dog! Glad to hear everything worked out for him. Amourdave, Chief's legs were cocked at about 30-34 degrees. His left leg was operated on yesterday, and is now at 6 degrees, I believe. (I could be mistaken about the corrected angle). As for the cost of both operations, I can only say, "Thank God for Mastercard!" Right now, Chief is sleeping on a twin-sized air mattress I got for him at Walmart today. We have to segregate some of our cats to an outside room, as they pee on his bed. Grrrrrrr...... That is probably the most irksome thing about some cats, as they insist on peeing in places other than their litter box. I have to give Chief pain medicine injections every six hours or so. And, of course Tylenol 3 pills, and Zantac for his upset stomach. Naturally, he doesn't simply eat the pills, so I have to stuff them down his throat. Now, can you imagine me doing that if Chief was not such a friendly Rottweiler? I don't think so!!!!!! Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Skater 0 Posted June 23, 2004 Chief, try stuffing them into hot dogs. That's what I did with Roxy, and she had no problem taking the pills voluntarily then. :) I'm so happy to hear Chief is doing better. -Skater Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
navychief 1 Posted June 23, 2004 Here's a picture of Chief I took a few minutes ago. Pitiful isn't the word to describe the poor boy! I am taking care of him; you can count on that! Navy Chief Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nick Tselepides 1 Posted June 23, 2004 I hope he gets better soon, Pete, and pray for you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
