DAKOTA - THE SAINT

DAKOTA – THE SAINT



Dakota breezed through his first year with me. Time flew by just as smooth as silk. Thank goodness! It all came to a screeching halt this past week. I found that one of his calluses on a front elbow had an open hole in it. As many dogs as I’ve had through the years, only one other had calluses as huge as Dakota’s. Through the ensuing days, I have put this poor dog through endless attempts to heal the hole right in the middle. This was only a tiny hole that I’m sure I overlooked for some time.

If you’ve never had the experience of wrapping a dogs leg, you’re in for the most exasperating time of your life. I’m convinced that a degree from veterinarian college is based entirely on successfully bandaging a dog’s leg. Pitfalls lurk with every attempt. I’m not talking about the straight part of the leg. Oh no, that would be too simple. I’m referring to the wrist, elbow, hock areas. You basically have two choices. You will wrap it too tightly thus endangering your dog’s circulation which is very serious or you can wrap it comfortably [loosely] and have it all fall apart.

A front leg callus is not a static object. It is called a Decubital Ulcer. It happens when a bony part of the body – human or animal – rests for long periods against a hard surface, restricting blood flow to the area. “With blood flow restricted, tissue dies and sloughs, or detaches from the body.” The treatment involves relieving all direct pressure on the ulcer. Trust me, this is not an easy task. Thankfully, there is a wonderful solution today. A company makes a complicated unit that fits over your dog’s leg[s] and solves this frustrating situation. They can be found on the Internet. You must send in measurements as they are made specifically for your dog. But be prepared to take out a second mortgage – this is an expensive investment. However, if you have a fairly young dog, I’d say it is well worth it. But it is hard to justify for a senior dog over the age of 10 living with retired folks on a limited income. The company is called Dogleggs.

I am blessed with a rescue dog that is a saint. Dakota has the patience of Job. Since I could, in no way, afford the Dogleggs solution, I had to set about contriving my own method of keeping pressure off of the elbow enabling the ulcer to heal. It was been so long since I dealt with a Decubital ulcer I’d forgotten how I solved the problem. I gathered a tray full of possibilities. Then I called Dakota to join me on the couch. He headed the other way. Smart dog. It was most important to keep a calm atmosphere because I knew this thing could drag out. I also knew that Dakota would probably put on a good five pounds with all of the treats that would be needed to get us to the solution. I reached for the lead. He immediately comes when he sees one and he quietly jumped up on the couch. I figured the couch was better than having him on his grooming table since this would be a long, involved experiment.

As much as I’d like to steer you through this nightmare try after try, I won’t. So far I think I’ve used half of a drug store. My greatest fear was getting the bandaging too tight. I think it is a phobia with me. Just because I haven’t had to deal with Decubital ulcers through the years, I have had to deal with other leg problems. It still is my worst nightmare.

I hesitate to say that I have solved the problem because sure as heck if I do, it will fall apart too. But so far, it’s the best I’ve come up with and it seems to be working. I am using one of those rubber-like heal cups you can put in your shoes for cushioning. It’s taken me only two tries with scissors to cut it down to the right size. It now fits exactly over the round ulcer and the thin part goes down his leg and can be secured with tape to hold it in place – mostly just to steady the cup part. I then put a cut section of a nylon [foot and top removed and sized] over it and firmly [not tightly] wrap it with self-sticking tape. So far Dakota has tested it out by going outside and rolling to his hearts content several times and it has all held together.

This sweetheart of an animal has been up on the couch endless times with his sad eyes looking at me as if to say…”Is this the last time mom?” The wastebasket has been filled with attempt after attempt failures. The little hole seems to be healing – at least getting smaller. I forgot to put come cotton or something to absorb a small amount of drainage and that may set me back, but at least I can correct that when I take it off at night to allow air to circulate around the ulcer and to let this precious creature sleep comfortably. I cannot begin to tell you how guilty I feel. Mostly because Dakota is a rescue dog. I have no idea if he’s had previous problems. I would think he has because of his size and I have good reason to think he spent time on a hard cement floor somewhere along the line. But he’s been on carpet since joining us and perhaps that’s added to this problem. But I still feel guilty. He shouldn’t have to endure all that I have put him through. With so many years and dogs behind me, I should have learned how to handle one of the major problems dogs have. I can’t hug him enough, love him enough, pet him enough or tell him how much I appreciate his patience and trust in me to let me try to help him. Hopefully this is a good solution as he might need to have it done again. The hardest part of all of this for me was finding patience and not fall apart. There were so many times when I wanted to scream or cry. Just to see him get off of the couch and watch everything fall apart after trying so hard and spending so long on something I thought would work. A number of times I just took it all off and left him alone. The sore would get worse and I would have to try again. I don’t know what I did to deserve Dakota, but I’m so glad I have him. He will have extra stars in his crown along with his heart that is as big as all outdoors.