All About Max
Our Inspiration
This is the story of how the plight of one small yellow Labrador called Max inspired his adoptive family to set up a campaign to support Labrador Welfare who are help him live a normal pain free life and to ensure the ongoing care of the charity's other sponsor and foster dogs.
Max's Story
THE BEGINING
Max came to us when he was little more than a year old.
He had been diagnosed with hip dysplasia and was finding walking on hard surfaces and getting into a car difficult.
So he needed a home with wide open spaces. What better than a farm where the fields come literally up to the front door.
We had previously adopted Angel via Labrador Welfare and seen her through Cruciate surgery. We had also let them know we were able to look after dogs with special needs. The ideal match for Max and we didn’t hesitate when we got the call asking if we could help this special boy.
If Max could tell you in his own words
he would probably say something like this:
First Meeting
The Labrador Welfare lady who finds us dogs new homes had a brainwave.
She had found Angel a home on a farm where there were no hard pavements and I could go for a walk without a car ride.
Angel had had an operation on her Cruciate so the people who lived their knew how to look after a limpy dog like me. They also had a new sheep dog puppy called Blue.
Fingers were crossed that we all got on when we met at Cliffe Kennels
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Excited
I was very excited and Angel was a bit grumpy having had a two hour car ride. She also thought i might hurt baby Blue, who just wanted to play bityface. Angel snarled at me and accidentally bit my ear making it bleed a bit. Once it was clear that we would eventually make friends. The people asked if I wanted to live with them on the farm, I did and Blue was very excited to have a new friend but Angel was a bit unsure and told me she was in charge and I had to be a good boy
Comming Home
I got special cuddles all the way home and was very happy.
My new home is nice with fields and horses and sheep and birds.
Testing Time
My new people thought my front legs might be hurting me as well as my hips so we I went to see Angel’s vet Aldgate
They have a lovely lady called who is a specialist in limpy dogs and how to look after them.
I’m a sponsor dog because of my hips I can’t be insured . That means that not only did Labrador Welfare find me a lovely new home, they pay for all the treatments for my hips
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I needed X-rays of everything and full blood tests so we knew what was wrong with me. The vet lady was very concerned when she saw the test results and suggested I see Patrick who is a surgeon.
Patrick said the news wasn’t good. Lots of things were wrong
I both my hips and both my shoulders were wrong I has arthritis in my elbows and my knees were wearing out.
Some of the problems could be fixed with an operation and I could have a full pain free life but these would cost about 20,000 pounds.
If I didn’t have the operations my legs will get really painful and by the time is got to be around six years old I wouldn’t be able to walk anymore and will have to be put to sleep.
My new family were really upset but Labrador welfare lady said this is why he’s a sponsor dog
we will do whatever it takes.
So we made a plan with Patrick and the vet lady.
I have to go on a diet and loose 6kg
I would have librella and Loxicom to make sure it didn’t hurt so much
I get to go to hydrotherapy to build my muscles up so I’m strong in the right places for my operations.
I had to learn to stay in a nice safe cage
Had to start my operations before I was two because after then my hips would be too worn out to have new ones
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Bad News
Options
Max's conditions were managed with pain medication and weekly hydrotherapy at OpperationK9
We were building up his physeque to better stand potential surgery.
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Maxwas happy, doing really really well and leading as good a life as possible So much so that we all though we could delay or even get away without surgery. We had some more X-Rays taken to confirm and we were all shocked by the results. the degenration progressed much more rapidly than we or his vets expected
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Out of Options
Surgery was now not only needed it was urgent
His knees were unable to support his weight, so cruciate failure was Imminent. His hip joints were no longer in the sockets as these have almost completely degenerated
The dysplacia on the front legs was not surgicaly treatable but we could consider platelet or stemcell tratments later on.
Fixing Max Would Require at least Four operations
Max's Surgery;- The Right Knee
OPERATION ONE
TPLO
The first of the four operations was a Tibial-plateau-levelling osteotomy TPLO on his right knee. This took take place on 23rd Feb at Aldgate Veterinary Hospital in Bridlington. The strain caused by t his Hip Dysplasia had damaged the knee joint so much it was in danger of failing and surgery became more urgent for the knee than the hips.
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The first of Max’s operation was scary. Perhaps more so as we had already been through the same operation with Angel, but she was a steady older dog and couldn’t have been a quieter, better patient.
Max on the other hand was a boisterous 18 month old big yellow pup. Crate rest would be essential.
UNFORSEEN TROUBLE
We discovered Max laying in his crate curled up in a ball with his supposedly healing leg inside his huge cone. The wound split open and already showing signs of infection.
We had all bend caught out. With his hips in such a state Max was effectively double jointed (or rather, as it turned out, not jointed at all.)
Even the largest cone wasn’t able to stop him getting at the wound.
THAT SUIT
This time there would be no chances taken Max returned wearing a full body suit. complete with strings and buckles. He looked like something from the punk era or some avant-garde band of the 80’s Depeche Mode was mentioned…
As well as the suit he wore both the cone and an inflatable doughnut for a couple of days then to his obvious relief, just the doughnut.
It worked despite his best efforts he couldn’t get to the wound
A GOOD START
The actual TPLO went well. He had a quite settled night which he spent softly snoring softly safe in his hospital crate.
Once home Max is did really well. He was unexpectedly good in his safe cage, sleeping a lot. We had to head him off from making a break for the kitchen when he was on his exercise breaks. He also did really good ‘Wookie’ impressions if anyone had food anywhere near him.
Setting up an air bed next to he is crate we were on hand and could make sure he was ok. And so it went for the first few days until the full effects of the aesthetic wore off.
EMERGENCY
An emergency trip to the vets for operation 1.5. The wound had to be re dressed the dead infected skin and flesh removes and all had to be stitched back up.
INFECTION CAUGHT
The antibiotics did their job there was no sign of infection. The swelling went right down. Stitched remained intact. the wound was finally wound healing and he was using his leg really well.
It was clear that the pain he had lived with all his life was much reduced so meds greatly cut back - but will be closely monitored.
If he hadn’t munched his leg the Doughnut could have come off at 10-14 days instead he had to wear it for 25
The crucial 20 day check up went well to day. All healing perfectly. No swelling, no infection. He had his stitches out a few days later and he could finally take off the coat and Doughnut.
BACK TO SQUARE ONE
Then work of building up his muscle structure to get him using the repaired joint correctly Then the fitness build up for the next operation starts. again…
THE LONG HAUL TO 'FREEDOM DAY'
Supervising a TPLO is exhausting the initial wound healing is only the start. Movement has to be severely restricted for the next three months till ‘freedom Day’ when normal activity can be resumed
Max's Surgery;- The Right Hip
OPERATION TWO
OPERATION TWO
After the successful TPLO and a huge amount of work by the hydrotherapy team Max was fit and ready for the Operation Two
Max was booked the first hip replacement for the 21st June. At last the hips.
GOOD NEWS REPLACEMENT IS POSSIBLE
We heard back from Surgeon Patrick. He still thought there is a good chance of a successful outcome for the hip replacement operation. So we confirmed another trip to Halifax for surgery on 21st June.
There remained the possibility that the surgery wouldn’t be possible but we wouldn’t know that until the procedure is underway.
If replacement was not possible Patrick would revert to FHO which should still have a better outcome for Max than doing nothing.
ROAD TRIP 'DAD' TAKES UP THE STORY
You know a road trip with Max is going to be eventful - everything Max does is eventful. He is a Ninja a master of shenanigans. So why should going to Halifax for his surgery be any different? We rented a lovely one bed canal-side cottage ‘Aunty’ Janice along for support had the bedroom while I shared the living room with the Max. Well prepared we brought a comfy dog bed and a inflatable mattress. I had just finished pumping it up only to see a yellow blur, boing past, flying through the air, followed by a lout pop…and a hiss. Max proudly laid on my bed which enveloped him as it deflated. No problem I had a puncture repair kit. The fix lasted about a minute, another flying boing, loud pop only this time a dull sigh from an irreparable Inch long gash. Fortunately Max was only too happy to share his dog bed and spent most of the night cuddled up close him licking my face, feet, arms. Some time in the night I regretted the open plan kitchen living room as the empty bin was thoroughly explored just to make sure. I was past caring. So a little tired and stiff we went for a very early morning walk along the tow path. You have no doubt heard about Labradors and goose hunting? There were geese, lots of them, they were in the water. Max thinks he can walk on water. Max thinks he can breath under water. My goodness all that hydrotherapy has done it’s job he’s very very strong and equally determined. Early dip for both of us avoided by the narrowest of margins we headed off to the vets where Max for once was on his best behaviour. That is until the surgeon tried to examine him and he did his impression of The Blob.. you may remember the old film with Steve McQueen ? An apparently immovable squirming boneless mass of .. in this case grinning dog. This is Max’s long standing party trick he does either get attention or to avoid doing what he doesn’t want to. He does it a lot.
WHAT'S IT GOING TO BE?
We had a road trip to Halifax on 31st May for the templating X-rays and skin check.
The surgeons were still reassessing the risk that the hip replacement wouldn’t be possible or could fail post op. If that happened they would revert to a femoral head and neck excision or Femoral Head Ostectomy (FHO) where the femoral head and neck of the femur are removed in order to alleviate the pain of bone-on-bone contact of the hip.
The surgeons consider this is the second best option for surgery so there was nothing to lose but the cost. A planned FHO would cost £3500 but If we tried for replacement it would cost £6500 even if we ended up with the FHO. This is because the cost of implants and the larger , hip replacement surgical team would be committed before the operation started.
THE BEST LAID PLANS...
Surgeon Patrick tried his very best to replace Max’s right Hip. The operation was to fix a new artificial cup joint where his own had eroded and install a new femoral head ball joint. We all had every hope for success but it quickly became evident that what appeared to be a worn socket wasn’t. The joint had never formed as it should in development and what we were seeing on the X-rays was a deep groove worn away due to bone rubbing on bone for his entire life. We can only imaging the pain the poor boy has endured. Sadly there was nothing to form a joint from so Patrick reverted to our second option, This procedure can have extremely good results so we are not too disheartened. Especially now we know that Max has been managing extremely well with no actual joint all his life. It is highly likely that the left hip joint is the same.
BACK HOME 'DAD' CONTINUES
Things were less eventful after the opp but even a heavily sedated Max managed to deafen us howling until I swapped the hated cone for his trademark blue doughnut. Standards have to be maintained. The first morning home, restricted movement meant a lead and his rear end held in a support sling. Fine until Max realised his hip didn’t hurt for the first time ever. He decided this was the time to test it out by attempting his first ever zoomie. Unfortunately our guard went down preventing the potentially catastrophic celebration - we hadn’t realised the kitchen door was open. You could feel him eying something up then he made his break. You see Max believes if the door is left open anything accessible and vaguely edible in the kitchen is his. This includes the contents of the bin which must be dragged out and deposited around the living room. Max was a little reluctant to ‘do his business’ on a lead. His use of the immovable blob trick was foolishly countered with a treat Carrot -donkey style we got him going. I’m not saying Max is a quick learner but he now will only ‘poop for treats’ And like the model who wouldn’t get out of bed for less than she thought she deserved, Max won’t go into his recovery crate until chicken or at the very least, ham is offered, then he trots straight in to receive his bounty. Each day Max is getting more and more playful. We are only halfway there Goodness only knows what he will like when all four operations are complete and his is almost totally pain free.
Max's Surgery;- The Left Knee
OPERATION THREE
OUTSIDE HOPE
After successful operations on his right hind leg - first a TPLO, then a Femoral Head Excision - Max had Op No 3 last Thursday, a TPLO on the left hind. His surgeon had hoped that it would be possible to repair the hip, thus reducing pressure on his knee, so there was an outside chance that knee surgery may then be unnecessary or could be delayed indefinitely.
TESTING TIME 'MUM' TAKES UP THE STORY
“ So, we had everything crossed when the surgeon did his examination.
Alas, it was not to be... in truth we already knew from his hydrotherapy and physio sessions that Max‘s knee had been getting creakier by the day. He had all the tell-tale signs of impending cruciate ligament failure; so much so that we had been avoiding any additional strain for months, meaning poor Max missing out on his beloved beach meets over the summer.
So, there was a risk that the knee joint could fail during recovery if the hip was fixed first. That would have been disastrous, as it would have rendered impossible the post-op therapy crucial to the success of the operation. As a result Surgeon Patrick did the TPLO to strengthen the knee first.
As usual Max took all the prodding and poking in his stride during the pre-op examination. Even though the stretching clearly hurt, and he really was reluctant, he did his best to turn it into a game, and then with the exertion of it all, fell asleep while being examined. We don’t think we’ve ever seen a dog going through so much be so kind and calm.
Of course he knows everyone, so after his consult he insisted on a trip behind the counter to say hello to all the staff! Everyone knows and loves Max so we make sure we have plenty of time for his appointments. Knowing he’s among friends helped when we took him in for his surgery on Thursday, but we were still emotional wrecks, just like the other times.
THE SURGERY
The surgery went smoothly - not so much the coming round, though. According to the unfortunate veterinary nurse caring for him, Max sang a constant and extremely loud ’Song of his People‘ after waking up from the anaesthetic, not only deafening everyone in the recovery room but throughout the building. Even people in the waiting room had to endure his wailing and they must have wondered what tortures were being performed. The problem was, Max hadn’t eaten for 21 hours and there was no way Max was not going to tell everyone about that!
We are back to the well-oiled routine of recovery crate rest, five minute pee breaks and (despite his now trademark blue doughnut) constant vigilance against illicit wound munching. Last time, to protect the operation wound, he had to wear a black suit, the sections of which are held together by safety pins to allow him to move, pee and poo freely. His outfit caused much hilarity on (what was then) Twitter, where it was agreed it looked like something Depeche Mode would have worn circa 1987! Fortunately, this bizarre canine garment has not yet been needed and is on standby.
‘Mum‘ is sleeping on an air bed next to Max in the living room, or at least trying to. The bed’s last puncture repair kit fix (necessary following an encounter with Max’s teeth and claws) failed dramatically with a loud bang in the middle of the night. Thankfully e-commerce provided a speedy replacement.
SUNBBATHING
It’s going to be a long three-month recovery. Today, Max’s recovery crate is in his favourite sun-bathing spot outside. He’s very content, snoozing and watching what’s going on around the farm. He’s had his first post-op check-up and everything is as it should be.
Max is still only 2 but has already had his third major surgery. He is such a laid-back character and has so far taken it all in his stride. Once recovered from his second operation, it was wonderful to see him up and out, doing his best to keep up with his besties Blue and Barnaby. With one hind leg mended, he was probably in less pain than he’d ever known in his life. Max is just the loveliest boy and he deserves the best life. We can't wait until he has recovered from all four ops and is able to visit the beach again, pain free for the first time!”
FAMILIAR ROUTINE
Having had one TPLO we have settled into what is now a familiar routine. Still in week two its four five minute breaks a day with the rest of the time keeping Max happy and content in his recovery crate. Lots of days in the sun with his crate placed outside so he can watch the world go by. Nether the less we have ten more weeks to go.
FREEDOME OF A SORT
Week three is an important one the dreaded doughnut can come off . The time outs now three five minute and one ten minute breaks.
SO FAR SO GOOD
The two day was passed with flying colours. very little leakage or swelling
At ten days all was perfection despite Max escaping for a mad five minutes and jumping on the sofa. His escapology getting better as on his return for the check up he Ninja'd his way into the kitche and stole a whole bunch of bananas. Most of which had been munched down before he could be caught.
@Limpylabmax is Born
MAX DEBUTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
After becoming the FACE of OPERATION MAX and setting up the Limpylabmax campaign We decided to keep a a diary of MAX's progress. So his X (then twitter) account @limpylabmax was created. Max soon began to attract followers and has made some really good friends along the way.
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Follow Max On Facebook and X @limpylabmax
Shortly after Joining twitter it became clear that a lot of his friends didnt use twutter but used FACEBOOK so a new account was opened there.
Max has his own Gofindme page wich has regular updates followed by people who have donated.
