Sixth Day At Home

Finally we have made some progress today!  Titan not only has started standing more on his own but has also made it to the door to ask to go out.  And once out he peed!!  Things are starting to get back to normal in the bathroom department.  We are still beside him the whole time to make sure he doesn't fall or tire out too quickly and hurt that leg.  He has learned to get around on 3 legs with a bit of toe touching from the sore leg rather well and he can really motor when he wants.  He isn't really using the leg much yet which worries me and sometimes I see it bent at a slight angle as if weak, so I have started some physical therapy.  There is some wonderful videos on YouTube about this.  They are:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJ3gWMDtl3o&t=5s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdXRu0C6ejI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6fOuQ_W4vo

I like to start with a small massage to get blood flowing into the muscles and then I start with the hock (ankle) and slowly flex and extend it.  Then I do the same with the stifle (knee) and lastly I do the same with the hip.  He gets 5 repetitions for each joint for now and I have noticed that Titan's muscles are a bit sore afterwards.  Once we finish I massage his leg again and make sure the muscles are relaxed and some of that swelling goes down.  The very last thing I do is put a little heat pack on for extra comfort.  I'm only icing the leg now when he comes in from outside.

The other excitement is about his food.  This morning he ate some stewing beef right up but left the kibbles that I had added chicken broth too.  So I tried to sprinkle crushed up beef liver over the kibble and it worked!  He ate a few mouthfuls on his own.  While I was at work this evening Mike told me that he was able to get Titan to eat up almost a full meal with a tablespoon of butter melted over the kibble.  Then for good measure he got some stewing beef as well.  As we have two different med times in the evening he ate some kibble at 7 and again at 11 all on his own and took his meds like a good boy.  I was so happy I did the running man dance at work!  Thank goodness we are moving along in the right direction finally and some of the worry can be put aside.

Today we extended and adjusted the ramp to make it a little easier on Titan.  This put the ramp on less of an angle and at the top there is a smaller step to get onto it, so Mike won't have to lift Titan down any more.  Once again a huge thank you goes out to Peter for coming on short notice and on a weekend to help make all our lives a little easier.

(Keeping an eye on things and being curious)

And lastly Titan is feeling well enough to share his bed with his brother Ares.  We are working towards cuddles but it's a start!

(Feeling more like himself today)

Tomorrow I will take on making a snuffle mat to keep Titan busy while being stuck inside and resting.  For anyone who doesn't know what that is:

"A snuffle mat is a great easy to make (although a little time consuming) enrichment toy for your dog or cat. This can be used for dry food or dry treats and encourages your pets natural skills at sniffing and snuffling food out." - All Pets Education and Training

http://www.allpetseducationandtraining.com.au/snuffle-mat-mayhem.html

Here is a how to video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaZeXOvnXik&t=11s

Titan's leg day 6: