This morning we took Jeep to the veterinarian for her knee repair procedure. So far so good! We know she is in excellent hands with Dr. Scot and his team at Lake Geneva Animal Hospital!
Jeep’s Surgery Drop Off
Poor Jeep! No School for 6 Weeks
A few weeks ago in the big (and only) snowstorm of the season, Dottie and Jeep were up to their usual antics of snow wrestling when we saw Jeep jump up and land at an odd angle on her back left leg. She immediately pulled her leg up in pain and hobbled into the house. Playtime was over.
A few weeks later, Jeep was still limping and having greater trouble moving from a sitting position to a standing position. We brought her to the vet (whom she loves) to find out what was wrong.
Through x-rays and tests, we learned that Jeep tore her CCL which is a ligament (much like a rubber band) that allows her knee to bend. (It is similar to the ACL ligament in people.)
Tomorrow Jeep will have a special type of surgery to repair the damage. A cut will be made into her tibia (shin) bone to separate it into two pieces then a screw will be placed in between to allow the knee to move in alignment. A bone plate will then be attached to the screw to stop it from moving. Then Jeep ‘s leg will be stitched up and she can come home. In 6-8 weeks her bone will grow around the metal pieces to give her a strong knee once more.
I am thankful Jeep will get to come home after the surgery because the vet will place pain medication right into her knee so she won’t feel any discomfort for at least three days. After that, she will have pain medication as she slowly mends. She will have to go back to visit the vet as she recovers.
The hard part will be that there will be NO running, NO playing, No climbing, NO jumping, NO horseplay and NO working for 6 – 8 weeks. Every time she goes outside she will have to be on a short leash. It is very important that she doesn’t damage her leg further. Jeep will not be able to come to school until sometime around Valentine’s Day. No doubt she will greatly miss all of her friends at school.
Keep your paws crossed for a smooth surgery and a speedy recovery for our fluff ball!! Stay tuned for weekly updates on her progress.
P.S. I sure hope Dot Com gets the “NO playfighting” message and lets our friend rest.
Below is a short video of Jeep limping around the house with Dot. We placed new carpet runners on the floors until she gets better so she won’t slip. It also helps her hobble away from Dot when she has a yummy treat to munch.
Happy Holidays!
Jeep and I hope you have a terrific winter break and find lots of time to relax. You can see that Jeep is starting the relaxing part a bit early — it is exhausting to be a Santa Paws!
Snow Dog
Jeep hopes you enjoyed your snow day as much as she did! It is quite hard trying to get her to come back inside and warm up her frosty paws. Maybe we should look into boots for her. 
Jeep the Sheep with Bo Peep
Jeep and I had a terrific time visiting classrooms on Halloween! We saw some incredible costumes and many happy kids.
Jeep was a great sport about turning into a sheep this year. (This was definitely one of the times I took a hit for our team considering her costume requirements were pretty minimal. Oh well, what are friends for?)
We hope all of you got lots of treats and NO tricks!
It’s Official!
We have all seen Jeep’s picture on our staff yearbook page, so we know she is definitely part of the team. However, today for the very first time, our friend Jeep got to wear her staff ID badge! She proudly wore it to two schools today and we were impressed by how many of her kid friends noticed. A number of the students agreed, “Of course, Jeep is a teacher!” Now, if only we could get her on the payroll then she could buy her own bacon double cheeseburgers.
By the way, Jeep proudly posed for her new yearbook photo this afternoon sporting her new ID badge. What a girl!
Jeep is All Smiles on the First Day Back
Jeep certainly missed her kid friends over the summer. She spent the morning at Hooper and Thompson Schools. She watched over the new seventh graders at Palombi as they figured out where to sit in a new cafeteria. This afternoon – after she has had a nap and a couple of bowls of water – she will head over to Martin to see her friends there. She is one busy pup!
WELCOME BACK!!! We all missed you!!
Rise and Shine
We have all seen how much Jeep sleeps during the day at school. (We don’t call her Sleepy Jeepie for nothing!) Apparently, Jeep isn’t the only hard to wake up Pyrenees out there. Check out this video of a pyr who works on a farm watching over goats – well, he is supposed to be watching them. Looks to me that he is asleep on the job.
If only pyrs weren’t so set on being nocturnal. Jeep is usually wide awake in the wee hours of the morning and would love nothing better than to get me up to play outside with her. Fat chance fluff ball!
Jeep is All Smiles at the Dentist
Jeep visited the dentist today with my husband just to remind all her kid friends that a visit to the dentist’s office isn’t scary. In fact, Jeep enjoyed meeting the whole crew at Smiles by Design in Richmond – just check out her smile!
Jeep and my husband were welcomed by an amiable receptionist named Barb who asked all kinds of questions before the actual teeth cleaning. Barb escorted Jeep and my husband into a special room with a big, comfortable chair and special lights. Jeep watched on as Kathy, a skilled dental hygenist, busily cleaned and polished my husband’s teeth. When Kathy was finished our friendly dentist, Dr. Jim Reichle, examined all of his teeth to be sure there were no cavities or problems. Everyone was very kind and attentive!
Did you know that both dogs and people have two sets of teeth during their lives? A dog’s first set has 28 baby teeth and its adult set has 42 teeth. That is a third more than people have! We only have 20 baby teeth and 32 adult teeth. Both dogs and people can experience tooth decay and gum disease. Just like people, if a dog loses an adult tooth it won’t regrow. That is why it is so important to take care of both your teeth and your fuzzy friend’s teeth. For tips on how to clean your own dog’s teeth check out:
10 Ways to Clean your Dog’s Teeth
