At 4.5 months old “Cash’s” owner Vickie became concerned that his front legs where not looking normal. Cash seemed to feel fine and the local Vet thought he would grow out of the issue. Vickie was not convinced and went searching for answers on the web. There she found the Great Dane Lady and OrthoVet, LLC. Vickie opted for a supportive set of splints and a change of diet to hopefully help Cash. This seemed to help for a short time but Cash kept growing out of the splints which caused problems with pressure sores. At that time OrthoVet referred Vickie to a Veterinary PT & Rehab Therapist. At 5.5 months old he was diagnosed with HOD. (Hypertrophic Osteodystrophy) is a bone disease that usually affects young, rapidly growing large breed dogs. Cash was put on a strict diet and a therapy schedule to try and slow down the joint calcification. Unfortunaly they could not slow the bone growth down and Cash had his first surgery at 7 months old. They removed part of his Ulna because the Ulna growth plate closed while the long bone growth plate was open. This caused the long bone to “bow” over the Ulna. Cash had to have surgery on both limbs. OrthoVet fabricated custom splints to help support his legs during the rehab. process. The splints were modified after about 2 weeks to allow more function.
When Cash was 1 year and 2 months old Vickie had the Orthopedic surgeon do a correction on each front limbs (one limb at a time). This was done to completely stabilize the joint spaces. Since Cash is a Dane and weighs over 130 lbs. Vickie felt like this was necessary.
The below photo shows Cash after all of his surgeries. It has been a long process for this big dog but now Cash enjoys a normal active life.
If you would like a complete and detailed version of Cash’s story or more on HOD please contact us at www.orthovet.com
Please feel free to copy our brochure. It is a handy way to inform your Veterinarian about our product or when someone may need a splint for their pet.
Cast your vote for OrthoVet in the Spot Magazines “Top Dog” award 2012. This celebrates the “Best in the Biz” for the favorite Pet Business. It’s all decided by popular vote, so head to www.spotmagazine.net and cast your vote!
Check out our latest article featured in the Sept. issue of Spot Magazine. “Splinting vs Surgery= no brainer” You can find your free copy at any local Bi-Mart store or click the link below to view online.
http://www.spotmagazine.net/
“Lucas” has an injured rear limb. His Achilles tendon will no longer will support him due to an injury at his hock joint. “Lucas” did not fit into our standard feline rear limb splint. He also did not need a full lower limb splint. We were able to modify our X-Small canine hock splint to fit “Lucas” perfectly. He is a happy cat now and gets around great with his new splint.
OrthoVet can do these special modifications to our splints upon request. Just give us a call for full details on special modifications.
Recently OrthoVet fabricated a splint for Sahara Rain. (the Pot Belly Pig you see above) We are happy to help Sahara stay “On the Move”. Please read her story below.
This is Sahara Rain who was named after a Swedish rock group I was listening to waiting for a radio interview of my sanctuary for Pot Belly Pigs. Noah’s Ark Pot Belly Pig Sanctuary, Inc.
We are a no kill , non profit sanctuary for abandoned and abused pot belly pigs. Sahara was found wandering the streets at only five weeks old when she should have still been with her mom.
Some people who caught her brought her to me because they could not get her to eat. Well, Sahara is now 2 years old on or about the 4th of March as close as we could figure.
She started limping and I took her for several x-rays. Sahara was diagnosed with a Salter Harris fracture ( Class 3 ) . It was decided to put her in a cast. Dr. Nayfield did that for Sahara and she
wore that for a little over 5 weeks. It was taken off and Ortho Vet was contacted and Dr. Nayfield and Ortho Vet got together as how to do a brace for a pig since one had never been done for
a pig.
Sahara is doing quite well and is very use to the brace and does not mind it at all now.
I want to thank Dr. Nayfield, Dr. Kennedy and Ortho Vet for making it possible for Sahara’s leg to start healing .
Lynne Boismier
Noah’s Ark Pot Belly Pig Sanctuary, Inc.
New Port Richey, Florida
OrthoVet also offers a feline or cat size This size is suitable for cats and small dogs weighing up to 10 lbs. The feline size is available in both front and rear limb editions. (for cats or dogs weighing less than 5 lbs., please call our toll free number at 866-207-9205 for special sizing modifications.)
“Italian Greyhound with Carpal instability”
In some cases it is necessary to make an adjustment or customization to an OrthoVet splint. Some examples are, the splint is a bit to small or large in an area. The animals limb seems to be rubbing or has a pressure spot. The splint may be to high or long and needs material removed to achieve a good fit.
All these customizations can be done by heating the splint with a heat gun or trimming with a pair of shears. We also provide a “training video” on our website that explains the process in full detail. You may also send the splint back to us and we will gladly do the customization for you.
Above is an example of an of a custom fit. The splint had to be adjusted to fit the tiny limb of this Italian Greyhound.
