Law Abiding Citizen

Noa had fallen and dislocated her left hind joint...

Breaks my heart as she howled in pain...

Breaks my soul when the option of
(1) putting her under for a long surgery...
(2) or under enough anesthesia to pop it back in place...
(3) or leave her be so her dislocated joint will have to bear a long process of pain to fit in its off-position in which she'll end up having an awkward leg to move around or snuggle herself in...

Problem with (1), there's a high risk of putting a dog her age under g.a. It compromises her organs and she might not wake. It will be a long tedious surgery.

Problem with (2), as with (1), except she'll be under for like an hour or so. The vet also emphasized that this option has the highest failure rate. Her bones are getting old and her socket is shallow. Which means, it may pop out of position again. We could repeat this process many times, which means the risk when she goes under every time.

Problem with (3), we find it hard to deal with the fact that she will be in pain until she gets used to the fact that her joint will never be in position ever again.

We needed an option that fixes her pain fast. She couldn't stand and cries when she tried to move. So we decided on (2). Put her leg back into position, and thus, began our prayers.

Tears of relief when I got the call from the hospital and said that Noa is up and we can pick her up.

It's only been 10 hours since we brought her home. She's restless, but doing well. Bet she feels real awkward with her fixed leg bound. She's not allowed to move it for awhile.

She's being so brave for us and we're so proud of her.

What I didn't appreciate was the condescending condolences.

We REALIZED Noa cannot be allowed to jump anymore. No couch. No bed. No curbs.

We DEFINITELY will not let her go up on the shoe cabinet (where she must have fallen from) no more. She loves the spot. She'd sit on top and look out the window. Many times she'll get up there, sit and watch the world go by or cats roaming about.

We beat ourselves up enough for this to even happen, so OBVIOUSLY, having her joint dislocated is a "well received" wake up call.

We're not clueless.

So if you haven't got anything nice to say, just shut up and pray.