Maude
Maude is a red cropped female in the care of Doberman Assistance, Rescue and Education (DAR&E). They think she is between two and three years old, and has obviously been bred. Maude is a major sweetie - it was hard to get pics of her because she didn't want to get too far away from her new DAR&E friend. She is quiet, and loves everybody and everything. They think this is a girl who didn't get much in her first couple of years of life and is exceedingly grateful for whatever tidbits she gets now.
Maude came to DAR&E as a stray from a rural Maryland shelter with a broken rear leg that has since 'healed' in a broken position. She can use the leg to support some weight, but it is painful and an obvious struggle. One of the pictures below shows the bump that resulted from this untreated fracture, and there's a picture of the x-ray as well (it's hard to believe how badly the bone set from just looking from the outside). Frankly, to say that the bones 'set' is not accurate because the two ends did not join together. A fibrous muscle and ligament tissue formed between the two open ends. The body will do amazing things to keep a limb functional. While weight can be supported, there is a great deal of pain (stating the obvious!). See the pictures below and on the second picture page for more detail. OUCH!!!
The original thought was to cut the bone and plate the leg, which usually costs $2,000 or so, though they weren't sure if she'd really benefit from that surgery in terms of pain/function. Dr. Walker from Dulles Care Group had a different protocol that he recommends on dogs with previously fractured legs that have lost more than an inch in length. He treats it more like a luxating patella surgery, whittling down the bone callous. The muscles, ligaments and tendons then have slack in them and he stabilizes the leg. The healing time is only 2 weeks (as opposed to 8) and has a cost of $1,000. Once the 2 weeks is up, they can rip and run and swim and build the muscles up which will help them regain full use of the leg. The surgery has since been performed, and she is doing well! More updates will be posted as we get them.
We are asking your help with Maude's surgery and recovery costs. While DAR&E was able to come up with a less expensive, more effective treatment, the bills are still large. You can mail us a donation or use the PayPal button below if you would like to make a tax-deductible donation for Maude online. We appreciate any help that you can offer!
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| Here you see the hump right above the knee where the bones 'set' improperly. | And here you can see the bones. It is amazing that this girl can walk at all in this condition! Poor girl!!. |
See more pics and x-rays of Maude! (The page has seven more pics, give it time to load.)
