Lone Star Labrador Retriever Rescue (Lone Star Lab Rescue) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, all volunteer organization, dedicated to saving purebred Labrador Retrievers from euthanasia in city shelters throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
I've pulled a pitiful, starved boy from Mesquite. He had been seized for neglect and cruelty from his owners. He is terrified of everything and will barely walk. Bless his sweet heart, his big brown eyes will bring you to tears. It looks like he has never heard a kind word or had a loving stroke on the head. When I was asked to rescue this dog, I knew that we had to help him. We get to teach him that people can be kind and loving.
I decided to name him Mickey (yes, like Mickey Mouse). I kind of thought it fit him. I refused to keep the name his owners used. He deserves a whole new start. He weighs only 40 pounds. He is at least 20-25 pounds underweight. He has a lot of small scabs and nicks that are from another dog going after him, lots of fly strikes on his ears. Believe it or not, he is heartworm negative!!! The mosquitoes probably couldn't find enough on this boy to even bite :-(
He is at our vet now. He would not walk much for me, but I did notice that his legs bowed out when he did take a few steps. After his exam, the vet says he has luxating patellas on BOTH knees. Luxating patella is the medical term for "the kneecap slides out of the track & off to the side." It is painful for him to walk. Without surgery, he will likely be totally lame in another year.
The good news is that this is not terribly complicated surgery. It sounds like both knees can be probably be done at the same time.
Mickey is taking his first steps toward a much brighter, pain free future! Surgery to correct his damaged knees will cost $3500 to $4000. We can't think of any better way to spend money! Of course, this is an extraordinary expense for a small rescue. If you would like to contribute to Mickey's surgical care, you can donate through Paypal using the link below, or mail a check to PO Box 2286, Coppell, TX 75019. Donations are tax deductible. We will update Mickey's progress here and on Facebook! He will have to put on 15-20 pounds before he can have surgery, but the fund raising begins now!
Here, we'll post updates on the story of Mickey.
Mickey - looking much better
What a sweet boy! It took all of 5 minutes for him to warm up once we got home and since then he has been a very typical tail wagging, toy chewing, puppy.
I have completely broken my furniture rule for this guy and he enjoys hanging out on the couch, chewing on whatever toy currently strikes his fancy. He is eating really well and constantly searching for more food, he's quite the counter-surfer. It takes a lot of restraint for me to not let him eat to his little hearts content. It also is going to take a lot of discipline for me to remember to discipline him - he just looks so pitiful!
He LOVES to play fetch - he will bring the ball back and let me take it right out of his mouth. We are working on him getting used to his crate. He knows to "kennel" but cries and barks for the first 5 - 10 minutes he's in there.
So our little project is doing great! Thought you would all like an update on this sad story. It's already getting SO much better. It's amazing what a little TLC will do for a pup.
Mickey has certainly come out of his shell. He wants to run and play with all of the dogs!! He turned out to be just a bit too energetic the the senior Lab at his origianl foster home, so he's moved to a home where running and playing are the norm.
Here, he's having a great time playing with fosters Stetson and Griffin. He does fine in his crate as long as he has a bone or a toy to chew on, but he really loves laying on the couch next to his people. Putting on weight is certainly not a problem for this little chow hound!! He's learning the expression "will work for food".
Mickey at his first Meet-n-Greet
Mickey was neutered today. While he was asleep, we had his knees and his hips x-rayed to see what we're in for. There's good news and not quite so good news... The good news is that his hips are in great shape!! We were concerned because dogs with knees in as bad of shape as his often have bad hips as well. We dodged a bullet, there!! Now the not quite so good news... He will have to have surgery on both knees. They recommend that we do each knee separately so he'll have one good leg to stand on while the other leg recovers. It'll take about six weeks of recovery and rehab for each knee, so it'll be at least 3 months before he's available for adoption.
Mickey has come a long way. He's at a good weight for his size - about 55 lbs. He's got more energy than he knows what to do with, so he's ready to have his first knee fixed. His surgery is scheduled for February 6th.
Mickey has had his first knee surgury.
For Mickey's fan club that has been keeping up with his progress, he is doing better than we ever expected!! Mickey had his first knee repair on the right side last week. At his check up today, the vet says that it is looking great! His kneecap is staying in place when he walks. Mickey is already walking very well and bearing weight on the surgical side. It is hard to keep him from running & playing already! He will rest & have rehab for 6 weeks and then we will repair the luxating patella on the left knee. Mickey says "WOOF!" (that means "thank you very much" in Canine) to everyone that has contributed to his medical expenses.
Mickey has had the stitches removed from his first knee surgery. He's supposed to be resting and taking it easy, but that's really hard for him to do. He's getting around really well and is able to put some weight on the leg. We're very pleased with his progress. After a few more weeks of recovery, we'll be able to fix the other knee.
Mickey takes a turn in the Kissing Booth
This weekend, Mickey worked to support his own cause at the North Texas Irish Festival. We were at the annual festival at Fair Park in Dallas with several dogs. Some currently available for adoption and some "alumni" - dogs that have found "furever" homes through our program. Mickey took several shifts in the Kissing booth, and was a big hit!! His first knee is recovering nicely and we're looking forward to scheduling the second one so he can be on his way to a loving, "furever" home of his own.
Mickey
Just thought I would update everyone about Mickey, our silly boy with the knee problems. He had surgery to repair the knee cap on his right knee at the beginning of February. He has been healing up well & making very good progress.
Then about a week ago, he started "toe touching" and not bearing weight on that leg. We went to the vet & he is defintiely more painful and the knee is somewhat swollen. It looks like he was feeling better and he got a bit too active and stressed the knee. Mickey is a very active boy & it is really hard to keep him calm & quiet. He just loves to run & play!
We had planned to do injections of a drug called Adequan into both knees after the 2nd surgery was complete. Adequan helps the body regenerate cartilage in knees. We have decided to postpone Mickey's 2nd knee surgery for a few weeks and start the Adequan injections on the right knee now. The knee cap is still in place & moving very well. Hopefully putting him back on anti-imflammatory medication and the Adequan will get him back on the road to being able to run & play!
Mickey's right knee is doing really well. The Adequan injections have helped a lot. In fact, he's recovered so well that we were able to do the surgery on the left knee. The surgery was April 25th and it went very well. He's not able to put any weight on the left leg yet, but that really doesn't slow him down. He's taking some pain medicine for now, but is recovering quickly. We'll give him time to rest up and rehab this knee, and he'll be ready for adoption in about four to six weeks. He's a really sweet boy, and will be somebody's best friend.
Here is a video of Mickey playing with his newest foster sister, ShyAnn
