Manny had been hobbling on three legs (all but his hind right leg) and starting to show signs of pain. We had gone to the Vet 10 days before to get the first set of x-rays which showed weakness in his hip. By standards though, they cannot diagnose Legg Perthes without seeing a similar x-ray two weeks later. Manny had shown signs of quick degradation so we asked the vet if they would see him 10 days later. Sure enough, the x-rays revealed rapid deterioration of his hip.

After confirming it was Legg Perthes Disease, we took Manny into the recommended orthopedic surgeon. They examined Manny and the x-rays and told us that they would gladly take Manny that afternoon. It happened very quickly, but all of our research (and the doctor’s confirmation) is that the sooner the surgery the better – particularly for the rehab period. By waiting too long, the injured leg loses significant amount of muscle – which causes difficulty during rehab.

We left the surgeon on Thursday 4.19.2007 at around 10am and were told we would be able to pick him up the next afternoon.

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