4:30pm the same day as surgery, I picked him up from the vet and they explained how the surgery went.

Due to his extensive size the surgeon decided to put 2 brackets in, one on either side of the knee, to ensure it would hold forever. They gave a run down of what to do for the next 24 hours, 3-5 days and when they needed to see him again for post-op checks. I was to email photos after 3 days, after 2 weeks... in 3 weeks the vet would do a home visit and in 8 weeks he'd need another set of x-rays.

We got him home from the vet successfully. He seemed happy to see me and didn't whimper when he walked out to the van, or during the car ride home. But getting him into the house was another story, even with the use of a large sling under his belly, just the small 6" step into the house caused him to cry out in agony! It was awful to hear him... but we did get him into my lounge and laid him down on his memory foam bed.

We quickly discovered though that because the bed was again 6" in height, he was howling to get up or down from it... all i could think of was how in the world was I going to get him off it to take the 10 steps required to walk out my patio door onto the grass to take a wee. So I ditched the bed and put a thick rug and blankets down instead. That was MUCH better for him.

After a few hours we realised he couldn't stand, not even with our help. So I ran to the pet shop and got some puppy potting training pads and laid them under him (whenever he'd shift his position). Although I knew he would "hold it" as long as he could... as he's never had a potty accident inside and seems to have a bladder the size of an elephant so he can hold it A LONG time...

He was interested in food, but not water. Which I was grateful for as he's on 4 medicines: an antibiotic, Paradale (for muscle pain), Metacam (anti-inflammatory) and Gabepentin (for nerve pain)... 15 pills in total a day plus 2 syringes full of liquid Metacam.

I spent the night with him, sleeping on my couch. He quitely whimpered all night, only sleeping for a 1/2 hour here and there. At 6am, 18 hours later, I gave up trying to sleep, turned on the TV, lights and grabbed a mugful of strong coffee.

But to my horror I took a close look at his leg and what was yesterday, post-surgery, a normal shaped leg with just a 12" cut with dissolvable sutures... Was now a badly shaped leg. The inside of his knee now was a triangle shape, with a tennis ball size lump! To the naked eye it looked broken... and since he still couldn't get himself into a standing position, I was completley panicking!

I rang the vet as soon as they opened at 8am and emailed them over photos and a video (you can view it in my playlist). They have since reassured me that it is likely just severe swelling and to put cold compresses on it every few hours for 5 minutes at a time... and keep him laying down for the next 2-3 days. No standing, not even to go potty. Great... welcome to the world of a dog getting grumpier and more frustrated at not being able to wee or poo!

As the day went on, a few times that day I'd come back into the room from a bathroom break and I'd find him a few feet away from him usual position. One time I even found him actually standing, yes STANDING, in my lounge/kitchen doorway. Which was not good as he couldn't turn around in the small doorway or walk backwards on only 3 legs.... so he laid down and stayed there for most of the day.

He ate his meals (his normal amount, portioned into 4 small meals with his meds hidden inside),this is where a raw food diet really comes in handy, they never even notice the pills plunked into raw meat! He also finally took a few licks of water about 4pm that day. I was SO happy as he'd not drank since the night before the surgery!

We will see what the rest of the night entails in my next video...

Thank you everyone for your donations, they made this first round of surgery possible 🥰 I will keep you all updated as the days progress. For now I’m going to spend the rest of the day and night cuddling my sweet furry monster that for a change isn't charging into me and knocking me over, which is one of his many fun games (sigh).

If you'd like to help support Mr Jay's recovery, his 2nd CCL surgery on his left knee or the Romanian and UK charities that helped save his life, donations would be greatfully recieved here on our JustGiving page:
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfundi...