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Saint Zena

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DOB: 3/27/02

Zena at 3 years old sporting her new spring haircut.....what a princess!!

 

Zena at 2 1/2 yrs old

 

Zena at 5 months

 

Zena at 3 1/2 months

 

Zena at 6 weeks

 

Please take the time to meet our second, resident couch potatoe, Zena.  Zena came to live here, as a pet, at 6 weeks of age and was purchased from a newspaper breeder.  Zena is a living, breathing reason as to why people should buy a Saint Bernard from a reputable breeder.  At 6 months of age Zena was diagnosed with severe hip displasia.  Her capability of getting up without crying or taking a long time were the first signs of the disease and they started when she was about 4 months old.  Because of the severity of the disease, her rapid decline and high levels pain, we took Zena to an orthopedic surgeon where, at 9 months of age, she had her first TPO (Triple Pelvic Osteotomy) surgery performed to correct her displasia.  10 weeks later (to the day) she had a second TPO to correct the other hip.  It took about 9 months from the first surgery to be able to release Zena back to full blown activity.  She has since been long recovered and as full of life and energy as ever!  She is very high in the rear secondary to having the corrective surgery, but her hips are no longer painful and her quality of life has dramatically increased and we look forward to having many, many years left with our girl. 

Zena has had such a big place in our hearts that we decided to allow her to give the gift of life to other dogs in need by becoming a blood donor.  Together, Zena, and our other resident couch potatoe, Zeus, have helped save many lives by being able to donate large quantities of blood to other canine patients in critical condition with a high success rate.  Thank you Zena for being the wonderful girl that you are!!

 

If you currently have, or think you may have a saint with hip displasia, please do not ignore it.  One of the biggest mistakes people make is waiting until their saint can no longer get up and down like they used to and by then, arthritis has already set in to a point where now your saint has no choice but to show his pain, and now you notice it.  Corrective surgery is very beneficial and often only performed at a young age before the development of arthritis, or even salvage surgery such as Total Hip Replacements if arthritis is so far gone that it has crippled your saint. But even if surgery isn't an option, which for most people it isn't,  medical management can help give your saint a longer, happier and pain free quality of life.

 

For more information on canine hip displasia, please visit: 

http://www.workingdogs.com/doc0090.htm

http://www.offa.org/

 

Is your dog a suitable blood donor?

1. Must be healthy

2. Must be friendly (dogs are awake during collection)

3. Must be less than 8 years old

For more information regarding the donating process, please visit:

http://www.emergencyclinicforanimals.com/volunteer_blood_donor_program.htm