Last Updated on 2021-11-18 by Admin
It’s been two months since my last review of how Annie is doing with the Posh Dog knee Brace. Time to address some of the comments I made in the earlier post. And to provide the Dog knee brace – two month evaluation.
When I wrote my first Brace review, I mentioned that Annie was walking funny. That seems to have gone away for the most part. Now she walks normally, as good that is possible with a brace.
In the first post, I also mentioned that I used compression foam on Annie’s Hock because she was always licking on the hock. That issue got addressed when we booked a Skype call with the Posh Brace technician. The technician is very patient and always takes the time to listen and watch. After showing the technician how Annie licks her hock, they sent me another type of Hock wrap that works much better. Annie no longer is licking her hock after walking. I like the new hock band much better. For some reason, it also makes placing the brace in the correct position more straight forward. Plus, there are three straps to tighten the hock wrap, allowing it to stay more secure in position.
Putting on the Brace
Annie has been wearing the posh brace for two months now. Initially, she was not all that fond of having it put on. After two months of putting on the brace, it is just another thing we do before going for walks.
It is remarkable is how patiently Annie is waiting and holding still till the brace is on. When I put the brace on, she turns her head to watch what I do. She is calm and relaxed while the brace goes on. Annie never stops to amaze me. I could not ask for a better dog.
Brace Durability and Maintenance
Before putting on the brace, the brace needs some bending to make it more flexible and a better fit. That bending is something I never liked doing. For some reason, my thinking is that the material gets weakened by that action. But having bent it for two months, it still looks like new. The brace is very durable, hardly needs any cleaning or servicing. Occasionally a strap might need adjustment, or a screw needs tightening.
Once the brace is on and we walked for about 10 minutes, I recheck and do some tightening. That additional adjustment step helps to keep the brace in position for the rest of the walk.
We also had some snow, and the brace works well in little to moderate amounts of snow. With Deep snow, I wonder how much snow will get stuck between the brace and leg. Something we will find out in the next month or so.
Annie’s Walking Progress
Over two months ago, we did short walks of about 20 minutes. Without the brace Annie was limping a lot. Then when we got the brace, it showed that Annie was more comfortable. Later, once she got used to walking with a brace. We slowly increased the duration of our walks. There were times where we had to shorten the walking time again because Annie showed signs of limping. It is a balancing act to gauge the walking time Annie can tolerate before she starts to limp.
In contrast to two months ago, Annie is now going for a one hour morning walk. Something I could have never imagined before the brace. The other walks during the day are between 30 and 40 minutes long. It is interesting to read how much more progress we made in this Dog knee brace – two month evaluation since my last review.
It Works, but be Careful
Because the brace works so well, it is easy to forget that Annie has an injury. And that can lead to making a mistake and let Annie do too much. Even after almost two years of dealing with Annie’s knee issues, I have difficulty judging when we are close to overdoing it.
Dogs go on until the pain stops them. They don’t know how to take a measured approach. So it is up to me to find out when it is enough. That is not an easy task. Sometimes everything seems okay, but after we get home, she limps. Only then do I know that we did too much.
On one occasion, I had to drive to bring my wife somewhere for an appointment. I assumed that it would be a quick in and out scenario. So I decided to take Annie with me. While waiting for my wife to return, Annie and I could go for a short walk.
As it turned out, my assumptions were wrong. Annie and I had to wait a couple of hours for my wife the return. I attempted to keep the walks short with lots of rest for Annie in the Backseat of the car. The brace was at home instead of with us.
Once we were Home, Annie was limping badly again. I was mad at myself for not taking the brace with me. Annie was limping for two weeks till it got better. The brace does a fantastic job. But it does not take much without the brace to make things worse.
Supplements that work
When I went for that walk without the brace, we had almost run out of Annie’s joint supplement, Maxxiflex. My latest order of Maxxiflex got held at customs. From experience, I knew that it could take a while till customs might release the shipment. So I wanted to give Annie another supplement that could help her.
I ordered the NuPro joint & immunity supplement. It was on the list of recommended supplements from Posh Brace. When ordering a Posh Dog knee Brace, You get much more than just a brace. As it turned out, that supplement works well. I now have two dog joint supplements that help Annie. With Annie, finding a joint supplement that works has taken me a lot of research.
You can read more about the two joint supplements in my post called “dog Joint Supplements that Work.”
When the limping is terrible for whatever reason, I still give here Homeopathic Arnica and Ruta. Arnica and Ruta together do an excellent job of reducing the pain and stiffness in Annie. After a few days on Arnica and Ruta, Annie’s is back to normal.
Conclusion
I must say the brace is worth every penny. A custom knee brace is costly, but I’m glad we ordered it. Without that brace Annie would be much worse off. All those months before we had the brace. Annie went only for short walks with little improvements. Comparing that to the last two months, where Annie has been wearing a brace. It is incredible how much more we can do now.
When we go for our walks, Annie might see another dog. And instead of trying to ignore that other dog. I can now go over and meet and greet. And if Annie happens to jump a little, it is not a problem as long as the brace is on.
Annie is now used to the routine of putting on the brace. She does not mind the brace. We even have a morning game where Annie comes and grabs the hock wrapper and tries to get it from me. After we do that for a while, she stands still, and I put on the brace, and off we go. Annie’s quality of life increased considerably by having this brace. And all of improvements happened before I wrote the dog knee brace – two month evaluation post. That is a lot of progress in little time.
Knowing what I know now, I would have gotten this brace when Annie was starting to limp. Way before she was ever diagnosed with a torn knee ligament. We could have avoided a lot of issues over the last two years. Something to consider for any of my readers that are dealing with a dog knee injury.
It will probably take another ten months before Annie can play and run without a brace. I look forward to seeing Annie run and play with other dogs without a brace.
Update: 2021-11-18
I also like to make my readers aware of the following post, Dog knee injury – Why After one Year of Conservative Treatment I Decided on Surgery. That article will be interest to dog owners that have a dog young and healthy enough to undergo surgery.
Resources:
Role of bracing in the management of knee osteoarthritis https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20035222/