Meet Knox
Our beloved 2 ½ year old English Setter, Knox, impaled the inside of his hind quarters on a stick on 9/18, piercing almost all the way through to just beneath the skin on the other side and severing half of his left hamstring.
I rushed him for emergency surgery to our vet Dr. Maura Connolly Anderson of Victor Vet. The next day I conferred with Dr. Maura again, as Knox was in obvious pain, and whining which he never does. She suggested either a pain patch or, to try hyperbaric treatments in IF and gave me Troy’s contact information.
After a detailed and informative morning conversation with Troy, that very evening, within 30 hours of his injury, Knox had his 1st hyperbaric treatment, followed by a 2nd treatment around 6:00 am. The next morning I picked him up and took him home for a quiet recovery. That, however, did not seem to be in Knox’s plans as by the next day, he was energetic, alert, and wanting a run – did not even act as if he had been injured. It was an effort to keep him quiet.
His rapid recovery continued: we had a follow up vet visit on 9/23 and Knox looked so improved that he was able to get his stitches out on 9/30 – not even 2 weeks of his initial injury. After another safety period of 5 days, we started our hikes again and he never showed any signs of fatigue, muscle pain, or incapacitation.
I attribute his recovery to both the incredible talent of our vet, and to Troy’s skilled and attentive application of the hyperbaric treatments. I was told initially to expect a 3-5 week recovery period since he had damaged so much of his hamstring. It’s only 4 weeks out and my puppy is 100% recovered!
Meet Honey
Honey, an 8-year-old Dachshund, had an unfortunate run-in with a Great Dane Bull Mastiff mix. Honey underwent extensive surgery then three hyperbaric treatments over the next two days.
One month later the owner tells us, "Honey is doing great! She just has a small scab on her back and she is in great spirits. Thanks so much for your help and concern."
Meet Copper
Copper is a 6 year old Shiba Inu. He was tragically run over while sleeping under a truck in the driveway. He was rushed to the weekend emergency clinic where after some quick x-rays were taken, an arduous surgery was performed to try and save his life.
The worst of his injuries included a broken pelvis and his stomach cavity pressurized and blown out, leaving his intestinal tract on the outside of his body. He was given a slim chance of survival but after hours of surgery and the removal of 2 feet of small intestine and a small hernia repair, Copper made it out of surgery. After that it was a waiting game to see if the surgery was ultimately successful, for his GI tract to start working again, and to see if his body could handle healing all the trauma he was put through.
During his recovery he had multiple hyperbaric treatments which helped his recovery by leaps and bounds; helping to keep the multiple sites of his stitches healthy and increasing the blood flow to his injuries to help his body heal. It was recommended that he be on 6 months of caged rest for his pelvis to heal and it was even thought he may never walk very well again. Ten days after his accident he started taking steps and within 3 weeks he was almost back to walking normal. He only had one subsequent surgery a few weeks after his initial one to remove some small patches of skin that were too damaged to save but through the amazing care of his doctors and the healing powers of hyperbaric therapy, Copper has made an almost full recovery, all within a span of about 8 weeks. (Special thanks to Copper's family for writing his story.)
Extensive Surgery and 6 HBO Treatments
Meet Chloe
Chloe is a 3 1/2 year old Yorkshire Terrier diagnosed with Cerebellar Trauma.
The cerebellum is involved in the coordination of voluntary motor movement, balance and equilibrium and muscle tone. Cerebellar injury results in movements that are slow and uncoordinated, swaying and staggering.
Damage to the cerebellum can lead to loss of coordination of motor movement, the inability to judge distance and when to stop, the inability to perform rapid alternating movements, movement tremors, staggering, wide based walking, tendency toward falling, weak muscles, and abnormal eye movements.
Chloe's initial prognosis was dire, yet after 3 HBO treatments over 2 days, Chloe experienced full recovery in less than a week.
Phoenix
Phoenix arrived at the shelter in Los Angeles as a stray with a paralyzed rear end. We believe he was hit by a car due to the evidence of severe fractures & malformations of his improperly healed spine. Because he uses his front legs to drag himself around, he had deep abrasions along his body and calluses on his paws and tail. We adopted Phoenix and his foster parents flew him from LA to meet us in Utah.
His doctors at Alpine Animal Hospital started acupuncture and laser thermotherapy immediately. He can now wag his tail and has bowel & some bladder control. He was starting to stand on his rear legs. Unfortunately, due to severe muscle atrophy, his rear legs have both dislocated at the hip. To prolong Phoenix’s life we will receive bilateral amputation.
His doctors partnered with Bioshield HBO and recommended the service for Phoenix. He was one of the 1st clients in the new, Bioshield HBO Pocatello ID location.
Bioshield HBO is now a critical part of his care team for both pre and post surgical amputation success. After just 2 presses from Bioshield HBO, Phoenix has not needed his pain meds, has increased energy and bladder control. His front end muscle tension has disappeared and he stretches out like never before. Pound for pound he is the fastest dog in the house. I am so impressed.
Phoenix will continue treatments throughout the year(s) for his spinal column injury and muscular health maintenance.
Troy is incredibly compassionate and empathetic. We are so fortunate to have his service in our local area. Because I have multiple animals, travel has not been an option. This new location will not only help Phoenix, I will be using it for the severely injured dogs I foster to recovery for adoption for a local rescue and our Animal Shelter.
