Koty #308

Above: Koty with Trish and Joe

Hi folks, my name is Koty. I am a four year old Golden who has been in Golden Bond since the fall of 2002. I lived at Charlton Kennels for about 4 months learning all sorts of manners. Dan Butcher was my trainer, I owe him a lot of thanks.

It was discovered about two months ago that my knees were not working right. After much discussion by the board and a visit to Dr. Munjar, it was determined that I needed to have both of my knees operated on so I could run and play like the rest of the Goldens and then find my forever home.

The reason my knees got this way is that for the first two years of my life I lived in a crate up to sixteen hours or more a day. When I was let out to play I ran like crazy to make up for lost time. Because of these bursts of running and then being put back in the kennel I just about ruined my knees. I also put on a lot of weight which didn't help my knees any. I had little or no muscle in my legs and had difficulty getting up. All this due to lack of exercise and obesity.

Well, life changed for me in Golden Bond, especially after my visit to Dr. Munjar who determine I needed surgery.

So here is a picture of me standing next to Dan the morning I left Charlton for my surgery. Dan was good to me and I do miss him.This next picture is of me at The Veterinarian Referral Center getting ready to go for my new knees. This next picture is of me leaving after having only one knee operated on. After shaving my legs in preparation of surgery, Dr. Munjar discovered that my skin allergies had acted up after our visit and now was in pretty bad shape. He was afraid that an infection could get into my new knee so only one knee was operated on.

This last picture of me in the x-pen with collar on is me recuperating at Ross and Erin's home. I had a visit last week to Dr. Munjar and he said my first knee was doing great and determined that my other knee was ready for surgery. I am set for April 1st. Certainly hope it is not an April Fool's joke!

I am happy living with Erin and Ross and dogs Gulliver and Dealer, just wish I could play with them but I am not allowed to now.

I will be back to tell you how I am doing after my second surgery on April 1st. Bye for now.
Koty

Here I am in re hab! June 2003

From Trish: "Koty LOVES his hydrotherapy. Dr. Shaw is really pleased with how far hes come in the last several weeks. The therapy has really helped his recovery Im so glad weve done it! And, hes slimming down (now at about 75 lbs. v. his one time high of 105!). He still has about 5-10 more lbs. to go and it will take awhile for his muscle mass to improve, but all in all,
he's doing really well.
May 2003 -I'm Adopted!

Koty-I am so excited, I finally got to pack my bags and say good bye to Ross,
Erin, Devon, Gulliver, and Dealer. Joe and Trish picked me up and took me home on May 15th, the day their other Golden who has gone to the Rainbow Bridge would have turned 6. It was good for all of us. Joe and Trish have been there for me a lot and I really love them. I was so excited to be in my new forever home that I just wanted everyone to stay awake all night and pet me. I'm still a bit unsure of the stairs, but that is okay, if I act scared Joe carries me. (boy have I got him trained). It is a good thingthat I lost all that weight. Before Golden Bond got me, I weighed 105 lbs.,that is why my knees were so bad. Since coming to Golden Bond, back inAugust 2002, I have been put on thyroid medication, and had surgery on both knees. Wow! do I feel better and now I have a family of my own who love me and think I'm something special. Thank you Golden Bond, Trish and Joe for loving me enough to let me have this wonderful chance to enjoy life. I will miss Dealer and Gulliver, but having a family all to myself is GRRRRRRREAT!!!!