Bindie Blevins

From VSC Vienna: Meet Bindie Blevins, an adorably tiny 5-year-old Toy Poodle. Last October, her dad brought her to VSC Vienna for a surgical consult with Dr. Justin Ganjei, who determined she had luxating patellas on both her left and right sides. Complicating things further, her luxation was bidirectional, or luxated both medially and laterally, which is much more unusual and difficult to treat than medial or lateral patellar luxation alone. Dr. Ganjei recommended bilateral MPL surgery, which Bindie had just a few days later. Nine months after Bindie's surgery, we caught up with her dad, Mark, to see how she was doing and hear her story.

Mark Blevins: "Bindie's left knee symptoms began in the Spring 2016. Periodically, she would lift her left leg when running, and I would gently massage her leg and ease the kneecap back into the groove. In the summer the right knee was affected, too. Symptoms progressed and episodes became more frequent, until both kneecaps began to luxate simultaneously. This resulted in Bindie's rear legs collapsing, with her dragging her hindquarters. She did not, however, cry out in pain.

During her exam, Dr. Ganjei witnessed her bilateral collapse, and surgical correction was recommended. I was apprehensive about Bindie undergoing surgery and having general anesthesia at 6 lbs., but there was no other alternative to restore her quality of life. She had a good recovery, and 4 weeks after surgery was able to stand on her hind legs to beg for food! I am grateful for Dr. Ganjei's surgical expertise, and for all the staff who cared for her and showed such compassion."

Watch the video below or CLICK HERE.

We love a happy ending! So glad to see this sweet dog get back to the finer things in life... walking, playing, and wearing fashionable sweaters, of course!

Thank you to Bindie and Mark for sharing their story with us.