Little Kona has had his 3rd and final surgery. Due to the extensive nerve, bone and vascular damage sustained from being hit by multiple cars, Kona was fitted with external fixators on his left rear leg and hip in an orthopedic surgical effort to save his leg. Unfortunately, despite a heroic effort by our vet, his progress was reassessed and the surgeon determined that the leg was too far damaged to regain any use of it and amputation was the only option for him to lead a normal life. Fortunately, dogs can and do adapt very well to loss of a limb.
Kona's surgery was documented for use in veterinary education and the pictures of the surgery (special thanks to Fabian & Heather who so expertly documented Kona's surgery) can be found on the following linked page, but please be advised that these photos are of a highly graphic nature depicting actual major surgery on a dog and may be extremely disturbing to some people and children under 17. Click here to see Kona's actual surgery

---