An active King Country huntaway named Puzzle injured his carpal (wrist) joint at work and had to have a plate put in.
Puzzle before surgery
But being very engergetic he broke the plate so he was facing either amputation, or a new plate. Neither of these two surgeries were affordable for the famer who owned him.
The farmer contacted Retired Working Dogs NZ, where staff decided Puzzle had plenty of life left in him.
Puzzle after surgery
“We decided to fund a new plate and raised money to pay for the surgery, which went ahead last month,” a spokesperson for the organisation, Marie-Claire Andrew said.
“But once the vet had a look he decided we didn’t have to replace the plate because it was healing very well; so it’s great we decided not to amputate.”
Puzzle had since spent 12 weeks in a foster home and the next step would be to place him in a new pet home, where he could lead a calmer life.
“Puzzle’s case is really typical of situations we deal with. These surgeries are expensive and its also a big commitment for a farmer to look after a dog and rehabilitate it for weeks. Every dollar counts on farm.”
Puzzle with his vet nurse
