Meanwhile, in the waiting room…
In the waiting room | Luuk
With his hippo plush toy in his mouth, Labrador Luuk trots around, wagging his tail. He shows his toy to everyone in the room, as if to say, “Look how happy I am!”. He can hardly sit still, that’s how excited he is about his appointment with animal physiotherapist Jil de Graaf. “That means he can go back in the water,” explains owner Francine Prak. For the past eight months, Luuk has been coming to the University Clinic for Companion Animals (UKG) for rehabilitation.
“Luuk took a nasty fall in the woods, causing his hind legs to slip out from under him. His abdomen was completely immobile and appeared paralyzed. It was a very unpleasant experience,” says Prak. “The animal ambulance picked him up. Fortunately, he was still able to feel signs of pain. That gave us hope.” De Graaf: “The MRI scan showed that his spinal cord had been hit by the lower thoracic vertebrae, causing it to become temporarily pinched. We call this an acute non-compressive hernia.”
Prak: “I read that hydrotherapy can be extremely helpful in rehabilitation and knew that the UKG offers it. I immediately got in touch.” The water supports Luuk and makes it easier for him to lift his hind legs. Plus, he can't fall over. “In the beginning, I had to reteach him to land properly on the bottom of his paws when he walks,” says de Graaf. Prak adds: “Luuk temporarily wore a harness around his body so that he could be supported from behind by lifting him slightly. He also wore a shoe so that his right hind leg would not be damaged by dragging it along the ground. "
Prak lives in Utrecht with her son, her dog Luuk, and her cats Em and Nya. “Luuk is truly part of the family,” says Prak. “And he is a support for our cat Nya. She has epilepsy and often lies next to Luuk. He senses when Nya is about to have a seizure and alerts us.”
Luuk can now walk on his own again, but he'll always have a bit of a waddle. The focus now is on building up his fitness, strength, and endurance so that it gets progressively easier for him to move.