Bailey’s Surgery Recovery With His Big Barker Bed

Bailey is a Bernese mountain dog that lives happily with his family in New Zealand enjoying all the fun parts of life. However, he was unfortunately diagnosed with elbow dysplasia when he was only 7 months old. His family was completely heartbroken as he underwent CT scans to confirm the news. Unfortunately, Bailey’s parents found out too late that Bailey’s dad also had a form of elbow dysplasia, and that this condition was indeed genetic. Due to their families unconditional love for Bailey, they proceeded with the surgery and knew they had a long road to recovery ahead of them.

Bailey’s family was able to schedule his first arthroscopic surgery on both elbows on January 29, 2020. During his surgery, Bailey’s family got a phone call from the surgeon… not the type of phone call you want to get during a surgery. The surgeon explained that his condition was worse than what x-rays showed. Bailey was going to need an additional surgery.

The next surgery is called a Proximal Ulnar Osteotomy (PUO), on his right leg. According to WagWalking, proximal ulnar osteotomy surgery “can correct the distortion of the radial bone, by allowing it to develop since it will no longer be restrained by a shortened, solid ulna.” Completely shocked by this news from the surgeon, Bailey’s family only had a few minutes to decide what to do. They felt like going ahead with the surgery was the best option for Bailey and the PUO was completed right then while Bailey was still under sedation.

After Bailey’s successful surgeries, Bailey was taken home the next day. His family noticed the extreme pain and unhappiness that Bailey was feeling while recovering from the surgery. To ensure that Bailey wasn’t overworking himself, Bailey was crated and only let out for toilet breaks, vet appointments, acupuncture, laser treatments. It was so hard to watch Bailey stay still and he seemed unhappy during this recovery time. Then 2 days after his first birthday, his family received great news! The Physio said that Bailey was doing much better and was strong enough to be released from “his prison” (his crate).

Unfortunately, Bailey’s mom did say that he was still limping on his left leg. Again his family was filled with devastation and heartbroken as this meant one thing: another PUO surgery. A couple of months later, Bailey had his second PUO surgery done, this time on his left leg. Which meant he had to spend more time in his crates, more time at vet appointments, more time being unhappy and resting while he should have been a rowdy, fun loving puppy.

These surgeries and appointments started to weigh on Bailey. He chewed up three “orthopedic” beds. Bailey’s inactivity caused him to have an abundance of energy, which he took out on all of the beds his parents bought him. One of the beds in particular was ripped and the lining was falling apart, but unfortunately the manufacturer did not want to help.

That’s when Bailey’s family started to search for a better bed for Bailey... and they found Big Barker.

As Bailey’s mom continued to see Bailey tear and shred all of his beds, she started to research for the best dog bed to support Bailey. She researched for about two months before actually deciding on what bed to get him. She found Big Barker and saw the impressive University of Pennsylvania study results and thought of Bailey. Because of Bailey’s genetic elbow dysplasia, Bailey also has a moderate chance of getting hip dysplasia, so they wanted to do everything they could to make him comfortable and prevent further disease. With this in mind, she decided on a Big Barker bed.

Her main and only worry was the cost because after spending almost $20,000 on surgery and other treatments for Bailey, money was tight. Butin the end, she decided that the Big Barker bed would be best for Bailey. She decided to get him a Big Barker bed and the Backseat Barker SUV bed. When his bed and SUV bed arrived, he couldn’t wait to get on them. He has never once attempted to chew his Big Barker. Although Bailey was still in pain, and often limped and had stiffness, especially when getting up, he seemed to suddenly ENJOY laying on his bed. Bailey’s mom even said, “I am so glad I did as it has made such a big difference in Bailey. I still feel guilty for not ordering earlier.”

But after sleeping on the Big Barker, for just one single night, Bailey’s family noticed a remarkable difference in his stiffness. The next morning, Bailey was able to get up. The changes continued and more improvements were noticed. The pain and limping were noticeably different within just one week. Bailey also started sleeping more soundly on his Big Barker bed compared to the old beds that were sometimes even titled “orthopedic”, but were seemingly not. Also, before the Backseat Barker, Bailey hated riding in the SUV and was not comfortable at all. But now he is comfortable and loves taking rides with his family.

We’re so happy that Big Barker beds have been able to help Bailey throughout his surgery and recovery and that he’s doing much better now! Good luck in all of your adventures, Bailey! We can’t wait to watch you grow up!