Photo courtesy Humane Society for Greater Nashua Kinko the dog is shown with his friends/caregivers at the Humane Society for Greater Nashua.

NASHUA – Kinko was saved from the streets of Georgia and was lucky enough to come to Nashua via a dog transport. He is a 2-year-old cattle dog and is a very happy, playful and lovable dog. Dr. Christine Schlupf, our Humane Society Veterinarian, identified right away that the dog had a serious problem with his right hind leg during her medical exam. X-rays confirmed that Kinko had a condition called medial patellar luxation and fixation.

At some point in his young life we believe he severely dislocated his kneecap and never received care for the injury. Time has made the injury worse. If left untreated Kinko eventually would not be able to use the leg and remain in constant pain. Therefore Dr. Schlupf called Animal Hospital of Nashua and Animal Medical Center of New England and the collaboration began. For years, AHN has worked closely with the Humane Society and given significant discounts on varied surgeries needed for shelter pets. Kinko’s troubled leg was a perfect fit for Dr. Julie Zitz, their orthopedic surgeon. His surgery was long and rather complicated but Dr. Zitz did her job in performing a successful Tibial Tuberosity Transposition. After weeks of rest to heal from surgery, Kinko has months of physical therapy ahead to help his muscles, tendons and ligaments “learn” how to move all over again so he can live as a playful, active young dog.

The Humane Society ran a fundraising campaign to pay for Kinko’s surgery and surgeries needed by two other special pets at the shelter, but what was raised was not enough to cover months of physical therapy. A call went out to Jennifer Brooks PT, MEd.,CCRP, owner of Horse’ n Hound Physical Therapy located in Hollis, and she too was very willing to collaborate to help Kinko receive the follow-up therapy he desperately needs to recover and regain full active usage of his right hind leg. Horse ‘n Hound PT is generously donating the costs of their services for this special Humane Society pup.

“The Humane Society is honored to be the recipients of such generosity and part of this great collaborative effort to save Kinko,” said Douglas A. Barry, president/CEO of the Humane Society. “Thanks to the skill, effort, and kindness of these local professionals, Kinko will have a full life, free of pain to for the rest of his life. After all this dog has been through in two short years, he surely deserves it!”

The Humane Society for Greater Nashua provides for and protects abandoned, stray and owner released pets by connecting them with new families via adoption. The shelter serves over 3,000 pets annually. To see the pets currently available for adoption, please visit www.hsfn.org.

Update Monday, April 24 from the Humane Society for Greater Nashua’s Facebook page: “Great news to end your Monday, Kinko spent this weekend with his new family in his new home! Many of you shared his story, donated and helped us raise money for him and two other pets in need of life saving surgeries. Kinko had a severe hind leg injury and needed a major knee surgery, a lot of rest, therapy and rehabilitation to recover. So many people contributed to his adoption success story, and we thank our donors, staff and volunteers who cared for Kinko, Dr. Julie Zitz and her team at Animal Hospital of Nashua who performed his surgery and Jennifer Brooks PT, MEd.,CCRP, owner of Horse ‘n Hound Physical Therapy and her team who’ve done an amazing job with his therapy and rehabilitation program. Thank you all for helping give Kinko a new, healthy life and loving family.”

– Submitted by Humane Society for Greater Nashua.