Post Surgery Update

Forrest's surgery yesterday went smoothly.  Dr. Kumar is very happy with the outcome.  He was able to remove most of the hardware and revise the graft.  We can't wait to see it in full once the dressing is removed!  He has not had any complications post-op, and although sleep itself was hard to come by, he had a quiet night.

Sleepy post-op smiles

 In other news, please enjoy these pics from last weekend's CCI DogFest.  Forrest was co-captain of the Middleburg Laboradorables team with his friend Caroline Elgin.  They were the fourth highest fundraising team in our area!  (Photos courtesy of Nikki Cheshire)

A Planned Surgery

Hello friends, Tami here.  Team 44 is in Cleveland this week for Forrest to have surgery tomorrow (Friday, September 15th).  This was a planned surgery to reduce the likelihood of the recurrent infections that have beleaguered Forrest.  Why Cleveland, you may ask?  Forrest's surgeon, Dr. Kumar, who has poured countless hours into rebuilding 44's skull, left Johns Hopkins and is now at a hospital here in Cleveland.  We wouldn't have anyone else operate on Forrest's skull, so here we are!   The goals for this surgery are to remove as much of the remaining hardware (screws, plates...etc) as is no longer needed and remove as much of the old graft as possible to restore healthy scalp.  Dr. Kumar may also harvest fat from Forrest (if they can find any on his skinny frame!) to transplant to further protect his bone and even out what 44 calls his "speed bumps on his noggin".

We hope to be home early in the week.  As hard as it is to go back to the hospital, looking at the recent devastation from hurricanes, earthquakes and wildfires, we consider ourselves so lucky to even have a hospital to go to for this opportunity to continue to strengthen and protect Forrest's skull.

Thank you all for your continued support and prayers for Forrest.  We will update tomorrow.

- Tami