Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Elk hunting after total hip replacement?

The main point is, as said above, there is pain and there is PAIN. When you are clutching everything you can in your path to support your weight and each step, is a hot knife into your pelvis and, you are long past trying to hide the limp, there is a time when you will know.

Such pain and discomfort is not necessary. That is truth.
Been there, done that, as they say.
John

Coyote Hunter tells the story well, and in perfect detail. For years I had needed a new knee, but with a brace was still functioning, and with a high pain tolerance it was working. But...my range had dropped off, and I started to carry heavier meat packs versus making more trips because every extra step counted more than the heavier weight as far as the after-effect.

Finally a couple years ago I got to the point where I could see them, but I was running out of the go I needed to get to them. The spirit was willing, but the pain was shutting me down. It was an involuntary thing - I would push, and my nervous system was pushing back. I was good for one day, but after a big push, not the next day. You can't hunt like that.

I decided it was time to get the knee done since it was making everything else hurt too from favoring it. That was when I got the surprise of my life. I needed a new left hip much more than I needed a new left knee! And I needed a new right hip, too. That explained a lot. No wonder I was feeling so crippled up! Last year I timed the hips with hopes to hunt elk, and I was out there, even got close but did not close the deal due to conditions. Even with the bad knee my back felt way better - less walking out of kilter, and the hip bursitis was gone. What a relief. But I still needed that new knee. As I gained strength this winter I hated the idea of going back under the knife so soon, but the knee was failing worse. I am now a little under 4 weeks out, and coming along. A knee is slower to rehab, so I am glad I did it in April.

Was I apprehensive for each? You bet. You never know. But I couldn't continue to hunt unless I got some repairs done. As Coyote Hunter says, when it is time, you know.

As far as having to take more care, go slower, etc., well with the bad joints, I have been doing that for years now anyway, so a lot of that is habit. But once I could actually walk again, what a difference. I hope the knee is in good shape by October, but even if it is still not fully recovered, it is not likely to be worse than last year, and I put in about 19 days last year. (I am a foot hunter, no horses.)

All I can say BarHunter is do what you can. We are clearly all pretty stubborn. But at some point, if you want to keep it up, you may have to get some repairs done. When/if you do, find the best surgeon you can, make sure they are using the most advanced techniques, then work your tail off in PT, and it will take years off your self-perceived age. By November last year I was feeling 20 years younger than I had the year before. Right before I went in for this knee, I felt even better than that.

Don't forget there is still the rest of your life, too. As my 91 year old Mom, veteran of 4 hip replacements told me, "Don't hesitate, get it done. Don't wait until it is too late." She now wishes she had had her knees done 15-18 years ago. Now that is what is limiting her mobility. Remember to look ahead.

Thanks for the thoughts guys. I'll know when it's time, and make sure it's not too late. I've always had a high tolerance for pain, and if you were walking with me you probably wouldn't know I had problems. Except when I have to squat down, or pick something up. Then it might be obvious.

A couple of things work for me. For one i'm a still hunter who hunts the timber. So, i'm not moving fast except to get to my hunting spots.

The second thing is I have a 30 year old neighbor who comes out to help me get the meat out. I couldn't hunt anymore with out him. I'm way past getting all the meat out from a bull alone. It hurts to even think about it.

I think of the mountain men from the old days. I'm sure they had plenty of injuries, but just kept going. I'd like to think I can do the same. I'm trying anyway.

Thanks again guys.

Being a Mountain Man wasn't a long time career job for the most part. Most didn't last all that long and for those that did they were pretty bunged up by 60 and out of work.

The "Old Mountain Man" is pretty much a myth. A few made it, but essentially it was middle age work.

Addition: And average middle age came quicker than today.

Addition 2: Thinking about it, for a variety of reasons nor was it work for the slow and creaky which could get you killed when moving quickly became important. Hobbling around the Mountains wasn't an asset.

My Dr. was most concerned about post surgery falls. It made sense when he explained that the area where the socket portion of the replacement is attached to the pelvis is thin bone and prone to shattering in falls. Going in and fixing a shattered pelvis is very difficult. Thinking of all of the plumbing and blood veins in that area I can understand that.

I have two hip replacements - hunted from a car blind for the first year and have hunted with no problems or assistance every year since. My best suggestion is this DON"T LET DRUNKS PLOW INTO YOUR CAR AT 70 MPH AT THE DRIVERS DOOR WHILE YOU ARE SITTING STILL AT A RED LIGHT!!!!!!!

Terry

Well, I said it in jest. Sort of. As someone who hunts with a muzzleloader, and shoots at black powder shoots. I have studied the mountain man era. No doubt they were a tough bunch. I can hardly compare myself to them, or the life they had to lead. I can come home at night to a bed and shower for one difference. I also have a much better diet, and don't have to depend on what I kill for food.
However, I do spend a lot of time in the Rockies. It's where i'm comfortable. The only real thing I might have in common with the MM is they dealt with a lot of pain, and so do I. I'm actually pretty good at it by now.
I'm suspicious of anything that will take me from my mountains. I'm doing fine as is. I haven't had good luck with doctors in my life. You have to drag me to one now.
I'm ok. Really!

Amen to that!

Thanks everybody for the very informative posts. I appreciate the open debate about whether and when! It's good to know there are a bunch of you out there with bionic parts roaming the woods, and that the long term restrictions aren't that bad as long as one does the PT and allows time for healing.

I never had PT.
My doc advised going to a swimming pool and walking the shallow end back and forth using the water for buoyancy. It worked very well.

By building the thigh muscles and using the natural walking exercise, recovery was fast.
John

Pea Eye,

I finally logged in and saw your PM. I have sent a rep;y.

Jaguar

If people wouldn't notice you have pain then you probably aren't ready for a hip replacement. Before I got my hip replacement my life was consumed by thinking about how I was going to complete a task with the least amount of pain. Often that task was simply getting out of a chair and standing up. Sometime I would have to wait 10-20 seconds for my hip to get to the point where I could move without the pain reaching very high levels.

I lived that way for 6 years while my hip got progressively worse and my body started having other problems as I tried to compensate. "Co-morbidity" the doctor called it. My hip surgery was 3-1/2 months ago and within a week I was better off pain-wise almost from day one. Now I've reached a point where I rarely think about pain and when I do have it the pain is very minor. In the past couple of months I have ripped down a 65-foot section of my rear deck, dug and poured new concrete footers, put in an 8-foot wall of 6x6 landscape timbers, and started rebuilding the deck. This morning I was carrying 20-foot treated 2x10s and lifting them into place for the rim joists. Very rarely have I had any pain and when I have it was muscle pain, which continues to diminish with time and is very minor in any case.

Everyone told me I'd know when I was ready for a replacement. I toughed it out for 6 years because I was stubborn and in denial. I would have had the surgery much sooner if I'd known how great the outcome would be. The new anterior (frontal) replacement method is awesome and recovery is much quicker. I'll be hunting antelope and elk this fall, pain-free for the first time in 6 years.

The only good thing that came from putting off the hip surgery was I had to learn to hunt smarter - mainly because getting from the driver's seat of my truck to the gas cap for refueling was adventure enough.

Coyote Hunter,

I am really glad to hear your experience has been like mine. Such an improvement. I had to wait until I got the knee fixed for full benefit, but now that leg is catching up. Several hikes of increasing difficulty and increasing pack weight under my belt. Pushing hard for getting into shape.

I am wishing you good hunting this fall. Keep up the good work, just remember the bone healing continues for at least a year.

Concentrating on elk and not a painful hip is a huge step forward.
All the best to you.
John

Hi all,

I just wanted to double back to this thread and thank all of you who provided advice and reported on our own experiences with hip replacement. I had my hip done in late December here in Albuquerque, and have been happily surprised by the recovery process. The x-rays look good, the surgeon got the leg length right, and I've been getting around well since week 6 or 7. I still occasionally have days when the soft tissues hurt, especially after traveling, but I'm able to walk good distances, climb steep trails, etc. I appreciate the encouragement to go ahead. The biggest surprise has been how quickly I recovered range of motion I had lost several years ago.

Thanks again to all of you. Bill

Modern medicine is incredible, isn't it?

PeaEye -
Really glad to hear it worked out well for you. You may never get back to hunting like you once did but hopefully you will be close.

Congratulations! Been there. Learned hard way, just like doctors, there are few good PT. Find a good sports doctor and he knows who they are. Serious hunters are athletes. Find a good PT & a swimming pool.