ACL repair. To knife or not.

[BrokenAquarian]

Going to a surgeon tomorrow to have a consultation about doing a TPLO on Keela.

I've been reading and found that dogs are getting the same arthritis weather they get the surgery or not. I'm doubting if an operation is right for my 7 year old dog.

When I was wrapping her leg, there was improvement. I did not put her on very strict rest confinement. No exercise or play, but she was still jumping up and down from furniture.

I'm wondering if going with a leg brace harness and the same strict rest required in post op, would benefit her. My vet, who doesnt do the surgery, was against the brace because it slips down. I don't believe that happens when attached to a harness. That's the problem I was having with the ace wrap - it would slip down and turn ineffective.

Her x rays showed the start of bone spurs, growing to stabilize the bone/joint. Small abnormalities.

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

If I could, I would fix Buddy's leg. We do ACL repairs twice a month or so at my clinic and I've seen dog's with no surgical treatment, those with braces and those who have had it repaired and I just find that nothing compares to fixing it surgically.

Let us know how your consult goes!

[buckaroo]

If she's going to have arthritis either way, seems it would be better to have arthritis and a fixed ACL than arthritis and a torn ACL.

[BrokenAquarian]

If she's going to have arthritis either way, seems it would be better to have arthritis and a fixed ACL than arthritis and a torn ACL.

You know, that totally makes sense. I didn't even think about it that way. Thank you

If I could, I would fix Buddy's leg. We do ACL repairs twice a month or so at my clinic and I've seen dog's with no surgical treatment, those with braces and those who have had it repaired and I just find that nothing compares to fixing it surgically.

Let us know how your consult goes!

Thank you.
I definitely will let you guys know.

[Savage Destiny]

I've been talking to our local physical therapist about arthritis in Riddle's legs, since she has had TTA repairs on both knees now. I was wondering when I would see the arthritis begin, since her right knee was done 3 years ago. She told me that she so far hasn't seen a TTA dog with significant arthritis even 6 years after surgery. I was really pleasantly surprised to hear that! I don't know if it's the same for TPLO though.

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

I know the ortho surgeons that come to our clinic do stress that repair is best done ASAP for best results. Which sucks for anyone who needs to save up to pay for the surgery.

[BrokenAquarian]

Well,

Keela is staying at the vet office until Monday morning. The surgeon and everyone there is very nice. Since they're almost an hour away, he took her in today - so we didn't have to turn around and go back tomorrow. Because an emergency came in, she won't be done until Saturday morning.

I got an estimate for $3,275.00 for everything - including a years worth of check ups and such. I'm pleased.
But this is going to be the longest she's ever been away from me/home and I miss her already. This does give us time to figure out where we will be setting up the large dog crate in this tiny house for the 6 - 8 week rest period.

[BrokenAquarian]

Just got a call from the surgeon. He was able to sneak Keela in today and she should be coming home tomorrow afternoon. SO EXCITED!! What a great surprise.

He said it went beautifully and looks great. So glad I didn't have time to worry about her being under. It was also breaking my heart that she was going to sit there for days in an unknown place. YAY!!!

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

That's fantastic!!! She's a lucky girl to have such a good momma.

[BrokenAquarian]

Thank you
I'm so excited about getting to pick her up, I don't think I'll get much sleep.

[Amie]

How's she doing?

[BrokenAquarian]

She's doing great!

She's confined to a large crate in the living room when she isn't on a very short leash by my side(brief breaks from the crate). It's swollen, but not bad looking and she's lightly using it, which the surgeon said was fine.

All she's wanted since she came home yesterday was to go to bed(my bed). She finally got to take a nap with me this afternoon and seemed blissfully content. The bed is too high, so she has to be lifted and lowered by someone. No jumping and no steps.

She goes back in two weeks for staple removal. I hope she's ok with having a crap load of metal pulled out of her skin. she did great when he was manipulating her knee(pre-op). She didn't flinch or try to move away. She'd never met him before then, either.
Keela seems to be dangerously stoic. I wish she was just a little whiney, so I could tell how she's really feeling.

[afrikaPB]

I work in a vet clinic and remove staples from post-op orto surgery dogs frequently, and it's really not that bad unless a staple gets weirdly embedded. The tech or doctor who takes them out will use a special skin-staple removing device that bends them open without hurting the incision site. Glad your dog was able to get the surgery done so quickly, hope she continues to recover well!

[AllisonPibbleLvr]

Glad to hear she's doing well!!!

[dogs4jen]

It was no big deal at all getting the staples out when Roscoe had his knee surgery either, took them just a minute. I'm glad she's doing so well!