[Gracie2006]

I took Gracie to the vet today and had my suspicion confirmed. She has bilateral luxating patellas, worse on the right than on the left. The right one pops out of place with extension, which is why she protects it only when going down stairs. The left one is much milder. The vet recommends x-rays which have to be done under anesthesia. About $400. Then a radiologist and orthopedic surgeon review them and the surgeon gives recommendations. Surgery if needed will be around $1500. The orthopedic surgeon will come to our vet hospital and do the procedure there. The vet said it is best to do the surgery while they are young. Each time the knee luxates it causes cartilage damage, which means arthritis down the road if it is not fixed. If I want Gracie to have a quality life later, she may need to have surgery before she is 3 years old. This is such a bummer. I know many of you here are going through the same thing. That helps somewhat, but this is still upsetting news. I so wanted her to get through life without anything major!