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Originally Posted by Ladymom  The luxation itself doesn't cause pain. It's when arthritis sets in that it becomes painful. Often it is too late for a successful surgery then. It is not a good thing to have one’s knee cap out of place; the entire weight-bearing stress of the rear leg is altered which, in time, leads to changes in the hips, long bones, and ultimately arthritis. How severe the changes are depend on how severe the luxation is (i.e. the grade as described above) and how long that degree of luxation has been going on. In time, the legs will actually turn outward with its muscles turning inward, making the dog “bow-legged.” The luxation is not considered a painful condition but after enough time and conformational change, arthritis sets in, which is indeed painful. Medial Luxating Patella
We have a little Maltese on another forum whose front legs are now so bowed from his bad knees that he is in constant pain. His owner took a "wait & see" attitude per her vet until he was six and he started shows signs of pain. She then took him to an orthopedic vet and was told it was too late to do the surgery. The poor guy has to be on Tramadol for the rest of his life to help with the pain.
That's why it is so important to get knees evaluated by a board certified orthopedic vet and if surgery is recommended, not to wait until it is too late. |
What do his front legs have to do with his knees?
And, pain is not the only measurement....these pups start limping and not using their leg when the LP is really getting worse. Not ALL LPs progress that far!
Honestly, they will get arthritis anyway. Yes, a board certified orthopedic vet is always the way to go.
Was the vet she went to board certified? I have a vet here who has performed surgery in some really BAD cases...and successfully. I have a pup who had a genetic problem in both hind legs....and his knee was literally backwards in one leg. I went to an ortho vet who told me that his knees were inoperable....went to a board cert. vet who FIXED his knee! So...always a second opinion!
I do find it hard to believe that a pup could be ignored by a vet for that long. Signs indicating surgery show up LONG before the knees are that bad.
Is this person who owns this maltese is anywhere near the Houston area, I would be happy to share this vet's name ... he is wonderful! I have seen other surgeries by him that were amazing.