[duoduo]

Duoduo just had her first heat cycle at 7.5 months this past week and I took her to the vet to get a check-up. Our vet felt her hind legs and told us that she has patellar luxation in both, and recommended surgery to fix. The veterinary surgeon at our pet hospital recommended the same thing. Right now it's not clear what grade the patellar luxation is, but both vets said that it will give her arthritis in the future and possible worse conditions.

Right now little Duoduo doesn't seem to be feeling any ill effects, other than not being able to jump up on our couch or bed. She is otherwise very active and I had no idea that she had knee problems until last week. She was the smallest in her little and right now only weights 2.8 pounds. I'm concerned that surgery will take a toll on her. The smallest dog that our surgeon has performed this procedure on was a 17.6 pound Schnauzer, so I am concerned that he doesn't have the requisite experience. He doesn't seem too concerned about it.

Do you guys have any experiences with this correctional surgery on such a small Yorkie? I want Duoduo to be able to avoid problems in the future and run and jump until she is old, but at the same time I am concerned about the risk of surgery, particularly since the vet mentioned that both knees should be operated on in separate procedures and recovery periods. This means that with her upcoming spaying, she'll be in and out of the hospital and in recovery for the next 6 months!

Appreciate any advice and insights that you guys might have. Thanks!