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Originally Posted by Maccsc  We had Sophie tested before scheduling her knee surgery and her bile acid came back at 65. Looks like a possible shunt. We've decided to put off the knee surgery. Saddened but just don't have the resources for the now 3 or more surgeries we'd be looking at. When she starts showing symptoms of the shunt or pain from the knee, we'll be faced with the decision to humanely euthanize her. We are hoping that's way down the road. We do plan on trying to manage both with meds and diet as long as we can.  |
If you could afford the surgery on two knees, you could do the shunt. That said, I don't think 65 automatically means a shunt. Usually pups with shunts are over 100. She could have MVD (microvascular displasia). Here is a link that might be helpful to you:
http://www.vet.utk.edu/clinical/sacs...2013-04-10.pdf
Are you positive she needs knee surgery? You say you went to a specialist...was it a board certified specialist or a vet who does orthopedic surgeries? I have found that a lot of vets look at knees on yorkies as a money maker....many of the boarded surgeons (actually I think most) don't necessarily recommend it unless the pup is having major issues.
You might want to think about further testing to rule out a shunt instead of knee surgery if she is not having real serious issues with her knees. All of my pups have LP and unless they tear a ligament or develop serious issues with them, there won't be surgery. Honestly, these days most yorkies have some degree of LP.