luxating patella
 

Harley has had this for awhile now, not sure at which stage it was or is. Occasionally he would hold his rear leg up for a few minutes, he would stretch it out and then be okay. I'm assuming it would snap the knee cap back into place. The vet never seemed too concerned just a "keep his weight down and exercise". Over the weekend I was away and my husband said he jumped off our bed and ever since he hasn't been using his rear right leg. It's been 2 days now, I called the vet this morning and he said since he isn't acting in pain, no wimpering or anything when you touch it, to just see how he does today and tomorrow and on Monday if he is still limping to bring him in for an exam.

The more I research luxating patella the scarier it is for me! He is 9 years old so I'm worried to put him through a surgery that may or may not work. If he was younger I wouldn't even think about paying the astronomical cost but given his age and arthritis setting in it makes me nervous to put him through that surgery and recovery for a maybe. I only assume the vet will say he needs surgery because I stumbled on a few youtube videos of dogs pre-surgery and it's just like Harley's. Any help would be appreciated...

If it doesn't go back in after 3 days, and your vet says surgery... I'd find a vet that practices VOM and get a second opinion.

Even after surgery, dogs that continue to jump on and off furniture and overextend themselves can still have problems.

You could do everything possible to keep him from jumping off furniture. Many people buy pet steps so the dog can use the steps instead of jumping. I'm sure he would much prefer that to the pain it must cause to jump.

Although LP is a genetic disorder it does get worse as the dog ages and the connective tissue wears away. Did your vet give you a diagnosis as to the degree of severity of the deformity he has in his knees? If not you may consider seeing a vet that has experience in treating the problem. The surgery can be done at any age but of course you are going to see a decrease in his function as he gets older.

It is very difficult at times to really know the degree of pain your pet is in. If he has been suffering from this for a long time he may have just built up a tolerance to the pain. Not meaning it does not hurt but he has leaned to live with it as best he can.

With his history it is very possible that he has a torn ligament. It may not be, but I would be suspect for sure since he has had problems with LP for a while.

It is best to take him in for an exam. Just because he is not wimpering does not mean he is not in pain. The fact that he is not using it says he is. Usually a vet will prescribe an anti inflammatory for a week or two to see if a pup gets relief.

Yes, the surgery is expensive and especially so if you use a board certified surgeon, but well worth it in the end if he needs it. They do recover from the surgery and do well afterwards in most cases. He is not too old for a surgical repair.

The only reason I say he isnt in pain is because when the vet asked if he wimpers or pulls away when you touch his leg. Like I said hes been diagnosed with this for awhile now, back in 2008, so I'm sure he has adjusted to some degree of pain associated with this. It breaks my heart to watch him deal with this and his arthritis on top of it. Back in 2008 the vet said he was at a stage 2 in his leg that is hurt now, the other leg he didn't say much about. We had the steps for our bed and completely ignored them , we worked with him to use them and he completely knew how and everything just would jump anyways. Majority of the time I would pick him up and put him down but sometimes he would jump before I got the chance to. Our couch he cant jump up or down on because its hardwood floor without a rug under it, so he wont do it. Luckily we are in a one story house with only 2 steps down to go outside so that has been a big help for him.

Hi. My boy, Columbo just turned 9 in October. If Harley doesn't walk on the leg the next day, then he likely tore his ACL this time. Columbo had LP and never had any problems until earlier this year. We had a couple episodes late winter - early spring where he started limping and was walking on it again the next day. In April, it happened again and he didn't get better after a couple days. This time it was what the surgeon called the "catastrophic event" and he tore his ACL. If it's just LP or just a torn ACL, many times they will prescribe rest and physical therapy. But if a dog tears his ACL and has LP, he has to have surgery for both. In August, it happened to his other knee and back to the surgeon we went. I can tell you that his recovery on the first leg was fast. The second leg took a couple months longer than the first, but he has recovered well and although it was expensive, it was well worth it. I have absolutely no regrets and it was the right thing to do. He is basically back to normal now, although we try to limit any "explosive" movements as he is still working back up to pre-injury strength. A yorkie's life expectancy is 14-15 years. They often live longer than that and I hope Columbo does. If Harley needs surgery, I recommend you go to an orthopedic surgeon like Columbo did. It looks like you are 3 hours from me, so if you don't have one in your area, mine can refer you to one or you could drive (many do) to him. Virginia Veterinary Specialists, Dr. Kevin Stiffler. He is absolutely fabulous. Dr. Wheeler is great, also. If you have any other questions, let me know. I have a lot of information having just gone through this and especially since our dogs are the same age.

Not using a leg means pain. You need to see a Orthopedic specialist not your regular vet for this and they can let you know what they recommend.

Also, when Columbo first visited the regular vet for his leg, he did an exam and took xrays, then diagnosed luxating patella. He said he could do the surgery (he had done it a dozen or so times) or he could refer me to a surgeon. My regular vet is wonderful, but he had no problem with me if I chose the surgeon, which he recommended even though it was a little more expensive. When the surgeon saw him and his xrays, he saw that Columbo had also torn his ACL, which the regular vet didn't catch. The surgeon has done thousands of these surgeries and I attribute that to why Columbo breezed through it and recovered so well. He explained everything, the surgery, all the options and outcomes. I only wish we humans got the expert health care my dog got!

I think a read an older thread form you last night, I was up late doing A LOT of reading on the surgery. Thank you for responding!

I agree with the above posts. I just had my 11 year old in for his second ACL surgery in September. The first one was 4 years ago, when he also had both patellas fixed. The first thing my orthopedic surgeon said when he saw him hopping on 3 legs was "he's in pain". Never once did he cry. So, when he started hopping this last time, I bypassed my vet, and went directly to the OS. I even told them he had torn his other ACL before they examined him. Sure enough, when they got in there, he had a complete tear of the ACL, and a small tear of the medial Miniscus. Although I've spent a lot of money on my "old" dog, I'd do it again and again. That's what I signed up for when I brought him home 11 years ago! He's my baby with bionic knees.

Definitely recommend going with the Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon. Good luck, and keep us updated.

We aren't in a financial situation for a costly surgery. Like many families we are living paycheck to paycheck and working our asses off to get by. I'm hoping I can get some answers from the vet that don't involve surgery. We keep him up to date on shots, groomed and he eats great food. We do everything we can within our means to take care of him. Expensive surgery isn't feasible for us right now.

Mikki has LP. Here recently we had a similar thing happen. She jumped off my chair and then held her leg up. I confined her and wouldn't let her be very active. We let it "rest" Within 24 hours she was well. However, if she hadn't been better we would have headed to the vet. Have you tried "resting" it?

Yes, we haven't let him do much of anything the past couple days, he hasn't really wanted to anyway. We've kept his bed next to his food and water and carry him anywhere when we leave the room, and also up and down the 2-3 steps to go in and out.

You may be able to get answers, but you need to get him examined first! And, possibly an anti inflammatory will help. You should be able to get an exam and a medication for just under $100 I would think.

You are right, things are tough for everyone, but he sounds like he needs medical attention and there is always a way if there is a will. Good luck :)

Agreed! I'm hoping and praying an exam and meds will work for him.

I am sorry but if his leg is bad enough he has not used it for days he needs surgery more then likely and it is terrible to make him be in pain. Have you tried Care credit or maybe family could help? I think you need to talk to an orthopedic surgeon and let him explain it to you just letting him be in pain is not right.

I agree it's not right, I came home friday night which is when my husband filled me in on what happened. I called saturday afternoon, the vet asked if he is wimpering or pulling his leg away if we touch it, since he wasn't he concluded that he wasn't in terrible pain and to call back monday morning to come in for an appt if he still wasn't using his leg. They couldn't get him in saturday and closed on sunday. I haven't looked into Care credit yet but will look into it now, thank you.

I am sorry to hear about Harley, and hope the issue isn't severe and heals quickly. {{{Hugs}}}

Checking for an update on Harley. Hope he got to the vet today and that he is doing better. :)

I took him in this morning for his exam, she said his right knee is a 3-4 right now. They did xrays and confirmed, it's still only a 1 in the other knee. She said he definitely needs surgery but since it isn't an affordable option for us right now she was able to get it back into place but said it most likely won't stay there. She gave us some pain meds and an anti-inflammatory so we can see with some rest and those 2 that maybe it'll take the inflammation down so we can have some more time with him. Surgery is $2000 and we won't be approved for Care Credit :(. Basically it's just a wait and see how this goes. She said it could be in place for days, weeks, months, who knows.

Sorry it was not really good news. If you go with surgery please do not get it done with your regular vet this is something that a specialist should do.