Originally Posted by Nikki+2 (Post 3882644)

Yes, the sudden and severe pain is scaring me to death. It can come on when he is sleeping and totally still which is just so hard for me to understand. Most of the time he is walking around just fine, sometimes has a slight limp and then bam! Out of nowhere- horrible yelping. He has never had one single sign of LP until Thursday morning- if he hadn't been already diagnosed, I'd never have known. This is just so shockingly sudden.

And you are very right- I really do need to explore other vets when this is over. I've been going to the same vet for 8 years and with all of my dogs healthy for the most part, I guess it's been easy to get complacent. It is a very nice facility and overall I've always been very happy with them but with the two founding partners getting into orthopedic surgery, I'm having some trust issues with them. The younger vet I saw on Thursday went on and on about how difficult the surgery would be but of course, just as I expected, they are reluctant to give me a referral.

I did get a recommendation from a friend on a local board certified surgeon. I'm going to call Monday and try to get him in for a consultation without a referral.

Does anyone have any suggestions on questions I should ask her. Besides questions specific to his condition and recommended treatment/surgery, I know I want to find out how long she's been performing the surgery and how frequently as well as her experience with smaller dogs. Can anyone else suggest any questions I should ask?

On a good note- the Buprenex is helping immensely in the meantime.

ETA: Thanks for the link Ladyjane- I'm off to read.

Originally Posted by Patti (Post 3883713)

I am glad Sugar is resting with out pain. My Pixie had LP surgery a couple years ago. It came on suddenly after walking off the bed to get away from Nikki. They usually always use ramps and stairs. I didn't know she even had LP. I knew Cali and Nikki did but not her. Pixie did not do well at all with the pain. I took he twice to the ER clinic in the same night because I didn't like the first vet so I waited until a shift change and took her back. They did Xrays and said she needed surgery. I wanted her regular vet to see her and she agreed she needed surgery, whereas with Cali who has grade 4 in both legs she always took a wait and see approach. So she referred me to the surgeon that had done Cali's spay and liver biopsy when she was a puppy and very sick. I really trusted her and after 4 opinions I opted for the surgery. They told me when I made the appt with the surgeon to withhold food and water after midnight in case they were to do the surgery the day of the surgeon appointment. They did end up doing it that day and everything went fine. it is so important to trust the person doing the surgery. I hope you can find a great surgeon and Sugar feels better soon. Ladyjane was very helpful to me when Pixie had her problem!