sending prayers

I absolutely love love love those pics of Bella! So pretty! That surgeon sounds pretty well qualified even if not board certified, but I also know nursing instructors that I wouldn't let treat someone I mildly disliked, so you are right to fully research him before the surgery date,. Good luck and praying that Bella has a quick and uneventful recovery.

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I am glad you took Bella to the vet and know what you are dealing with. Now I will pray for you to have guidance for a top surgeon. Please be sure the vet you hand your baby to knows what he is doing and is not using your precious Yorkie . He is not board certified, does he really know how to do this surgery on a little dog? Better be sure.

I was truly laughing out loud as I read this. Hilarious.

Good luck to you and little Bella.

Professor at the U of I veterinary college. 33 years of experience. Very good reputation as a vet and as a community leader as well. Do I trust him? Yes. Certainly more than a board-certified surgeon with only 7 years of experience, which is one of my other options. His specialty is cats, dogs, and ferrets. He performed adrenal surgery on a ferret for the local animal shelter for free, so he can definitely work with small animals. I will get info on the number of times he's performed MPL surgery tomorrow.

Thanks! Bella is very photogenic, even when she's not smiling, LOL! My father was a medical doctor, so I know the ins and outs of board certification, what it means and what it doesn't mean. For me, experience performing the surgery is much more important than board certification. I'll be speaking with the surgeon tomorrow, and if there is any doubt, I'll get a referral, but he looks like the best in the area so far.

OK...I'll bite: What's wrong with being board certified with 7 years of experience?

I guess I am very confused. Operating on soft tissue on a ferret is so different from doing ortho surgery. I know what board certified means as well .. and I am very surprised that you seem to have a low opinion of surgeons who strive to have this distinction. I agree with you that some vets are proficient even if they are not boarded; but to eliminate a boarded surgeon just because he/she is boarded seems odd to me. I think you did say he will examine her first? I hope so and that a torn CCL is ruled out prior to the surgery.

I like a vet with experience in terms of #s of cases. The vet that did my dog does several of these surgeries weekly.... Over 400/year. If the 33 years of experience was spent on ferrets, that would not lead me to believe there was a great proficiency in MPL correction.

Not enough years of experience, if I have an alternative with 30 years of experience. And actually, for the board-certified vet, that's only the number of years since vet school.

I spoke with Bella's surgeon this morning. He was very friendly and forth-coming. The MPL surgery is NOT routine, but he has done many procedures. The surgery takes about an hour on average. Since the surgery lasts so long, blood testing prior to the surgery is mandatory, to make sure she has no liver issues that could complicate the anesthesia. He checked her blood results from her spay 6 months ago and said that they were perfectly normal, and he doesn't expect them to be different, but they have to recheck just to be sure. In rare instances, cases of luxating patella can reverse themselves, so if I notice drastic improvement in Bella, I should let him know so she can be rechecked, and the surgery possibly cancelled. He will absolutely give her another extensive physical examination before the surgery to double-check the severity of the luxating patella prior to surgery. He will not do an x-ray unless he suspects arthritis, or she shows muscular atrophy or other symptoms of potential complications. Luxating patella involves soft tissues that do not show up well on x-ray. Bella will be kept at the vet overnight after the surgery for observation. She will have to be crated for at least a couple of days after surgery, and re-evaluated. Dogs that recover quickly from the surgery do not have to be crated as long, and that is determined on a case by case basis. Since Bella has luxating patella in only one leg, she has a good prognosis. The success rate is at least 90% for cases such as hers. We spoke for a good 15 minutes. If I can remember any more details, I will post them.

I don't have a low opinion of board-certified surgeons at all. I am more concerned about experience and the number of surgeries performed, as well as success and reputation. Yes, he will examine her before the surgery and rule out a torn CCL. I will be there for the examination.

The ferret story was just an anecdote for someone who questioned his experience with small, delicate animals--OF COURSE he has performed many MPL surgeries on Yorkies. I am beginning to get annoyed with people questioning my choices--those people are NOT in my situation, and they do not have access to all of the information that I have. I will not respond to any more such posts. If anyone has questions about the surgery itself, or suggestions of additional things to ask the surgeon, or additional things to look out for during recovery, fine, but at this point, there is NO WAY that I will reveal the name of my surgeon or vet clinic so they are not further questioned as to to credentials or dragged through the gutter. Thanks for your cooperation.

Your decision is YOUR decision. I did not question it. I was just a bit taken aback by your comments regarding board certified surgeons. I just did not want people to come along and assume board certified are not a good choice. They are specialists and do the same type surgeries day in and day out....so in my book, I could not compare one with 7 and one with 30 who is not working in a specialty. I think it is highly likely that the one with 7 years has done more of these surgeries than the other. With that being said, I did not say you made the wrong choice OR that the vet you are using is not good. I merely feel it is important to make a comparison if not for you, then for others who happen along to read about these surgeries.
I hope all goes well for your girl.

I want to reiterate that I don't have a problem with board-certified surgeons at all. I would never discourage anyone from using a board-certified surgeon unless I knew for a fact that a particular surgeon was no good. In this case, I simply have an experienced surgeon with an excellent reputation who just happens to not be board-certified. Thanks for your well-wishes for Bella!

I realize that you clarified it. I was merely saying why I commented on it to begin with. Your first post made it sound (at least to me) that you had no respect for boarded surgeons. To me 7 years as a boarded surgeon sounds ok because that is all they do each day...whatever the specialty is.