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-   Sick & Injured / Emergencies Talk (https://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/sick-injured-emergencies-talk/)
-   -   Bella going to the vet today for back leg lameness :-( (https://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/sick-injured-emergencies-talk/273284-bella-going-vet-today-back-leg-lameness.html)

pstinard 02-24-2014 11:05 AM
Bella going to the vet today for back leg lameness :-(
 
Our dear Bella's left hind leg has been lame for the past few weeks and has not been getting any better. She doesn't seem to be in any pain, but when she walks, she will often not let the leg touch the ground, instead walking like a three-legged dog. I've read tons about luxating patella and Legg-Calve-Perthes disease, and my greatest fear is that she has one of these. We are taking her in to the vet in two hours for an examination, so hopefully we will know later today what is going on with Bella's leg. She is such a sweet little dog and this is heartbreaking for us. Please keep Bella in your thoughts and prayers, and I will update after we get back from the vet.

rubymoon2072 02-24-2014 11:11 AM
sending many prayers for Bella

yorkietalkjilly 02-24-2014 11:16 AM
I'm sick to read this. Hopefully she only strained her leg muscles and it's nothing more. I'll gladly pray and keep it up for little Bella. Hopefully some medicine can set her to rights. Let us know the vet's diagnosis as soon as you can.

kjc 02-24-2014 11:26 AM
Praying for Miss Bella...

dollydoodle 02-24-2014 12:52 PM
Hoping sweet Bella has a good outcome at the vet's. Takek care, & let us know what the vet says. Good luck.

Patti 02-24-2014 01:28 PM
Keeping Bella in my prayers.

yorkiemini 02-24-2014 01:50 PM
Prayers for Bella!

ladyjane 02-24-2014 02:13 PM
Sounds like it could be a torn CCL. Hope all is ok....

Maximo 02-24-2014 02:28 PM
Praying for Bella.

ladyjane 02-24-2014 02:28 PM
BTW she has to be in pain....if she were not in pain, she would be weight bearing! People assume that if a pup is acting happy and eating, they are pain free. Dogs do their best to hide pain, so you really cannot assume they aren't in pain based on how they act... at least not all of the time.

yorkietalkjilly 02-24-2014 02:30 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by ladyjane (Post 4396987)
BTW she has to be in pain....if she were not in pain, she would be weight bearing! People assume that if a pup is acting happy and eating, they are pain free. Dogs do their best to hide pain, so you really cannot assume they aren't in pain based on how they act... at least not all of the time.
:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

barneysmommmy 02-24-2014 03:21 PM
Oh no! I'm sending prayers that all goes well.

pstinard 02-24-2014 04:13 PM
Stage 4 luxating patella, surgery required
 
It didn't take long for the vet to diagnose Bella. She felt Bella's kneecap and diagnosed luxating patella. She asked me if I wanted to feel it, and being the squeamish person that I am, I said no. Since Bella's other leg was fine and could bear weight, it wasn't an emergency, but the bad leg was stage 4, and she recommended surgery since if left untreated, it would be susceptible to arthritis later. Bella has MPL surgery scheduled for March 21. She will get the surgery where they carve a groove into her leg bone to hold the knee cap in place. An orthopedic surgeon will perform the surgery. Estimated cost is $1,000. Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers!

ladyjane 02-24-2014 04:29 PM
I don't know of any boarded surgeon (not that you must use one) who would do that surgery for that price. My advice is to thoroughly check this surgeon out.

Glad she is able to bear weight...your original post said not and that was a concern.

Hope the surgery goes well.

pstinard 02-24-2014 04:57 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by ladyjane (Post 4397034)
I don't know of any boarded surgeon (not that you must use one) who would do that surgery for that price. My advice is to thoroughly check this surgeon out.

Glad she is able to bear weight...your original post said not and that was a concern.

Hope the surgery goes well.
I did a little digging, and Bella's surgeon is not a board-certified orthopedic surgeon. He does teach at the University of Illinois Veterinary College and oversees Veterinary College interns at his clinic. He has had plenty of experience performing this type of surgery and has a good reputation. Opinions? My only other viable option would be to get a referral to the University of Illinois Veterinary Hospital for the surgery.

pstinard 02-24-2014 05:12 PM
Cost of surgery at the University of Illinois Veterinary Hospital would be:

Patella luxation (knee cap)…$2300-3000

That's double to triple the cost of having it done at my vet clinic. I trust my experienced vet over having it done at a teaching hospital...

mimimomo 02-24-2014 05:18 PM
Was a xray done...will it be done b4 surgery & is it necessary?
Hope all goes well for Bella!

yorkietalkjilly 02-24-2014 05:19 PM
I'm so sorry little Bella needs to have surgery - that's bad news for sure but glad you can get her the procedure she needs. At least she can bear weight on her unaffected leg to help her manage until she's had her surgery. Poor baby - it won't be pleasant for her but if it helps her, it's the thing to do, of course. That is a really cheap price by Dallas standards. Do you know the ortho surgeon's success rate with this procedure and what the associated morbidity rates associated with it are ? I'd be tempted to look for a board certified surgeon if I could manage it.

Let us know the surgery date and we'll keep Bella in prayer.

pstinard 02-24-2014 05:46 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by yorkietalkjilly (Post 4397045)
I'm so sorry little Bella needs to have surgery - that's bad news for sure but glad you can get her the procedure she needs. At least she can bear weight on her unaffected leg to help her manage until she's had her surgery. Poor baby - it won't be pleasant for her but if it helps her, it's the thing to do, of course. That is a really cheap price by Dallas standards. Do you know the ortho surgeon's success rate with this procedure and what the associated morbidity rates associated with it are ? I'd be tempted to look for a board certified surgeon if I could manage it.

Let us know the surgery date and we'll keep Bella in prayer.
The success rate of the surgery is 90%--that's a 90% chance of her symptoms being completely relieved. I don't know the morbidity rate, but I don't think it would be higher than any other type of surgery, and could be lower, since no internal organs are involved. I hadn't even thought about the chance of death from the surgery :(. I asked about recovery time--it could be anything from days to weeks, depending on the individual. Bella recovered rapidly from her spay, so I'm thinking she should recover quickly from this surgery. Physical therapy after the surgery would include range-of-motion treatments, which they would teach me how to do, and possible bathtub swimming sessions.

Her surgery date is Friday, March 21. I'll post a new thread at that time. In the mean time, I'm watching Bella and feeling pretty bad when I see her walking on only three legs :(.

pstinard 02-24-2014 05:50 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by mimimomo (Post 4397044)
Was a xray done...will it be done b4 surgery & is it necessary?
Hope all goes well for Bella!
An x-ray was not necessary for diagnosis--the vet could feel the movement of the knee-cap quite readily. Bella had a complete blood panel before her spay last August, which came back normal. I'll have her get another one before this surgery as well.

Island Girl 02-24-2014 06:03 PM
I'm hoping for the best for Bella!

ladyjane 02-24-2014 06:17 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by pstinard (Post 4397062)
An x-ray was not necessary for diagnosis--the vet could feel the movement of the knee-cap quite readily. Bella had a complete blood panel before her spay last August, which came back normal. I'll have her get another one before this surgery as well.
She is your dog, but I am only going to say that I have had more pups with knee issues than I can count and I have never had one have surgery where an xray was not necessary. So, what I am getting is that this is a general vet, not an ortho surgeon.

I hope that your faith in your vet is warranted.

I will pray for Bella .. hope the surgery goes well.

Ellie May 02-24-2014 06:23 PM
Is the vet sure she didn't also tear a CCL? And is this vet doing the surgery or are they bringing the surgeon in?

For me it isn't so much Boarded vs. non Boarded (although always choose Boarded when in doubt because so many general vets get in over their heads with these surgeries). Non-Boarded surgeons have accomplished amazing things, but you just have to be very careful. If this one teaches at UI CVM I'm fairly certain they are a good choice.

ladyjane 02-24-2014 06:26 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ellie May (Post 4397080)
Is the vet sure she didn't also tear a CCL? And is this vet doing the surgery or are they bringing the surgeon in?

For me it isn't so much Boarded vs. non Boarded (although always choose Boarded when in doubt because so many general vets get in over their heads with these surgeries). Non-Boarded surgeons have accomplished amazing things, but you just have to be very careful. If this one teaches at UI CVM I'm fairly certain they are a good choice.
The CCL is my concern as well.

pstinard 02-24-2014 06:47 PM
2 Attachment(s)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ellie May (Post 4397080)
Is the vet sure she didn't also tear a CCL? And is this vet doing the surgery or are they bringing the surgeon in?

For me it isn't so much Boarded vs. non Boarded (although always choose Boarded when in doubt because so many general vets get in over their heads with these surgeries). Non-Boarded surgeons have accomplished amazing things, but you just have to be very careful. If this one teaches at UI CVM I'm fairly certain they are a good choice.
They were certain about the luxating patella--the kneecap movement was readily apparent and quite severe. They asked me if I wanted to feel it for myself, and I about passed out. The vet who did the examination will not do the surgery--the surgery will be performed by the owner of the clinic. I have faith in the surgeon's ability--he is quite well-known locally. I will call tomorrow and ask about the possibility of CCL, and the need for x-rays (which would also require sedation). In the meantime, here are two photos of Bella taken this evening, doing her most grim Eleanore Roosevelt impression. I call her Belleanore Roosevelt ;).

ladyjane 02-24-2014 06:51 PM
They do not need to use anesthesia for xrays.

Bella is adorable.

Ellie May 02-24-2014 06:52 PM
Pups can tear their CCL along with having LP.

Xrays generally do not require sedation.

pstinard 02-24-2014 06:56 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ellie May (Post 4397089)
Pups can tear their CCL along with having LP.

Xrays generally do not require sedation.
Good point about the torn CCL. Can an x-ray pick that up? I read that good quality diagnostic leg x-rays require sedation. In fact, I just read another article saying the same thing, but maybe that's old information. I will make inquiries tomorrow.

mimimomo 02-24-2014 06:59 PM
I asked about xray bc that's the protocol @ my vet's. I took a Yorkie in that my friend was adopting (retired breeder) & she got an xray w/out sedation.

yorkietalkjilly 02-24-2014 07:03 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by pstinard (Post 4397058)
The success rate of the surgery is 90%--that's a 90% chance of her symptoms being completely relieved. I don't know the morbidity rate, but I don't think it would be higher than any other type of surgery, and could be lower, since no internal organs are involved. I hadn't even thought about the chance of death from the surgery :(. I asked about recovery time--it could be anything from days to weeks, depending on the individual. Bella recovered rapidly from her spay, so I\'m thinking she should recover quickly from this surgery. Physical therapy after the surgery would include range-of-motion treatments, which they would teach me how to do, and possible bathtub swimming sessions.

Her surgery date is Friday, March 21. I\'ll post a new thread at that time. In the mean time, I\'m watching Bella and feeling pretty bad when I see her walking on only three legs :(.
Well, I was more interested in his morbidity associated with this procedure - the cases of failure of the procedure or complications from the groove being chiseled too deeply/shallow or a tendon being accidentally nicked, associated nerve/vascular damage or something along those lines that rather than any mortality rates.

Okay, got the date and you can bet we\'ll be praying and watching for your posting that she is awake and in recovery.


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