luxating patellas

[jadecomputergal]

She's only at a grade 2 and she's not clinical yet, so I haven't gotten the surgery. I've done a lot of research since I found out for sure she had it, and I was horrified at the convalescence period. I'm kind of waiting to see how she does in the future. Some dogs that have it never become clinical and can live out their entire lives with no problems. However, you have to be careful not to let them get to high-grade LP because, if they get arthritis in their knees, that can't be reversed. You can still get the surgery to prevent future damage, but there aren't many things more pitiful than to see a little dog dragging its legs around behind it because it has too much pain to walk normally.

[limarie3]

Is it possible to have one leg operated on at a time? It seems that this would make the recovery period less stressful for the little ones. On the other hand it would require being under anesthesia 2 times rather than just the 1. Hmmm...

I was just at our vets today and for the first time I was told my yorkie girl, Cosmopolitan, has LP in both back legs. She has always had bowed legs, she is such a tomboy that we used to joke she wanted to look more tough (and its not very noticiable under all her hair). Other than the way her bones have grown, she has no visible symptoms. I'm a little confused because from what I've read this seems to be a sign of late stage LP, but don't those stages generally come with pain and lameness?

I should say our yorkie is only 2.5 and its pretty clear she was born with LP - the vet said her bones have grown awkward to compensate for the problem. He was also surprised she wasn't in any pain as the LP is very evident. He said she would likely have arthritis, but that he was reluctant to perform surgery because she wasn't displaying pain.

Any thoughts? Thanks guys!

[llcornell]

My little Maggie was diagnosed at 2 with it, they said she would need surgery in the next few years. I dont know the level of hers she only became lame when running or jumping alot. As soon as I found out I put stairs to our bed and never let her jump again as far as the rest of the furniture like couches and chairs I just trained her to wait and I would lift her up and down and she learned really quickly and stopped trying to jump on her own. I tried to avoid running and just took her for long walks which she had no problem with. After that I never saw signs of the lameness again. She lived to be 16 without any other issues with her knees. The vet was also said that she had practically no arthritis in her old age which is very uncommon, he said her healthy joints were probably from not having to jump on and off the furniture all the time. Which we dont think about when they are young but years of jumping down is alot of impact on their little bodies and he said a dogs body isnt designed for that kind of constant impact. I recieved critizism from time to time over the years from people that thought I was being overly protective by not letting her jump but the last few years of her life I knew I had made the right choice because she was so much healthier and active than other small dogs I saw at her age and there are alot of ways to play and have fun without jumping. May not help everyone avoid surgery but it did us.

[Azalea]

I am taking my 2 1/2 year old yorkie Carter in for surgery this Friday. I am going to be a wreck but I am looking forward to helping out my little dog. He shows signs of discomfort and he also has yelped and limped when he ran after a toy or jumped up awkwardly. I am glad to get this over with to avoid long term pain (arthritis), to a more energetic dog and to help him with his current discomfort. My vet detected his condition early, stage 1-2 and has seen it progress as time goes on to stage 3. I know my dog is such a trooper and hides his pain since he is so sweet but I know he needs to lay down or take a break from his knee pain.

My vet said the condition is hereditary and not at all caused by jumping on and off of furniture, although I try to avoid him from jumping whenever I can.

Here are some great links from my vet about LP:
Congenital Patellar Luxation - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company!
Medial Luxating Patella - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company!

Thanks for the info! Let me know if anyone has any tips for making my dog comfy after surgery.

[CYN]

I have a 14 week old male yorkie and i have noticed that his legs pop all the time. I have a vet app. tomorrow but i was wondering if that is a early symptom of patellar luxation?
cyn

[Azalea]

Here is my website following my 3 year old Yorkie's surgery Carter Puppy It was VERY difficult the first week but he has shown more energy and seems to be a happier dog.

His other leg I can feel the knee pop but I can also feel it going back into place, the problem is when the knee cap does not go back into position.

My mom is looking for a Yorkie and I am going to help her pick it out, I've heard the signs of detecting it young are optimistic.

I love yorkies, they are the cutest dogs!

[yoshimax]

My maltese was diagnosed with LP on both legs when he was about a year and half. He is 6 now. I was against surgery at first but when a few times while he was running and playing, he would fall down because his knees would give out on him, and one time, I can tell his one leg was stiff after his run. I never let him jump ever since he was a puppy for fear of him developing LP. He got it anyway. The vet told me it is not from jumping, it's more genetics.

Anyway, he was diagnosed with grade 3 on his left leg and grade 2 going on 3 on his right leg. I went to an orthopaedic surgeon at UCDavis and got a second opinion and went ahead with the surgery. That was almost 3 and half years ago. His legs still pop on occasion but definitely better. Someone who posted here earlier is right, if it is not corrected while they are younger and once they develop arthritis, it is usually not a good thing.


We did 2 legs at one time because it means one anaesthesia and one recovery, it was really hard though because I had to carry him for 6 weeks so he can go out and do his thing. I took pictures of him and he was so sick. But he is ok now.