Luxating Patella Surgery - Do Both Knees At The Same Time? Or One?

[Gew]

We will be scheduling surgery for our newly adopted boy. Our regular vet at the initial visit recommended doing nothing because he ran like the wind, did stairs, etc., but that was the second day we had home. He was class 2 and 3. He was positive for Lymes disease (73) so was put on doxycycline.

Now he has been with us 1 1/2 weeks. He yelps so sharply every person and dog runs to him. This happens several times a day. We really couldn't understand what was happening. Off to the vet. She said it was obviously the luxating patella after her exam and said surgery should be scheduled. One? Both? She said the surgeon should decide.

We adopted Spenser, a 10 year old,December 18 and he had emergency bladder surgery on January 10 for stones. Now we adopted Max, age 7, on March 18 and he needs the luxating patella surgery. I am a nervous wreck, but so grateful we have the boys and can give them the care they need. I am so worried about the recovery period. Keeping him still will be a nightmare. He is more active than Audrey, a 2 year old.

Would anyone please share the long term results?

Thanks.

Gew

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by Gew

We will be scheduling surgery for our newly adopted boy. Our regular vet at the initial visit recommended doing nothing because he ran like the wind, did stairs, etc., but that was the second day we had home. He was class 2 and 3. He was positive for Lymes disease (73) so was put on doxycycline.

Now he has been with us 1 1/2 weeks. He yelps so sharply every person and dog runs to him. This happens several times a day. We really couldn't understand what was happening. Off to the vet. She said it was obviously the luxating patella after her exam and said surgery should be scheduled. One? Both? She said the surgeon should decide.

We adopted Spenser, a 10 year old,December 18 and he had emergency bladder surgery on January 10 for stones. Now we adopted Max, age 7, on March 18 and he needs the luxating patella surgery. I am a nervous wreck, but so grateful we have the boys and can give them the care they need. I am so worried about the recovery period. Keeping him still will be a nightmare. He is more active than Audrey, a 2 year old.

Would anyone please share the long term results?

Thanks.

Gew

We had luxating patella surgery done on our Bella (one knee) three years ago. The long term results are quite good. We constrained her to a small x-pen for two weeks, followed by slowly increasing physical activity and physical therapy. Make sure you have a good surgeon, preferably Board Certified. Attached is a photo of our Bella from when she was constrained to her x-pen. We had a potty pad for her in a nearby area, as well as food and water. Someone was at home to care for her during her entire recovery.

[Gew]

She is darling. .i can be home with Max. We have a child's play yard that can be set up in the family room. Can you pick up the dog during this period and hold him? Ours only pottys outside so can I carry him out on a lead to tend?
Thanks,
Gew

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by Gew

She is darling. .i can be home with Max. We have a child's play yard that can be set up in the family room. Can you pick up the dog during this period and hold him? Ours only pottys outside so can I carry him out on a lead to tend?
Thanks,
Gew

If you have both legs done, Max will not be able to walk, so you will have to carry him to his potty area, and may even have to support him while he does his business. You will not be able to take him out on a lead. You might want to consider setting up an indoor potty pad until he gets some mobility back, unless it's easier for you to open and close doors and carry him outside.

You will be able to pick him up and hold him quietly in your lap, but no excitement until he is healed.

If he has only one leg done, Max might be able to stand on three legs and potty without extra support. You will still have to carry him, though, for at least the first two weeks, especially if you take him outside. Your vet will give you complete care instructions, but be sure to ask detailed questions about what Max can and cannot do, and the length of time he will have to be constrained. With our Bella, she had to be completely constrained for two weeks, and after that, she was allowed out of her x-pen, but absolutely no stair climbing, jumping, or strenuous activity for another four weeks. She was only one year old when we had it done, and she was a quick healer.

[pstinard]

Also, Bella had to have an Elizabethan collar to keep her from licking and biting her stitches until they were removed at two weeks post surgery. You can see in the photo that we used an inflatable collar, and that was MUCH easier for her to handle than the hard plastic cone, which she absolutely hated. We had trouble getting her to eat for the first few days. We ended up making home-made fat-free low sodium chicken broth by boiling a chicken in water with no added salt, chilling it, and removing the fat, and she loved that. She drank that for the first week instead of water, and we also soaked her dry kibble in it to soften it and make it more appetizing. I think she lost her appetite due to the pain meds we were giving her (Metacam liquid in a syringe that we squirted into her mouth each morning.)

[Gew]

Thanks. I see advantages and disadvantages to one at a time and double. I just can't stand the thought of having to go through it twice or having double the pain.

Add to that our just getting this little man. He really is just getting to know us and we, him.

Glad your little one did well.

Gew

[Lovetodream88]

Originally Posted by Gew

We will be scheduling surgery for our newly adopted boy. Our regular vet at the initial visit recommended doing nothing because he ran like the wind, did stairs, etc., but that was the second day we had home. He was class 2 and 3. He was positive for Lymes disease (73) so was put on doxycycline.

Now he has been with us 1 1/2 weeks. He yelps so sharply every person and dog runs to him. This happens several times a day. We really couldn't understand what was happening. Off to the vet. She said it was obviously the luxating patella after her exam and said surgery should be scheduled. One? Both? She said the surgeon should decide.

We adopted Spenser, a 10 year old,December 18 and he had emergency bladder surgery on January 10 for stones. Now we adopted Max, age 7, on March 18 and he needs the luxating patella surgery. I am a nervous wreck, but so grateful we have the boys and can give them the care they need. I am so worried about the recovery period. Keeping him still will be a nightmare. He is more active than Audrey, a 2 year old.

Would anyone please share the long term results?

Thanks.

Gew

I would speak to a certified orthopedic surgeon. Doing a surgery on a 7 year old is risky because the wear and tear is already on the ACL and after the LP surgery the acl could tear and that's another very expensive surgery and another 8 week recovery.

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by Gew

Thanks. I see advantages and disadvantages to one at a time and double. I just can't stand the thought of having to go through it twice or having double the pain.

Add to that our just getting this little man. He really is just getting to know us and we, him.

Glad your little one did well.

Gew

You said that Max has grade 2 in one knee and grade 3 in the other. Our Bella was grade 3 in one knee and grade 4 in the other. Bella would not put her grade 4 leg on the ground, which is why we chose to operate on that knee. The surgeon said that the grade 3 knee would need surgery in the future only if it got worse. Since her surgery, she hasn't had any problems with either knee. Evidently, the grade 3 knee did not get any worse, and may have even improved on its own. She walks on both legs equally. I would definitely consult with a board certified orthopedic surgeon to see whether both knees *really* need to be done, because it might be traumatic for a 7 year old dog to have both done if one of the knees may not even need the surgery.

[Gew]

We made an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for Wednesday. It was our local vet who suggested he needed both done. He walk, runs and jumps, but frequently he lets out terrible yelps. I really don't know what's wrong.

He is a good boy. We've only had him 1 1/2 weeks and he already had a dental with 12 teeth removed. He also has Lymes and is on a course of doxyclicline. I sure hope the surgeon can help him with minimal pain.

Gew

[pstinard]

Originally Posted by Gew

We made an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for Wednesday. It was our local vet who suggested he needed both done. He walk, runs and jumps, but frequently he lets out terrible yelps. I really don't know what's wrong.

He is a good boy. We've only had him 1 1/2 weeks and he already had a dental with 12 teeth removed. He also has Lymes and is on a course of doxyclicline. I sure hope the surgeon can help him with minimal pain.

Gew

The yelping might be due to a torn CCL ligament rather than luxating patella. Bella was never in pain from luxating patella, she just didn't want to put weight on her leg. If it's a torn CCL, you should really try to prevent Max from jumping--that will only make things worse. I know that Max will be in good hands at the orthopedic surgeon. Hopefully you will be able to get the relief for Max that he deserves. Keep us posted on what the surgeon says!

[Lovetodream88]

Originally Posted by Gew

We made an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for Wednesday. It was our local vet who suggested he needed both done. He walk, runs and jumps, but frequently he lets out terrible yelps. I really don't know what's wrong.

He is a good boy. We've only had him 1 1/2 weeks and he already had a dental with 12 teeth removed. He also has Lymes and is on a course of doxyclicline. I sure hope the surgeon can help him with minimal pain.

Gew

Lyme can cause joint issues so you might want to wait and see how he is doing after the doxyclicline. LP surgery is nothing something to just jump to right away especially at 7 years old. It's a rough surgerynthey actually have to cut into the bone and the first two weeks are very rough and hard because they are hurting so bad even with all the meds and they don't want to eat. They have to be confined for 8 weeks sometimes 12 weeks.

[Lovetodream88]

Originally Posted by pstinard

The yelping might be due to a torn CCL ligament rather than luxating patella. Bella was never in pain from luxating patella, she just didn't want to put weight on her leg. If it's a torn CCL, you should really try to prevent Max from jumping--that will only make things worse. I know that Max will be in good hands at the orthopedic surgeon. Hopefully you will be able to get the relief for Max that he deserves. Keep us posted on what the surgeon says!

The ACL(CCL) generally hurts when it tears but after that there is no pain from it but they will not put their leg down at all when it tears.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by Gew

We made an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for Wednesday. It was our local vet who suggested he needed both done. He walk, runs and jumps, but frequently he lets out terrible yelps. I really don't know what's wrong.

He is a good boy. We've only had him 1 1/2 weeks and he already had a dental with 12 teeth removed. He also has Lymes and is on a course of doxyclicline. I sure hope the surgeon can help him with minimal pain.

Gew

I'm not really clear on exactly *when* he's yelping here. So, does he only yelp when using his legs...or...is it happening just randomly as well?

[Gew]

He only yelps ( like if you stepped on a sharp rock with bare feet) when running, he seldom walks, or if you touch his rear too tightly when picking him up. He does soft crying other times, but I can't really interpret them yet. I thought maybe his owners had debarked him. Not sure because I have never heard how debarked dogs sound.
Gail

[Gew]

Hi,
Last Thursday I scheduled surgery for our little Max. The doctor said that both his knees were very bad, but the right the worst. He recommended surgery on the right asap. I asked if we could do both. He said yes but that it would be very hard on Max. He said he wouldn't be able to walk at all for awhile. I said my reasons for wanting both and he agreed to do both this Tuesday.

However, I kept reading and reading and decided I had picked our surgeon because he has done great surgeries on another dog (CCL), and called and talked to the surgical nurse saying I would prefer both, but I would rely completely on his decision. I am trusting he will make the right decision and consider that Max has active Lymes being treated, just had major dental surgery four weeks ago including 12 teeth having to be extracted before we adopted him three weeks ago and his age, seven or eight years old.

All of your opinions above really make me doubt my call to the surgeon. Please send good thoughts to Max on Tuesday. He is a doll, sweet and so loving. I would appreciate any advise to make him as comfortable as possible.

Thanks. I apologize if I made this all about me and Max, but this discussion was so right on as to our situation. I am so scared.

Gew