Surgery for luxating patella?
 

Hello!

I just came back from the vet and she recommended that Sophie have surgery for on her right, hind leg.

Over the past couple of weeks we've noticed she "hops" or "skips" on her right, hind leg when walking. We were a little afraid it was her knee and the vet confirmed it.

She said her right leg is showing "clinical symptoms" and that her knee cap is out of place all of the time. Whereas her left knee pops out some of the time.

The vet said she def. recommends surgery on the right knee and we'll just have to see about the left leg. The orthopedic specialist at our clinic would perfrom the surgery and she said she suggests doing it within the next three months.

A few months back we had to take Sophie to the vet and she saw a different vet who said that her knee was a little loose, but said to wait and see what happens because she is still a pup.

I really trust my vet and her opinion, but wanted to know what you guys think? Do we really need the surgery? Should we wait? Get a second opinion?

I just don't want Sophie to be in pain. She loves going on walks and has never indicated that she is in pain or tries to stop while walking, but I don't want her to suffer.

Thanks so much!

I chose to get a second opinion for Lulu when she was diagnosed. Then we went to see a board certified surgeon for a consult & third opinion. Lulu was 8.5 months old when she had her LP surgery in late Dec 2010. She has LP in both rear legs, but surgery was only recommended for her right rear leg because she was showing clinical signs (pulling it up a lot when walking, etc).

I am very glad we did the surgery. Today (nearly 4 months post surgery) Lulu is doing very well. She no longer shows any signs of LP and she runs and plays like she used to. We do have her on glucosamine & fish oil supplements as our vet recommended. And we try our best to limit her jumping.

Good luck! It can be very scary to go through.

I would not even consider allowing any vet to perform this surgery on my dog unless that person was board certified. I also would not consent to the procedure unless my dog was lame after trying medication and crate rest.

My dog has two grade 4 LPs...one was surgically corrected after she was lame despite meds and strict crate rest. The other leg has never needed surgery. She is now 11 and the knee that was repaired never failed and has no arthritis and that is because of the conservative approach we took and the skill of the surgeon who had worked on many toy breed dogs. The other leg has "gone out" a few times in her 11 years but we medicate and rest her and she gets that spring back in her step in no time.

Please consider surgery by ONLY a board certified surgeon and ONLY after all conservative treatments have failed.

ETA: yes, get a second opinion, board certified surgeon...

I agree. We tried strict crate rest & meds prior to proceeding with surgery for Lulu.

Buster will have surgery on both of his knees tomorrow. The vet is board certified and comes highly recommended. From what i have heard he is the best in my area. Buster has had LP since I got him as a puppy. He is only three years old but no longer has the quality of life that he once had. I would not have consented to the surgery unless it was recommended by the vet doing the surgery.

Sending good thoughts your way. I hope Buster's surgery goes well. I know you will be a wreck tomorrow.

I also choose a second opinion on Sadie's and the second vet said to give it time to slip back in place. it did and saved us a 1400 surgery. we then went to a VOM (Veterinary Orthopedic Manipulation) specialist and had treatments and laser therapy and she's been symptom free, no limps, and strong ever since.

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Thanks for the replies! A few months back Sophie was limping and acting strange one night so we took her to the vet. We saw a different doctor than our usual one and she said her one knee was a little loose, but puppies sometimes grow out of it.

I think I'll check into a second opinion and give it a little time before deciding on surgery.

Now, some of you mentioned crate rest. The vet said I could continue to walk Sophie and that if it really hurt her she would just use three legs instead of four. Why did your vet recommend crate rest, were the symptoms very severe at time of diagnosis? And how long would it take to correct itself?

Thanks again!!

I agree, definitely have a board certified surgeon who is familiar with small breeds see your little Sophie. My Hot Rod had lp surgery 2 years ago now and whenever we see the vet I ask him how his knee is and they all say as tight as can be.

I would ask about trying supplements such as cosequin or dasuquin also. Another thing that you could do is try and keep her (good luck to you) from jumping. It is that motion that you want her to avoid of pushing off on her hinds as well as jumping off furniture. Try ramps or stairs. I have stairs everywhere I know that they want to jump onto and off of.

My almost 3 year old Maggie has low grade 2 in both her knees and you would never know she had any problems. Best of luck with the second opinion.

Calleigh had surgery on her left knee [LP] a couple of years ago. I got different opinions from two vets. I took her to see an Orthopedic Surgeon that is a colleague of my best friend. He does surgery in her clinic quite often. He said she had grade three LP and suggested she have surgery. Calleigh didn't have any symptoms that I could see. The surgeon also said she would need to have her right leg done in a couple of years. It looks like it's time to have it done pretty soon. I can actually feel her right knee pop at times when I pick her up. I'm hoping we can wait until after the summer. She loves to walk too. I know this a lot for you to deal with. I hope your pup does well. Keep us posted as to what you decide. I'll be thinking about the both of you. Calleigh did just fine with her recovery. :)

We just joined YorkieTalk recently, and this is my first post. Our family includes two loving female yorkies, Isabella and Emma. Today we took Emma to the Vet because on our Easter Day walk we noticed she was pulling up and in her back right leg. The Vet said she has luxating patella and recommends surgery within a month. We are going to check with the U of MN Veterinary Clinic for a second opinion next week.
Emma is such a part of our family and I was thrilled to read this post and replies of others.
Thank you all for sharing your experiences! It has been very helpful to a stressful day.

The decision should usually be made by a board certified orthopedic surgeon.

Surgery is not something that the vets around here jump into. If there are no symptoms, then there definitely is no surgery. Many small dogs live their whole lives with LP and do just fine. Only you and an ortho surgeon can decide what is best for your pup. :)

We have seen the Xrays from our general Vet and he showed us where the bone has curled due to her compensating as the knee cap does not stay in place any longer. We didn't realize how much this had progressed as we usually don't walk behind her when we go outside. After walking about a block her right back leg turns in signifigantly and it doesn't appear she is balancing her weight on all four.
In the house she has never jumped much, putting weight on her back legs.
The University of Minnesota Vet Clinic has Board Certified surgeons that we hope to see next week. Our general Vet was very comfortable that we were taking her there for a second opinion.
Thanks again.

To the OP: My little Cricket had LP. Hers never rose to the level of surgery. Now as she grew older, she got early arthritis; however, my vet said that would have happened with the surgery. My vet agreed with Crystal's post, he doesn't rush in unless there are significant gait abnormalities and/or pain.

I hope you find a dr who can evaluate how bad the LP is and whether it needs surgical intervention. I feel for you. I know, it's something you always worry about if your dog has it.

Update on Emma's visit to the U of M Vet Clinic. The Board Certified Surgeon recommended the luxating patella surgery tomorrow, along with a figure eight fish like thread joining her two leg bones as they were looser than should be. Her right back thigh is loosing muscle mass due to her compensating with her left rear leg and there was no question the surgery was warranted. We will pick her up on Friday, then 3 - 6 weeks in a kennel.
Emma (and our family) have an adventure ahead, and I hope we'll be able to provide the right environment for a perfect recovery.
Any suggestions on keeping a 2 1/2yr old Yorkie kenneled will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks -