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Luxating Patella: Surgery or No? Curious what other parents have done regarding to opting for surgery or leave it alone. I heard a lot of folks decide not to do the surgery since it sometimes leads to limping on one or both legs. My 4 1/2 year old Yorkie (Maverick) has stage 3 luxating Patella in both legs. Had one discussion with an orthopedic Surgeon and have a follow-up appointment in March. I'm not sure if I want to do surgery. He runs well, lifts his back legs to pee, and uses both legs to cover up the area after he pees. Looking to hear from others who decided to have or not have surgery. thanks, Walt |
I wouldn’t. LP puts extra strain on the CCL and you could end up doing the surgery for LP and then a year later their CCL could tear and then having to do another surgery, it happened to me and it’s no uncommon. LP surgery is a rough surgery with 8-12 weeks of crate rest and very painful even with all the pain meds they give. |
Very much appreciated.....even one of the vets at the vet hospital hinted not all folks have it done.....right now, he is happy with no issues running and using his back legs. I use a pet flat stair for him to get on/off the couch. There may come a day I have to reconsider, but for now, I'm leaving it alone. thanks again, Walt |
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As Taylor said, you can repair LP and then the pup can tear that ligament and you are out money for another surgery and the poor pup had to have two surgeries. Sounds like you are doing all the right things! Good luck! |
thanks.... |
I fostered a lot of very badly bred mill puppies among them many yorkie mixes and yorkies and other tiny breeds ... almost all of them had patella luxation of various degrees from grade 1-4 ... none of them ever got surgery - and I followed them often for a decade and they did ok ... I followed the recommendation of my vet and installed ramps instead of letting them do stairs and I tried my best to prevent jumping. No strenuous huge walks or such for the more affected babies but regular exercise and movement is key. As a human doctor I know how invasive knee surgery is and that there is a a huge risk not just not making things better but also making things significantly worse. I would ONLY have surgery done on a dog with a significantly diminished quality of life/ great pain to preserve the ability to move ... there are great therapy aids like wraps and joint supports you can use if the joints are getting more arthritic with age ... |
flybear, thanks....your input is very much appreciated....you made my decision very easy... |
Thankfully my Yorkie never had this issue, however our Maltese did. Due the to severity and the discomfort the pup was feeling when it happened we elected to due the surgery. She had it done in both rear knees (and one was done a second time as the first job was done poorly). The fall out from this surgery (or not doing it as well) can be a torn ACL in the future which yes happened to both knees as well. So our million dollar dog is perfectly fine now and she doesn't have a limp 8-12 years later. |
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Our Maggie also had grade 3 LP in both legs. Of course the vet recommended surgery. We decided not to do the surgery. She was even starting to limp when she would go for a walk or run. We started giving her Cosequin DS Plus MSM. She stopped limping shortly after starting the Cosequin and did very well for the rest of her life. She passed a week ago at the age of 14. The choice is yours, but I would try the Cosequin first. |
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