Feedback on Grade 3 Luxating Patella
 

I just got back from visiting a new vet with my Yorkie. I went to her for a second opinion on his luxating patella. She told me it was a grade 3 and it's up to me if I go ahead with the surgery. She isn't sure about the price yet because she needs to call the orthopedic specialist and will get back to me. It might be within the range of $1,500- $2,000 each leg. She said if I leave him be he might just adapt to it and it might not get worse. On the other hand it can pop out entirely and not go back in and then arthritis will set in. I don't know what to do. I don't want to put my baby through this but then again I don't want him developing arthritis. Those of you with Yorkies who have or had a grade 3 LP let me know what you decided to do. Did you leave the Yorkie be? If so did the condition worsen? Did you go ahead with the surgery? If so how is the Yorkie now?

My Zada had grade 3 LP in both knees and the both were operated on at the same time. Total cost for both knee surgeries was 1,322.50 and the Vet. is a specialist. The recovery is about 8 weeks. We kept her in her crate hooked up to the expen with foam on the floor to cushion her legs. She stayed there for 8 weeks, but after two weeks we took her in the yard on the leash for about five minutes twice a day, and then very gradually work up to more time each week after.

We are getting ready to go through this now. I don't know what grade Hallee's is, but our regular vet said her left is a lot worse than her right. We are seeing ortho specialist on Monday. If surgery is needed they will do it Monday afternoon. The fee is estimated by her weight and they told us from 900.00-1200.00. I am not sure if this is for one leg or both. Will find out on Monday. She seems to be getting better the last few days. Sunday she was limping pretty bad and we took her to the vet Monday and Tuesday and was diagnosed with it. Right now she is on Rimadyl. I will be able to post more after our specialist visit. If the specialist says she needs the surgery then we will do it because we want to do what is best for Hallee.

Gracie was just diagnosed today. I don't know what grade she has. The vet did say that the sooner it is fixed the better. Every time the patella dislocates it causes cartilage damage. If it is not fixed, some Yorkie's do OK even into old age, others get quite lame with arthritis. My vet said there is no way to predict which ones will do OK and which won't, and the only way to ensure a quality life in later years is to have the surgery when they are young. I won't hesitate to get Gracie the surgery she needs, even if I have to max out my credit card to do it. I could never forgive myself if she ended up in chronic pain because I did not fix the problem when I could have. This is so hard!

Pixie has had several surgeries for this. Her right leg was grade 4 & permanently dislocated. They fixed it in April. Recovery was about 8 weeks. I am pretty weak about those type things, and I wasn't sure I could handle it, but really, it wasn't so bad. Not at all.

Then a couple weeks ago, they did her left leg. At that time, they noticed that her pin in her right was coming out, so they opened it back up, too. They said they don't normally have to go back in and take the pin out or anything, but they felt it was necessary with her. She is doing remarkable now (about 2 weeks later).

She is still on limited movement, but she is getting around excellent. We have started physical therapy on both back legs - it's not so bad. We started with range of motion and massages until she could walk. Now she's able to walk, so we do massages and short walks. We will graduate on up to doing water therapy one of these days, but we need some more walks first :)

Going into it, I was scared, upset, confused, etc. You name it, that was me. I was really dreading having to take care of her and keep her confined. I had no idea how to handle her post-surgery, either. Now we've had 4 surgeries (including getting fixed), and the vet knows us so well and we've done such a good job, he doesn't do checkups. By now, he tells me, "You know what you're doing. Call if you have questions or if something doesn't look right."

In sum, the surgery really isn't that bad. Recovery isn't bad either. It's so good to see them learn to walk again on their leg and this time, not hurt.

If you opt to NOT do surgery, or if you choose to put it off, remember that any damage done is irreversible. Once the cartilage is damaged/gone, it doesn't come back. I highly suggest getting it fixed while you still can. We were very lucky with Pixie. Hers was grade 4 (right leg) and she couldn't walk on it at all. Often times once it gets so far, they can't do much.

Talk to your vet, research, talk to others, but if it's a grade 3, it needs surgery soon. Don't wait.

How is Zada doing now after the surgeries? Is she able to walk, run, and jump like she used to? I am thinking if my Bachee needs to have both legs done then maybe it's best to do them both at the same time just to get it over with. How was she able to walk though with both legs bandaged? Was she in alot of pain? If you look at Bachee now he seems fine. He runs and jumps normally. He never cries out in pain. I think I am going to ask my vet to give him an X-ray so I can see the damage on the inside. I guess once I see it for myself then I can really make a decision. She is supposed to call me this week to let me know how much the specialist charges so that will be a factor too. $1,322.50 is a great price for both legs. My vet gave me an estimate of around $1,500- $2,000 just for one leg.

I went to the:
http://www.vetspecialist.com/

It is in Westbury, NY (Long Island) - I saw Dr. Hinton. She did the surgery for Roxy. Roxy had bi-lateral surgery it cost $3000 for both legs (including blood work, xray, meds, hospital stay)

IMO Grade 3 does need surgery. Whatever damage is done to the cartilage by now is not replacable or repairable and it will only get worse. With surgery, you'll stop the luxation and stop any further damage and pain :(

Do a search for Luxating Patella here on YT - you'll find lots of posts.

Roxy is a BRAND NEW girl - it is terrific to see her, she is so much more confident ;)

That sounds like a reasonable price since everything is included with that. I am still waiting to hear back from my new vet on how much the specialist she refers to charges for this. If it's more than $3,000 then I will consider going to this place. Thanks so much for that info. Two quick questions, did Roxy show any signs of pain before the surgery? Did Dr.Hinton take X-rays of Roxy's leg so you could see the extent of the damage?

There is a consult fee of approx. $130
Dr. Hinton is a Board Cert. Ortho Specialist

In the early months, Roxy had this 'skip' type of a walk. I thought it was cute, but I now know this is a sign of LP. Also, when we picked Roxy up, we could feel a 'click' in her legs.

Then she started to carry a leg every once and a while. Then she started to limp, so that's when we decided to go for surgery.

Roxy had blood work and xrays done the morning of the surgery, just so the surgeon could see what was going on in there.

Thanks for answering my questions. The only sign that Bachee displays is every now and then when I pick him up I hear a clicking sound as well. He doesn't limp or skip. Do you think he will be getting worse in the future?

In your first post, you said the Vet said it was Grade 3+

IMO - This is serious and IMO this needs surgery.

There are only 4 Grades of LP and the higher grades don't correct themselves.
LP does only get worse. When the patella luxates it rubs back and forth and during this luxation cartilege is being worn away. This cartilege can not be replaced or repaired :( So by having surgery to stablize the luxating patella you will stop the wearing away of the cartilege.

If you leave this LP alone, somewhere down the road, he will start to limp and be in pain or be laim. Arthritis will set in.

I know that the LP surgery is expensive, but it is worth it in the end. ;)

I have been reading alot about LP's. I agree with you if I leave him alone then it will more than likely get worse. I think what is holding me back is the fact that I don't see any signs of him being in pain. When Roxy started limping that's what made your decision to go ahead with the surgery final right?
My new vet called and said the ortho specialist she refers to is on vacation and should be back next week. Once I hear the price then I can make my final decision. I went to the Vet Specialist website and I was very impressed with it. Thanks for letting me know about that place.

Zada's knees are excellent. After she was allowed to run around, she played and ran and had a great time. Before surgery, she never did play much at all.
When she had the expen attached to her crate to keep her in for those weeks, I also put a thick foam matt down so she wouldn't have to walk on a hard floor. She never had her knees bandaged. They heal better if they are not wrapped.

Listen to TLC, she gives excellent advise on LP surgery IMO. I work for orthopedic surgeon's and i would also definitely recommend the surgery for a grade 3 LP. things can only get worse from here without surgery. If you go to a board certified orthopedic surgeon the surgery itself is a simple process if there are no further complications. I've seen HUNDREDS of knee surgeries where i work and 90% of the patients have an excellent recovery. The 10% that don't have an excellent recover are usually because the owner did not follow the discharge instructions and they let their dog do whatever it wanted, thus ruining the surgical repair. If you decide to get the surgery done, and you follow all the recovery instructions there is no reason why your yorkie shouldn't have an excellent recovery (unless there are complication specific to your dog)

I don't know anything about the surgery, but I am sending prayers that you make the right decision for your furbaby.