Dog Has Torn ACL, Needs Surgery....... Who's Been Through It?

[Ductape]

My trusty sidekick Max has torn an ACL hopping into my neighbor's pickup a few weeks ago. A visit to his Vet has has him scheduled for surgery next Monday. We really like our Vet and feel very confortable that he does the surgery himself in-house. I'm wondering if any of you folks have been through this with your dog(s) and what I should expect.

 

[Rod in Forfar]

My trusty sidekick Max has torn an ACL hopping into my neighbor's pickup a few weeks ago. A visit to his Vet has has him scheduled for surgery next Monday. We really like our Vet and feel very confortable that he does the surgery himself in-house. I'm wondering if any of you folks have been through this with your dog(s) and what I should expect.

We had a cocker spaniel which had both back knees done over a couple of years. Recovery wasn't bad at all. Keep him quiet for a day or two.

 

[clemsonfor]

wife is a vet asst and helps on the surgeries. they do them from time to time but usually refer them to a specialist. They are a big $$ surgery.

 

[Storm56]

My trusty sidekick Max has torn an ACL hopping into my neighbor's pickup a few weeks ago. A visit to his Vet has has him scheduled for surgery next Monday. We really like our Vet and feel very confortable that he does the surgery himself in-house. I'm wondering if any of you folks have been through this with your dog(s) and what I should expect.

We have a German Shepard that had the surgery last Thursday. We are told about a 6 week recovery. She was real sore the first couple of days but is getting better every day.

No running or jumping. We wrap a towel around her middle to support her rear quarters while going up and down steps. She usually sleeps at the foot of our bed, so we have made a bed on the floor which we are sleeping on so she is not jumping on and off the bed, what we do for our pets!

She is almost 8 years old and the vet thinks she will do very well. Keeping her inactive seems to be the hardest part. If your dog is the type to pull at the stitches you need to use something around her neck to keep them from doing that. You can but an inflatable "donut" at a pet shop that is a lot more comfortable for the pet than the "cone" the vet provides. We bought the donut if we need it but fortunately our dog is pretty good at leaving her stitches alone.

So far it has not been too bad, only 5 1/2 weeks to go!
.

 

[Skyco]

We are dealing with the same thing on a 10 yr old Lab/Golden.
The wife did a LOT of research and was not happy with the success rate and the trauma from that surgery to an older animal. We also determined if we did it, only a specialist would do the surgery.
After a lot of thought , we ordered a custom ortho brace for around $500, we made a cast of his leg, sent it back and they fabricated a brace and he now wears it most of the time when we take him out. He is no longer allowed to roam free via the doggy door since he would quickly without a doubt re-injure himself. He is doing pretty well and lets face it a 10 yr old large dog doesn't have many years left, another factor in deciding to go the way we did. BTW he tools around pretty well with the brace on, he is not allowed off leash now without it.
Good luck with whichever way you go!

 

[zzvyb6]

My No. 1 black lab had this done 3 weeks ago. He's just now getting to put some weight on it. This is right on schedule, according to the medical information kit provided. (See attached). He's almost 11 and quite the jumper for a frisbee. Doing this while cornering was his downfall. At this point, his mobility is about the same as it was before he went in. What's amazing is that his 3 other hunting buddies know something is amiss and have given him some sympathy, some room and some protection.

This is the second dog of mine to have it done. First was on a pup I rescued 15 years ago that recovered as good as new.

$1800. Worth every penny of it in my book.

 

[Storm56]

Our Shepard is already putting some weight on the leg, so it must be feeling better. We are keeping her on the leash which is hard for her as we live on a large property and she is rarely on a leash. It kills both of us when I head into the woods without her, I think it is harder on me!

$1800 was our bill for surgery also. We did use a specialist and he also checks the knee joint out and cleans out any arthritis etc. He also repairs the maniscus if needed.

 

[Chooglin]

Our Golden retriever had this done 2 yrs. ago.she was taken to a specialist and we paid $2,000.00.

we had to actually pick her up and carry her inside and out,to allow her to relieve herself.If you have any steps that she needs to go up and down,build a ramp for her/him.

 

[Sigarms]

We have a German Shepard that had the surgery last Thursday. We are told about a 6 week recovery. She was real sore the first couple of days but is getting better every day.

No running or jumping. We wrap a towel around her middle to support her rear quarters while going up and down steps. She usually sleeps at the foot of our bed, so we have made a bed on the floor which we are sleeping on so she is not jumping on and off the bed, what we do for our pets!

She is almost 8 years old and the vet thinks she will do very well. Keeping her inactive seems to be the hardest part. If your dog is the type to pull at the stitches you need to use something around her neck to keep them from doing that. You can but an inflatable "donut" at a pet shop that is a lot more comfortable for the pet than the "cone" the vet provides. We bought the donut if we need it but fortunately our dog is pretty good at leaving her stitches alone.

So far it has not been too bad, only 5 1/2 weeks to go!
.

+1, but ours was a beagle mix at 6 years of age.

My No. 1 black lab had this done 3 weeks ago. He's just now getting to put some weight on it. This is right on schedule, according to the medical information kit provided. (See attached). He's almost 11 and quite the jumper for a frisbee. Doing this while cornering was his downfall. At this point, his mobility is about the same as it was before he went in. What's amazing is that his 3 other hunting buddies know something is amiss and have given him some sympathy, some room and some protection.

This is the second dog of mine to have it done. First was on a pup I rescued 15 years ago that recovered as good as new.

$1800. Worth every penny of it in my book. Today 06:52 PM

You're a good man.

Likewise, we had a German short hair pointer in our foster care. He LOVED jumping for balls. We were warned by our vet that "extreme" jumping could cause leg damage down the road. Something to consider with dog owners of a breed who love to jump.

 

[GGB]

We went through this with our male black lab a few years ago. We looked at less expensive options, but he was young enough that it looked like the TPLO (can't remember what that stands for) surgery would be the best option. $2600 for the left rear knee, and 18 months later $3200 for the right rear knee. And yes, it was worth it. It made his last 5 years much easier for him and for us. He got along great afterwards-we just had to be very disciplined about not letting him run and jump while he was recovering.

More recently we went through this with my MIL's youngest dog, who had her hip fractured in two places, broken leg, and torn ligaments. Let's just say that it was even more expensive than my lab's bills. Multiple surgeries and 5 months of recovery time, but today you would never know she had been hit by a car.

What we found that worked better than a towel under the belly to help get the dogs up and out for bathroom duty was a high quality life jacket with a handle on the top. Don't be tempted to go cheap-get the best you can find with reinforced stitching. You'll be glad you did!

Good luck.

GGB