Cruciate Ligament Damage

[Pitchick]

Hi Guys

My vet has diagnosed Rubi with Cruciate Ligament Damage in her hind legs. Somedays are good and every now and then she has bad days where she cannot physically stand up and put weight on her hind legs.

I have tried pentosan injections (1 course = 4 weekly injections) along with fish oil and glucosamine/chondroiton tablets but it still doesnt seem to help. She is not an overweight dog but the vet still wants her to lose around 4kg.

She is an extremely active dog which now does not get any time off lead to have a good run as she just collapses and cannot stand.

Anyway it has been about 8 months since she was diagnosed and want to hear from anyone whos dog has had surgery and what has been the results. I suppose Im hoping to hear that after surgery she will be able to run around.

Cheers

[puggy_puggy]

How old is she?

[Lab_Rat]

Hi Pitchick - sorry to hear about your Rubi's problem!!

I can tell you about my last kelpie (this is going back about 15 years tho' ). She had both back legs operated on for damaged cruciate ligaments, but obviously not at the same time. After her ops she was as good as new and was running around normally after her recovery. She didnt have any problems again and died from heart failure at about 16 years. She was an extremely active dog - if she wasnt asleep, she was moving

Im not sure how far technology has come re cruciate replacements since then, but I would think they are a pretty common op.

You dont say how long for or what dosage you were giving the fish oil and glucosamine/chondroiton, but did you know they need to be on it for a couple of months, sometimes longer for it to have any effect??

My girls are on 4g fish oil & 1.5g glucosamine each day. Our kelpie had a foot injury and I feel the supplements have improved her (she also has 6monthly Cartrophen jabs), whereas the other one (RR) is on supps for preventative measures.

I hope you get some other & more current feedback! Good luck with your girl.

Rat

[Pitchick]

How old is she?

She is approx 7 years

[Pitchick]

Hi labrat

Im not sure of the dosage (at work at moment) but up until a month ago I was giving her 2 fish oil capsules a day and 1 glucosamine/chondroiton capsule per day. I was giving her this before she was diagnosed maybe around 10 months ago.

I suppose my main concern is spending a lot of money on her getting the surgery only to find that its not going to work. But you said your old Kelpie was fine after surgery, thats what I like to hear.

[Kelly_Louise]

Hi Pitchick,

Sorry to hear of your girls cruciate damage. At about 8yo, my red cattle dog also blew both her cruciates. We opted for a tibial wedge osteotomy (similar to a TPLO) surgery, because the osteotomy surgeries are generally considered more stable and more successful on larger/heavier dogs (I guess that would include more active as well) due to the fact that the slope of the knee is permanently changed to be more stable, and is plated and screwed up to keep it all in place. We followed the aftercare rigidly, and let me tell you, once she was done with her rehab - I actually have to tell people she has had these ops as no one would ever guess. If she has a really BIG and active day, she may get a little stiff - but it is nothing drastic (no limping or anything, mind you she has a load of arthritis in all 4 legs too). My best advice if you are going to go ahead with surgery - is to research, or speak to the vet about the different techniques - and find the one that will suit your dogs size, weight and activity level best. Aftercare is also very tedious and needs to be followed carefully if the surgery is to be successful. Also, keep her as lean as you can (we haven't managed that with Chloe due to her other issues - and she manages fine but the leaner you can have her the more successful surgery will be).

Chloe, now at 11yo and with numerous other health and leg issues, can probably outrun any dog her age (or younger). We don't encourage rough play or jumping play anymore (ie jumping for balls or off high places etc), just to keep her safe - but she can function very normally otherwise. At her age she was slowing down anyway with natural ageing, and we replaced all her balls with squeaky toys or tugs that don't require jumping or anything too rough. She did get used to this, and now has balls in her massive toy chest - she does little runs to fetch them and we throw so she can catch it without having to jump etc... but in all honesty we've never had any problems since her surgery. It was actually (in my opinion) the best decision I made for her and gave her a quality of life (a slightly different life - but a happy painfree one none the less) that alternative treatments couldn't.

So yes, we are one example of an ongoing surgery success story.

If you have any other specific questions, I'm happy to answer them!

ETA - these good results were achieved even after her recommendation for surgery was delayed way too long and much damage had set in - her meniscus were totally destroyed and these had to be removed as well - pretty much means she has no shock buffers in her knees anymore. Which is why if you are going to opt for surgery, do not leave it too long as joint changes can set in very quickly.

Edited July 13, 2009 by Kelly_Louise

[Pitchick]

Thanks Kelly glad to see another success story.

Can I also ask how much this surgery cost?

[Kelly_Louise]

It was approximately $3500 per leg (give or take a couple of hundred). I did have a choice of similar surgeries and the TWO was one of the more expensive - however I had done alot of research online and that was the surgery I preferred and understood, and I have to say, it was worth every cent. It was painful financially (that was my wedding money and I'm still not married), but if I had the chance to do it all over again, I would do the same thing without a second thought - the results were just so good for us.

The recovery was long, and stressful for everyone especially because I wanted everything adhered to down to the last syllable... but again, worth it.

I know alot of people are not a fan of surgery, but for me, I'm glad I made the decision and am thrilled with the ongoing results (she was so bad our alternative was really PTS). But I have had my girl for another 3 wonderful years (and hopefully many more) and she has been happy and mostly painfree and normal life.

ETA - this price was for the surgery performed by a specialist orthaepedic surgeon

Edited July 13, 2009 by Kelly_Louise

[Staffyluv]

Ollie had small tears in both legs and we opted for high doses of ester C powder and rest (not easy keeping them still but was necessary for a few weeks, then small walks)...

His was not so damaged that he could not stand though, so not sure if the ester C would be enough for Rubi...

Ester C helps repair tissue damage with really amazing results

[Clyde]

Gertie my little Shihtzu just had both cruciate repairs done at the same time.

At this stage the vet is happy with how she is going.

[Golden Rules]

My big boofa Goldie has just had his third repair (left leg done 18 months ago, right leg done 12 months ago and right leg just repaired again).

My vet did the artificial ligament procedure which wasn't what I really wanted to do after reading it was more successful on smaller dogs however, I trusted him.

First leg done is brilliant, no problems at all. Second leg was good until a few months ago, he obviously landed heavily or something, limped for a few months and we thought it was just arthritis however after going in for an arthroscopy, boofa boy came out having a second repair on that leg.

Have to say though, not even 3 weeks post surgery, and he is almost walking without a limp and is absolutely raring to go!! Amazing recovery after the previous two ops.

At the end of the day, it's absolutely worth it IMO, quality of life for the dog.

[Tiggy]

Sophie did her cruciate about three years ago(she's four now) and only this winter did she start pulling up sore with arthritis(she hadn't ruptured it again like I though thank god), she had a steroid injection into the joint and she's sound again . Sophie's very active and the leg holds up fine but I don't play fecth with any of the dogs anymore because the twisting after the ball is a real risk.

[Guest Clover]

Another sucess story here, my 10.5 year old Rottie cross had cruciate surgery at the beginning of the year and has recovered just fine. She is also on a joint food, fish oil caps and Cartrophen shots every 3 months or so.

Goodluck with Ruby, i hope she has a full recovery and is running around again in no time.

[Staff'n'Toller]

If she has a full blood screen and it comes up all fine then I would get one done and see how she goes.

Having had a competent Vet repair a Luxating Patella that is now full of arthritis on one of mine I would certainly seek out an Ortho Specialist and have an initial consult to talk about their preferred methods.

There are different ways of approaching repair of Cruciate Ligaments.

[Pitchick]

Thanks guys for your replies.

It sounds like a lot of you have had great results. I will have to do some research on some of the info provided here and then go back to my vet and discuss.

Thanks again.

Cheers

Mel