Vet Recommendations For Cruciate Ligament Injury (melbourne) First Quo

[Cavalblaze]

My sisters 8 year old Golden Retriever slipped on the wet steps and has suffered a cruciate ligament injury. She has had him to a specialist which quoted $4000.

She has asked if anyone can recommend a slightly cheaper vet/surgeon to carry out this procedure.

[jrm88]

My vet usually can do cruciate for 1000 - 2000 depending on the dog and how bad the injury is Alot of your normal 'local' vets are able to do it at a much cheaper price. Ask her if she trusts her normal vet to do the procedure/if they can. If not, maybe ring around and go see another local vet or try get some recommendations for a local vet.

[APBT]

My girl did the same thing slipping on the stairs, was quoted About $600 for the operation.

[Kimjm1]

you need to ensure you get the best procedure for your dogs size and activity level not just the cheapest

[aussielover]

What type of surgery is it exactly? There are a number of methods for repairing curciate injuries. A GP vet will be able to do it for you at a cheaper price, but you have to decide whether you think getting a specialist to do it is worth it or not.

[Cavalblaze]

you need to ensure you get the best procedure for your dogs size and activity level not just the cheapest

Yes I do agree, she is happy to pay $2000, just $4000 is just a bit more than she anticipated. The consulting surgeon said the price was higher due to his size. Her vet will not carry out the procedure, he referred her to this specialist which is were the quote is from.

I guess you can say he is oversized Golden Retriever, large scale giant! He would be 40kilos plus. He is slightly over weight, not excessive. He is big frame, huge feet. Walks daily, loves his walks. I can't say he is super fit, he doesn't do any agility or advance exercising.

I hoped that someone might have had a large dog and could recommend a good vet or specialist that could carry this out within price range. He is 8 years old and is a lovely pet. She wants to give him a quality lifestyle without the discomfort he is currently in.

[Golden Rules]

My vet did my Goldie's cruciates (x2) for $1400 each time. (And then the third one was done for $700 but that's another story)

I was quoted $2000 to have the surgery done by an ortho surgeon and would have been happy with that as I have pet insurance however, the ortho surgeon leaves the animals unattended overnight and I wasn't happy with that.

(In the end, I brought my boy home after the surgery and did the overnight care myself.)

Definitely call around and get some quotes. Hopefully you will get a good recomendation from a Doler.

[cavNrott]

With a dog that size I wouldn't go for the DeAngelis traditional method. Too many of them seem to break down. I would think that TTA or TPLO would be the best.

I had Wing Tip Wong, an ortho surgeon do TPLO on my Rottweiler but the price would be more than $2000, it was over $3000 just for the surgery and not taking into account the multiple xrays needed. All up each knee came to well over $4000.

That was 8 years ago so I expect it would be even more expensive now.

Edited June 1, 2010 by cavNrott

[Cavalblaze]

With a dog that size I wouldn't go for the DeAngelus traditional method. Too many of them seem to break down. I would think that TTA or TPLO would be the best.

I had Wing Tip Wong, an ortho surgeon do TPLO on my Rottweiler but the price would be more than $2000, it was over $3000 just for the surgery and not taking into account the multiple xrays needed. All up each knee came to well over $4000.

That was 8 years ago so I expect it would be even more expensive now.

Yes TPLO is what has been recommended. As we have researched the larger clinics to discover that it is the going price for this particular procedure and somehow she is just going to have to find the extra cash to get it done.

[noopy]

I know alot of people here are advocates for cruciate surgery but my experience is a bit different. My 20 kg red cattle dog did in her cruciate ligament 11 weeks ago and was in a terrible state. She's 6 and the vet knew I was paying out everycent I had to my name at that time to help my other dog who was very ill at the time. He said it wasn't necessary to rush into treatment as it could wait for a while. So, whilst I waited I researched what else I could do on the net and found this site called "conservative management' and went ahead with that advice and all the on-line support from all those forum members of which quite a few are vet tech's and even a vet.

I was able to restict my dog's freedom all day and night so she wasn't able to run, jump, go on walks etc and even had to put chairs up on my couch so she couldn't get up on to it and after a month she was weight bearing on that leg and amonth later walking on it and now walking on it very normally without any pain or problems.

The success of this new treatment, which is often used by vets anyway if a dog is too old to under go surgery or for some reason cannot go under anaesthetic, is now gaining popularity and having the same success rate as these expensive surgeries.

The proof is in the pudding with all the people like myself and other's who have used this CM (conservative management) method and it has been successful.

You can use pain relief with the treatment if you need to and all it takes is to look up the we site and read all about it. Just look up cruciate ligament conservative management and you should find it. Many many dogs do well on this treatment and it has gained huge popularity and been proven to work. Good luck iether way.

[aussielover]

Is it ruptured? A freind of mine also has a 40+kg Goldie who has a cruciate ligament injury. His is not fully ruptured though. They also went with conservative management and he can now walk short distances and have a bit of a run around every now and then. Is the dog overweight? It might be an idea for them to try and get some weight off him as well as cage rest/restricted exercise. Dogs that are overwight tend to blow the surgery anyway or just do the other leg! which would be quite a waste of money.

[noopy]

Is it ruptured? A freind of mine also has a 40+kg Goldie who has a cruciate ligament injury. His is not fully ruptured though. They also went with conservative management and he can now walk short distances and have a bit of a run around every now and then. Is the dog overweight? It might be an idea for them to try and get some weight off him as well as cage rest/restricted exercise. Dogs that are overwight tend to blow the surgery anyway or just do the other leg! which would be quite a waste of money.

Our dog's left hind leg's cruciate was ruptured. The people on this forum are wonderful. The information is very professional and you can look on this site and find all the experiences and information and terrific support you are likely to ever need.

Alot of people have come to this site for help when their dog has had one, two or more surgeries and this is all they have left. Surgery is not the only answer with this injury.

Pain meds, joint supplementation and conservative management have their rightful place up there with surgery and many many people who have tryed both will attest to that.

Agreed, getting weight off a heavy dog is helpful and sometimes essential. If she goes ahead with the surgery there will be the same few months or more of conservative restrictive management as if doing just conservative management on its own, so there is the same amount of dedication and difficulty keeping an active aor heavy dog restrained and cooped up, unable to run, walk, jump or have free reign so you really stand to loose nothing if you try it and give pain meds and see if after 4-6 weeks there is steady improvement, if you are not happy you can get surgery later without any ill-effects. Good luck.

[Scouty]

My sisters 8 year old Golden Retriever slipped on the wet steps and has suffered a cruciate ligament injury. She has had him to a specialist which quoted $4000.

She has asked if anyone can recommend a slightly cheaper vet/surgeon to carry out this procedure.

Danny at hampton vet hospital = best.

pm if you want his number, but i think you will be able to google it

good luck

scout

[Cavalblaze]

My sisters 8 year old Golden Retriever slipped on the wet steps and has suffered a cruciate ligament injury. She has had him to a specialist which quoted $4000.

She has asked if anyone can recommend a slightly cheaper vet/surgeon to carry out this procedure.

Danny at hampton vet hospital = best.

pm if you want his number, but i think you will be able to google it

good luck

scout

Thanks, she has found a clinic who has been recommended for the procdeure. The ligagemt is RUPTURED. .

[Babesmum]

Hi,

It depends on the type of surgery that is done, but we paid about $1200 for our girl to get done 4 years ago in Brissy. We rang around a few of the vets in our area, and ended up getting it done at the university vet surgery in Brisbane. They did a wonderful job, and even recomended an animal physio who showed us exercises to do with her when we returned home.

I hope this helps a bit, and that you have a successful outcome.

Cheers!

Lis

[cavNrott]

I know alot of people here are advocates for cruciate surgery but my experience is a bit different. My 20 kg red cattle dog did in her cruciate ligament 11 weeks ago and was in a terrible state.

I was able to restict my dog's freedom all day and night so she wasn't able to run, jump, go on walks etc and even had to put chairs up on my couch so she couldn't get up on to it and after a month she was weight bearing on that leg and amonth later walking on it and now walking on it very normally without any pain or problems.

The success of this new treatment, which is often used by vets anyway if a dog is too old to under go surgery or for some reason cannot go under anaesthetic, is now gaining popularity and having the same success rate as these expensive surgeries.

The proof is in the pudding with all the people like myself and other's who have used this CM (conservative management) method and it has been successful

With respect, conservative management is not a new treatment, it's a very old one. Also at only 11 weeks post cruciate rupture it is far too early to assess whether or not conservative management is successful. That the dog appears to be doing well at 11 weeks is not evidence or proof that conservative management works in the long term. 18 months to 2 years would be a reasonable period of time for an assessment, dependent on the activity level of the dog.

With TPLO and most other surgical ligament repairs it's usually advised that activity is very restricted for a period of 12 weeks, particularly in the first 6 weeks where crate confinement is recommended with only on leash toilet breaks. That was the advice given to me when my young Rottweiler had TPLO. I observed the orthosurgeons rehab instructions and when my dog's knee had healed she was able to lead a normal life, running, jumping and playing with other dogs without any activity restrictions.

Conservative management will probably work with an elderly dog who is a couch potato and has a very low level of activity. It can also work well with small dogs.

Conservative management and very limited activity will allow scar tissue to build and may hold the knee steady in a small dog but in a large dog the scar tissue will eventually break down if the dog is younger and allowed normal activity for its age. Arthritis can be expected in most cases.

If my small breed dog ruptured a ligament I would try conservative management but I would not with my large breed. If the dog was still young I would probably have surgery done (not necessarily TPLO) so that after the recovery period she would have an unrestricted activity level for her age and breed.

[stormie]

Any type of repair can faulter and I believe the TPLO or TTA's are much harder to deal with if they fail. I know the norm seems to be to have TPLO or TTA done on large breed dogs, but if done well with good equipment, the DeAngelis can work just as well. We do the DeAngelis on most of our repairs, as per clients wishes, and they are all rock solid. But then, our vet has been doing them routinely for over 20years and insists on using only the best and strongest materials. We've done Goldens, Rotties, Shepherds all with perfect results. And the most it usually comes to is about $1500.

If you can find a good experienced vet, I wouldn't write off the DeAngelis technique. But if they're happy to pay a few grand, then go for the Specialist option.

[Kimjm1]

I would reccomend a TPLO over a D'Angelis if possible we see large breed dogs every week that have had to go back and have more surgery because they thought a D'Angelis would be sufficent and for whatever reason ie dog to heavy, cannt keep it quiet, chased the birds in the backyard (heard them all) the implant ruptures and they are back to square one. Granted we do probarly see a biased population as alot of the people that seek out physiotherapy and rehab are the ones who dogs are not going so well

[kirst_goldens]

I was going to get my cat done by Dr Stephen Emms in Camberwell vet clinic - turns out wasnt a full rupture and healed but he since has done my boys feamural excision was wonderful has only been 3weeks and he barely limps anymore! He is great and i know he has done millions of cruciates as the waiting room is always FILLED with clients who absolutly adore him - great work just incase u needed another vet to do the op

[silentchild]

I had TPLO done on my Rottie by a specialist Dr Charles Kuntz at South Paws Surgery in south east melbourne - he was absolutely fantastic and my Rottie is now fully healed and running around like it had never happened. It was expensive though, almost $4000 due to her size. Still, I was very impressed with South Paws and would highly recommend it to anyone.