Liath Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 My Cav is having knee surgery in 10 days and was hoping someone could share their experience on recovery and long term outcome. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 Is the surgery for a luxating patella? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staff'n'Toller Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 Ask for a referral to a K9 Physio! That's how you get the best outcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugmum Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 My girl (pug) had both her knees done a few years ago. She had luxating platellas, and the worst one was done first and the second one was done about 10 months later. Her recovery was amazing. The hardest part was trying to keep her quiet for 4 - 6 weeks. A couple of days after surgery she was wanting to run around and would jump up and down on the spot if she was contained in a small space to try keep her still. I carried her a LOT to stop her running - got the best arm muscles I've ever had I had two dogs, so when I went to work, the other dog would go to my folks place, so that the the girl with the surgery had no reason to run around and play. It kept her quiet. She was also contained in places where she could not jump on furniture etc. We did this until the 6 week mark had passed. The thing she seemed to have the most trouble with was getting comfortable to sleep the first few nights - she just coouldn't find a comfy position. I ended up giving her a bed pillow and letting the leg with the surgery 'hang' off it onto the floor stretched towards her head. She'd sleep really well this way but then after she had gotten up for whatever reason, would not know how toget back into that position, so I'd place her again. that was only for a few days. The surgery went so well, I still skoff at footballters having months off for knee reconstructions - if the local vet did it, they be back playing footy again in a fortnight Good luck with the surgery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collstar Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 hi, my dog had surgery to correct his luxating patella. he got to the point where he was unable to move any faster than walking pace the most difficult part is definitely trying to keep them quite enough for the 4-6 weeks after the surgery! as that's critical few recovery weeks, if any damage is done, you risk having to repeat the surgery, or it may not be successful. we borrowed a friends doggy play pen, almost like a huge crate that u would use for puppies, and put ben's bed, water and food in there. the next problem is boredom! plenty of chew toys and bones to keep your dog occupied should help. and every so often i let ben out of the pen, well really i just very carefully picked him up and took him outside, on the lawn or under a tree so he could pee or just for a change of scenery! it didnt take him long to master hopping, so i used a lead and let him hop around outside, slowly though!! after a few weeks (not sure how many) i encouraged him to walk, to get him using the leg again. you can use a towl to support his back legs by putting it under his belly and holding the ends (sort of like a sling) and take some of the weight of his back legs. i also found a dog physio in the area, luckily we had one very close by, and he suggested some stretching and massaging exercises to help loosen muscles and ligaments in his leg. Good luck :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickasyoucan Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 My dog is about to have knee surgery too, but for a cruciate ligament tear. He has had mild waxing and waning rear hind limb lameness since the end of last year. Just when we thought it was getting better it got worse again. We tried conservative management and "wait and see" (on the advice of the specialist) as diagnosis following x-ray earlier this year was inconclusive and symptoms were originally mild. But in the last month he has deteriorated limp wise a lot and we are due to have a TPLO shortly as further x-rays have confirmed the diagnosis. My understanding is that correct confinement post-operatively is almost as important as the skill of the surgeon. I imagine it is the same for most orthopaedic procedures. I am not looking forward to what is going to be long eight weeks confinement :p but am hopeful that then my dog will at least be pain free. To the OP there are a few post-op threads if you do a search, I found them useful to read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rascalmyshadow Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Don't stress too much as long as you have a good vet and follow their instructions everything should be fine. My 91/2 year old mini poodle, about 8-12 months ago had surgery for stump pyometra then a week later tore her cruciate ligament and had to have surgery for that. She recovered beautifully, we made sure she had 5 minute walks 3 times a day and then built up from that so she learnt to use the leg and put pressure on it. I now give her Sasha's blend with her dinner every night and she is as bouncy as she's ever been and you would never know she had ever had surgery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickasyoucan Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Thanks it is always good to hear good results that people have had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizT Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 My Cav is having knee surgery in 10 days and was hoping someone could share their experience on recovery and long term outcome.Cheers Good luck and healing Cav vibes to you...and just in case you hadn't thought about it, don't let your Cav get fat while they are re-couperating! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poodle wrangler Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 My big standard poodle had this op about 8 months ago. Is unusual in a bigger dog. A couple of DOLers suggested a great vet/dog-chiro/surgeon in Canberra- thankyou, guys. Talk thru everything with your vet, as they know your dog's condition best. Am happy we had it done at 3 years of age, not later. He dislocated several times in only a few hours one day- not good for his joint. Physio/ chiro and anti-inflammatories can help- depends on the individual dog and what's going on with their knee. Beware of the staples/ stitches... my dog chewed out >30 staples! Also, can be hard to keep them quiet enough. I thought I was doing OK and used a crate some of the time, but recovery would have been better with less activity. So says the vet! Best wishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickasyoucan Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 Okay we have had our TPLO and now waiting for my boy to come home tomorrow evening! Then the hard work from me keeping him quiet starts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gretel Posted October 13, 2010 Share Posted October 13, 2010 Okay we have had our TPLO and now waiting for my boy to come home tomorrow evening! Then the hard work from me keeping him quiet starts! Good luck with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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