Three Legged Dog With A Cruitiate Tear

[m-j]

Hi

I have an 7yr old greyhound with three legs (left front is missing) a few weeks ago he tore his cruciate on his right back leg. With rest he was recouperating well and then he hurt it again and now we are back worse than before. In fact he is really struggling to get up or down (we need to assist him) once he is up and moving he can cope on his own. Shaking is very hard for him and toileting he working out.

Now the problem I am having is wondering what to do should it come down to the cruciate not being able to repair as he does need to use that leg a bit more than a 4 legged dog would need to. Plus being a tall Greyhoud makes it a little more difficult for him as well.

The logical side of me sees my option as euthanasia because of the difficulty that I would have providing adequate after care for him if he had an op and the pain he will go through (and may continue to have) to achieve very little improvement and possibly compramising other body parts. He may also injure the crutiate again and again. The vet also hinted tactfully that this might have to happen. I'm not a spring chicken and he is a 37kg dog.

My heart is saying no to euthanasia we will just work it out any problems when they arise. I'm far from giving up on him at this point but I'm just wondering if this was you with your dog what would you do?

[ness]

Is cost a consideration? Maybe it would be worth having a chat to an orthospecialist and getting some advice from them. They seem pretty upfront as to whether surgery is a good consideration and whether the dogs limitations would present much of an additional burden post-op.

One he has had surgery if you opt for a bone cutting procedure such as a TPLO or a TTA the actual cruciate ligament is then no longer required so there is nothing to "reinjure". The success rate of the procedure is particularly good - it changes the mechanics so the dog has a functional leg without the use of a cruciate ligament.

[~Anne~]

I would give all options a go. If after trying surgery, whatever the vet recommended, and it failed, then I would look at euthanasia. I would also look at having a specialist do the surgery to enable the best chance at an optimal recovery.

[ness]

I will add - I now have a 13 year old BC who is now 9 weeks post-op for a cruciate repair. We opted for a traditional/lateral suture repair in her circumstance and she is doing really well and not really looked back during the recovery process.

I suspect in your case though it would be either a TPLO or TTA which you would need and definitely worth getting a specialist to perform the surgery. As far as pain is concerned they seem to bounce back through good pain management strategies and my oldie really wasn't ever in any great pain during the recovery.

Edited December 14, 2013 by ness

[Angeluca]

Wings I'm sorry, your decision you know him best good luck

I'm going to add my reasoning I had posted before then pressed wrong button and deleted it all has happened a lot ,

I would take in his age, he isn't old but far from young,

His abilities to cope with operations

His ability to mend and comfortable as possible in regards to his activity level,

success rate in any operation and number (higher the number or lower success rate would bring down the score)

what restriction he would have and quality of life past this point

chances of another re-injury or new injury to remaining joints due to added pressure.

finances

other animals in the house or children (as they usually cause the want for play and restricting or preventing this could dampen a healing dog spirit)

the cause of the original injury would play a big part as well.

rating these 1-5

5 being very positive, I would think he would score on a his personal circumstances mostly lows.

Since you actually know him and i'm an outsider looking in

Make your own list of everything to consider good or bad and set up a rating system, before you score set a score you think he would need achieve to live a happy life..

Edited December 14, 2013 by Angeluca

[m-j]

Is cost a consideration? Maybe it would be worth having a chat to an orthospecialist and getting some advice from them. They seem pretty upfront as to whether surgery is a good consideration and whether the dogs limitations would present much of an additional burden post-op.

One he has had surgery if you opt for a bone cutting procedure such as a TPLO or a TTA the actual cruciate ligament is then no longer required so there is nothing to "reinjure". The success rate of the procedure is particularly good - it changes the mechanics so the dog has a functional leg without the use of a cruciate ligament.

Yes I would have to set a limit, but that would depend on what the specialist said. Thanks for the heads up on these procedures.

[fainty_girl]

I'm really sorry to hear about your dog .

Last year my Kelpie X tore her cruciate ligament and severed her meniscus as well. The recovery process was long and the trickiest part was trying to keep her quiet because she is a very energetic dog. She recovered really well and the vet who operated was very pleased with the result.

Your decision would be a very difficult one, but hopefully your vet can offer you more advice about what the recovery process would be like for your dog.

[Loving my Oldies]

May I say first of all that I deeply sympathise with you in such a difficult time. We love our dogs so much that we agonise over what is the best we can do for them.

That said, my feelings would echo Anne's (see her post below) and particularly agree with her point about going to a specialist.

I would give all options a go. If after trying surgery, whatever the vet recommended, and it failed, then I would look at euthanasia. I would also look at having a specialist do the surgery to enable the best chance at an optimal recovery.

[westiemum]

Another one here for a specialist opinion. My old Westie has had three ACL repairs (one failed two weeks after surgery )but since the third procedure he's done brilliantly.

[Rosetta]

For me it would be about quality of life for the dog every time. If day to day existence is a struggle then PTS is the only option - also how much suffering any treatment would cause balanced against the likely success of the procedure.

Sorry, it is tough and only something you can decide in the individual circumstances

[Jumabaar]

Another option is to see if there are any animal physiotherapists that can help you out- it would probably be cheaper than surgery- I am happy to see if there are any recommendations if you let me know your general area.

At the sydney university veterinary clinic dogs having TTA/TPLO are kept in for at least a day. Usually by the time they go home they are at least weight bearing on the leg- pain is very well managed.

[Cosmolo]

That wasn't my dogs experience with TPLO- no weight bearing when he left the vet at all and for at least 2 weeks and he was in alot of pain despite the pain medication.. Maybe my experience isn't the norm but still something to speak with the specialist about re: pain management etc

[Rebanne]

I would PTS. What damage would he be doing to the other two legs while trying to recover from an op on the 3rd? 37 kilo's is a lot of dog and he's most likely around the 75 cm height with that weight, a big dog.

I have a 7 year old greyhound with a spinal issue. In 2 weeks I have spent close to $3500 and possibly much more to come. If insurance doesn't cover it I am done, we will manage until we can't then PTS.

[persephone]

If he has surgery, it will be a full-time job for you to help turn him, lift him, toilet him- as he will find it all too hard with only two sound limbs.

even with rest - moving that body around with two legs is difficult , and terribly difficult to police . That left front would be used a lot to take weight off a right rear, I imagine - and he does not have that support now.

If he were mine, I would use lots of painkillers ..and probably PTS without inflicting any more discomfort and pain for an unknown outcome.

[ness]

He would be no more work post-surgery then he is now and possibly less work if he is currently non-weight bearing on the rear. Definitely don't make any decision without first having a chat to a specialist.

[m-j]

Wings I'm sorry, your decision you know him best good luck

I'm going to add my reasoning I had posted before then pressed wrong button and deleted it all has happened a lot ,

I would take in his age, he isn't old but far from young,

His abilities to cope with operations

His ability to mend and comfortable as possible in regards to his activity level,

success rate in any operation and number (higher the number or lower success rate would bring down the score)

what restriction he would have and quality of life past this point

chances of another re-injury or new injury to remaining joints due to added pressure.

finances

other animals in the house or children (as they usually cause the want for play and restricting or preventing this could dampen a healing dog spirit)

the cause of the original injury would play a big part as well.

rating these 1-5

5 being very positive, I would think he would score on a his personal circumstances mostly lows.

Since you actually know him and i'm an outsider looking in

Make your own list of everything to consider good or bad and set up a rating system, before you score set a score you think he would need achieve to live a happy life..

My head does totally agree with all that you have said. I have done a pros and cons list for both him and us, being as practical as I can, rating them is a good idea. If he can't get up and down that is a big problem. He is on pain meds and anti inflamatries and is not an overly happy lad. He doesn't seem to be bouncing back as well as he did the first time. Having said that he got by himself about 1/2 an hour ago.

I have had a Lab that had the cruciate op, she coped much better as it was alot easier than it is for him, as her centre of gravity was a lot lower and she had 4 legs and I didn't have to help her get up and down. Since I can compare how the two dogs managed so differently this is one of the reasons my head is saying I'm not sure.

As I said I am a long way off giving up so I will talk to a specialist and see what they have to say.

Thanks for the advice and sharing of experences it will give me something to think about should I need to make that decision.

[Rebanne]

Hope it all goes as well as possible for you all

[Xyz]

Certainly with a TTA they are usually walking better the day after surgery than before. We had a patient that was missing his RH and we did a TTA in his LH, he recovered remarkably! Please don't discount before talking to a specialist.

[temperamentfirst]

Where do you live? Sydney Uni vet clinic is doing brilliant work on cruciates, and the dogs are walking almost immediately thanks to the new technique they are using.

[Airedaler]

If this was my dog I would have no hesitation in having him PTS. As hard as that decision would be I honestly believe that the quality of life would not be there for the dog and keeping him alive would only be for my own feelings and to me that is not a sound reason.

Good luck with making the decision you need to it can not be easy for you.