Comment

Comment by karina on January 12, 2011 at 12:32pm

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers! Keiko is actually improving. She has been restricted for the past 2 weeks.. and although its been exhausting i think its helping! Shes still managed to steal some running and jumps while im not looking, but other then the few times shes been very good. Shes still limping but ive noticed she does put her leg down. She wants to run and play and go up the stairs, so thats a gd sign, but she knows thats a no no! lol. ive been giving her her meds and also purchased a joint supplement in hopes that that will help as well. In the past week alone i have received 2 calls from the vet that initially wanted to do surgery.. they left me voicemails to schedule her lab work and surgery all with me not even saying i was ready to do it.. talk about making money!! i am not pleased and will no longer be going to them.

 

Anywho.. thanks all for your well wishes and advise.. still on the road to recovery..

 

xoxo!

Comment by Ace and Jen on January 12, 2011 at 4:15am

My thought and prayers are with you!!!

I remember how i was acting when ace sprained his backleg!! i can only imagine what you are going through
Ace and I send our hugs!

Comment by Jennifer Markley on January 4, 2011 at 11:43am

Seanna tore hers this past March.  I too, opted for surgery and had the filament done.  She has done great.  The recovery was long and time intensive, but I would do it over again.  If you don't do surgery, then the arthritis will be way worse when she is older.  I opted for surgery to give her the less pain route.  The TPLO is a better surgery, however, way more expensive.  I paid $1200 for the filament, and around $500 for hydrotherapy afterwards.  I did find a surgeon in a smaller town that charged $500--so I think the quote they gave you was way over...but where do you live?

I'd be happy to answer any questions you have...just email me.  I also just took in a puppy mill rescue that is at the vet as we speak having xrays done for what the vet thinks is the same thing.  He probably tore it 6-9 months ago.  If it turns out to be a tear, I wouldn't hesitate to do surgery again.  From all the research I did, it really is in the best interest of the dog.

Comment by karina on January 4, 2011 at 11:06am

Thank you all for your comments and advice. I appreciate any bit of insight. Does anyone have pet insurance and if so, which one? I am thinking of getting insurance for Keiko just in case.

Comment by Beth on January 4, 2011 at 10:22am

My parents have a Chesapeake Bay Retriever who tore hers, and they recommended the filament surgery and while I know some will disagree, I have heard from other sources that the surgery is easier and causes fewer long-term problems.

She had this about three or four years ago and is sound enough to hunt (she does land and water retrieves) and go on very long hikes and play in the snow (though they keep her off of ice to avoid slips).

 

It depends on the reason for the tear.  In the case of my parents' dog, the original joint was fine but she slid on something and it ruptured.  The vet considered it a traumatic injury not due to joint problems, and the filament held up well.  Cheaper surgery, faster recovery.  If you can consult with a vet hospital, I would do that.

Comment by Bev Levy on January 4, 2011 at 10:07am

There is no easy answer here...Getting a second opinion was a good idea but you will still have to make the decision. There are people on this site with success stories that had the surgery and those like me that decided against it and were successful. Cl injury is the most common injury in dogs requiring surgery. Most vets have experience with it. In our case Sparty was about 6 (12 now) and at first I did not know what happened. He limped for a few days on our vacation and then seemed OK. After a few months of occasional limping I took him in to the vet and got a diagnosis of a possible partial tear. Sparty has a deathly fear of the vet (for a few good reasons but a long story) and tends to be very touch sensitive and anxious. My vet also let me know that the surgery tends to be more successful on larger dogs. We went the Rimadyl route with limited activity for a few months. That was years ago and Sparty walks long walks every day with me and jumps on furniture and basically does very well. We had to switch to games that required less stopping and starting (ball catch instead of chase) but his life is very good. I think surgery would have been way too traumatic for him and am comfortable with the route we chose but my friend's Cocker Spaniel had the surgery and rehab and also did well. Anyway there are no easy answers but you know your dog and can only make the most informed decision possible about what is best. I know there are several people on here that went through the surgery and hopefully they will also weigh in. Good luck!

Comment by Geri & Sidney on January 4, 2011 at 4:05am

Sidney suddenly came up lame and in extreme pain just walking down our hallway. An xray at the vet the next day revealed bad hip dysplasia and a resulting dislocated hip. Vet gave us two options: a type of surgery called FHO (femoral head ostectomy) or restricted activity and drugs for the rest of his life. He was only 3! I realize this is a different type of injury than what Keiko has, but I think it is similar in options - and heartache. I was shocked and heartbroken to learn the news. My poor baby, so young and active...was I going to put him through what sounded like a terrible surgery, or keep him from playing and hiking and give him meds every day? It sounded like no good option. We learned that, if he had surgery, he'd have a normal life and be able to run and play.

This was only 4 months ago. Last week he went on a nearly four mile hike and he has no trace of a limp. He's happy again! The surgeon did a wonderful job, and we took Sidney to swimming therapy to make him strong while he healed.

Making the decision to have the surgery was very hard (our surgery was "only" $2800 with a PennHIP specialist vet, your quote seems very high), and the night before his surgery and the morning of were some of the hardest days I've had. Recovery is stressful, because if you are like me, you will overanalyze every move, and there were days I thought "he's not getting better" and cried my eyes out. Then one day I realized he was moving so easily and he was better - it was such a relief!

I don't have any experience with TPLO, so I really don't know about the chances of recovering without surgery. With Sidney, there was zero chance of getting better without it. My friend's beagle just tore her Medial Cruciate Ligament and had surgery. I will ask her what kind of surgery Daisy had and if it was something like TPLO I'll let you know.

I guess in summary I'd say I know how you feel; get a second opinion on the cost of surgery; and you will get some wonderful advice and support from the folks here. I don't know what I would have done without the people of mycorgi!

 

Comment by Melissa and Franklin! on January 4, 2011 at 3:04am

If it does come down to surgery I definately recommend the TPLO over the other methods. It is a more sturdy fix and seems to be a somewhat easier recovery (though very long). I'm wondering why they quoted $4500. That is quite a bit more than I was charged and I live in a small town where the next closes surgeon was 2 hours away. Also, I had it done on a 125 pound dog that required 9 screws and a larger plate so it was more expensive than the normal TPLO, I think total I ended up paying between 2500-3000. I would do it again in a heartbeat too. I'd maybe look for a second opinion with another surgeon to see what surgery prices might be. I dunno, but if they say it looks like a pretty bad injury, you may be looking at 1 month of restricted activity only to find it didn't heal and have to go through surgery which will require another month of restricted activity then a slow build up to full activity. The entire recovery of a TPLO from surgery to full exercise is about 4 months.