Possible torn ligament or luxating patella ?
Submitted by tiffscooper on September 10, 2011 - 10:49amCooper hurt his back left leg 13 days ago. He was holding it up and my husband thinks he may have hurt it while playing with his "brother" in the back yard. A while back he was limping on the same leg but it was better in a few days. We took him in to see his regular vet (which is not a bulldog specific vet only because I live in upstate NY and there are none listed on the home page. when you call vet offices, they all seem to say they see bulldogs) ! She thought it sounded like a cruciate ligament tear, but was unable to fully manipulate his leg without anesthesia and suggested we try deramaxx for 10 - 14 days to see how much improvement he shows. After 10 days he would walk on it but you could tell he does'nt bear full weight on it so we had the anesthesia and xrays done on the 10th day. She said that when she performed the drawer test his knee was unstable but the xrays did not show much. So we have an appointment on Tuesday with a vet listed on the homepage that is near us that only does orthopedic surgerys. However, I am concerned that they are going to be quick to recommend surgery because that what they do. I have been doing alot of surgery searching from the forums and elsewhere and the tplo surgery scares me. ( any bone altering surgery scares me :) I also read that 8 weeks of rest should be considered before rushing into surgery. I also was wondering about his knee cap that was never brought up by his vet and I know they have trouble with luxating patellas ? I guess I am wondering anyones thoughts on resting it and I know they are tough but how do you know if there in pain? Also has anyone ever tried a brace as an alternative to surgery? Theres alot of knowledge on this board and any thoughts are appreciated !!!! By the way he weighs 60 lbs and I do give glucosamine and chondroitin with msm. Thanks Tiffany
BTW sorry for long post and Coopers photos
I tried to add a few photos but I guess post was too LONG !!
Where are you located?
...
Schenectady
We live in Schenectady NY and the specialist we are going to on Tuesday is in Pattersonville, NY
Surgeon
I sent you contact information for an orthopedic surgeon in Oneonta in case you'd like a second opinion. I'm sorry your vet needed to put Cooper under anesthesia to manipulate his leg....that should not have been necessary. Good luck and all good wishes.
My experience
My boy Rocco partially tore his cruciate last year. We put him on Phycox, which I swear by and he was under crate rest for a long time, maybe 3-4 weeks. Crate rest was the hardest on us but he heeled and didn't have to undergo a surgery.
I give him phycox still daily. It contains an anti inflammatory and glucosomine. It's safe to give daily. I recommend Phycox to all my friends. It speeds recovery and is very effective.
From what I understand, if it had been fully torn, surgery would had been my only option.
Good Luck, I hope your boy heels up real soon.
Thanks Amy,
I will look into phycox, question regarding crate rest does that mean kept only in crate and let out for bathroom only ? He has not been allowed to go on any stairs ( I have been sleeping with him on living room floor :) ) But when inside he usually lays in living room unless we take him outside for bathroom . He is only 2 1/2 but he pretty much lays in the same spot while we are home he is not into toys like my other bulldog who is constantly moving around , playing etc
Yes
That is what crate rest means. Only out for potty breaks. You have to be strong, its for their own good and should be tried before resorting to a surgery.
Usually, people try 2weeks and see how he does, then if needed another 2 weeks.
I swear by Phycox. In the case I was just speaking of, we delt with the injury for a month and no change. Once we added phycox to our treatment, my boy was 80% better in a week.
Do you order them online ?
I saw you dont need a prescription, I was going to get some but hated to wait for shipping if you can buy at petsmart, petco or other stores?
I haven't
Seen them in pet stores. My vet sells them, but at a way higher price.
Put him on crate rest today and order them. I beliieve you double the dose for the first week, the instructions will say. We did the chews, but I think the powder ends up being cheaper.
wilson did a partial tear.....
to his ligament...and also has a luxating patella on the same leg.....becasue of his medical issues...hypolastic treachea and sever allergies....i refused surgery for him....once in a while i can see it bothering him.. mostly when its damp ...but other wise he does fine...when it hurts he just stops and rest...but he also not a big player or runner....i have steps to all my furniture and he will move his steps around...so i think you nedd to give it a good thought....a person just lost their bulldog becasue it was having bad tail infections so they decided to remove the tail 2 hours after the surgery the dogs heart stopped.....surgery scares me....but i have had two of rescues go under and they were fine...its a hard decision
Thanks Judy
I just saw your post , thanks for your thoughts and by the way Wilson and his stairs are priceless:) What a cutie! Cooper goes tomorrow at 1 for the consultation with the specialist . Yesterday was 14 days from injury and it seemed a little better? He's only 2 and 1/2 so I just want to do what's best for him. I will post what we find out on Tuesday Thanks again