Cruciate ligament damage - options medicate/surgery

carmenlucy123

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Hi all,

I had to take my 8 yr old Rottie back to the vet Saturday as I could still see he was not using his right hind correctly although he was not lame I noticed he was swinging his hip to walk and was not sitting square at first it was only me who could see it (must be a horsemans eye) but my boyfriend called me to say he had dragged his paw a few times and cried in the garden when his leg was stuck under him.

So I took him back to the vets Saturday - even the vet said "where do you think he's lame because he's walking fine" but when I pointed it out it was obvious and this time when he manipulated it poor old max was snarling and licking his lips as he was obviously in pain as he never does that :(

the vet has suggested x-rays and surgery all FOR 3.5k!
We are not so sure as I have read it doesnt always help and
the other reson being the insurance will only cover some of that leaving us with over 1k to find - which we will IF it is really benificial to our dog
I personally was more willing to cough up for good physio I have contacted a lady to see if this will help?

so can anyone tell me if they have had the same with their dogs, and the action they took?

Thankyou xx
 

CL66

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Hmmmm strange the vet is suggesting all that when there's not actually a diagnosis yet?! I'd say go or the x rays or scans, see how much damage there is and go from there. Good luck. I had success on a bices tendon injury with shock wave as the vet sad surgery an sometimes do more damage than it fixes
 

twiglet84

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If it is a ruptured cruciate then i would advise surgey. My 8.5 yr old rottie had her cruciate repaired with a TPLO Dec 2010 and she recovered perfectly. The orthopaedic surgeon we refer to and who i used is amazing. The surgery with xrays was about 2500. Although my boss did the initial exam and was certain it was a ruptured cruciate so rather than xray her there i just had it all done with the specialist, saved her having two G/A's.

The problem is with rotties is there conformation and this is what often causes the ligament to rupture. My girl just got off the sofa after being asleep for about an hr and was 10/10 lame! If you dont have surgery you could risk the other leg going as it is taking all the weight.

I (touch wood) have only seen positive results with the TPLO surgery so would recommend it. Small dogs can be treated conservatively (but could go on to need surgery) but large dogs benefit from surgery. xxxx

PS remember weight control is extremely important xx
 

jools123

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If it is a ruptured cruciate then i would advise surgey. My 8.5 yr old rottie had her cruciate repaired with a TPLO Dec 2010 and she recovered perfectly. The orthopaedic surgeon we refer to and who i used is amazing. The surgery with xrays was about 2500. Although my boss did the initial exam and was certain it was a ruptured cruciate so rather than xray her there i just had it all done with the specialist, saved her having two G/A's.

The problem is with rotties is there conformation and this is what often causes the ligament to rupture. My girl just got off the sofa after being asleep for about an hr and was 10/10 lame! If you dont have surgery you could risk the other leg going as it is taking all the weight.

I (touch wood) have only seen positive results with the TPLO surgery so would recommend it. Small dogs can be treated conservatively (but could go on to need surgery) but large dogs benefit from surgery. xxxx

PS remember weight control is extremely important xx

even with surgery the other leg is likely to go, but i conservative treatment is only an option for smaller dogs as stated. 3.5k is very expensive ask around where i work its about 1.5k and our surgeon used to work at the RVC as a specialist in this area-he left because he did not agree with the rising costs
 

Cinnamontoast

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It never ceases to amaze me that vets can diagnose stuff with no x ray! A mate's kitten was diagnosed with a shunt with no x ray (totally unrealistic!) and she was quoted £4500! Another vet advised her to switch food and to add lactol. Oddly, the cat is now thriving. :rolleyes:

Ask for a referral to a specialist. My vet admitted he could do a traditional fix with wire but no more :eek: We were out the door and off to the specialist!

My boy had a TPLO, think there's a more up to date op now. It is highly likely that the other knee wil also go in most cases :( but the recovery from a TPLO is generally 'back to normal'. I will saytha our insurance said the second one was a 'pre-existing condition' and wouldn't pay out for it. It was about £6000 in total using a specialist in Welwyn.
 

mattilda

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I have 2 rotts and am 1 week in to recovery on TPLO #4!! Dexter is 100% sound having had both of his done and Sage is on her 2nd. For a big dog like ours I 100% recommend TPLO surgery. Your dog is pain free after recovery...well mine have been.
However, how your vet knows it's a cruciate rupture without X-rays I have no idea!! Rotts are very prone to arthritis which can be treated with medication.
Definitely get him X-rayed first.
 

CAYLA

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With such large weight bearing breeds there really is little option but to go with surgery, they cannot manage as the little ones can with temp 3 leggedness:D we currently have a bichon on rest (a hand in rescue) with a bust cruciate and she is healing very nice with strict rest.
I have had my rottis cruciates done x 2 and my akita had a partial tear and full arthrodesis, I never went for TPLO on either of mine (my personal choice) my ops would have been pennies whichever choice as my boss did them:p. I dont belive its any more superior a technique and its an excuse to charge a whole lot more;) and the recovery time for both mine was immediate, both fully weight bearing and no prolonged pain, I actually initially thought "bone cancer with my akita" as she had more a drag about her, my akita did have a bit of a reaction to the drugs (which is normal for her breed)
I have to say my vet could tell both mine where cruciates on examination but did xray to be sure, i would certainly be wanting x rays and definate diagnosis.
 

cbmcts

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My goon of a rottie did both his CL at the same time (i suspect it was when he missed a turn at speed on a tiled floor!) and my vets had trouble seeing the 'lameness' as it was more a shortening of stride rather than an obvious limp. As a result he spent about 6 weeks on lead walking and rest and TBH it didn't help at all - so I would imagine that the op is required more often than not as everyone here has said. X-rays were taken to confirm the diagnosis.

He had 3 repairs in 4 months, all the wire repairs (sorry, the proper name escapes me). The first one failed because he hurdled a baby gate the day he got home, :eek: The plan was to have worst leg done and do the other after 3 months or so to give the first leg enough time to heal. As it happened he had both done about 14/15 weeks later and he was at the RVC for a week afterwards with an epidural for pain relief. I have to say that he looked awful and obviously felt sore after that. He also got an MRSA type infection and was on massive doses of ABs for 6 weeks afterwards.

They recommended the wire repair first time round but said he could have the TPLO if I wanted. Second time round they advised against the TPLO because if he pulled another silly stunt it wasn't as repairable.

While that 6 months or so was horrible - the after care bit is hard work- I don't regret him having the ops because he is a bit of 'no sense, no feeling' dog in that he doesn't show pain easily but it was noticeable how much freer his movement was afterwards IYSWIM.

The overall bill for that adventure was a fraction under £4K - though hopefully your vet is a bit more proactive than my former vets and you won't need to faff about as much as I did or need to be referred to somewhere as expensive as the RVC for an op that I later discovered could have been done for two thirds of the price locally. I'm not dissing the RVC btw - they are superb but they are expensive!

He does of course now have arthritic hocks but I think that was inevitable. Hydrotheraphy has done wonders for him and he is also on metacam.
 

carmenlucy123

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Wow thankyou everyone for responding! His weight is 47kg which is good he is a big male dog.
Think we are goin to have a ring round then for prices!
But looks like surgery is the way forward
So glad no one said he was too old think my boyfriend was petrified this was the start of the end!
 

TelH

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:eek: at some of the prices. My 13yo jack russell did her cruciate 6 weeks ago and the vet said £450-500 to operate. I know she's only a tiddler compared to a rottie but :confused: We decided to go for the strict rest approach because of her age and so far she is doing really well :)
 

liveryblues

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Not sure where in the country you are? I posted on here a couple of weeks ago regarding possible hip dysplasia in my 18 month old lab. Yesterday he ruptured his cruciate ligament. I have just been quoted £2100. Vets said it was a set price and included all after care etc.
. Lab is 36 kg and will be having the latest TTA operation.
Now not sure if his initial lameness could have been due to a tear in his cruciate? Vet will xray hips when he does xrays for his knee. (pretty sure its cruciate as the drawer effect was felt)
I am in Hampshire BTW. I would shop around if I were you. I think surgery is necessary in bigger dogs, how else can they stabilize the stifle? Up to 40% of all dogs suffer damage to their other cruciate ligament within two years. so yours has a more than equal chance of staying sound! Will praying mine also stays sound on his other leg!

http://ttasurgery.com/ I found this rather interesting link earlier, might be of use?
I seem to spend half of my life atm researching various dog injuries and possible causes/treatments! (dont even get me started on the horses, chickens, ducks, bunnies etc etc lol)
 
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dreamer99

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Liveryblues could you tell me which vet you used? My retriver needs this operation too but we have been quoted a lot more. Wd are also in Hampshire.
 

blackcob

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Liveryblues could you tell me which vet you used? My retriver needs this operation too but we have been quoted a lot more. Wd are also in Hampshire.

It may be best to PM Liveryblues as this is quite an old thread. For what it's worth I paid just under £2k for a TTA earlier this year so I'd consider that the going rate!
 
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