Operation on cruciate ligaments

Nickijem

Nickijem

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Hi, I don't very often read this section of the forum as I don't own a dog, a horse is enough!
However my mum has a 4 year old black lab who has just been diagnosed with cruciate ligament problems (both hind legs) and he needs them to be operated on.
Has anyone had any experience of having this operation on their dogs?
I would love to hear of any experiences (good or bad).
Thanks guys.
 
Had something similar in a little collie cross bitch I had. I had put her ball up on one of my huge rain buts, those big square containers with the metal mesh round. I was clipping at the time so I told her no.

She got bored and jumped up to get her ball, caught her leg and fell backwards, ripping the ligament out of her hock joint! I had been given a free accident pet policy by my house insurer a week before! 1k later!!!! and they stopped doing the promotion I think.

The op was done in Brighton and was a huge success, she was in a cast for a while and had the bones fused, when she went in they said she would not be able to work hard again. I took her swimming to build the muscle, which she loved, she would run into the dog pool grab a toy and dive straight in!

Anyway AFTER the op she would come out riding with me including day rides and never missed a stride, so big success.
 
Its looking very likely that my dog Josh has damaged his cruciate. He managed to get his leg hooked round a stile when both him and Daisy attempted jumping it at the same time and got in a tangle! He's been on and off lame since. He doesn't have the typical signs of a cruciate (there is no cranial draw or medial buttress). He had some digital x-rays taken and there is however a joint effusion. He also had some measurements taken and it looks unlikely that he will need a TPLO which is a relief. He is booked in with an orthopaedic specialist in 2 weeks for an arthroscopy to see what is going on in the joint and if it is his cruciate to get it repaired. He will probably have an "over the top" procedure.
 
My uncle's collie had cruciate surgery on both hind legs three years ago. The surgery was hugely expensive - around £7k in total (both legs), but a total success.
 
Our GSD bitch snapped the ligament when she was only about 2 just falling over chasing our Lab (she had severe HD from a very young age so her balance wasn't always great). The op was a success but a year later the other one went. That too was a success. We took her swimming which helped her balance and muscle tone immensley and although we lost her last November aged 11 I'm sure we would have lost her sooner if she hadn't been swimming regularly for the last 5 years. It is a major op and v expensive but quite common these days I think and there shouldn't be any reason to expect anything other than a full recovery. Good luck
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Aaaww thanks for those replies folks!
Mum spoke to the vet today who explained that he would operate on one leg first then do the other later.
He did say it would be about £3,000 per leg though - and mum's insurance only covers her for £1,000 for vet's bills!! Ouch!
The thing is we'll find the money somehow as she can't bear the alternative.
 
Ours cost £700 and was more expensive than usual
due to the vet having to scrape away infected bone.
Usually it's around £500, where are you located?
I'm in Northants.
 
Oh thanks skinnydogs, we are in leics - near Hinckley but Northants isn't too far away so maybe we should shop around a bit. I would be grateful if you could pm me the name of the practice you used.
 
There are lots of different ways to repair a cruciate and a number of different factors that will affect which method is used. It sounds like you have been quoted for a TPLO (tibial plateau levelling operation) - this is usually for large breed dogs and dogs that have a very angular top to their tibias - this is what I feared my dog would need and hence why I took him to see a specialist as opposed to doing the op myself. The cheaper prices are more likely for either an"over the top" repair or a DeAngelis lateral suture technique which is technically much simpler surgery and more suitable for small breed dogs and cats but not always highly sucessful on larger breeds. So I wouldn't necessarily think you have been overquoted for the op - just quoted for a bigger op if you see what I mean. Has your dog had x-rays as your vet should be able to take measurements from that to see if a TPLO is necessary.
 
Oh thanks for that ann-jen. I would be surprised if our local practice has over quoted us as it is usually very good value. I seem to pay less than others at other practices when I have had to call the vet out for my horse. We have been at that practice with our pets and horses for the past 40 years and they have never been expensive!
My mum's dog has had x-rays so I suspect that it is for a TPLO.
Thanks again for clearing up the price differences.
 
No problem. Let us now how he gets on - I hope everything goes smoothly. Josh is going for an arthroscopy in 2 weeks to find out once and for all if it is his cruciate that is causing his lameness and to repair it if it is, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed we will finally get to the bottom of it and get him sorted. Hope it all goes well for your dog too.
 
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