Our Dog tore her ACL

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  • Reagan40

    Sharpshooter
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    Dec 30, 2013
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    too far from nature
    We have a 2.5 year old German Shepherd. She is the best, most intelligent dog we have ever had. She was not a cheap dog, and we spent a lot of time and money training her. I travel a lot for work, so her training helps my wife and daughter feel like they have a protector when I am away. I know without a doubt, that she would at the very least delay a threat until my wife could get a gun. Most likely she will scare any threat away before a gun is needed. Heck, even when I am home, I am thankful to have such a dedicated well trained dog to look after us. She refused to put weight on one of her rear legs after playing outside the other day. We took her to the vet, and she has a torn ACL. We really have 3 options. Let her stay as is, which doesn't seem humane, put her down, which we don't want to do, or have an orthopedic surgeon operate, which costs a lot of money. Right now, we are leaning heavily toward the surgery. From the financial side, if we put her down, then bought a similar dog, and trained the dog, we would end up spending about the same amount of money as having the surgery. Plus we would have to dedicate a tremendous amount of time to the training of a new dog. To get a dog to where our dog is, it takes a LOT of hours every day. So, for those who would say "its just a dog, put her down and get a new one," this is not a just a dog that we could replace easily and cheaply. So, I am curious, has anyone had this happen to their dog? Did you have the operation done? Was it successful? Who did the operation? I don't want to put a dog through the surgery and 6-8 weeks of living in a kennel if the end result is not likely to be positive. I just don't know what to expect. Any stories from experience with this issue would be appreciated.
     

    Spear Dane

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    Sep 4, 2015
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    Well I certainly hope you don't reward your dog's loyalty to you by putting her down. (Warning: Blatant guilt tripping.) You could try a GoFundMe to help with the costs.
     

    Tranquil

    Marksman
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    Nov 1, 2013
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    Plainfield
    A dog that is receptive to training and gives you confidence when it comes to your family being protected is irreplaceable. Put it on your credit card and pay it off. (Tax refund?)

    Do not put the dog down. At the very least, speak with the GSD Rescue here in Indy to see if they would be willing to take her and raise funds to have the surgery done so she can go continue to be a great dog somewhere else.
     

    Reagan40

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    Dec 30, 2013
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    too far from nature
    Just to clarify. The funds to have the surgery are not the issue. We have the money. The question really is, how successful will the surgery be? If she is miserable after the surgery, or is the fix is only temporary, that is one thing. If others have had a dog in this condition and the dog did well after surgery, that gives me hope. I really want to hear about successful operations to help me feel good about having the operation done....(just being honest).
     

    cbhausen

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    Feb 17, 2010
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    Whatever it takes, do the surgery. Do everything you can for her. You'll sleep better knowing you did your best for her no matter the outcome. And karma, she can be a real ***** sometimes.
     

    mac45

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    Both of our dogs have had the surgery.
    Recovery takes a while. The bigger one (105lb Rottie) had a harder time of it.
    The little guy (65lb Rottie mix) was much easier.
    Our big girl was probably 90% after the surgery. She has some stiffness, and will favor the leg when she get's up or lays down.
    But.....she still runs around the yard after squirrels and such. Definitely not in pain.
    The little guy was 100% after. I think being smaller, and younger made it easier.
    Yes.....it wasn't cheap, but don't regret having it done.
    Dr. Steve at McAfee Animal Hospital in Valparaiso did both of 'em.
    Good people, no hesitation about recommending him.
     

    Shadow

    AKA: Uncle Shadow
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    Aug 28, 2009
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    In the shadows
    Have the Surgery ...... I had a female pit that had the surgery when she was young , like Mac45 said - she had some stiffness and favored it when first getting up , but other then that she was good to go ... She passed away last Sept. 16 years old .
     

    Dr.Midnight

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    Jul 24, 2011
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    I had a yellow lab that had the surgery years ago. My large dog went through the exact same thing as Mac45's with the stiffness and favoring of the leg. The recovery is a little rough with the cast and all, but in the end, he was able to lead an excellent life. I just didn't push him very hard playing Frisbee or chasing balls after his surgery for fear of something bad happening.
     

    femurphy77

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    Mar 5, 2009
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    S.E. of disorder
    I had a yellow lab that had the surgery years ago. My large dog went through the exact same thing as Mac45's with the stiffness and favoring of the leg. The recovery is a little rough with the cast and all, but in the end, he was able to lead an excellent life. I just didn't push him very hard playing Frisbee or chasing balls after his surgery for fear of something bad happening.

    How do you keep a lab from NOT playing catch? We have 3 and they'll run till they drop. Even when we take away all the toys the youngest one still drags up sticks, pieces of paper and at times even weeds wanting us to throw for her. The only effective way we've found to slow her down is take her toy and put it between the front paws of the oldest as she's laying down. One look from the older one and she stops immediately!:laugh:
     

    littletommy

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    Aug 29, 2009
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    A holler in Kentucky
    We have a similar dog, in that she is protective, loyal, loving, and highly intelligent. If she were to need expensive surgery to save her, I'd do whatever I had to to pay for it.
     

    dnurk

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    Jun 20, 2012
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    +1 to say do the surgery. If your dog was well past it's prime and in the twilight years I'd say maybe pass on it but at 2.5 years the dog is just now coming into adulthood.

    And assuming this this is a working dog that is athletic, not overweight, and in good shape the recovery will be much easier. A good friend had a 3 year old Labrador that I have trained with that had the surgery. Fairly short recovery and 100% back in the field after following the recommended rehab procedure.
     

    patience0830

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    Nov 3, 2008
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    Not far from the tree
    Another great reason to never pay more than a spay/neuter fee for a dog. At least in my world. Good luck with your pup. I hope it does well after the surgery.
    You seem lucid and logical about your considerations.
    Some of our beloved compatriots here cause me to wonder. Their commitment to their pets overrides common sense. At least it seems so to me at times.
     

    Tenderfoot

    Plinker
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    Jan 27, 2010
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    The forgotten corner
    We are + 1 year post opp with our 3yr old GSD. She is a very tall GSD, about 32 /33 inches at the shoulder and slim at 90 lbs. She had a complete tear in the left rear knee and a partial tear in the right rear knee. We had them both repaired at the same time. This minimizes both cost and recovery time. We chose the TTA procedure after discussions with the surgeon at MedVet Medical & Cancer Center for Pets of Cincinnati. https://www.medvetforpets.com/location/cincinnati/.

    We have similar success as mac45 (post #7) “Our big girl was probably 90% after the surgery. She has some stiffness, and will favor the leg when she get's up or lays down.”

    She and her sister both run and play outside all day and are brought in at night. We can tell on damp and cold days that she has some discomfort in the left knee when we bring her in at night.

    She is still a runner, but does not jump as much. I do not know how much of this is from the injury and how much from leaving puppy hood.

    The good lord willing, we will not have to do this with her sister, but if the need arises, we will without any hesitation.

    Good Luck!

    Tenderfoot
     

    lovemachine

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    Dec 14, 2009
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    Another great reason to never pay more than a spay/neuter fee for a dog. At least in my world. Good luck with your pup. I hope it does well after the surgery.
    You seem lucid and logical about your considerations.
    Some of our beloved compatriots here cause me to wonder. Their commitment to their pets overrides common sense. At least it seems so to me at times.

    My commitment to my pet overrides my common sense? Nah. My dog has more common sense than a lot of people.

    My parents had an 8 year old rottweiler. Raised him since he was a pup. He was diagnosed with diabetes. And they gave him insulin and pain killers everyday for years. His last year, he went blind. And they still cared for him, he was a very happy dog, even while blind. But then his pain got worse, and they had to put him down. The point is, they spent all kinds of money for him. And they have no regrets.

    Dogs are more than dogs. I'm sad that you don't know this.
     

    Jludo

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    Feb 14, 2013
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    Indianapolis
    Is there no chance of recovery without surgery? My parents golden/mutt had an acl tear, didn't get surgery but after a few weeks recovered to the point she could move jump whatever she needed to do. She was also 12 and never got back to 100% but for being older she gets around just fine, no reason to put her down.
     

    steve0322

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    Dec 9, 2015
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    Mooresville
    Our border collie had his leg stepped on when he was 3 months old and tore ligaments and rotated his tarsus/tarsal(i think) in his hind right leg. Our options were amputate(no F'ing way), surgery for $2,500ish, or splint for 6 weeks and let it fuse naturally. We opted for the fusing since the ortho vet said the surgery wasn't guaranteed to completely heal the injury and he'll have arthritis either way when he gets older . He's just over 1 year passed his injury and he is moving around and running almost as fast and agile as our 2.5 year old border collie. You can see that his leg has had a significant injury, but it hasn't slowed him down at all. He can just pretty well with a running start, but has problems from a stand still. If I was home, I'd take and post pictures of his leg.
     

    Ski

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    Aug 7, 2010
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    I did the surgery twice with my dog, at around age 8 and 9.
    Do some reading at Dog Health Supplements and Rehabilitation | TopDogHealth and check out some of Dr St Clair's
    videos. You can also download free post surgery and rehab guides. I didn't find out
    about the site until after the 2nd surgery but the guides greatly eased my mind about
    what I could and should do to help the recovery.

    They also sell joint supplements on their site. My dog would sometimes be slow to get up
    or limp after laying down for awhile so I started him on Glycanaid. He no longer limps and
    I have to clear the yard of squirrels before I let him out or he will chase them.(that's
    how he tore the acl both times)

    So I would definitely recommend the surgery but research the best type for your sized dog
    and perhaps check with a specialist, not just your vet.
     
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