My dog tore her ACL!

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tcb

tcb

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Swinging from a vine.
Or at least that is what the initial diagnosis is. My Blue Heeler zigged when she should have zagged when chasing the tennis ball yesterday morning. She is pretty gimped up right now. Currently at the vet's getting put under so they can do a thorough exam to determine if she truly did shred her cruciate ligament. I feel so bad for her... but I have a feeling that I am going to wind up feeling worse for my wallet.

Does anybody have any experience with this?
 
Better put her on the DL list and give her 6 weeks of PT after surgery.
 
This is a very popular diagnosis with vets right now. Get a second opinion.

If it is torn, most will heal well enough on there own.
 
whodat said:
Better put her on the DL list and give her 6 weeks of PT after surgery.
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That's funny, I was just talking with one of the guys in my fantasy baseball league about moving her from the 15 day DL to the 60 Day DL pending the results of the tests.
 
Greddy said:
This is a very popular diagnosis with vets right now. Get a second opinion.

If it is torn, most will heal well enough on there own.
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I imagine it is. I did a little research on it last night, and all the symptoms are there. I don't think my vet will steer me wrong in this case, because he doesn't do that particular surgery. So, there is no conflict of interest.
 
Awwww poor pup! Hope she heals up well.

Oddly enough, our heeler-pit mix managed to hurt herself in a similar fashion on Sunday. She was playing, and then suddenly started yelping, and picked up her rear paw.

I calmed her down, and looked at it. I thought maybe she stepped on a thorn or somethiing. But I couldn't see anything. She curled up in my lap like a BIG baby.

Since then, she walks fine, but is reluctant to go up stairs, and refuses to jump up on the bed. Yesterday, she yelped when she jumped up on the loveseat, and hasn't tried it again since. I don't know if it warrants a vet visit or not. I'm watching and waiting for the time being.
 
grrlscout89FJ62 said:
Awwww poor pup! Hope she heals up well.

Oddly enough, our heeler-pit mix managed to hurt herself in a similar fashion on Sunday. She was playing, and then suddenly started yelping, and picked up her rear paw.

I calmed her down, and looked at it. I thought maybe she stepped on a thorn or somethiing. But I couldn't see anything. She curled up in my lap like a BIG baby.

Since then, she walks fine, but is reluctant to go up stairs, and refuses to jump up on the bed. Yesterday, she yelped when she jumped up on the loveseat, and hasn't tried it again since. I don't know if it warrants a vet visit or not. I'm watching and waiting for the time being.
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Mine can't even squat to pee! She doesn't even want to leave her kennel. I had to carry the kennel with her in it to the cruiser, so there was no doubt that a vet visit was warranted. If she was walking fine, I wouldn't have worried about it.
 
A college friends Rott torn 2 ACL's. They cost 2K per to fix. :eek:
 
wob said:
A college friends Rott torn 2 ACL's. They cost 2K per to fix. :eek:
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That's phephreakinnominial! I am hoping that further review determines that it is a pulled hammy, a sprain or a partial tear that will heal itself..... but that dog is tough, so I know deep down inside that something is effed.
 
Injuries like this is why I hate to admit I got my new dog Pet Insurance. Active dogs get hurt. Mine likes to pick stuff up off the ground and swallow it. (the main reason I got Insurance). One $1500 gastric surgery and I'll be happy I got it.

Covers almost anything. Ran me $206.00 for the year. Yah, I know pet owners will buy anything. I'm one of them.
 
I have a dog (now 12) that tore her first ACL at 4. Vet bill was 2k and Doc said don't be surprised if the other one goes. 3 years later, dog tore the other ACL. There is some suspicion that some dogs are predesposed to this due to an immunity problem. This dog seems to have no immunity to much, when I got her from the ASPCA, she had mange, and then nearly died from Valley Fever a few years back. As I have been writing the checks to the vets, a little voice in my head had kept saying "a bullet's cheaper!" j/k! I highly recommend pet insurance.


BTW, the surgery is successful, dog walks and runs normal, but she's old now and arthritic, which was to be expected.
 
grrlscout89FJ62 said:
I thought maybe she stepped on a thorn or somethiing.
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My dog tore her right ACL 3 years ago, and her left this year. I thought the exact same thing the first time, it looked like she probably stepped on a thorn.

I went with a less expensive surgery both times ($500 each time), and it has worked great. She has arthritis, so we have glucosomine to give her every day, as well as some rimadyl when it gets real bad.

I do not know the difference between a $2K and a $0.5K surgery, but I knew I could not afford the $2K as much as I love the dog. At any rate, as I stated, she is doing great! My vet stated some dogs are more prone to the tears, and it is generally in females. My dog is a mix Lab/ German Shephard.
 
V-DAWG said:
I do not know the difference between a $2K and a $0.5K surgery, but I knew I could not afford the $2K as much as I love the dog.
Click to expand...


I think the difference is a sympathetic vet. ;)
 
The good news is that upon further evaluation, the doc says worst case is a partial tear and that he'd be suprised if it was a complete tear. He said there wasn't any unnatural flex in the joint and no clicks or pops while he was manipulating it. So she is on cage enforced rest for 10 days and some meds... with an reevaluation after that.

Does anybody know where I can get a biggie sized hampster ball for future outdoor activities?
 
They are really tough dogs, don't fuss too much over it.Put it on the chain for a week or two and don't overfeed it. They are kicked by horses and can barely walk that day ,two days later or so they are running again.Too tough for their own good. Resilient is an understatement. LOL.
 
Corbet said:
Injuries like this is why I hate to admit I got my new dog Pet Insurance. Active dogs get hurt. Mine likes to pick stuff up off the ground and swallow it. (the main reason I got Insurance). One $1500 gastric surgery and I'll be happy I got it.

Covers almost anything. Ran me $206.00 for the year. Yah, I know pet owners will buy anything. I'm one of them.
Click to expand...

I hope your pup is doing well? Getting better?

Pet insurance can be a great way to transfer the risk of these injuries to the insurance company...

My company, Pets Best, pays on an 80/20 split (after deductible - $75 or $200)

One thing to note, the covereage for the cruciate ligament is limited for the first 12 months, goes to the 80/20 split after 12 months... The founder saw too many cases of people signing up for insurance after they knew they needed surgery for the cruciate. So it definitely pays to sign up before you need it.
 
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