oh look! Somewhere I actually know something about
My Kosmo was diagnosed with BI-Lateral luxating patellas in July. He had a grade 3 on his right leg and grade 2 on his left. I got him in for x-rays on a thursday and I went to the vet who explained to me what I was seeing on the x-rays and the necessity of surgery. Kosmo's legs were slightly bowed in the back which apparently makes him a likely target of luxating patellas
I was able to get a very experienced board certified orthopedic surgeon. I cannot stress to you how important this is. The reason it's so important is, as the surgeon explained to me, she will have to go in and deepen the grooves of the patella so that the knee cap sits in there properly. There is no ruberic for the surgeon to know exactly how deep to deepen the groove, or how shallow to keep the groove. If they do it too deep or too shallow, then you could have problems and maybe a potential for another surgery later on. It's up to the surgeon to decide how deep/shallow to make it, so it's important you get somebody who is experienced in this procedure.
Kosmo had surgery on July 21st of this year, so he's going to be EIGHT weeks post surgery this Thursday (woohoo!!) I got both legs done at once. His right leg (grade 3) required a tendon re-location and there were pins inserted to hold them in place while they grow back onto the bone.
When he came home, I was thinking I was going to have an awful, crippled, sad looking dog, but to be honest with you I was quite surprised. He was able to walk on his legs IMMEDIATELY after bringing him home to go out and pee/poop. I would only let him down long enough to pee/poop, then back to the confinement area if he wasn't on my lap, but I was able to let him out to go none the less.
My surgeon seen things a bit differently than some others, so you'll have to follow your vet/surgeon's advice, but Kosmo was only on strict strict crate rest for about 3 weeks. I actually didn't do a physical therapy regimen through a certified doctor with him - my surgeon said I could do the exercises on my own. Between 3 and 6 weeks I took him on small walks - 5 minutes this week, 7 the next, 10 the next, etc. I got Kosmo a stroller (insurance paid - woohoo!) and when he would get tired I would just put him in the stroller and continue. I was fortunate to have the stroller because he was still able to go places with us and come for walks with his sister. He still liked smelling the air and sniffing. It was cute ! At 6 weeks he was lifted of all restrictions, and now at 8 weeks, he's acting like he was before there was any indication of a problem. Since the surgery his knees have NEVER popped out! I'm so happy it's come out this way - I get tears in my eyes when I see him running at 100% speed and free of all previous ailments. It's been the best thing I have done for him. For a few weeks there before the surgery I had lost my dog
He didn't want to go anywhere or do anything and I carried him EVERYWHERE. But now he's my happy baby again !!
I do want to stress not to wait on the surgery. The surgeon explained to me that EVERY TIME the knee pops out it rubs on and chips away at the groove making it more shallow. Then it starts placing strain on the tendons, then they can suffer ACL tears, etc.. it can really cause a lot of problems if it's left long enough. (it sounds like you want to get the surgery done ASAP so that's good though!)
We had really no complications. There was a little pain here and there and he was given more freedom and then put on a 48 hour restriction a few times, but your vet will be able to advise on all of that. This last Thursday I did notice a blood blister on Kosmo's knee but I took him in and apparently one of the internal stitches wasn't dissolving properly so he's on some antibiotics, but that's really a small small complication.
HMM what else? OH did the vet show you how to manually get the knee to pop back in? Kosmo went through a phase in the week previous to the surgery where he was limping a LOT - his grade was 3 so it didn't always pop back in by itself. The vet showed me that by extending the leg backwards behind the body you can get it to go back in. It's kind of gross, and I didn't like doing it, but it was worth it. Have her show you what to do should you need to ever need to help him. I hope I've helped you! If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask.
Also, here's what to expect
I thought he looked great!
Right Leg:
Left Leg:
Instead of crating, I got a home n go playpen (kosmo is not a jumper and my vet approved this) This is him in his playpen:
He was REAL happy about this (as you can see - heehee!!)
Here's a picture taken approximately 5 weeks after surgery.. His hair on his legs had grown back sooo much!
Hope this helps :xfngr: Let me know if you need anything, I'll try my best to help! :flwr:
