Torn Cruciate ligament and meniscal injury - Page 1

Hi guys,
Firstly I would just like to say that by joining such a group I feel a weight lift off my shoulders somewhat.  I feel very alone at the moment with my beautiful girl Kyla. 

I adopted Kyla off a lady who could no longer take care of her due to relocation, I basically got her for 30 dollars which is really insane considering her quality.  She has a great nature and has lived with me for 4 years now. 

As soon as we got her we noticed that she was a little weak in her right leg, but not noticeable enough to cause me any great concern.  Apon taking her to the beach for her beloved walk I realised that she was leaving a line in the sand!!  I was most upset thinking that maybe she had bad hips.  So off to the vets I went and explained everything.  The vet did a reflex test on her where he folded her foot over to see if she would quickly correct it and she didnt.  He made suggestions that it could be due to hip problems but is unlikely, so off i went for a year.  When bringing her back for her yearly needle I suggested that there could be something wrong with her leg so they pulled and prodded and didnt notice anything to cause concern. 

This year however VERY suddenly she started limping! I raced her to the vet where they poked and prodded and suggested she had done her crucial ligament in her knee... i was devestated.  With a return appointment booked I cried for days.  When i took her back for her follow up appointment I got a different Vet and she suggested doing x-rays and we discussed possible reasons behind her lameness and decided to get her knee and hips x-rayed at the same time.  The x-ray results were great!  Her hips were great for her age and her knee showed only some minor signs of arthritis relevant to her age, so her diagnosis was she may have pulled a muscle.  THe next day she stopped limping and that lasted for a few days.  When she started limping again I just knew it was something alot more serious and I had also noticed clicking in her knee.  So in telling the vet that, she explained that the meniscus can definately make a clicking noise if damaged and that we should go ahead with surgery to removed some of it.  Surgery was booked straight away, two days later I drop her off and later that day i get the god awful phone call saying "kylas Crucial ligament was hanging on by its last thread!"   so the first Vet was right!!!!  They put a suture in to mimic the function of the ligament and removed half of her meniscus. 

Now when i picked her up from the vet 24 hours later, she was walking on it!!!!  The vets were amazed saying she is the only dog they have known to walk on it and hopefully she will realise later that it does hurt so not to do any damage.  Wellllll no- my dog is still walking on it and thinks its great to lay on it.  I have confined her to a small space so she cant hurt it , but when i have to take her to the vets for follow up appointments she pulls and jumps in the car.  I dont know how to slow her down!!!   The vet put a sticky bandage on her much to her disgust (I have never heard a dog sook so much over a bandage lol)  this was to make her feel very uncomfortable so she wouldnt put her weight on it..... but NOOOO she decided she would chew it off and make me put a collar on her.  

 I Really need advice on how to make this rehabilitation pleasant for both of us.  I dont like leaving her in that collar but in fear of her pulling her staples out I must leave it on.  She truly is a great dog, but since this surgery she has been making it very difficult on herself.

Hi Kayla they usually don;t mess with the stiches I never heard of staples for that  I rehabed one for a client last fall ,he walked on the leg right away ,the limp got increasinly better though their leg tends to look bowed out,I leash walked him and lept him crated the after six weeks I started swimming him everyday. its hard to keep them crated but they get used to it. get lots of chew bones ,if they do too much too soon it can set them back Pm me I will send you think link to his rehab videos

My male had his ACL replaced on his first birthday along with removal of 3 of the 4 meniscus.

You have to be really good with the rehab work.  Crate rest or confined area, no jumping or pulling.  Six weeks strict rest then swimming is good or start with walks on grass, start with short walks and build them up slowly.  Also my vet gave me range of motion excercises to do with my dog.

Lots of chew toys or bones.  I actually cut back on the amount in meals because of the chew stuff.  I made a mixture of beef and rice, filled old marrow bones that were laying around and put them in the freezer.  You can use any combination of things to stuff the bones with, chicken&rice, some yougurt, what ever your dog likes.

You don't want you dog to pull on walks, so look at getting a harness or use a pinch collar.  The pulling could tear the surgical repair.