knee issues... couple questions. ** UPDATE **

[BucksandDucks]

I've used the search funtion and have read what everyone has to say but I wanted to see if any opinions have changed or get an update on how some dogs have recovered. I have an 8 yr old YLF that came up limping after our hunt this past saturday. She's not putting any weight on it so I took her to the vet this morning. Vet said there is some movement in the knee and that shows that the ligament is at the least stretched or partially torn. I know I need to get it fixed as quickly as possible so that I can try to limit the damage to her other leg bc she is compensating for her hurt one.

I have a consultation with Dr. Payne next week when he returns to his office so I'll see what he says next week.

but I have a few questions for you all.

- With a dog this age do you think the TPLO is the best option or would you do a different procedure?
- Who in this area does the best TPLOs?
- How have dogs that you know of come out of the TPLO surgery? any complications after the surgery?
- Will she be able to train and hunt again if we choose another treatment route or another surgery?
- any advice on what to do in the meantime before surgery happens?

Jay, GC, anybody else with experience with this I would be greatly appreciative of any feedback or advice on what to do.

heck PM, call or text me if you don't want to...

Thanks
Chris
901-634-4644





*** UPDATE ***

Went back for her final check up today. She finally got an "all clear" from the doctor. Her knee is strong and she is finally using it to it's fullest potential. By overcompensating she has developed some arthritis in her front shoulder so she still has a little limp. She will begin training again and be back in full force next spring (I hope). She will be running this fall grand too, if I can get her in "fighting Shape".

Anyways, I can't say enough about Dr. Ballagas and the staff at the vet's office. He has stood behind his work 100% and has said that he will do whatever it takes to make sure that my dog is running and behaving the way that I want her to. We were on the verge of discussing another surgery or different types of therapy (all at no cost to me). After we talked today and I told him my plans he still stood behind his work and was a little confused as to why it took her so long to get back to normal. But now that she is we are both very satisfied. He told me if she was not running the way I felt she should be come the spring to get in touch with him and we'd talk again.

This surgery can be performed at a lot of different surgery centers but if you want a classy, stand-up guy then I totally recommend Dr. Ballagas, and Dr. Milton. They know what they are doing and are a great group of Drs.

[GulfCoast]

Ellie Mae had conventional knee surgery at 8 years old. She is still fetching ducks and training a bit. She has arthritis in a shoulder slowing her down and not the knee. I did not want to do TPLO rehab on an 8 year old dog that has had so many joint issues already. My hometown vet and training partner Dr. John Battley does most of the knees in south ms, and I trusted his judgement. If you are close to Dr. Payne, I would go with his recommendation. Most folks I know getting a TPLO go to Auburn.

[BucksandDucks]

Thanks GC...that is what I was wondering. I wanted to know if there was any success with any other options out there. Bailey hasn't really had joint problems but the x-rays this morning did reveal some arthritis already building up in her hips so I know its coming at some point. I appreciate your feedback on this and I'll keep everyone updated with what route we take.

Thanks again!!!

[BucksandDucks]

Mark, what type of procedure did Ellie Mae have? been looking at some of the tightropes or TTA? but I know nothing about any of them really...

[Anatidae]

'Duck Chaser' had TPLO done on 8-year-old 'Rusty' - @ Auburn (I believe)

Check your PM's

Good Luck, Chris. She's in good-enough shape (and young enough) she should come through OK.

Call Steve when you get a chance.

[GulfCoast]

EMD had the old school "conventional" repair with the "fishing line" suture deal. (Its not really fishing line, but why fight the crowd knowledge). The 2 year failure rate on all of them is essentially the same, last time I checked. If I had a young AA prospect, I would go with TPLO.

[Jay Dufour]

My AA dog after first TPLO .did rehab myself. Has not had one problem.http://youtu.be/YnpwiT4O7WM

[claimsadj]

I would do the TPlO. I have a dog that had it over a year ago and he is good as new. The rehab is not bad at all--I took a very conservative approach and within 4 months he was back in light duty. When I say conservative I mean I rested the dog for weeks and just did some leash walks for the first couple months. Under water treadmill and some swimming was next--this was at Dr. Milton's recommendation. It was a pain but was not too bad in the long run.

[Duck Chaser]

As Randy said, we went the TPLO route, with Dr. James Milton. He is in Birmingham, retired from Auburn.. The other surgeon in his clinic, Ballagas, is apparently very qualified/experienced as well. Dr. Milton came highly recommended from retriever folk as far away as TX. I have no regrets. Rusty wasn't ready to slow down at all, and we got a few more years at 100% in the duck woods. The fact that his knee would be "fixed" helped me justify the investment. If the other knee had torn the next year or 2, I had no intensions of having another tplo. A torn cruciate doesn't cripple the dog. They will use it again in time. I felt that this way, I knew he had at least one solid knee. That said, if he was in pain, I'd do whatever... I believe he partially tore the other at the end of last season. He has since been retired to morning walks with mama, completing his PHD in sniffin/pissin, helping raise kids and other dogs.

Good to talk to you Chris, and good luck!

[jmh600]

I did the TPLO with Dr. Tobias in Memphis on my 2 YO female. She is fully recovered now and hunted this past season. Dr. Tobias was great, he can come off as arrogant but I felt like he did a great job and was very thorough. The only time my dog favors that leg a little is when it's pretty cold and she gets stiff. Other than that she is 100%.. Be glad to answer any questions since I dealt with this same issue less than a year ago.

[BucksandDucks]

Thanks for all the PMs, texts, and phone calls everyone. I appreciate all the information. I've got her scheduled for the TPLO surgery with Dr. Milton next Thursday, so we'll see how it goes.

thanks again for all the help!

[Anatidae]

Thanks for the update Chris - good luck in hopes for a healthy re-hab and return to hunting.

[Back!]

Chris, how did Bailey's surgery go?

[BucksandDucks]

Surgery went well, he had it last Thursday and she's not carrying it as much today as she has been. I hope it continues on like this. Doc said everything looked good afterwards so I'm optimistic. Thanks for asking.

[claimsadj]

Any update?