Dolly needs a knee brace

[Sherry]

Ok, so Dolly has had this bit of a limp since the beginning of October. They were outside playing hard with a large ball in the yard. It doesn't bother her all the time, but I feel bad for her. I have been giving her 1500 mg. of Glucosamine Chondroitin everyday. the new vet says this is great. She also showed me the problem with Dolly's knee, and I could feel it, she has a torn ligament inside her knee, kind of like a meniscus. She said it could cost $3000 for surgery, but that she suggests a fitted knee brace. I have been doing my research, like I always do. And we will be getting her ordered up for a brace that will cost between $300 and $900. Luckily there is a place 30 minutes from here that makes them. Called my Pet Brace in Morgantown PA. also there is a different kind at muttkneebrace.com I was surprised at how much this goes on, since I've never seen a dog wearing one. Has anybody on here ever needed one?

 

[2BullyMama]

GET OUT!! There are knee braces for pets? never, ever heard of it. Poor Dolly.... so, will this mean no surgery or just delaying the inevitable?

BTW -- how is Grizz?

 

[Davidh]

Wow, I am curious to see how well it works. Please keep us posted.

 

[Sherry]

No surgery she said. It hardly ever works for very long, it's possible the other knee will tear also from over use. so sooner we get a brace on her, the better. Griz is great. He bounced back like only a youngster can.

 

[cowsmom]

i have never seen or heard of this either so i have no input but sounds reasonable really. they help humans why not pets. let us know how things go and im glad grizz is better.

 

[Vicaroo1000]

That's going to be fun getting her used to wearing that! Oh and keeping the other dogs from chewing it to bits. I hope it works marvelously. You just reminded me [MENTION=1714]Sherry[/MENTION], I gotta get some of that glucosamine for little miss stiffy over here.....

 

[KristinMarie]

My Rocco tore a ligament in his back leg as well and was limping when he was about 6 months old. Luckily it had not torn through so we could avoid surgery if we could keep him inactive for 6 weeks. I know! Next to impossible. But...good news, we did limit all play/jumping/running for 6 weeks and he completely recovered. We didn't use a brace. He is 1.5 years old now and is as good as new. Never heard of the brace - but if it keeps the knee immobile than I can see how that would be beneficial. Good luck and keep us posted! Pics please! lol

 

[sheshistory]

Did she tear her ACL? I ask because it sounds so similar to an injury that my bully Bentley had - I could feel his knee move and see how lax it was, creating instability.

I would be clear on what kind of injury Dolly has before you decide on treatment. The reason I say this is because first, yes, once one ACL goes, the other one is likely to go. A brace won't change this, it will probably make it even more likely so keep in mind that you might have two bad legs if you don't fix one now. The other thing is that Bentley underwent surgery for his torn ACL by having TPLO surgery, which is meant to last the lifetime of the dog by eliminating the need for the ligament. We eventually had both legs done and they were successful surgeries that lasted until he died - he walked just fine. Last, with the brace, there is a big risk for developing arthritis in the knee, which will be debilitating for your bully. If the bones are rubbing up against each other unnaturally in the joint, it WILL cause arthritis and you can't fix that with a brace.

So before you rule out surgery, I find out exactly what ligament has torn and take Dolly to an orthopedic surgeon before the problem exacerbates over time and produces a problem that cannot be fixed by surgery at all.

(Also, if it is the ACL, I have a lot of experience with this in bullies so let me know if you have any questions!)

Lots of positive thoughts for you and Dolly!

 

[Sherry]

thanks @sheshistory we will be sure to check everything out. good info

 

[kazzy220]

I have never heard of these either, but @sheshistory has given you some good ideas to consider!!

 

[Sherry]

[MENTION=860]sheshistory[/MENTION] I notice you mentioned Bently's leg was laxed. No, Dolly's leg is not laxed. and she does use it periodical Just that about 75% of the time she won't put full weight on it. When I took her to the vet last week, Dolly forgot all about limping until we had all payed attention to her, then she started limping again. on and off , mostly on after she's layed on it.

 

[sheshistory]

[MENTION=860]sheshistory[/MENTION] I notice you mentioned Bently's leg was laxed. No, Dolly's leg is not laxed. and she does use it periodical Just that about 75% of the time she won't put full weight on it. When I took her to the vet last week, Dolly forgot all about limping until we had all payed attention to her, then she started limping again. on and off , mostly on after she's layed on it.

Bentley did the same - when he was excited, he was able to walk on it and play but his ACL was torn. They have a higher threshold for pain. I don't mean to alarm you, it just sounds very, very similar.

 

[Vicaroo1000]

[MENTION=1714]Sherry[/MENTION] - How's that leg doing? Did you get the brace? I'd like to see some video of her hating it - you know she's not going to LIKE that thing! hahahaha Bea would probably refuse to walk in a brace and Bo would chew it off pronto. hahahahahahaha

 

[Sherry]

[MENTION=2614]Vicaroo1000[/MENTION] no brace yet, yeah a video would be good, I've seen them on different sites, they look very uncomfortable. hubby says we should have the surgery if necessary, this weekend she hasn't had any problems, we even went for our walk, I'm wondering if everyone is over reacting.?? (Vet and me and hubby) Some people say that with rest the leg can heal, depending on what the problem is. We certainly have been resting it up until the walk. Playing it by ear.

Thank you for asking, I will keep you updated.

 

[cowsmom]

oh thats so good to hear [MENTION=1714]Sherry[/MENTION]. i hope it just gets better on its own. keep us posted.