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Is it normal for a dog's knee to pop 1 week after MPL surgery?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Boston Terrier | Female | spayed | 2 years and 7 months old | 28 lbs

my 2 year boston terrier had a mpl surgery a week ago. she got the surgery at a place that only does the surgery and do follow ups after with regular vet. we went to regular vet today to remove the suturesand the vet said that her knee is popping. she said this could be due to an interna suture breaking but is unsure. i am freaking out and need to know is it normal for her knee to pop 1 week after? she has been in crate and only walks a little day to bathroom and such has not put any weight on

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on January 13th, 2017

I can certainly understand being very upset and worried about Iola! When MPL surgery is done, the goal is to prevent the kneeing from popping out of it's correct anatomical place in the patellar groove, so it should not be pooping a week afterwards. Unfortunately, it is possible that internal sutures can fail even when owners strictly follow the discharge instructions, so it is possible this has happened to Iola. Without seeing her in person, I can't say this for sure. Even though the place where she had her surgery done is a surgery only clinic, they would want to know if there were post-operative complications such as this. I recommend giving them a call first thing in the morning if possible to speak to the vet who did the surgery about this possible complication. In the meantime, continue the strict cage rest, and walking only to go to the bathroom.

2Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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