My dog has a ruptured ligament. Does he always need surgery?

A torn cruciate ligament in the knee is not something you need to rush to surgery for. I'm a rehab veterinarian and I usually recommend rest, anti inflammatory medication, and short leash walks for potty only. If she is improving over the next few weeks then she may recover well without surgery. If there is no improvement or she starts using it, then gets worse again then I do recommend surgery. It is very important to prevent any jumping and no explosive movements. Basically Gumbo needs to be leash walked only for up to three months for her to recover without surgery. Also if you have a veterinary rehab clinic near you taking her for treatment there would assist her recovery without surgery. If you have additional questions please request a consultation with me and I can answer them. This is the most common injury I see in my practice. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Gumbo.

I'm sorry Chibby has had problems with his cruciate ligament. Yes, your vet is correct, surgery is the only thing that will fix it. Research has shown that large breed dogs like labs do not respond well to medical management of cruciate problems, and that surgery is the best option for returning them to full function. In large breed dogs, surgery is typically the recommended treatment. Given that you have tried medical management without success, my advice would be to have the surgery done. Good luck, I hope this helps!

Braces are rarely used if surgery is an option. In small dogs, they are not usually needed. Braces can cause some issues because the fit has to be absolutely perfect to avoid rubbing the skin or causing other joint damage. The best thing to do is “bed rest” and pain medications as prescribed by your vet.

The answer to your question really comes down to her examination and your goals. It is possible for a cruciate ligament to be partially torn or fully torn. If it is fully torn, the knee is unstable and surgery is the best option to stabilize the knee and slow down the development of arthritis in the joint. If the cruciate ligament is only partially torn, you can see signs like you have in Hambro where she seems pretty normal unless she injures the cruciate ligament again with high activity. For a large dog who is young, partial cruciate ligament injures are often problematic because they inhibit dogs from being able to play normally without being painful, but it sounds like Hambro has done well for 6 months. Another consideration is that if she has a partial tear, she may completely tear the cruciate ligament in the future which will necessitate surgery. There is also a potential complication of cruciate injuries that involve a tear in the meniscus. If that happens, she will be consistently lame and will need surgery. Unfortunately, only you can decide on the right answer for Hambro. Surgery provides the best possibility for return to normal activity without lameness, but certainly isn't without potential risks and complications. I have attached a handout on cruciate ligament injuries below. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1975 Finally, if this is a partial cruciate injury and you would like to avoid surgery, I would recommend trying to find a rehabilitation veterinarian to help you with physical therapy exercises to strengthen Hambro. They will also be able to give you a second opinion. Hopefully you can find a vet in the UK at this site. http://www.caninerehabinstitute.com/Find_A_Therapist.html http://www.caninerehabinstitute.com/action.lasso Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

It is difficult to assess without a full history of the type and severity of the injury. The most common type of injury is to the cruciate ligament inside the knee - although this can stabilise quite well with rest, weight management and joint supplements (especially in smaller dogs under 10-15kg), surgery is the recommended route in order to minimise the severity of arthritis which will develop due to the joints being unstable. Some arthritis is inevitable but it should be less severe and develop later in life if the joint is quickly stabilised with surgery

Hello, and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear about Jaeger's injury! Unfortunately, a torn ACL will not heal, as ligament tissue cannot re-grow. So, he does need surgery in order to maximize his ability to use that leg. With that said, there are certainly plenty of dogs (and humans!) out there who do not have their torn ACL surgically repaired, and instead manage the injury with pain meds, anti-inflammatories, and rest as needed for life. But, without surgery that stifle ("knee") will remain unstable. Additionally, dogs who tear one ACL are at increased risk of tearing the other, which in my opinion adds another reason to pursue surgery, so if that happens Jaeger wouldn't have *2* unstable stifles. I hope this helps - you're welcome to request a consultation if you'd like to discuss Jaeger's injury in more detail!

Hello, and thanks for your question. There is no single right answer to this question, and you may get different answers from different veterinarians. My own thoughts, without knowing all the details about Lola, is no - I probably would not recommend that you pursue the operation in this case. The surgery will help stabilize her knee, but it won't reverse the damage from arthritis. The recovery period can be really hard on dogs with other orthopedic issues, and older dogs heal slower. Also, her small size works in her favor, as small dogs definitely fare better than large dogs without surgical correction of a cruciate tear. All of these factors to me would add up to the benefits of surgery not outweighing the down sides. I do encourage you to have a frank conversation with Lola's primary vet who knows her best - or even request a consult with the surgeon. Most surgeons will be pretty frank about how much improvement you can expect. I have had patients pursue cruciate surgery in their older years - but typically it's my older patients who are still quite active, who I expect to do well through recovery. From your description, I'm not sure Lola would be in that category. I hope this helps! I know it's not an easy straightforward decision and I can tell you're trying to make the best choice for her!