Post by leodog on May 5, 2013 19:34:29 GMT
Hi. I'm new to this forum and would really appreciate any advice on what i should do about my dog.
Leo is a 5 year old terrier crossbreed. 10 months ago we noticed that, after he had been for long walks (an hour or more off lead) he would occasionally hop on his hind left leg. We took him to our vet who x-rayed him and promptly diagnosed a partially ruptured cruciate ligament. He had an implant inserted (what is the name for this sturgery?) and we followed the after-care extemely carefully. 4 weeks after that we noticed that his hop had increased and the vet said the implant may be causing a problem. A few weeks later he had the implant removed and again we followed the aftercare to the letter.
He still showed no improvement so we wne tback to the vet where they noticed he was twisting by his knee joint and a luxating patella was diagnosed. He went back in for surgery and had a pin inserted. 10 weeks later he had it removed. So he had 4 operations in 8 months.
As he was still hopping we began hydrotherapy and have been going weekly for the last 10 weeks. I also put him on seraquin as i'have heard good things about it
My dilemma is that over the 10 months of treatment since the initial diagnosis, we have seen no improvement and his hopping has worsened. Whereas before treatment he only hopped occasionally after a long walk, we now cannot leave the house without him hopping every few steps. We have not been able to let him off lead at all and our walks are still relatively short as any longer walks make him worse.
I may just be a neurotic owner but i am frustrated as my dog has only appeared to be worse after treatment, with no improvement seen whatsoever. I would like to take him back to the vet but i have lost faith in them and am concerned that they will just suggest that we try soemthing else (although we have the highest level of insurance we are now close to it being maxed out). Should i just continue to see how it goes or ask for a second opinion? I rally don't know what to do for the best and just want my lively, healthy, happy dog back.
Thank you in advance for any help
Leo is a 5 year old terrier crossbreed. 10 months ago we noticed that, after he had been for long walks (an hour or more off lead) he would occasionally hop on his hind left leg. We took him to our vet who x-rayed him and promptly diagnosed a partially ruptured cruciate ligament. He had an implant inserted (what is the name for this sturgery?) and we followed the after-care extemely carefully. 4 weeks after that we noticed that his hop had increased and the vet said the implant may be causing a problem. A few weeks later he had the implant removed and again we followed the aftercare to the letter.
He still showed no improvement so we wne tback to the vet where they noticed he was twisting by his knee joint and a luxating patella was diagnosed. He went back in for surgery and had a pin inserted. 10 weeks later he had it removed. So he had 4 operations in 8 months.
As he was still hopping we began hydrotherapy and have been going weekly for the last 10 weeks. I also put him on seraquin as i'have heard good things about it
My dilemma is that over the 10 months of treatment since the initial diagnosis, we have seen no improvement and his hopping has worsened. Whereas before treatment he only hopped occasionally after a long walk, we now cannot leave the house without him hopping every few steps. We have not been able to let him off lead at all and our walks are still relatively short as any longer walks make him worse.
I may just be a neurotic owner but i am frustrated as my dog has only appeared to be worse after treatment, with no improvement seen whatsoever. I would like to take him back to the vet but i have lost faith in them and am concerned that they will just suggest that we try soemthing else (although we have the highest level of insurance we are now close to it being maxed out). Should i just continue to see how it goes or ask for a second opinion? I rally don't know what to do for the best and just want my lively, healthy, happy dog back.
Thank you in advance for any help