Dog with torn ACL

[sawmillman]

Hello all,
My 2 1/2 year old, 82 pound Old English Bulldog (Britt) has been diagnosed with a torn ACL on her rear left leg. She had been occasionally limping on it for a couple of months. We have TPOL surgery scheduled for next Wednesday. Boy do I dread it, but I guess its the best option. I was wondering if there are others who have had dogs with this ailment and what your experience has been like. thanks

[RN_EMT-P]

We had a Bichon with a torn ACL. Underwent surgery and recovered uneventfully. As I recall there were a few weeks of recovery time with no jumping, etc. but never had a problem after. Hope it all goes well for your pup.

[Jim18655]

One of my Goldens tore his CCL running in the snow when he was about 6 months old and limped around. The Vet suggested letting it alone and said it would scar over and stabilize. Arthritis was a concern - with or without surgery - almost a guarantee in the future. He had good muscle tone in the leg so he was using it.

He was OK without the surgery. He only had problems when we took hikes over about 3 miles. He'd limp a little after he rested when we got home.
Good luck.

[Animalangel]

I don't have a dog or other animal that tore an ACL but I tore one of mine back in 2014 in a bicycling high speed accident. Didn't have surgery due to lack of insurance but did go to the ER where it was diagnosed and let me tell you what... that thing still goes out on me a few times a week! Not bad enough to drop me to my knees but it sure hurts like hell for a minute. If it happened to one of my furkids they'd definitely be getting the surgery.

[NXR]

Our 100 lb Black Lab had both done at four years. He was always skittish of non-carpet floors and it turned out to be congenital.

The recovery meant he was on a leash for six months inside and out. Fortunately we could get him inside and out without steps.

He's now 11.5 and still strong as a horse.

Our 11 year-old 86 lb Golden Retriever tore her left rear ACL while were snowbirding in January. She couldn't walk five steps for a couple of weeks.

We had a collapsible wagon so we pulled her around the campground in the wagon. We bought two 10' 2x10's and used them as a ramp to move her and the wagon in and out of the motorhome. The one night when she had to go out every two hours was a bit of a challenge...

After about three weeks she would come down the PetLoader steps. A few weeks later she could go up as well.

We won't do surgery because of her age. Four months later she still struggles to get up at times but is doing much, much better. She loves to walk and still pulls us along on her normal 3/4 mile walk. Quite an improvement from just being able to do a few steps four months ago. Her limping is also slowly decreasing.

At her age arthritis is not a concern. It's supposed to take a good six months for the scarring process to complete.

Good luck,

Ray

[reubenray]

Our Yorkie has had both rear legs surgically repaired for torn ACL's. Luckily they were hurt a year or two apart. She injured them both from jumping. She is OK most of the time, but one or the other hurts her if she runs to much.

[txcpl]

You may need to build a ramp for the dog to get into/out of the RV.

[sawmillman]

Thanks for the replies. I've been reading all I can about this but its always good to hear from folks with additional knowledge.

[George Schweikle]

It's hard to subject our fur kids to surgery, but consider what's best for the dog's quality of life. For our different GSD's we have done heart, cancer and spinal surgery and all worked out to the betterment of the individual dogs.

Originally Posted by sawmillman

Thanks for the replies. I've been reading all I can about this but its always good to hear from folks with additional knowledge.

[Kdsgone2dogs]

You may want to go to local pet store and buy a sling with a good handle. It will come in handy during recovery.

[reubenray]

The first week after the surgery is done is the most heartbreaking. They can't understand what happened. They may have a cone to prevent them from licking the cut. On our Yorkie the smallest cone was way to big. We had to take it off and watch her at all times. Being in bed with us helped some. If the surgery is on a rear leg going potty will be a learning experience for them. Then the fun/work starts they will feel better and want to do more, but we have to prevent them from that.

Just keep remembering the surgery was done for them to enjoy life more.

[George Schweikle]

X2. We used one after spinal surgery for 80 lb. Dino, and it really helped. A wide band between his front & back legs and a handle for the human provided just enough additional support to ease his stair climbing.

Originally Posted by Kdsgone2dogs

You may want to go to local pet store and buy a sling with a good handle. It will come in handy during recovery.

[sawmillman]

Originally Posted by Jim18655

One of my Goldens tore his CCL running in the snow when he was about 6 months old and limped around. The Vet suggested letting it alone and said it would scar over and stabilize. Arthritis was a concern - with or without surgery - almost a guarantee in the future. He had good muscle tone in the leg so he was using it.

He was OK without the surgery. He only had problems when we took hikes over about 3 miles. He'd limp a little after he rested when we got home.
Good luck.

I have read about several that didn't have the surgery and did as you did and everything turned out good. I am still considering it even though the surgery is scheduled for next week. She does walk on it. Sometimes when other people see her they ask why she is having surgery because sometimes you can't tell she even limps. When she stops she always leans on the other leg. The vet said her knee was stable so probably a partial tear. I talked to the surgeon yesterday and of course he is all for the surgery. I only want to do whats best for the dog since this is such a serious surgery.

[Kdsgone2dogs]

Have you thought about getting a second opinion before surgery?