Luxating Patella-need vet help

Yikes! There's so much information to mull over. I have read quite alot about luxating patella, and there are always people who say to do the surgery sooner, and those who say it's better to wait.

I have a vet appointment today for Maya, so I'll let you know what he has to say. He has known Maya for awhile, so I'm going back to him to see if he tells me her condition has gotten any worse. I moved to the other side of town so I took her to a new vet's office twice now, each time with a different vet, which I hate. They are both very nice...but I want to get the same person every time so they know exactly how her legs feel. Otherwise they are just telling me something I already know...she has it and may need surgery. yep. Of course that's all they tell me. Today he's getting grilled lol because I'm going in there with a list of questions.
 
Okay, I'm back from the vet. He told me that Maya's knees have gotten worse, not only that but she is bow-legged. He reccomended an orthopedic surgeon to me (board certified) and told me the approximate costs. So basically I'm supposed to call him when ready and he will set everything up for me. He said that the surgeon might be able to do both knees at once.
So at this point I'm only waiting until I have the money saved up to go ahead and do this...which will most likely be in about 6-8 weeks.

Aside from that, he weighed her and she is 9.2 pounds. He is telling me she needs to lose 1 1/2 pounds. He told me that I can feed her the green beans but to stay away from the pumpkin... I was given two bags (samples) of diet dog food that you buy at the vet. They also printed me off a little plan for her to lose weight. what else... he said I could walk her, but go easy on it. Not to put her on any supplement for her joints at this point and that I could, if I wanted to, take her swimming. Unfortunately there is nowhere to take her here, somebody was trying to get a center going but it never happened. Boo!

She recieved her annual shots and aside from her legs, has a clean bill of health. So that's the news...I just hope that until the surgery they don't get worse.
 
HI Danica,

I just saw this thread, and wanted to share with you that my Ridgeback mix, suzie (4 yrs old), recently had this same surgery on her left hind leg. She had arthritis, and after an injury, the patella kept sliding out occasionally, but we could easily pop it back in. For a year she was fine, then last october, it just would not stay in, and the vet said it was finally time to have the surgery. We had waited because the bone wear was not too bad, but once it became chronic and could not be popped back in, it was time to do it, and she had to have a pin in for a few weeks as well. She is a super active dog with 4 other dogs to play with on two acres, so luckily we did not have a weight issue, I know that is a tough one...

I just wanted to tell you that even though it is a big decision and lots to think about, in our case the surgery did wonders for Suzie, who recovered very well and is as good as new. I hope all goes well for you and your little Maya. The surgery has a good success rate. It was hard to keep Suzie still once she started feeling better, but all is well now.

Good luck!!
 
CobaltBlu, Thank you so much for your post...it makes me feel better to hear a success story with the surgery. I've read so many scary things on the internet about the surgery not doing much of anything afterwards, so I really hope that Maya will respond well to it!
I'm really glad that your dog is okay now!! I wish I had a few acres myself, despite Maya being a chihuahua she is just like a regular dog and loves being outside and running about.
 
aww danica sorry to hear about your girl. my chi oliver has this too..i've been trying to keep his weight down too... its so hard bc he loves to eat..he just eats dishes and dishes of dry food! i put out a dish for each dog and he'll eat his own and everyone else's .

i had him on wellness but switched to solid gold and i think its good...my vet recommended adding boiled carrots to his food to fill him up..idk i'm going to try the green beans though too

please keep us posted..my guy runs around alot too..his legs are short but his stomach is so chubby
 
Danica, our vet does this surgery quite frequently, I spoke to several others who have had it done by him, on large and small dogs, so I know that it does work. My sister is a retired vet assistant, she had positive input as well.

Ask lots of questions about the bone condition etc. Also, it is so important to keep the dog quiet after surgery, this is a big reason for post-surgical problems---they can do a simple thing like slip on a wet floor while running and blow the whole thing out. But with care and an experienced vet, you will have a good outcome, I am sure.

Suzie is downright puppy-ish today! (and by the way we have hardwood floors and she is a big dog, and we were nonetheless able to avoid any problems.)

:yes:

Also, do not be afraid to ask for a payment plan, if you need to. Once I offered to trade-out editorial services (newsletter) for my cats cancer surgery...You never know until you ask what is possible.

Good luck!!
 
Princessme, Do you serve the boiled carrots to Oliver warm? Maya has been on diet food for awhile now and not much has happened. Its like it doesn't work. I was taking her for a walk every night, which is when the LP began acting up again. Its really frustrating. If I walk her the LP gets worse, If I don't and she remains the same weight the LP gets worse.

I just hope this new vet diet food works well. I have to get her weighed in the next two days, but I've been mixing it with her other diet food still.

Hopefully Oliver is able to lose some weight too. Maya gobbles up her green beans btw haha she loves them.

Cobaltblu, Thanks for the info, we live in an apartment, which is carpeted, so other than trying to jump up on the couch it should be pretty safe for her. Also our bed is on the floor. I bet it was really tough to keep your dog quiet, I really worry about that too. Maya is pretty active so it will be difficult for me to keep her still. It'll be sad also...she will be sad.

I have asked about a payment plan and I have to pay a little over half up front, and the rest I can pay off in 3 payments. But I think I will save up for part of those 3 payments to make sure we have some extra money, I'm sure there will be extra costs afterwards...I'm not sure if painkillers are included in that price, etc. I just want to be safe.
 
I have no idea whether they do carecredit or not...I might look into it if I find I'm not saving the money quick enough. I think I should be okay and be able to get her in within a month. But the orthopedic surgeon is coming from Arkansas to do this, so I'm not paying my own vet. Anyhoo I should have a really good idea as soon as I get my next paycheck...we are trying to pay bills with DH's paychecks and keep mine for this.