Caesars mum Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 Looks like Nala my bullmastiff x DDB will need this surgery and and I'm after other peoples stoies and experience with large dogs and their recovery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laneka Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I have 2 Rottweiler bitches that have had cruciate ligament ops Both had the de Angelis method and both have come through the ops well. It is all about management after the op and doing exactly what the vet says. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lab lady Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 (edited) My lab Lucy is almost 14 weeks post TTO surgery. She had ruptured both cruciate ligaments and almost destroyed the cartilage as well. The specialist said it was one of the worst he had seen and used her x-rays and photos of the surgery as examples during a talk he did at a conference. I am amazed at how quick her recovery has been, she only has a slight limp now and it's only after she has been for her walk. I was familiar with the recovery from the older style of surgery and was prepared for weeks of cage rest but she only had to be cage rested for the first week then she was only restricted to the house and outside for toilet breaks and a 5 minute wander. At the 4 week mark she started walks on the beach to help strengthen her muscles and some swimming. My only problem was i also have 2 younger labs and the 3 of them tend to play pretty rough so she had been living with my parents during her recovery. Luckily she a very laid back dog and was very content to sleep her days away which meant she actually had very few restrictions put on her. At 8 weeks she was given the all clear to resume normal life but i choose to leave my with my parents for another month only having her at home when i was there so i could make sure they didn't play rough. Now at 14 weeks she's home and fit as a fiddle. The whole thing hasn't been cheap but well worth it, i couldn't be happier with the results :D Edited May 4, 2011 by Lab lady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogslife Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 Don't do it..Don't do it.... I have had two dogs done...... and the bloody things can now jump up onto the kitchen bench and steal food. I told my Vet its his fault.... Seriously though..... its not cheap but a great outcome. Both dogs can jump further than they could before surgery and my benchtops are cleaner. I would do it all again if I had too. :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogslife Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I forgot to add that my girls are a Rottie X and a Dane X....both over 45 kilos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caesars mum Posted May 4, 2011 Author Share Posted May 4, 2011 Thanks guys really appreciate knowning that it can work out, your guys all sound like it was worth every penny. Thankfully we have insurance, and even if we didn't I still do it if there is hope she will be back to her happy self. Lab Lady, I also have a puppy (7month old) bullmastiff who is very rough and a st bernard who thinks he is a puppy in short bursts, so keeping the boys seperate from her will be a must. Hopefully we will see the pecialist this week or early next week and know where we go from there. I think they will go with the TPLO surgery but we will see what they say. I don't think the de Angelis method would hold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiahzen Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I have a dog here 50kg who had TPLO 4 years later he is still going strong.. He has never had any issues with it and i can't even tell what leg it was that had the operation.. 2 friends had De Angelis method on Rottweilers on one them 45kg the thread broke once and then moved so it had to be done 3 times on the other dog 55kg the thread snapped about 8 weeks after surgery and they ended up going with TPLO.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kajtek Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 We've done it with a great outcome. My titanium implant girl is going strong after 4 years. She is only 28kgs but I understand that the op is the same for dogs over 10kgs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogslife Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 I have no idea what method but I do know that they both have a wedge in their legs. One funny bit is my dane after her surgery recovered well but always had a bad limp. I worried alot about it and we returned to the vet often during her recovery to see if there was anything wrong. The limp was still there after a year and the vet and decided it was "one of those things" that would never be explained. ......... until I went away for 3mths and friends dog sat. I had asked them to keep an eye on her limp and if it got worse then to take her straight to the vet. Every phone they claimed they never saw the limp........I just thought they were blind and not watching her........... On the day I returned she was delighted to see me.......and after she calmed down..... she limped across the room My girlfriend exclaimed...ohh she's limping......this is the first time she has done this since you left.... Over the following weeks we worked out that the "limp" was for me and me only.... :D She has not bothered to limp since we worked it out but the bloody mutt had been putting it on for more attention. ;) I had never thought that she was that smart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kajtek Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 (edited) dogslife ;) - now I need the pic of the smarty pants limp-er Edited May 5, 2011 by HonBun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickasyoucan Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 I walk with two rotties, one has had a TTA (tibial tuberosity advancement) one a TPLO. Two different ops but basically similar outcome in that it alters the biomechanics of the knee and therefore obviates the need for the torn cruciate. One is 2 years post op (the TTA girl) one is 5 months (the TPLO), both are limp and more importantly pain free. My own boy (who is 19kg bull breed x) had a TPLO in October. He is back to being his usual mad self. Prior to the op it was terrible to see how much pain he was in. Pretty much from the day he had the op, the pain began to diminish. It was well worth it. ;) Actually though I dreaded the recovery the only bit I really worried about was before the stitches came out. After that my boy was confined to a small room during the day whilst I was at work and my neighbour took him for toilet breaks during the day. He basically just slept. There was a DDB scheduled for surgery the day my boy had his. Apparently he was well over 60kg and went well. I would definitely do it again (though I hope the other leg never needs it!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly_Louise Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Chloe is not that heavy (around 30kgs) but had both legs done 5 years ago now. Never had a problem with them. For a dog that size, I would only (personally) recommend osteotomy type surgeries - they are more stable and handle bigger weights better. Of course, surgery is only one part of it - the aftercare is just as crucial, so as long as you are prepared then it should all be okay. Many people disagree with surgery, but in all honesty, it's the best thing we ever did with Chloe. It gave her back her quality of life. Expensive, yes - but the results were absolutely priceless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silentchild Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 My Rottie had TPLO and she is running & jumping around fit as a fiddle now.. The recovery was tedious but as long as you follow the vet's instructions you should be okay. We took our Rottie to hydrotherapy and swimming to help the recovery process, also massages several times a day and various muscle strengthening exercises. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogslife Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 dogslife - now I need the pic of the smarty pants limp-er This is the smart one...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucknow Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 My 48kg Bull Arab type had surgery on 2nd feb. His surgery was complicated by a bowed tibia (vets only explanation for this was possibly a damaged growth plate as he was perfectly straight when he had a check at 12 months old for insurance, he was 19 months old when he had surgery). He had a pin to straighten the leg, TPLO plus a wedge. Initially recovery was excellent despite a post op infection at day 3. It seemed to resolve completely with 3 weeks of antibiotics. At 7 weeks post op he had follow up x rays which showed excess fluid still around the joint but as he was showing no lameness whatsoever it was hoped to not be infection and we were given the go ahead to start short walks. We managed one walk and besides a little slow afterward everything looked fantastic. Sadly 2 days later Hugo suffered an avulsion fracture where the top of his tibia broke away as a result of the pin so we went back to surgery on 4th April. The original pin was removed and the fractured piece was pinned and wired into place. 2 days later Hugo developed another infection and he was started on antibiotics again. 2 weeks after that when everything was looking good Hugo became acutely lame and depressed with swelling over the stifle so a second antibiotic was added. He took several days to respond and in the meantime the wound 'erupted' in two places so we had lots of delicious ooze to deal with. We are now 4 weeks after the second surgery and while the infection is controlled it is still present with another localised swelling looking almost ready to open (the other two are healing). I currently have the 'better out than in' attitude and am glad that I like cleaning out festery type sores! Hugo is still quite lame but hopefully this is due to the infection as his x rays 2 weeks ago were looking OK with everything still in place, just a heap of fluid, presumably infection, around the joint. Bright side is at least he is easier to keep quiet now as cage rest has been a nightmare when he is feeling well and with no pain. While I hate the idea of a 3rd surgery it is most likely that it will be needed to remove the implants once the bone has healed in order to completely stop the infection. Now we are just hoping for no more complications and that he has 4 legs at the end of it! Sorry to throw in a less than bright side story, and I have to take some responsibility as I didnt pay enough attention when he started showing very subtle lameness. I gave the vets a nice complex leg to play with (you should have seen them almost rubbing their hands in glee when they saw him, especially when I said I had insurance!). Good luck with your girl, I would definately do the same thing if I were given that time again, just maybe a bit sooner! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kajtek Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 (edited) Wow... she is beautiful! Did she post her own pic? Obviously, she is multi-skilled and computer ops are just one of her many talents Edited May 5, 2011 by HonBun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caesars mum Posted May 5, 2011 Author Share Posted May 5, 2011 My 48kg Bull Arab type had surgery on 2nd feb. His surgery was complicated by a bowed tibia (vets only explanation for this was possibly a damaged growth plate as he was perfectly straight when he had a check at 12 months old for insurance, he was 19 months old when he had surgery). He had a pin to straighten the leg, TPLO plus a wedge.Initially recovery was excellent despite a post op infection at day 3. It seemed to resolve completely with 3 weeks of antibiotics. At 7 weeks post op he had follow up x rays which showed excess fluid still around the joint but as he was showing no lameness whatsoever it was hoped to not be infection and we were given the go ahead to start short walks. We managed one walk and besides a little slow afterward everything looked fantastic. Sadly 2 days later Hugo suffered an avulsion fracture where the top of his tibia broke away as a result of the pin so we went back to surgery on 4th April. The original pin was removed and the fractured piece was pinned and wired into place. 2 days later Hugo developed another infection and he was started on antibiotics again. 2 weeks after that when everything was looking good Hugo became acutely lame and depressed with swelling over the stifle so a second antibiotic was added. He took several days to respond and in the meantime the wound 'erupted' in two places so we had lots of delicious ooze to deal with. We are now 4 weeks after the second surgery and while the infection is controlled it is still present with another localised swelling looking almost ready to open (the other two are healing). I currently have the 'better out than in' attitude and am glad that I like cleaning out festery type sores! Hugo is still quite lame but hopefully this is due to the infection as his x rays 2 weeks ago were looking OK with everything still in place, just a heap of fluid, presumably infection, around the joint. Bright side is at least he is easier to keep quiet now as cage rest has been a nightmare when he is feeling well and with no pain. While I hate the idea of a 3rd surgery it is most likely that it will be needed to remove the implants once the bone has healed in order to completely stop the infection. Now we are just hoping for no more complications and that he has 4 legs at the end of it! Sorry to throw in a less than bright side story, and I have to take some responsibility as I didnt pay enough attention when he started showing very subtle lameness. I gave the vets a nice complex leg to play with (you should have seen them almost rubbing their hands in glee when they saw him, especially when I said I had insurance!). Good luck with your girl, I would definately do the same thing if I were given that time again, just maybe a bit sooner! wow what a nightmare, poor Hugo I hope he is feeling better soon he has really been through the ringer. It is good to hear the good and the bad and I will be watching Nala like a hawk as I'm going to hopefully work from home most of the first couple of weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caesars mum Posted May 5, 2011 Author Share Posted May 5, 2011 Thanks everyone it sounds like most people get really good results Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogslife Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Wow... she is beautiful!Did she post her own pic? Obviously, she is multi-skilled and computer ops are just one of her many talents This is her usually...... She is a Dane crossed with an English Pointer....... but the brains of a Dane usually...... :dancingelephant: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caesars mum Posted May 9, 2011 Author Share Posted May 9, 2011 Nala is booked in for thursday to have a TTA done, vet things she has ruptured her cruciate, but maybe not completely torn yet. fingers crossed for a full and speedy recovery please and lots of healing vibes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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