RE: [Chihuahuas] NEED ADVICE HELP! MY CHIHUAHUA NEEDS SURGERY FOR LUXATED LUXATING PATELLA

[Angela Granchelli]

Hello Mae,   Grade 3 Patella is quite bad.  Do a search on Google and you will see what it's all about.   If it were one or two I would just say keep her exercise regular as with low grade Patella running a little every day is good to keep from seizing up.   For all grades of Patella jumping is bad.  Make ramps or pick her up for the furniture.   Get a second opinion but if XRays really show grade 3 I would think that surgery is in order.   In the meantime...maybe an ortho company makes a Patella sleeve?   My friend here in Nova Scotia is working on one but hasn't perfected it yet.   But here he is anyway as he's the only orthotics professional I know:   http://k-9orthotics.com/   I am not an expert in chi chis but I know of Patella as my sister's 7 lb dog has it and it's very common in small breeds.   Keep the dog's weight down too to keep unecessary stress off the joints.   And finally...the vet should be able to show you how to put the kneecap back into place.   If it's a fracture too...well that's something I know nothing about.  As far as vets go they are just general practicioners and there are specialists you can be referred too.   Good luck!   Cheers, Angela http://houndsaroundtown.com       -----Original Message----- From: Chihuahuas@yahoogroups.com [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]On Behalf Of Mae Hamm Sent: Sunday, November 05, 2006 7:09 PM To: Chihuahuas@yahoogroups.com Subject: [Chihuahuas] NEED ADVICE HELP! MY CHIHUAHUA NEEDS SURGERY FOR LUXATED LUXATING PATELLA Hi everyone and thank you for taking the time to read my post. I am in need of some advice and help. About a week ago, my honey (1 year and 5 months old, 4.5 lbs chihuahua) tried to jump up onto our couch, she does this regularly about 20 times a day with no problems. This time though she missed or didn't quite jump high enough, I am not sure how she landed but she cried out in pain for about 45 secs, I held her all night after that and she wasn't wanting to move around a whole lot. I monitored her for 5 days before she went in to see the vet. She seemed to be getting a bit better but was hobbling on only her right back leg when she ran, she would literally pick up her left leg and become a tripod. She walked pretty good with a bit of a limp. She didn't seem to be in any pain, just a bit depressed as she was sleeping quite a bit. Anyways, I took her to the vet yesterday and she tried to put her patella back in place, she would get it in but then honey would bend her leg and it would just snap back out. No matter what she did, it wouldn't stay in. She said Honey may have grade 3 luxated luxating patella and that Honey would probably need surgery and now we have another appointment to see another vet at the clinic, one with more experience. She said it may not be staying in because honey may have fractured a piece of bone, the side which keeps the joint in the groove. This does make sense since it started after she missed the couch. So I am really worried about my Honey. Is there anyone else who have had similar experience that could offer me some advice on what to do, what questions to ask. Should I seek a professional or is my vet good enough, he has done numerous sugeries like this already. What is the healing period? What do I need to know to do while she is healing? I have another chihuahua who likes to play alot so I am worried about having to keep them apart while she is recovering. Does she really need this surgery? Can it get better over time? Could she just be swollen? It is quite costly and I don't want to have to put my dog through it but if it'll save her from pain and further complications like arthritis then I will definately do it. Thank you all for reading this and thank you to everyone who responds. __._,_.___ " Lets talk about our wonderful little friends! Join today! " SPONSORED LINKS Chihuahua Chihuahua puppies for sale Chihuahua charm Chihuahua gift Chihuahua housebreaking Your email settings: Individual Email|Traditional Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch to Fully Featured Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe __,_._,___