# Luxating Patella



## PerfectPit (Aug 2, 2010)

I took Beastley in for a "cold tail" and also mentioned he has been raising his right rear leg but we tell him to sit and then he walks normally. He felt his knee and did xrays and he said he had a luxating patella. He said I could get a second opinion with a orthopedic surgeon if we wanted but surgery with an orthopedic surgeon could cost upwards of $2500.00. OMG  He said if it isn't corrected he could become lame and develop arthiritis. Has anyone had this type of surgery and what is the success rate. Is there any place to assist financially for surgeries such as these. Any suggestions would be appreciated.


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## k8nkane (Jul 9, 2010)

What helped me financially with Kane's TPLO was Care Credit. It's like a credit card you can apply for for the specific amount of the surgery (Kane's was $3100) and then you pick a payment period and they break it down for you how much you owe them a month. I chose the 60-month period, which broke the 3100 down to $113/month. They also offer a special thing where if you pay it all back within 6 months, they don't charge you any interest.

If you decide to go the surgery route, your orthopedic surgeon should be open to accepting Care Credit, it's a nationwide thing. If they don't mention it, bring it up with them.

Something you might want to think about re: the arthritis issue is getting Beastley started on glucosamine/chondroitin supplements.

Either Glycoflex 3, cosequin, or dasuquin. JUST those three brands (glycoflex has 3 different levels depending on how severe joint deterioration is, Kane is at level 3 because of his surgery). If you go with any other brand of supplement than those three, you don't get a guaranteed amount of glucosamine/chondroitin; they're not held to the strict standards of those three brands, they can have an amount UP to a certain mg or whatever, but it doesn't have to be, and often the amounts of glucosamine/chondroitin can differ, even from bottle to bottle.

All three are great, and there really isn't a difference between them since they all have guaranteed levels. I chose Glycoflex 3 just because it was cheaper for me than the other two, by about $10 or so. I ordered mine on Amazon. It takes about 3-4 weeks for them to kick in and build up enough in the dog's system, but once it does, it's a dramatic night and day change in mobility. Kane's has just kicked in and it wiped out the last bit of limping he had on his TPLO leg. He's so much more agile now, he's willing to stretch that leg out much further than before, and he doesn't sit as crooked.


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## PerfectPit (Aug 2, 2010)

Can this be started before his surgery. I'm kinda wary of having the surgery done during the winter time. All I would need him to do is slip or something. Along with allowing me to save up a few dollars prior to the surgery. I also want to work on crating him. He came with a crate but he has never been crated he always stayed in his own bedroom. The vet said he would have to stay quiet and calm, which is hard for him to do because he is so hyper to begin with. He is our zoomie man and I know he wouldn't stay quiet in a large room.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

what grade of a luxating patella did your dog have? I have lots of experience with this and have had several dogs have it in the past. If it is a grade 1 or 2 even maybe a 3 don't worry about getting it fixed just yet. It can cause a little bit of pain when it pops out but when it goes back in it is just fine. I would leave the dog alone till it wears down to a grade 3 or higher. I had a working dog who did Schutzhund and agility for 6 years with a grade 2-3 luxating patella and the vets just watched it for several years till it was time to do surgery. He went in regroved her knee and had to put some hardware in to stabilize it. 4 months later she was back to running agility and had a long successful career. She is now 13 going on 14 years old and runs around with my puppies just fine. Arthritis is not bad, it's really good for a dog her age. She is med at about 45lbs a larger dog may not be so active at he age. My Boston terrier has grade 4 luxating patellas and they slip in out and out all the time. He is 13lbs and this is common for small dogs and he has it in both knees. We will not do surgery as a little dog with both knees does not it done, they can live just fine with them slipping in and out.

Tasha's surgery was done by my vet who is great with Otho stuff but he is not a specialist for about 900 about 7 years ago. I would think you could find a good vet to do it for about 1200 now if you looked for one. Sounds like the vet you talked to way over priced you if you looked and called around you could get it fixed for less. You can also wait depending on how bad it is till it is really necessary. I hate when vets use scare tactics to get people to spend crazy amounts of money


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

You can get cheaper glucosamine/chondroitin supplements at a feed store. Look for the ones for horses like a powder you can put in the food. The ones I use cost about $12 and that is in a huge tub that lasts me a whole year and that is using it on several dogs. You need to do come math to figure out the dosage. Do the math yourself based off dosage per body pound or post it up here and I will do it for you. Basically the stuff I use I give 1 tsp twice a day or once a day depending on the dog I am treating. You can also get some MSM and give the same dose just once a day and I would recommend using both.


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