Yes, I spent hours on the internet and heard a lot of terrible things about the surgery - a lot of times they have to come back and have it re-done - infections. Terrible recovery. Abbey runs faster than a greyhound and never seems to be in pain. I worked for a surgeon and I know how they are - they get their money by doing lots of surgery so I know if I go and talk with the surgeon he is going to tell me that she needs it! Nancy
--- On Wed, 11/17/10, charlierom2003 <[email protected]> wrote: From: charlierom2003 <[email protected]> Subject: [Chihuahuas] Re: Miss Maggie's first Vet visit with me and my vet - Important Advice about Abbey To: [email protected] Date: Wednesday, November 17, 2010, 8:17 AM > Abbey also had her check up and he really feels strong that I should get her > knees fixed as she has luxtating (sp) patella - she is bow legged but she can > run fast and never seems to be in any pain. I am asking again for your > advice, should I just take her to the surgeon and see what he says? I have > heard that the surgery is often not successful and often has to be repeated > and then they get arthritis. I was just wondering if any of you have had the > surgery done and what was your outcome and would you do it again? I know the > longer I put it off the outcome can be compromised so PLEASE if you have any > opinions please share with me. > XOXOXOX > Nancy and her amazing girls I would suggest that you do some googling on 'luxating patella in chihuahuas' so you have a better undertanding of what is actually going on in the knees. Perhaps you already have done so, excellent. Personally I have known 3 or 4 dogs that had this surgery done. All eventually had pretty good outcomes, but there is a LOT of recovery time and pain and difficulty following the surgery. I think that the surgery is often done unnecessarily. If the dog is not showing any discomfort or serious walking problems I say wait and see what happens, the surgery can be done down the road a bit IF it turns out to be needed. My own chihuahua Swee'Pea developed a bit of a 'skip' in her gait when she was about 2 years old. No pain evident, still loved running around like crazy, etc. I had 2 different vets suggest that she needed surgery for this grade 1 luxating patella problem. I said no thanks, lets see what happens over time. Today she is 16 years old, still has that same bit of a skip now and then, no pain or problems after all these years of running around on that knee. So I am of course very glad that I did not put her thru the pain, misery, and risk of that surgery. Not to even mention the cost. So that is my personal experience and opinion. ------------------------------------ " Lets talk about our wonderful little friends! Join today! " Yahoo! Groups Links
