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Help ruptured ACL

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Sandra1965

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I have a 4 year old small rescue dog, 10kg.
Has anyone had success with recovery without surgery
 
I have just quickly "Googled" this and it appears that it is an extremely painful injury and can take a long painful time for the injury to repair. Other injuries can result in the long term without adequate medical advice and treatment.
Poor doggie:oops:
I would speak with your vet about treatment.

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@Hemlock has had success without surgery - I'm sure she'll be along soon with advice, but I'm tagging her just in case.
 
If you need the other perspective, we have had a very successful result with surgery.
 
As my dog only weighs 10kg , I am just trying to weigh up all options before surgery. 5 weeks in she can put her foot on the floor and is walking well, keeping her quiet as much as possible , don’t relish the idea of up to 8 weeks in the crate
 
My dog was 8 kilos.

Whichever option you choose, surgery or not, strict crate rest is crucial to recovery.
 
That’s what is going through my mind , no one has ever suggested crate rest for 8 weeks , the vets are saying operation then 8 weeks in the crate.
I can see an improvement in Jess but wonder if she just had several weeks in the crate and we were very strict would this be enough to stabilise the joint x
 
Each case is different, and I am not a vet, so I am NOT giving veterinary advice.

My vet and I worked together to heal my large dog without surgery. Because she was such a sensible dog we didn't use a crate at all, but she was kept in such a way that she didn't have to move about except to go out on a lead for short garden excursions to empty herself. She had well-padded beds to lie on. She was treated homeopathically (a very good homeopathic vet) and with massage (I'm a qualified physiotherapist and it's legal to treat your own dog) and after the first few weeks, also with acupuncture (vet qualified in this as well). It was a long, long haul, but we gradually built up to 10 minutes lead walking six times a day, then under vet's instruction lengthened the walking.

She was never quite sound, but managed another 7 years (she was 7 when she had the injury) of full-on exercise once the vet. gave us the okay. The injury certainly didn't stop her doing anything she had done before.
 
Thank you for your comments, did your dog have a partial tear or had it gone completely.
My dog is like a pocket rocket so have been using this time to keep her calmer, this is something I need to think about carefully and just wonder how long I can wait before deciding if the operation is the best choice. I don’t want to do more damage long term by waiting,
 
We didn't actually scan the injury because it would have meant an anaesthetic, and she was a type that frequently dies under anaesthesia ( she did in fact do this when a different vet. different practice ignored my warning, anaesthetised her and killed her). But the leg was hanging so I suspect a full or almost full rupture.

The lovely vet. who treated her initially had moved away by then, hence using another practice.
 
I am so very sorry to hear what happened to your dog that must have been awful , and I really appreciate your comments.
 
Hi Sandra, our Springer was conservatively managed when she damaged her cruciate, the vet said she’s need an op to repair it and probably need the other one doing too. Molly was a very anxious girl we decided not to put her through an op at that time and see if we could manage it ourselves. As she was a little overweight we put her on a diet , then researched harnesses etc for knee support. We ordered a harness from Muttknee braces in America, had to send all Mollys measurements to ensure a good fit . Harness arrived within 10 days, was surprised by how lightweight it was but we’d give it a try. Long story short ….totally recovered with no lameness in 8 weeks, just walked her on lead for 10 mins twice a day, stopped her jumping on sofas etc , hardly used her crate , slept in it at night which she was happy doing.Her other leg was fine too. Also lost a few kilos which helped ! Molls was quite happy wearing the brace which supported both knees and worked for us . Saved putting her through a lot of trauma.
 
Thank you Mayblossom , good to get different opinions from people, was Molly’s a partial tear or completely ruptured x
 
Only partial so that’s why we took the decision not to have the op.Molly never had any issues again x
 
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