TPLO Surgery

[angie's_parents]

Our 4-year-old female was diagnosed with cranial cruciate ligament rupture on her right-rear leg and TPLO surgery is scheduled for next week. We are extremely nervous about this entire issue and would like any words of inspiration or advice from anyone that has first-hand knowledge as to what to expect. The surgeon, of course, explained the clinical aspects of this surgery, but we are interested in real-life experiences.

[flyballmom]

My Charleigh had 2, a little over a year apart. (Her death had nothing to do with her surgery, BTW.) Is your surgeon TPLO certified? Go to www.slocumenterprises.com to find out. The patent has expired on the procedure, allowing any vet to purchase equipment from Slocum, you don't want that. Is he board certified? Go to www.acvs.org for that piece of info.

The skill of the surgeon is the first important link, aftercare is at least as important, if not more. Some vets want complete crate rest for 8 weeks, others allow the dog to have freedom in the house as long as there is no fear of jumping on furniture or other wild behavior. Still others prescribe varying distances of leash walks almost as soon as the dog comes home.

Start preparing your house. Remove slippery throw rugs. Put down non skid runners on any slippery floors your dog may have access to. Get either a crate or X-pen ready (depending on your dogs personality.) Buy lots of chewies. (Did I say buy LOTS of chewies?) For more info on games and distractions, plus alot of terrific info, go to www.lauriebryce.com/tplo. Do you have any specific questions?

[angie's_parents]

Thank you for your input. I guess I am most interested in what to expect as far as how intensive the pain is and for how long it seems to last. The vet we have chosen specializes in orthopedic problems in dogs and cats and has all the right credentials. It just kills us to see our little girl have to go through this. We have a crate available but hope not to have to use it. Also, the vet says some dogs have to wear the c-collar due to extensive licking problems. Did you experience this? I fear it would break our Angie's heart if she had to wear this or be crated.

[flyballmom]

There's no reason for pain to be extensive. Char came home with Duragesic/Fentanyl patches both times. These last for 3 days, then she was on Rimadyl for a few more days. There's no reason for a dog to be in much pain, there are too many meds out there. You WILL need a crate. If she's not crate trained, start now. Put treats and toys in the crate. Feed her in the crate. Dogs view crates as a safe place, a den. But only if we create that safe place for them. START NOW. Char did have to wear an e-collar til a couple weeks after her sutures were removed. She didn't like it, but was OK. It won't break Angie's heart, but it will be hard work for you keeping her entertained. Check out Laurie Bryce's website.

[Anne]

My Sophie also had 2 x TPLO surgeries 12 months apart. Your dog will come home with pain relief prescribed by the vet.

I found the crate invaluable. My dog had not been crate trained but she did not cause any problems during her confinement as I spent a lot of time with her and she had a crate in the family room where all the action was during the day and a crate in my bedroom at night.

It is very important to keep the dog confined and not allow any jumping after surgery.
There is another thread on the forum where a dog injured itself within days of surgery by jumping on the bed.

My ortho advised me that the surgery usually is straighforward and the recovery really depends on the aftercare.

We had no problems with Sophie interfering with sutures...she did not wear any type of collar and showed very little in her incision.

[panda]

Hi, our dog Mori, waiting at the bridge, had a complete rupture of the cruciate ligament, ie his back leg was dragging behind him, totally useless. we took him to our Vet and he was operated on within two hours, the repair was made using existing tissue not the TPLO method as is so common today, unlike TPLO he was confined to a childs playpen for Six weeks, to go out to relieve himself I would put a towel under his belly to support him, so no weight would go on the bad leg, not easy but had to be done. He had his stitches out after 10 days, and after six weeks started very slow exercise, just a minute or so each day building up every week, I suppose it was about 18 months before his limp disappeared, and then he was charging around like a mad thing and fully back to normal. He only needed painkillers for three days after the op. and was over 6 years old at the time. I remember our vet saying that this type of op was 99% successful on all the dogs he had operated on, and he still uses the same method today. But whatever method is used go very easy on the exercise. Good Luck

Anne and JoJo

[flyballmom]

The recovery times and protocols for all methods of approach to CCL tears (TPLO, traditional, or conservative methods) is roughly the same. A length of time of severely restricted activity, followed by ever increasing distances walking, then trotting etc etc. There is no "easy" approach to fixing a ligament injury, and the "best" treatment is whatever the owner chooses, as long as said owner has researched all options.

[angie's_parents]

Thanks for all the information. We checked out the recommended websites, and the vet surgeon is accredited with Slocum Enterprizes and ACVS. We also read Laurie Bryce's testimony and got much info from her website. Thanks, one and all for your input. We feel better about things, but are still very nervous and will be until this is over. Will let you know how we come out.