Pit ACL Surgery 8-2008
My 2 year old 86lb blue nose pit just had ACL surgery on his left hind leg 8-6-08. It was a very difficult financial decision to make, but in the end we decided we can't live without him. He is a part of our family.
He has always been active; long walks, running beside me on my bike, etc. We take him with us everywhere, meaning he has jumped in and out of the jeep & car for the last 2 years, which I believe caused this problem. I noticed he would not put his left rear leg down, he had difficultly getting up and down. He would get adreniline rushes when he would see another dog & run and play but as soon as he would come inside, he would not use his left rear leg. After a week of it not getting better we took him to the vet.
The vet said his acl was torn by doing the "shelf/drawer test" but could not be 100% positive until the dog was put under. He quoted a price of $1,200 - WOW! It took us 3 months to get the $$ together & we finally got to make the apointment. During surgery the vet noticed some minor arthritic changes due to the fact that we had to let it go for 3 months to get our finances in order. The vet put extra stem cells in the knee & hopefully that would help the problem. We just picked him up yesterday & I had no idea originally of what we were getting into. Beware, this is a major surgery, when you pick your pet up there is a major scar, and lots of pain to deal with. It is almost more than I could bare, it is a really sad sight.
His recovery depends on directly following the orders of the vet. Kilo's orders are: He is to be kenel confined for 2 weeks, only to get out to poo or pee & right back in. He sleeps in our room at night with the door shut, guilty pleasure =) We do not have a kennel, we use our small laundry room, which will work fine. He is on pain pills and inflanitory pills for 2 weeks. After the two weeks he is to go for short, slow three minuite walks for 2 weeks twice a day, then back to rest. The vet said he will start to put his leg down when he is ready & not to push him. After that 2 weeks the walks get gradually longer & may involve going up & down small inclines. At anytime no stairs what-so-ever! We put a towel under his belly while I lift his hind end up, my man lifts the front & we carry him down the 3 steps we have. Poo & pee & right back in, he has no endurance & just wants to sit down during the process so we are patient. He is in lots of pain.
Total cost $1,100, I live in Montana. The recovery process, if feel, will be the hardest part. I will post again on his progress & hope this information is useful.