My 4-month-old pup, Willow has not wanted to put weight on her rear, left leg since Friday, May 1. I noticed this a few hours after she was playing with my in-laws' crazy golden retriever.

Took her to the vet, and she thought it was a sprain. The vet really worked the leg over and said nothing was dislocated and ligaments were good. Nothing was swollen or hot and nothing seemed to cause pain, except when Willow put weight on it. Nothing found in the paw.

The vet put Willow on a low dose of Rimadyl and said to restrict her activity for a week, which we did, with no improvement.

Today x-rays were taken to rule out a fracture or hip issues. X-rays were clear and hips look great. I asked about the possibility of a torn ACL, and she said no. She said it could still be a bad sprain, a deep bruise, even a bone bruise. So Willow is back on kennel rest and Rimadyl.

Any other ideas out there?

Thanks!

Valerie

Valerie, I'd have to disagree with your vet as my 4 month old either pulled or tore his ACL and the only thing that resolved it was total crate rest for 4 months and walking only at the end of a leash.

My vet who has had a considerable amount of orthopedic experience said that sometimes you can't tell until you actually open up the knee, which is what happened with one of my other dogs.

The downside is that if the dog doesn't get full crate rest long enough for it to heal properly and if it is torn, it will only continue to tear.

I think I'd go to another vet who specializes in orthopedics for a second opinion.

Kathy Miller

Thanks Kathy!

We are going to do another week of crate rest, and then if there is no improvement, we will probably take her to the Kansas State veterinary school affiliate office in Omaha.

If long term kennel rest is needed, can you give advice on how to keep her happy, occupied and socialized? I am just as worried about the isolation and lack of training, as the injury.

Valerie

You want to keep the dog as quiet as possible, so short of taking him out periodically for potty breaks and walks, he spent most of those 4 months in his crate. I would take him out in a prong collar so I had total control over him. I was also allowed to show him in conformation and to walk him, so we did start walking. Very short distances at first and by the end of the 4 months we were up to about two miles 3-4 days a week. Walking was the only exercise he got. As he got sounder, I'd also have him in the house with me on a leash and we'd practice basic manners and obedience. At 4 months, he was allowed out of the crate loose for short stretches by himself, and he didn't go back into his kennel run until 6 months was up. He made a full recovery.

I wasn't so lucky with the other dog....she ended up having to have surgery, even though I tried the same process with her as I had done with the boy.

Kathy

Valerie,
I agree with Kathy. A partial torn ACL can be difficult to diagnosis. If the Meniscis is torn that is hard to diagnosis also. It could very well be a bad sprain so I would continue the Rimadyl for inflamation and crate rest. A kong stuffed with peanut butter and frozen keeps them occupied for awhile as well as cube toys that food can be put in. Nylabones ect...

Good luck

I now have three kennels in the house (borrowed one), so that Willow can at least be wherever we might be in the house!

And I ordered her some more kongs and a few different treat dispensers. She already has plenty of nylabones.

So she shouldn't be too bored in the week or weeks to come.

Here is a picture of her:

valerie,

i used several vets in omaha and the best and most reasonably priced is Ralston vet. dr jernigan and erickson are the 2 you want. i had an acl done there and it cost 1/2 what the other acl cost me.

scott

Hi Valerie,
Rather than resorting to crate rest for something that is undiagnosed, I'd continue to look for an explanation. I've had the opportunity to work with a really great veterinary orthopedic surgeon on some of my rescue dogs and he's been very helpful. He can watch a dog move and has a very good sense of where the dog is experiencing the pain.

Some years ago, I had a young pup like yours that went lame in a rear leg. We palpated her feet and legs for pain and found nothing. Two different vets felt some drawer movment in the leg and advised me to do crate rest for some months for a suspected ligament tear. We were then advised to resume gentle exercise. Our pup had been fine and had been bearing weight on the leg on leash walks during the period of crate rest. But, when we started to transition to exercise, she held the leg up again. I took her in and asked the vet to xray her foot. Wouldn't you know it...she had a fractured toe and was just too tough to show pain when we had palpated the foot long before. The dog is 5 years old now and has never shown signs of lameness since.

I wish Willow a speedy recovery from whatever it is.
gina

Valerie,
Joann is right. ACL injuries and meniscis tears are often hard to diagnose. (when I was hit by the car in 2004, my right knee showed more damage but after exploratory surgury, the left was severely damaged that went undiagnosed. Esp diagnosing a young pup.

Gina has a good point. I'd look for a reasoning/cause because the lameness/pain/tenderness might be attributed to something else - esp since Willow is only 4 months old. I'd worry about growth and how it may or may not affect the joint/area. Confining to a crate (because of fear of a torn ACL or such) might be counter-productive because the problem might be something where the joint/leg needs to be exercised moderately and the restricted movement in a crate will prevent moderate usage.

Just "cover all bases" to speak of. Hopefully a specialist can know with certainty what is the root cause...

Charlie

quote:

Gina has a good point. I'd look for a reasoning/cause because the lameness/pain/tenderness might be attributed to something else - esp since Willow is only 4 months old. I'd worry about growth and how it may or may not affect the joint/area. Confining to a crate (because of fear of a torn ACL or such) might be counter-productive because the problem might be something where the joint/leg needs to be exercised moderately and the restricted movement in a crate will prevent moderate usage.

I agree that a vet should be diagnosing this dog, but 1) in the case of my dog who did recover from total crate rest, he was checked by a vet and the vet couldn't confirm or deny that it was a cruciate problem, only that it was in his knee and it was the vet who prescribed the crate rest and exercise that contributed to his full recovery.

In my second case with my bitch, x-rays and examination by an orthopedic vet could not determine what the problem was....everything looked normal and acted normal when the vet manipulated the joint and scrutinized the x-rays. The vet finally decided to do surgery. When he opened up the knee, he said the ACL was torn through and the maniscus was attached only by a thread!

Like JoAnn Stancer indicated, sometimes you can't see the damage to diagnose a knee tear so you have to go with the best option. If extended crate rest doesn't work, then surgery may be the only option. We had tried crate rest with my bitch first with no results. I note, it was during this period we had her hips x-rayed and she came back an OFA excellent!!

My pup was only 4 months old when we did almost 6 months of crate rest with totally controlled walking and he had no ill side affects from it. He had toys in his crate and spent quality time with me on a leash as was permitted and he made a full recovery. He was also a very high energy pup and he adjusted to his confinement.

Kathy Miller

UPDATE:

Well, I got a second opinion from another vet in town. And it turns out that the vet clinic hosts an orthopedic vet from Iowa State every 5 weeks and he happened to be there. The consensus is that it is not an ACL.

The pain seems to be higher up. Her hips were x-rayed again and nothing was found. Pano was discussed, but her lameness has only been on one side.

After a month of crate rest, Willow is putting most of her weight on the leg again. So we are to continue crate rest for now, and add taking her on walks.

Valerie

Well that is good news. Thanks for the update.

Valerie, Terrific News. Thanks for updating.

Kathy Miller