Acl Tear In Dogs

Football hockey and soccer players are not the only ones to get sidelined due to knee problems.

Acl tear in dogs.

It s a common condition but that doesn t make it less scary when it s your dog who is limping. The ccl is responsible for keeping the tibia in place beneath the femur and stabilizing the knee joint. Injury to the anterior cruciate ligament acl also known as the cranial cruciate ligament ccl is all too common. This injury occurs when the acl in the dog s knee joint stretches or tears causing either acute or chronic pain.

There is controversy about when a dog needs surgery and which surgical procedure is the best. If i had to do it all over again i would still try the conservative approach first since on his first injury as my dog s first acl tear was partial. A lateral suture technique aka extracapsular repair 2. Knee injuries can be complicated to diagnose and to fix.

Dog acl surgical options. Julie buzby shares tips information x rays and even a video on diagnosing an acl tear. Once a licensed veterinarian diagnoses your dog with a ccl tear and it is decided that surgery is the best option for your dog there are three main orthopedic procedures to repair an acl tear. A torn anterior cruciate ligament acl is a common injury in dogs which may cause hind leg lameness.

In fact some dogs are more prone to acl injury than others. The acl is meant to stabilize the leg and provide support during weight bearing activities. If your dog goes lame in one of their hind legs they may have torn or ruptured their cranial cruciate ligament or ccl similar to the acl in humans. Before we go any further it s important to note that dog acl tear is a term commonly used for this type of injury although your veterinarian will likely refer to it as cranial cruciate rupture.

However any dog at any age of any breed lineage or mutt can tear an acl. Surgery is not always necessary for a torn acl especially on smaller dogs when reconstructing the acl is more challenging. Living with an acl tear. In this ultimate guide integrative veterinarian dr.

This ligament connects the back of the femur the bone above the knee with the front of the tibia the bone below the knee. In fact cruciate damage is the second most common orthopedic condition found in dogs after hip dysplasia and is the most frequently operated orthopedic condition in our canine friends. However if the acl is completely torn even tiny dogs will most likely need surgery. Just like athletes dogs can end up with a cruciate ligament injury.

Heal your dog s torn acl ligament by reducing its body weight. Tibial plateau leveling osteotomy tplo and 3. Larger dogs are far more likely to require surgery. By chronicling the story of bailey a labrador retriever with a torn acl you ll learn the facts from diagnosis.

A torn acl in dogs. Dogs under 30 pounds sometimes recover from mild acl injuries without surgery.