Our 4 half year old lab has a sore knee after exercise. Took her to the vets today and he thought it was her cruciate ligament.  She is now on 10 days of Metacam and lead walks only to see if the inflammation goes down. Has anyone experienced the same thing?  The ligament hasn't "gone" its just grumbling so nothing drastic needs to be done, we have time on our side. I have done some research on the internet and seen that operations aren't always successful and VERY costly (she's not insured for this) Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Hi My dog had done her Cruciate Ligament- Didnt no how she managed it

I was told by vet 1: No walking rest only she didnt go for walks she had to rest, no climbing or jumping, or going up the stairs

2: this is what helped she was meant to have a op but i tried swiming we went to a pool once per week and built this up to twice per week and it was amazing it help build the joint up and she stopped limping and walking well and didnt need a operation

so i would strongly suggest you try and locate a pool to use it is expensive but well worth it, my insurance didnt cover it but I no some insurance companies do cover for this

Please give it a go if you can, i was unsure at first but my dog improved after a couple of weeks swimming and also gave her a bit of exercise

All the best

Insurance re Cruciate Ligament be warned they only pay out for one Cruciate injury .

Once they have a problem with this you will often find that the other back leg follows .Usually the strain that it is put under will be the cause.
Hydrotherapy is really the best thing for them after or before they have surgery .
I'ts a long road back to recovery but they do so well with the help of swiming in a controlled environment.
As we have experienced.  Jill
 

>Insurance re Cruciate Ligament be warned they only pay out for one Cruciate injury .

Not true of all insurance companies...........I know mine will pay out if the other cruciate goes......

I'm sure that, with careful management, the other cruciate will not go. We spent £5000 + 3 years ago, luckily we were insured

> Insurance re Cruciate Ligament be warned they only pay out for one Cruciate injury .

A lot of companines will class it as the same condition - 'cruciate disease'.  I claimed for all of Georges left leg and got a fair chunk towards the right one aswell.  I have now maxed it out and so they won't pay for any more treatment he needs which is hopefully nothing major. 

George was totally rubbish at swimming but he went on a water treadmill after his first op.  Following the second op the vet advised once the check up xrays were done to walk him through long grass, on soft ground etc etc to help build the muscle as this can usually be carried out more regularly than any form of hydrotherapy. 

Forgot to add, George started limping on his left leg months after his op (panic set in that he had ruptured it again) so when he went in for the work-up for the right leg the vet took a sample of fluid to check for infection in the joint.  Sure enough there was so he had a course of antibiotics and his limp went and now he seems fine so it wasn't as bad as we first thought.

The specialists we have seen have been brilliant and I would recommend them to anyone.

My lurcher had had problems with his cruciate ligaments when he was younger, he was put on Rhymadil (sorry if it's spelt wrong) and was to have NO exercise for two weeks even toilet trips had to be on lead, the vet was very adamant that he was to rest the leg completely. After two weeks we then began to build up his walks by minutes every day and my OH, bless him, would put on his wetsuit after work and go over to the lake with him for a swim, again starting off at minutes a day then building up over time.

After the first leg got better a couple of months later the other one went, at the time I was spending a couple of weeks with my parents and even though I did everything the same (except the swimming) the leg got worse, then I found out my Dad had been taking the dog out on his lead in the morning before work (even though I'd explained why he musn't ). Mystery solved, the leg began to get better as soon as I'd put a stop to that and fingers crossed he hasn't had a problem since.

If we have been out for a very long walk he sometimes starts to lift his leg in a tell tale manner and to me that is the signal for putting him back on the lead and I take it easy with him for a few days.

I know I'm not a vet but with what I have experienced with my dog I certainly wouldn't be walking your girl at the moment, I would keep her in for a week with plenty of juicy bones and a stuffed kong.

Just a note to add one of my dogs had both his cruciates operated on a year apart and my insurance paid out not questions asked - they are still paying for him to go swimming.  So you need to check your own individual policies.

My dog is now back to full fitness coming up a year after his last op, it was a long recovery but well worth the patience.  The main thing is to not try to rush the recovery process.