Tightrope Surgery Infection – Benny

Benny, our three-year-old Staffordshire mix, had damaged both left and right CCLs. After much shopping, research, and talking to vets, we decided on tightrope repair. We had the RH hind leg done first. Post surgery went well until we got off of the antibiotics, when a horrible infection set in. All of the equipment had…

Read More

Stem Cell Treatment for Canine Osteoarthritis

Serra Veterinary Hospital, Inc., in conjunction with VetStem, is now able to offer regenerative cell therapy with adult stem cell treatment for canine osteoarthritis. Serra Veterinary Hospital is one of a few locations that are currently approved by VetStem to provide this treatment for canines. The stem cells are harvested from fat cells collected from…

Read More

C.T. Brady – Ruptured CCL

C.T. Brady is a Brittany who will be 13 on Christmas 2013. He was born with a crooked spine (his short tail is canted severely to the left; the C.T. is for “Crook Tail”) and he has very straight stifles (or rear knees) in his hind end. He’s always had a funky gait and the…

Read More

Conservative Management – Koko

Koko is a 58 pound Labradoodle. She will be 9 in October. We were told she tore her right CCL in 2009, but we did not do surgery. We kept her activity down and began daily glucosamine and fish oil. Recently, she started limping again with the cold weather. We put her on Rimadyl and…

Read More

Conservative Management, Weight Management and Laser Therapy – Hannah

Hannah was diagnosed with a partially torn rear leg CCL one year ago, in May 2012. Now, approaching Memorial Day Weekend 2013, marks the one year anniversary of her diagnosis, and I thought to share her story so others out there know that surgery — TPLO, Tightrope, etc.– is NOT your only option, contrary to…

Read More

Torn CCL and Meniscus Repair – Neo

About 1 month ago, my 8 year old Border Collie completely tore his CCL and Meniscus to his right rear leg. Neo already had 1 big strike against him. He had broken his left leg when he was a puppy and developed terrible arthritis in that leg. We had a stem cell transplant in 2010…

Read More

Knee Issues in Pure-Bred Dogs

I am sorry to learn that more dogs require knee surgery than humans in the USA today. I have been told that by a list member on here and am still shocked to think about this situation. My sincere sympathies to all, especially to the dogs, for having to go through such pain and management…

Read More

Cruciate Ligament Injury in Dogs

Help!  My dog is limping – Could it be a torn ligament? This guide is a good starting place for anyone looking for more information on dog knee problems, specifically cruciate ligament injury in dogs.  This article will give an overview of dog knee injuries covering everything from symptoms to recovery. What is a Cruciate…

Read More

What is the Actual Cost of TPLO Surgery?

How much will a TPLO surgery for my dog cost?  How much should I expect to spend on a TPLO repair? TPLO, also known as Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy, is a CCL repair technique through which the veterinary surgeon alters the head of the tibia and plates it to create a new joint angle.  Simply…

Read More