Lateral Suture Technique for Small Breeds – Mack

My little Coton De Tulear, Mack, tore his ACL/CCL on the night of Feb 4th, 2013. He’s an extremely athletic and fast little guy – loves to jump and move at the speed of light outside. He thinks he’s the head of National Security of the Street, and I believe his ACL finally gave out…

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Traditional Repair in Labradors – Abby

Abby is a gorgeous, long legged black lab. She must be am mix of some kind, because she is tall and thin. She used to run like a gazelle and was full of energy. We have 3 boys and one day (after she was chasing them around the yard on their ride on jeep) she…

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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…

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Tightrope Surgery vs. Extracapsular or Traditional Repair

How is Tightrope CCL Different from Extracapsular Imbrication or Traditional Repair? The major difference between extracapsular imbrication/traditional repair methods and tightrope ccl is the way in which the knee joint is stabilized.  In a traditional CCL repair, a leader line (suture, or you can also think of this as a fishing line) is woven across…

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Tightrope CCL Procedure

The Tightrope CCL repair surgery is the newest surgical option available for dogs with cranial cruciate ligament injury.  Unlike in humans, canine CCL tears and damage generally takes place over a period of months or years, rather than being associated with a single traumatic event.  Because of the nature of these injuries, and their degenerative…

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CCL Injury in Both Back Legs

It is not unusual for dogs who have a cranial cruciate ligament rupture in one leg to develop one in the other leg. It is a little unusual to have two severe ruptures at the same time, but it does occur, especially in large breed dogs or overweight canines. Generally the signs of this type…

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Extracapsular CCL Repair Complications

For both humans and animals alike, any surgical procedure carries a risk of complications. You dog should have a full evaluation done, complete with blood work and other baseline testing, prior to surgery to help minimize any risks. Pre-surgical testing can often diminish the risk of death from anesthesia and other preventable complications related to…

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Extracapsular Imbrication Surgery, Traditional Repair Procedure

**UPDATE 2/2011 – The information below regarding UPenn Veterinary’s stance on TPLO surgeries is no longer correct. UPenn is, in fact, performing TPLOs on dogs. I will keep up the link to the article below discussing their previous stance toward TPLO so that people may have access to all of the information. Everything else in…

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Surgical Repair Options for Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair

For dogs diagnosed with cranial cruciate ligament tears or ruptures there are a number of non-surgical and surgical options available. Each dog is different, and your veterinarian will take into consideration your canine’s weight, size, overall health, severity of injury and the duration since onset when determining what treatment is best for your pet. Non-surgical…

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