Hello all, it has been a while since I have been on the board. Never was a big poster but I did get lots of information. Now I have a problem. Taz, my 4 yr old Bichon, had to have surgery on his left knee. The knee kept popping out and was staying out most of the time. This started nearly 2 years ago but the vet said it was fine at the time but would need surgery later. Well, later finally arrived.
So, on June 18 he had his first surgery. The vet deepened the groove and relocated the tibial attachment. Taz was doing well and seemed to be improving slowly then about 2 weeks out something was different. We immediately went back to the vet and he determined that the lower half of the leg was rotating, allowing the knee to still pop out. A second surgery was done. This one, the vet put a suture from somewhere behind the femur and it came around and hooked on to the tibia. This was supposed to prevent the tibia from rotating. It has been about 4 weeks from that surgery.
The other day, Taz was laying on the floor on his back. I was laying there trying to file down his front nails and he finally streched out. I saw immediately that his knee popped out again.
To say I was mad is an understatment. I don't know what the deal is. Is the vet doing something wrong? Am I not keeping him immobile enough? He is kenneled, carried to potty and then kenneled again. I don't know what else to do.
Now the vet says that the Lateral Patella Ligament is loose. He wants to do another surgery to tighten that up. Not sure exactly how he proposes to do that. Stitch it to itself it seems. Do I do this? At this point I don't want the other 2 surgeries to be for nothing but I don't want Taz to have to go through another procedure, 2 more weeks of stitches and cones and several more weeks of immobility.
I feel so horrible right now. I wish I had not done the surgery to begin with. Any advice would be appreciated.