One of our current shelter residents is Nicky, a young German shepherd mix that has had quite an eventful life so far. He started coming in to our shelter in 2006 when he was only a puppy. He kept running loose and being brought in as a stray. We returned him to his owner four times before the owner decided that he couldn’t take care of Nicky and decided to surrender the dog to us to find him a new home. That was in November 2007. That same month one of our volunteer visiting veterinarians examined Nicky and found problems with both his knee caps.
The malady is called LUXATING PATELLA. The patella is the knee cap which glides up and down when the knee joint is bent and protects the knee joint. It also guides the action of the quadriceps muscle in the lower leg. A normal dog knee will have two bony ridges that form a fairly deep groove in which the patella is supposed to slide up and down. If this groove is shallow,
either because of malformation or trauma, the knee cap will jump out of the groove and move sideways instead of up and down.
When the patella luxates from the groove of the femur, it usually cannot return to its normal position until the quadriceps (muscle in lower leg) relaxes and increases in length. This explains why the affected dog may be forced to hold his leg up for a few minutes or so after the initial incident. While the muscles are contracted and the patella is luxated from its correct position, the joint is held in the flexed or bent position. The dog will feel pain caused by the knee cap sliding across the bony ridges of the femur. Once out of position, the animal feels no discomfort and continues his activity.
If not corrected, the groove will become even shallower and the dog will become progressively lamer. Arthritis will prematurely affect the joint, causing a permanently swollen knee with poor mobility. Surgerymay be required and is the treatment of choice, but is not necessary in every dog with this condition.
A grade 2 luxating patella, which is what Nicky had, means there is frequent patellar luxation, which, in some cases, becomes more or less permanent. We kept him on medications for pain and inflammation.
Nicky had been available for adoption for since last November, but no adopter wanted to take on the expense of surgery. The League decided to use our Woody and Mickey Healthy Pet Fund to get the surgery that Nicky needed. We investigated several options and worked out a reasonable cost with the Washington Animal Rescue League Medical Center for the surgery.
On February 29 Nicky received his needed knee surgery. After surgery he spent a week of cage rest at Ballston Animal Hospital where he could be checked regularly by a veterinarian. Then he came back to the shelter. But he needed very special treatment for his recovery.
Nicky needs STRICT CONFINEMENT which means he must be kept in a crate for 30 days and ONLY taken out to eliminate. He is staying in a large dog crate in our Kennel Manager’s office. Assigned staff and volunteers walk him directly outside for bathroom trips and bring him immediately inside once he is done. At first they used a sling under his tummy to help keep weight off his leg.
Nicky had his sutures removed on March 14. After suture removal, we began passive physical therapy including limb flexation and extension for one minute 3-4 times a day.
After the 30 day strict confinement, Nicky will need an additional four weeks of confinement with low impact, non-acrobatic activity and slow progressive leash walks to build muscle and stamina.
Through his entire ordeal Nicky has remained happy, friendly, and eager to please. Our biggest problem at first was keeping him still when he saw anyone that he recognized. He would wag his tail and try to stand up if he saw one of his favorite volunteers. He tolerates the physical therapy without complaint.
I am happy to report that he is now available for adoption again. He is still in his crate in an office, and we will escort interested applicants to meet him there. We hope someone will respond to his sweet personality and take him home to complete his recovery. He’ll make a wonderful companion.
The malady is called LUXATING PATELLA. The patella is the knee cap which glides up and down when the knee joint is bent and protects the knee joint. It also guides the action of the quadriceps muscle in the lower leg. A normal dog knee will have two bony ridges that form a fairly deep groove in which the patella is supposed to slide up and down. If this groove is shallow,
either because of malformation or trauma, the knee cap will jump out of the groove and move sideways instead of up and down.
When the patella luxates from the groove of the femur, it usually cannot return to its normal position until the quadriceps (muscle in lower leg) relaxes and increases in length. This explains why the affected dog may be forced to hold his leg up for a few minutes or so after the initial incident. While the muscles are contracted and the patella is luxated from its correct position, the joint is held in the flexed or bent position. The dog will feel pain caused by the knee cap sliding across the bony ridges of the femur. Once out of position, the animal feels no discomfort and continues his activity.
If not corrected, the groove will become even shallower and the dog will become progressively lamer. Arthritis will prematurely affect the joint, causing a permanently swollen knee with poor mobility. Surgerymay be required and is the treatment of choice, but is not necessary in every dog with this condition.
A grade 2 luxating patella, which is what Nicky had, means there is frequent patellar luxation, which, in some cases, becomes more or less permanent. We kept him on medications for pain and inflammation.
Nicky had been available for adoption for since last November, but no adopter wanted to take on the expense of surgery. The League decided to use our Woody and Mickey Healthy Pet Fund to get the surgery that Nicky needed. We investigated several options and worked out a reasonable cost with the Washington Animal Rescue League Medical Center for the surgery.
On February 29 Nicky received his needed knee surgery. After surgery he spent a week of cage rest at Ballston Animal Hospital where he could be checked regularly by a veterinarian. Then he came back to the shelter. But he needed very special treatment for his recovery.
Nicky needs STRICT CONFINEMENT which means he must be kept in a crate for 30 days and ONLY taken out to eliminate. He is staying in a large dog crate in our Kennel Manager’s office. Assigned staff and volunteers walk him directly outside for bathroom trips and bring him immediately inside once he is done. At first they used a sling under his tummy to help keep weight off his leg.
Nicky had his sutures removed on March 14. After suture removal, we began passive physical therapy including limb flexation and extension for one minute 3-4 times a day.
After the 30 day strict confinement, Nicky will need an additional four weeks of confinement with low impact, non-acrobatic activity and slow progressive leash walks to build muscle and stamina.
Through his entire ordeal Nicky has remained happy, friendly, and eager to please. Our biggest problem at first was keeping him still when he saw anyone that he recognized. He would wag his tail and try to stand up if he saw one of his favorite volunteers. He tolerates the physical therapy without complaint.
I am happy to report that he is now available for adoption again. He is still in his crate in an office, and we will escort interested applicants to meet him there. We hope someone will respond to his sweet personality and take him home to complete his recovery. He’ll make a wonderful companion.
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