What to do with dog?

[RVPisnomore]

Hi, we have a 2 year old dog who has so far had a major operation on is stomach, 3 on his legs and the vet is monitoring his cruciate ligaments due to tears on both legs.

A few days ago he was running and pulled up sharply and is now lame. Took him to the vet and they said it's the same leg which has been operated on before and therefore they cannot operate again. He's a big boy at 40kgs and due to joint issues is not able to have lots of exercise.

The vet has given us anti inflammatory tablets and said we'll monitor for 2 weeks and then review and decide what to do. She said we need to have a think about what's best for him.

I adore my dog and cannot hear the thought of anything happening to him but the thought of him continuously being lame and not being able to exercise makes me think that this isn't any sort of life for him, he's miserable just now.

I don't know what I'm hoping for here but as both DH and I are in tears at the thought of him not being here I think I want help to deal with the guilt that I feel just now.

[poachedeggs]

Ok, this sounds like an awful situation. But there's not enough information in your post to be able to offer anything constructive. Are you able to give more information about what procedures he's already had? Have you had the option of referral? And when you say 'he's a big boy' do you mean that he's overweight?

Lots to consider here.

[RVPisnomore]

He's had operations for elbow dysplasia on both legs so the vet says they can't do another one. He's been referred to one of the best teaching vet schools in the country who agree with our local vet.

He's not overweight he's just big, he only gets 2/3rds of what he should get per day to try and compensate for his size.

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

RVP can you ask your vet "If this was YOUR dog , what would you do?"

And be prepared for an answer that you might not want to consider.

[poachedeggs]

Poor him and poor you :(

I think you need to break it down into stages.

What's the significance of the latest injury?
Will it recover with rest?
If not, and if surgery is not an option, can you control the pain?
Have avenues such as hydrotherapy, physiotherapy and acupuncture been considered?
What is his quality of life?

It doesn't sound like you need to rush into this. Take lots of time and talk to your vet in detail. Ask questions and ask more questions.

Good luck. Cases like this are really horrible :(