Cruciate Ligament Repair?

[diverfi]

Thanks for replies - am worried sick over poor Merlin. He seems ok and not too worried by it but I can see a noticeable difference in the muscle on one side. Am going to speak to the vet again and see what sort of payment plan they can offer and also pin him down on a costing; he definitely said about £350 - £400.
I used to work at a veterinary practice and watched a cruciate repair which the vet did for just under £400. Funnily enough, the owners were on very limited income and I contacted a number of animal charities who contributed the majority of the cost, but I seem to remember they would only contribute if the owners were on income support/housing benefits, which wouldn't apply to myself.
In the meantime I will try the suggestions you have kindly given and try to get him sorted asap. I must admit, I hope to God the other leg doesn't get the same problem as it would be impossible for us to deal with at present.
Will keep everyone posted, and thank you for your good wishes.
Fi.

[cpiggott22]

Originally Posted by marthaMoo

I think the thing is there are a couple of different ways to fix it, varying in cost.

lol, I didn't think of that *duh*. Zara did have to have the cruciate fully removed and the joint needed a good clean out as the damage was long term. They then took a wedge out of her bone to make the joint sit differently which was obviously a major (and expensive!) op.

To the OP- has the vet gone over what exactly would get done? Is it beyond repair with rest- I know this doesn't work for a lot of people but equally, it does work for a lot of other people! We were warned that the likelihood of the other side going was pretty high but there's been no trouble with the other knee in the 27 months we've had her so we're quietly hopeful. I think it's all down to how active they are and how heavily they exercise, short regular lead walks are obviously a lot more joint friendly than one long run.

I really hope you manage to sort something out, whatever you decide to go with, no-one likes seeing their animals unwell. Poor Merlin, give him a rub on his tum from me