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My 10 year old westie just had surgery to repair a torn ACL on Wednesday evening. Can you explain in detail what to expect during recovery. I noticed he cries a little in pain if he moves the wrong way. Is this normal? He is currently on Tramadol and an antibiotic.
Optional Information: Type of Animal: dog Gender: Male Age: 10 Already Tried: ice packs
Good Morning and welcome to Just answer. I am Dr. Loretta, a licensed veterinarian and I am happy to answer your question.
Do you know which procedure was done on your guy?It makes a difference in what to expect in recovery....
Hi, not sure the exact name. It was not TPLO but something where they inserted a suture
Ok,...that is the Extracapsular procedure and is less intensive as far as recovery is concerned because it is less invasive. the suture replaces the torn ACL and this will heal well within 2 weeks.Continue with the medications to reduce pain and restrict his movements for 10-14 days to allow the area to heal and adapt to this new ACL. If there is swelling, apply cold compresses every 4 hrs. Call your vet and ask for an antininflammatory medication along with the Tramadol. This will decrease this swelling since the Tramadol is merely a pain reliever. I believe that this willheal better with this medication such as Rimadyl on board. Movement restriction is the most important at this time since, as you have seen, there is still pain when moving the wrong way. This will pass as the area heals within 2 weeks. Does that make sense to you?
Ok...so the pain he displays is normal at this point. It has improved by 50% since we brought him home but it concerned me when he will cry out in pain...mostly when he tries to lay on the leg. I have been applying ice. Should I be switching to heat instead of ice anytime soon or just continue with ice?
Heat is used to draw infection out anf the antibiotics will take care of that.Continue with the cold compresses if there is swelling...if not , let him be.The rest and medication will help him past this. There will be periods of pain when he moves a certain way and this is normal due to the trauma of the procedure but this will pass in only 1- weeks....You are doing everything possible to help your guy and doping a great job! Keep up the good work!!
Thank u so much for your reply. I love this guy to death and want to make sure i am doing the best for him.
Experience: 25 years of experience in surgery and internal medicine