3 years ago my yellow Lab had his ACL operation. But he's never been able to run and play like he used too. He's now 5 and overweight. Doesn't eat much but can't exercise. So of course the weight isn't helping but how can we get it off him so his more mobile. Thank you
Hi there Was the operation not successful? I don’t know much about the recovery but would have thought with physio he should be ok to run. Is it worth a trip back to the vet? As with humans look at the calories in his food and either find a lower calorie option or cut it down.Make sure treats are only things like veg. Will he swim? A great non weight bearing exercise or do some scent training. Make his nose work to find his food.
Morning, exactly the same history here! Torn ACL long recovery and battling the weight. i followed Canine Atnritis Management (vet run, nonbiased website). I signed up to their free emails on weight loss. It works! I needed numbers, so I figured my lab has a BCS of 7 meaning he's 20 % overweight. So at 36 kgs he has had about 7 kgs to lose. Healthy weight loss is at 1-2% a week, meaning lose about 350 to 700g a week for 20 weeks. Weigh him weekly at the same scales. calculate the calories he needs (also on the CAM website or slim pet vet). If your food doesn't show calorie content, email the company. Weigh the food, don't feed extras or just if you need to just veg. The ball will start rolling in the right direction! Patience and consistency. Best of luck.
Hi Evee, there's a really good thread on this site, things to do on restricted exercise. It's invaluable. My Sam took about six months to get back to mobility and off lead exercise. It was a tough long six months with him having to be watched and restricted. Read as much as you can about the surgery and what to do after, get in touch with a physio/ hydro to line up the post op appointments asap. it's basically a new knee, it looks different and it will take a long time for the dog to get used to moving with the implant. keep in touch! It's the most common surgery, so plenty of information online and on this site. the very best of luck and patience. K
thank you! how about the products you use? did you use a cone or a sleeve? i was planning to buy a sleeve since I find it more comfortable for my dog, here. But I'm not sure if products like this were worth the price.
Hi Evee, my vet supplied the standard cone, plastic, stiff and banging off the crate etc. Sam was to be confined in a room 6ft by 6ft for 8 weeks. We Have no such room. He was crate trained so he spent some time in the crate and the rest supervised in our much larger kitchen. He only wore the cone when I wasn't watching him. i bought vet wrap to change the bandages myself. i got rugs everywhere to stop him slipping on the floor. i got a cheap cot mattress that fitted the crate so he'd lie more comfortably. we got some wooden planks so he didn't need to take the step out into the garden to toilet. That was a big deal as after the op hopping to toilet is miserable. i got kongs, lickimats anything to Soave out the food. Evee, I won't lie, it's hard to keep the dog from moving n doing stuff that could destabilise the implant. One day at a time. Stairgates, absolutely no stairs for months. icepacks to soothe the swelling. The leg will be shaved, the scar is quite long. Hope that helps!
