Quote: kadi_thingvall

 Quote: mike jones

Thanks for your help, unfortunately my best friend has substantial ligament damage. The only possible solution would be to place a plate in his leg and partially fuse the bone in his leg. I was also told even with the surgery he could never return to working dog status.

I am curious as to why they are saying your dog wouldn't be able to return to working dog status? Many years ago my sister's Rott jumped off a second floor balcony, don't know why, and did a lot of damage to both of his front "wrists". They had to fuse some of the bones, but after everything healed up he went back to basically life as usual as a running partner and Schutzhund dog.

I doubt it would be a good idea to do a lot of FR/Sch style jumping, the landings might be a lot to take over time, but I would think it would be worth at least trying to put the dog back into service and see how it goes, before they just write him off.

The surgery consists of fusing the bone at the wrist and adding a plate to provide support for the ligaments that have been destroyed underneath the paw. There is also two additional fractures in the same wrist that the Dr. said would be very hard to repair because of the position they are in. The Dr. also stated it is unlikely for him to return to working status due to the severity of the injury and the amount of pressure with constant jumping and getting in and out of the car for a 95lbs GSD with high drive. Even with the surgery, it would only be a matter of time when it could be re injured due to his young age. This was confirmed with a second opinion. He is a dual purpose dog and he needs to operate at 100%, my life may depend on it one day. Believe me, if I could keep him working I would. He is a member of the family and it breaks my heart for this to happen at all, and due to his young age makes it even harder.

On top of all this the two surgeries will cost between $6,000-7,000. My employer will not cover these costs with an unsure status on his ability to perform.

Fractures within the joint surely complicate the prognosis and arthritis would be a given down the line.
What dreadful bad luck.