competing after ACL repair

[liamsmom]

don't know if i should post this in the Agility/Obedience or Health Issues.
Moderator: please move post if necessary, thanks!

does anyone know if a dog can compete in obedience trials after an ACL repair???? our vet says it is totally possible but i am still wondering. I trust our vet but I guess I need further reassurance from everyone here at BW
Liam has be favoring a rear leg for the last week. we've gone thru 2 acl repairs with our first dog but we weren't involved in "formal" training at the time. we are hoping Liam isn't starting to have issues with his ACL but aren't convinced that he isn't either. He's got the tell tail beginning symptoms. so we are resting him (leash walking, no running, no jumping etc) He is still weight bearing on the leg but will favor it at times (hold it up,etc)

if anyone knows of a dog that has entered the ring after an ACL repair...please share.

hubby and I attend obedience together with our two boys. it's a great time. great bonding with our dogs, etc. we absolutely love it. Of course, we wouldn't continue to attend obedience with Liam if it was going to be detrimental to him. hubby will be so destroyed if we can't all attend obedience together as a family. I'm sure we could still attend obedience and just have Liam excluded from jumps. competition is our ultimate goal but more for fun than anything else.

 

[Jan]

As long as he is fully recovered, I don't see why not. It would be important that he doesn't limp though, as he would be excused from the ring if he did. I would also want to keep the jumping to a minimum and the jump heights to be low.

Good luck!

 

[SILLY6PAK]

Mine had TPLO surgery on both knees and has just started back to agility. I wasn't going to but Holly does seem 100%. She needed the extra exercise. mentally and physically. The doctor said it is 100 percent fixed.

 

[liamsmom]

Tlpo ?

what is TLPO?
i'm not sure the type of procedure that was done on our first boxer's knees. i think they resected a tendon or muscle or something. shame on me for not knowing the exact procedure they did. at the time, we just wanted it fixed and didn't care what they had to do or how much it cost.
i'm more educated now and i ask tons of questions. are there different ways to repair this kind of injury?

 

[dizzydogmom]

I don't have any personal experience with torn ACLs (knock on wood), but there's a book by Willard Bailey called "Remembering to Breathe." His golden torn her ACL and it was surgically repaired, and they continued to complete. He does go into the different surgeries and recovery and whatnot-the book's not entirely about the injury, but it's a pretty good read anyway.