Orthopaedic injuries are frequently encountered in veterinary practice. What is important is a rapid diagnosis, and optimal treatment.

Fractures:

These are encountered in all species; dogs and cats to more exotic species, such as parrots. We have access to the equipment and knowledge required to enable repair of most fractures.

The techniques used depend on the type of fracture from casting to more complex techniques such as plates, external fixators (ESF) or pins.

What is vital is that we choose the technique most suited to your pets injury, this enabling the fracture to heal as rapidly as possible, minimising complications and maximising return to function.

Cruciate Ligament Rupture:

The cruciate ligament stabilises the stifle or knee joint, and prevents inappropriate movement of the joint while still allowing the knee to bend.

Rupture of the cruciate ligament is the most common orthopaedic injury to the canine hindlimb. Whilst some cases improve with conservative treatment consisting of rest and painkillers, most require surgery especially if your dog is over 15kgs, or there has not been a dramatic improvement with rest.

There are a number of different surgical techniques that can be used to treat this injury, and many factors impact on which option would result in the most rapid return to exercise for your pet. We will discuss these with you before choosing the technique that is best for your pet.

Patellar Luxation:

This problem is frequently encountered in toy breed dogs such as Terriers, Yorkies and Lhasa Apsos. The symptoms include occasional skipping, to more overt lameness. This is due to the knee cap, or patella, moving out of the groove on the top of the stifle joint.

If persistently lame many dogs will benefit from surgical management. The aim of the surgery is to prevent the patella or knee-cap from "slipping out" the front of the knee.

We are well experienced in this as well as the other surgeries above.

Case Example:

The Xrays show a fracture in a young collie dog which happened when it caught it’s leg down while out running. The fracture was completely through the tibia (shin) bone, and meant that it was very painful.

The fracture was stabilised with an external fixator (ESF), which held the fragments firmly in position while the fracture healed. The fracture healed in 6 weeks without any complications or loss of function.