Hello all,
We have a chocolate lab that has a possible torn acl.
Vet said could do surgery but can't guarantee it would fix or it could tear again and it is quite expensive. We currently give her Metacam for pain on really bad days and do our best to keep her still. I was wondering if anyone has knowledge on joint supplements for dogs that seem to really make a difference. there are so many out there, one we bought she didn't like at all!
any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! thanks

We get ours for our yellow lab from the vet, it is called dasoquin, or something similar. It makes a huge difference.

I have a dog with degenterive bone disease. I crush the joint supplement into his dog food, so he doesn't fuss about whether he likes it or not. Actually, I have tried giving him several different kinds, and he hates them all. This way he doesn't have a choice and he doesn't even know he ate it. LOL!

Totally agree. My yorkie loves them, very picky eater, and we can definitely tell when we miss a day.

My dog has hip dysplasia and I give him Dasuquin. I think it has made a big difference, but I don't think it is the answer for a torn ACL. Metacam is mostly pain relief and anti-inflammatory. Dasuquin is, basically, glucosamine for cartilage. You should ask your vet for advice.

We give the same thing to our 15-year-old beagle Sadie, and it absolutely makes a difference. It's pricey, but worth it.

The ACL is not a "joint" - it's a ligament. While there is no harm - and indeed a lot of good - in giving joint supplements, it will not fix or even help the ACL.

ACL's will not fix themselves, and yes the surgery can be expensive and a proper recovery requires weeks of VERY limited movement (crate rest with only brief respites for SLOW controlled walks for WEEKS).

Strongly suggest that you find an orthopedic surgeon who has successfully performed this surgery. A veterinary college is a good source to find one in your area. I would not just leave it though. Have a good surgeon look at it and give you his best opinion as to if he suspects ACL or not.

And as heartless as it sounds, I don't recommend pain meds either. Pain is the body's way of telling itself "don't DO that!" and dogs are fantastic at reading their bodies. If you give him pain meds he might continue to do the things he's not supposed to. I typically don't medicate my dogs for pain unless I've already taken steps to fix whatever the problem was that caused the pain (ie broken bone is now splinted).

I know lots of dogs that have undergone ACL tears - it's really quite common especially amongst canine athletes (agility in particular). Have had one of my dogs done in fact (successfully). Most that I know of are successful - the KEY is the restricted mobility during the recovery period - DON'T LET THE DOG RUN, JUMP OR CLIMB! Short, slow walks just a few times per day and CRATE REST the rest of time. I would let mine out of his crate to join me on the floor for a cuddle and ear rubs, but he was on a lead so he could not go further than two feet.

Good luck.

I give my 12 year old lab Molly glucosamine orange cream chews from Walmart once a day. She also gets 50 mg. rimadyl twice a day (rx from vet). She gets along pretty well. Can still jump up and down from our bed. We had to have knee surgery on her about 7-8 years ago when she blew her knee.

My brother-in-law has a rotwhiler who is a service dog, mostly retired that takes the pet equviulant to glucosimine. She is arthretic in her hip joints. He buys them at Walmart and gives them to her, I think she takes a couple a day because of her size. Follow directions. They seem to help her quite a bit. When they were staying with us I noticed when she took them she got around much better than when she didn't.

Your babys look like sweet darlings. I sometimes wish they could tell us when it hurts and if the meds we give them are working. Hope this helps.

Our best friend had her Lab's ACL repaired via surgery. He's doing fine now and is still doing the leash walking. She is afraid to turn him loose cause he's a wild man and would run and jump and act crazy. He's a beautiful dog and now will not have pain. Surgery was expensive but worthwhile cause now the dog walks without pain.