Even though the area was infected, we knew the bone would heal in the face of infection if it became stable. So, we immediately put a bone plate on the injury, thereby creating the stable environment in which the healing process could begin. After approximately 8 months of closely monitoring the leg and twice daily bandage changes, this brave, loveable canine had recovered enough to become adoptable. Interestingly, during his recovery, he had adopted ‘us’ – so the adoption process was seamless.

It was very rewarding to watch him learn how to become a dog instead of a racing machine. His previous life was only running around in circles chasing a rabbit that wasn’t real. He knew nothing else. Whenever he went to visit ‘Aunt Nancy’, who rescued Italian Greyhounds, he would return having learned a new dog trick. These ‘dog tricks’ were new for him but are normal in our canine friends. One weekend he learned how to play bow (bending down on his front legs to entice another to play). Another time he learned how to bark! Really.

During the first year after we adopted him he stayed at the clinic because we lived in a small condo without a yard. When we bought a house (with a yard big enough for him to run) he chose to stay at home for the first two weeks and one day he demanded to come to work at our office. At first he was very shy and would only go up other greyhounds and once in awhile their owners. Gradually he became more out going and would allow certain people to pet him. Now he looks forward to going to the clinic to work every day and goes up to almost all clients and demands to be petted.

As office manager he wears the hat of ‘official greeter’ and also took on the job of giving comfort to patients as they recovered from anesthesia.

Now, we invite you to visit our clinic and when you do you will get to meet our office manager, Dabney the Greyhound.

Sometimes a dog can injure the leg when playing because a luxating patella makes it susceptible to injuries. Your dog may seem to run normally except that once in awhile he or she may pick up a leg and carry it for a bit. When they do this, there may or may not be pain.

Veterinarians use a grading system to describe the severity of the problem and to help decide whether or not to operate, when to operate and what technique to use. Any grading system is arbitrary in that there are an infinite number of positions between normal and the worst case.

Grade 1 is the mildest form and does not need to be repaired. Usually these puppies have no problem. However, a 12 week old puppy with a Grade I may have a Grade 2 at 16 weeks and continue getting worse. As a veterinary surgeon, I recommend fixing any MPL that is worsening.

In Grade 2 and Grade 3 cases, the patella actively moves in and out of location depending on the position of the leg. When the patella moves around like this it wears away the cartilage ending up with bone rubbing on bone which is very painful. A Grade 2 may go for years without a clinical problem, may develop signs of lameness or may progress to a Grade 3.

In Grades 2 and 3, owners often do not notice a problem until the veterinarian mentions it to them. Then they may remember their dog has been limping occasionally. A few dogs apparently learn how to flex and extend the upper leg joint to put the patella back in place and some dogs go on for years without an apparent problem then are acutely lame from a secondary soft tissue injury.

In a Grade 4, the patella is luxated always and cannot be put back in the normal position. These dogs walk in a crouched position with their legs flexed.

Grades 2, 3 and 4 need to be surgically repaired, with the higher grades as soon as possible. At the first sign of a clinical problem or if an owner wants to prevent future difficulties, surgery should be done. Larger breed dogs should be repaired as soon as diagnosed.

Medially luxating patellas are most common in smaller breed dogs, however, toy breeds under 5 pounds may never develop a problem. Heavier canines are more apt to show clinical signs and over the last few years I have seen an increasing number of larger breed dogs with luxating patellas.

Rarely, cats also have luxating patellas that should be repaired using the same guidelines as for dogs.