Dora Dog's Hip Woes

Our 6.5-year-old boxer, Dora, had ACL surgery two years ago on her back right leg. The vets all say that if the dog is predisposed to this condition, the other leg will go within a year.  We thought we dodged a bullet when the two-year-mark hit and her leg seemed fine.

Then, a few days ago, she started favoring the back left leg.  No weight on it at all. Here we go.

Today's vet visit, however,  involved x-rays and news that we were not expecting.

As it turns out, her knee is okay (not great).  The major worry is her left hip, which apparently is extremely arthritic and has very little remaining cartilage.  That explains the pain and favoring of the entire left hind leg.

the extreme white section shows the metal used in her ACL surgery

here, they got a shot of the knee to try to determine if it was the ACL.  It was not.

finally, she is on her back in this pic.  when you compare her right and left hips, you can clearly see how the left one is completely out of alignment.

So, our next step is to set up a consultation and probable surgery with the same orthopaedic vet that did her knee. This will hurt our pocketbooks but heal Dora and extend her life into many more happy Boxer years.