We had forgotten about the joys of owning a dog…the worries when anything goes wrong. Our little Chloe had let out a yelp last night when she was playing..and this morning was just not herself. No desire to take her morning walk – and then we noticed that she was keeping weight off her right rear leg. So, it was off to the vet to see what was wrong. She was still acting her normal crazy self in the waiting room- meeting every stranger as if they were long lost friends. I was beginning to feel a little guilty taking up the vet’s time for what was obviously not a real problem. When I finally got in to see the vet and described the symptoms, it was an immediate diagnosis – medial patellar luxation… (in lay terms- a trick knee.). When the patella (kneecap) pops out of its groove, the cartilage surfaces rub against each other. In some cases, the kneecap will pop back into place by itself—in the later stages, it has to be manually put back in place. After a X-Ray to confirm the diagnosis, the vet explained that small breeds often have this problem. Fortunately, Chloe’s is popping back on it’s own and we went home with some pain meds and a daily pill to help her joints.
