• Traditional Repair / Extracapsular Fixation
• TPLO
• TTA
• TightRope

Each of the above types of surgeries is great in its own application, however the size and weight of your dog may disqualify it from receiving one or more of the particular types of surgeries. For instance, a large dog, such as a Rottweiler probably will not be eligible to receive a Traditional knee surgery strictly due to its size and weight. Most vets will probably recommend TPLO or TTA surgery for a dog this size, and unfortunately, TPLO and TTA are two of the more costly surgery types due to the fact that they are more invasive and involve cutting of the bone in the knee joint to create a new angle of the knee joint in order to reduce the amount of stress on both the joint itself and the surrounding ligaments.

Cost Reducing Options

At the end of the day, if your dog needs surgery, there really isn’t a way around it, though I have heard of some dog owners who have just not had the ways or means to cover the cost of dog knee surgery so they simply chose to use conservative management as their way of “treating” the injury. The reason that I put “treating” in quotes is because choosing not to repair a torn knee ligament will leave the knee unstable and it will really reduce the dogs quality of life in most cases – especially if the dog is overweight. Should you elect to avoid the cost of surgery by going the conservative management route, here are some things that may help you:

• Limit the dogs activity
  This may seem like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised at how many dog owners will just forget about the injury all together after time. The dog may seem to be better, but chances are the injury is still there and the dog has just found a way to cope with it. Make sure you restrict or limit the dogs activity after it suffers a torn cranial cruciate ligament.
• Manage the dogs diet
  If the dog was overweight when the injury occurred, chances are the weight was a contributing factor in the torn/ruptured knee ligament in the first place. Putting the dog on a weight management diet can drastically improve the dogs quality of life (though many dogs will seem miserable when their food intake is limited) weight loss can definitely help improve mobility and recovery because the knee joint will have less force on it.
• Anti-Inflammatory medications
  Though this may be an option, it’s not recommended in cases where the dog owner has elected not to get a knee surgery for the dog. Giving anti-inflammatory medication to a dog with an untreated torn knee ligament may give the dog the false sense that the knee is actually better and more stable than it actually is, causing the potential for more injury.

Though most wouldn’t consider not treating a torn knee ligament as a treatment option, it is in fact the only option for some people out there, strictly due to the cost. If you ever find yourself in this circumstance, you could always try to negotiate with your veterinarian – they may be able to work with you on the price.

Related posts:

1. Cost of TTA Surgery for Cranial Cruciate Ligament – Cost of Knee Surgery for Dogs
2. Cost of TPLO Surgery – Cost to Repair Torn Cruciate Ligament in Dogs
3. Dog Knee Surgery Costs – Cost of Repairing a Torn Dog Knee Ligament

The cost for the surgical procedure to repair the CCL will depend on a number of factors, including, but probably not limited to:

• The type of surgery – there are 4 different types of CCL surgery.
• The size of the dog – Depending on the size of the dog, some procedures may not be an option.
• The location that you live in – For example, surgery in Idaho will probably be less than it would be in Southern California.
• The severity of the injury – Depending on how much damage was actually done to the stifle joint.
• The hidden cost – The follow-up visits. We usually don’t take these into consideration when evaluating the initial cost of surgery, but the follow-up visits definitely add up, and is something you should be clear on before committing to the surgery, especially if you have a limited budget.

All in all, when all is said and done, the average surgery cost will probably end up being somewhere around $2,500. I’ve gathered this figure through my personal experience, through talking with people (in person and via email) and through reading stories from other people online.

Related posts:

1. Dog Knee Surgery Costs – Cost of Repairing a Torn Dog Knee Ligament
2. Cost of TPLO Surgery – Cost to Repair Torn Cruciate Ligament in Dogs
3. Cost of TTA Surgery for Cranial Cruciate Ligament – Cost of Knee Surgery for Dogs

When it comes to the cost of surgery, that is really going to depend on 5 major factors:

1. First and foremost, the type of surgery that you choose will be the biggest factor in determining cost. Here are some common types: TPLO, TTA, and Lateral Fabellar Technique
2. The veterinarian performing the surgery can substantially increase/decrease the cost. Believe it or not, just like human doctors, veterinarians also “specialize”, so if you go to a vet who only does dog knee surgery and knee repairs for dogs, chances are the price will be higher than if you go to your typical veterinarian.
3. Unfortunate, but true, I’ve come to learn that your location will greatly affect cost. I live in southern California, and we paid almost twice as someone in Texas who contacted us about having the same surgery performed on their dog.
4. The type of dog that you have. This effects the cost primarily due to the type of surgeries that are available, as larger breeds typically have less options available, through some veterinarians will perform any of the 3 techniques mentioned above regardless of the breed of the dog.
5. The final cost, that can be partially controlled by the owner is the follow-up visits, medication expenses, food expenses, care, rehab, etc.

So I’ve given you the factors, What is the Cost??? The thing is, there really isn’t a set cost for the dog knee surgery, or knee repair. To give you a range, I’d say that you could expect anywhere from $1,000 all the way up to $5,000. $1,000 would probably be the very low end of the spectrum and $5,000 would be the very high end. I’d like to say that the average dog knee (CCL) surgery would cost you around $1,500, but depending on the factors above, it really can fall anywhere in that range. Ours was about $2,500, then after all the follow-up office visits and medications were factored in, our final cost was probably closer to $3,500.

If you and your dog are unlucky and this happens to you, I’d recommend shopping around before heading in for surgery. Obviously, the first choice would be your primary care veterinarian, but don’t be afraid to ask them if they have any recommendations (even if they are capable of performing the surgery).

As always, I hope this information is helpful, and I always love to hear comments, so don’t be afraid to drop a line below.

Image by jstar.

Related posts:

1. Cost of Repairing a Torn ACL/CCL Injury in a Dogs Knee
2. Cost of TPLO Surgery – Cost to Repair Torn Cruciate Ligament in Dogs
3. Hidden Costs and Unexpected Costs of Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair in Dogs

The TPLO surgery procedure is a fairly invasive surgery that actually involves cutting the bone to change the angle at which the knee joint rests. Learn more about cranial cruciate ligament repair through TPLO.

Image by Jim Frazee.

Related posts:

1. TPLO vs. TTA vs. Lateral Fabellar Traditional Technique – Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair
2. Cost of TTA Surgery for Cranial Cruciate Ligament – Cost of Knee Surgery for Dogs
3. TPLO – Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy – Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair

Cost of X-Rays
Prior to determining the type of surgery that should be performed, an x-ray is needed to determine the angle of the stifle joint. Since the angle of the stifle (knee) joint plays a role in the type of surgery available, it is an importatant step in CCL repair. My wife and I spent the number on the high range because we rushed our dog to the doggie emergency room on a Sunday evening, I’m assuming an x-ray can be done for much less.
Unexpected Cost of CCL Repair #1 – X-Rays – $100-$500

Cost of Medications
After surgery, you’ll be giving your dog heavy doses of pain killers, and depending on the activity level of your dog, you may be giving it some sort of sedatives as well. We didn’t use the entire prescription of pain killers, but we did have to renew the prescription for sedatives because our dog didn’t seem to think anything was wrong with her.
Unexpected Cost of CCL Repair #2 – Medication – $150-$350

Cost of Follow-Up Visits
I should have expected this one, but for some reason, I overlooked it. The day we left the veterinary clinic, we rescheduled for the following week. We had about 5 follow up visits in the next 2 months, and not only were we paying for each visit, but we were also being upsold on joint health medications, arthritis medications, weight management diets, joint health diets, and just about everything else that you can think of. We just spent $2,700 on surgery, now we’re being nickle and dimed for all sorts of other stuff? Really not necessary, but don’t be surprised if it happens to you too!
Unexpected Cost of CCL Repair #3 – Follow-Up Visits – $200-$500

From start to finish, you can expect to be 2-3 thousand dollars in when all is said and done, but you can keep this amount much smaller if you do your research and go through the entire rehab process on your own.

Related posts:

1. Cost of TPLO Surgery – Cost to Repair Torn Cruciate Ligament in Dogs
2. TPLO vs. TTA vs. Lateral Fabellar Traditional Technique – Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair
3. TPLO – Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy – Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair

The cost to repair the CCL in a dog (equivalent of an ACL in humans), will fluctuate based on the state that you live in, the experience of the surgeon, the weight of the dog, the invasiveness & complication level of the surgery, etc.

Through my experience, and from talking to a few of my friends whose dogs had cranial cruciate ligament repair surgeries, I believe that you should expect to spend somewhere in the range of $1,500. You may end up paying a little more or less depending on the above criteria, but go in expecting somewhere around $1,500.

Don’t forget about the “hidden” costs of a cranial cruciate ligament repair surgery.

Related posts:

1. Cost of TPLO Surgery – Cost to Repair Torn Cruciate Ligament in Dogs
2. Tightrope Surgery in the Treatment of a Dogs Torn Cranial Cruciate Ligament
3. Hidden Costs and Unexpected Costs of Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair in Dogs