Update on Portia.... A month ago she injured her left hind leg by slipping on the wood floor. We couldn't afford xrays so the vet recommended keeping her quiet for a month. The vet was thinking it may be a small tendon tear that can heal on it's own. Well, since being at the vet a month ago the swelling in her left hock has gone down some but still swollen. She has been on Rimadyl for the past month also. The limping seems to be gone but could be because she's been on Rimadyl. A week ago she slipped on the wood floor again but this time she was limping on her right hind leg. Two days later her right hock began to swell!! Not as bad as her left did initially but swollen none the less.
We went in today for her re-check of her left hock and told the vet about the right. Upon examination he noticed that her hind feet were spread out when she is standing which is a sign of an issue with the superficial digital flexor. He further examined her and can feel a seperation of the tendon from where it is suppose to be. He feels it the most in the left and a slight bit in the right. Right now still a guess diagnosis. Xrays would confirm it but we can't do that right now. If/when we can do the xrays and find his diagnosis is correct then surgery is will be needed. UGH if xrays are a challenge for us to afford surgery is certainly out of our range. The vet said we can keep giving her Tramadol (no more Rimadyl like she has been on) to keep her comfortable until we know what we want to do.
Does anyone have a guess at how much surgery would be? Anyone of you had this happen with your golden? Being as both legs are affected the vet says it is a genetic issue and nothing we could have done to stop it from happening.
This stinks...she is only 9 month old

I'm sorry this is happening to you and Portia. I have no idea cost etc...just wanted to let you know we will be thinking about you!!!

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I'm very sorry about the problems she is having. The vet would be the best person to get you an estimate for the cost of xrays and surgery.

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If the vet says it's genetic, will the breeder refund the purchase price and you could use those funds to pay for the x-rays?

Our vet doesn't do the surgery and would have to refer us to a specialist so he couldn't really give is a estimate or even a guesstimate. Just said it could be thousands. As for the breeder refund of purchase price...well you can say she is from a 'backyard' breeder so I highly doubt they would be willing to refund the price of purchase.

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I would get a second opinion. Also, have you looked into care credit? Its a medical credit card, you can use it at many human doctors places but at vets offices too. Getting the second opinion will help you get more information on the problem, if surgery is necessary, and how much time you have before she gets really bad. Sometimes you can do physical therapy but it may be something that wont get better without surgery. I hope you get better answers soon! Good luck!

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Alison and 2 Furry Kids and 2 non furry kids

Lilly- Golden DOB 1/28/11
AKC name: Goldridge Lights Action Lilly RN CCA
http://k9data.com/pedigree.asp?ID=433352
Sanford- JRT DOB-9/5/06

Bridge dogs
Toby-Boxer 10 yrs. old (rescue) 9/17/2002-11/1/12
Charlie- Boxer (1st "child" together)2/19/02-3/18/12
Julie- golden retriever ( my heart dog) 5/6/96-3/3/07
Ruby- terrier/chow mix (my 1st dog) 8/1/90-1/15/05
Rusty-shih tzu (million dollar dog) 2/5/99-1/20/04

OnMyWay2MyDreams said exactly what I was going to say. Look into Care Credit. I just got one myself because Jersey just needed a minor surgery I didn't have the money for up front and Ozzie is likely to need hip surgery next year. Here's the best part about it: you know when you sign up for a new card they give you so many months interest-free? Well, with Care Credit, every time you use it you get an interest-free period just like that. For example: Jersey's bill was a bit over $600 yesterday -- I have 6 months to pay it off with 0% interest. The larger the purchase, the more time you have to pay it off. If I remember right, I'll get something like 18 months for Ozzie's surgery based on what I expect it to cost. Otherwise, I have no idea how I would afford it. Their website is great, you can get instant approval and a number to begin using it before the card even arrives in the mail if needed. And you can search on the site to see which vets in your area and which specialists (if one is needed) will accept it as payment.

Good luck with your pup! So sorry to hear she is having to go through this... and you too!

Julie, Jersey and Oz

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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of any family members or of Ambika Golden Retrievers.

You said it much better than I lol

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Alison and 2 Furry Kids and 2 non furry kids

Lilly- Golden DOB 1/28/11
AKC name: Goldridge Lights Action Lilly RN CCA
http://k9data.com/pedigree.asp?ID=433352
Sanford- JRT DOB-9/5/06

Bridge dogs
Toby-Boxer 10 yrs. old (rescue) 9/17/2002-11/1/12
Charlie- Boxer (1st "child" together)2/19/02-3/18/12
Julie- golden retriever ( my heart dog) 5/6/96-3/3/07
Ruby- terrier/chow mix (my 1st dog) 8/1/90-1/15/05
Rusty-shih tzu (million dollar dog) 2/5/99-1/20/04

I looked into Credit Care and put in a amount ($5000 I don't know if the surgery will cost that or not just a guess) the monthly re-payment amount was really high Around $110 over 4 years. Yikes! Sure interest free but wow we don't have that kind of money. We are paying off about $4000 in medical expenses from a surgery (hernia repair) I had in May. We will certainly look into a second opinion.
Portia hasn't had ANY pain meds in 48 hours and she is NOT limping. The swelling in her hock isn't any worse. We are going to continue to keep her quiet for another month. Right now outside of the swelling you wouldn't know anything was wrong.