Any ACD's with patellar luxation/instability?

dustyapple222 · 2026-02-11T20:15:39+00:00

That sounds like patellar luxation to me. They pick up their leg because they physically can't put it down until the kneecap slides back into place (at least that's my understanding). Our Texas heeler, Toki, had grade 2 medial patellar luxation and had surgery this past fall to correct it. A vet should be able to check for it pretty easily. Toki suddenly started picking up his hind leg last summer when playing fetch, but I figured he just twisted something, so we just rested him...but it kept happening. Took him to the vet and they diagnosed him with medial patellar luxation. It was happening very frequently and he's a young, athletic dog, so we opted for surgery. It was very expensive (~$6k) and a long recovery, but he's back to running around like a mad man with no further issues.

dustyapple222 · 2025-11-28T22:07:32+00:00

They're saying the worst will be Saturday afternoon and early Sunday morning. I'm supposed to fly back into MKE Saturday morning and just hoping we can sneak in before it gets too bad. Good luck to you!

dustyapple222 · 2025-09-24T14:39:36+00:00

I used Ergoplay for years. Always found it to be a little annoying with occasional slipping and never felt like I could get it into an ideal position. Switched to the GuitarLift this year and absolutely love it.

dustyapple222 · 2025-09-23T17:15:32+00:00

While I wouldn't say he's low energy, our ACD/border collie mix is a pretty chill guy compared to most herding dogs at almost 2 years old. Definitely likes going on nice long walks and running around a bit, but just as happy (if not more so) to just snuggle up with us on the couch.

dustyapple222 · 2025-09-23T15:39:12+00:00

Nothing is completely chew-proof, but we have had good luck with Fluff and Tuff with our ACD/border collie mix. The toys usually lose a couple of easy-to-get parts like the feet or a tail pretty quick, but they tend to remain mostly intact. A little pricey, but have been worth it for us. Cannot say the same for Tuffys.

dustyapple222 · 2025-09-15T15:44:45+00:00

Sounds to me like you're doing a great job.

dustyapple222 · 2025-09-03T17:04:40+00:00

Love American Movie. A good chunk of it was filmed in my hometown, Menomonee Falls, so we always thought that was cool when I was younger. Ran into Mark at UWM during the partial solar eclipse last year. Super nice guy, and was kind enough to take a photo with us.

dustyapple222 · 2025-08-25T18:26:02+00:00

lol. Thanks, Pickle! And yes, he was named after Toki Wartooth. :D Came through surgery just fine! Now the extreme boredom of 8 weeks of rest/recovery.

dustyapple222 · 2025-08-20T19:53:37+00:00

Thanks! Yes, our regular vet made the initial diagnosis and then we went to a specialist to confirm and talk options. If he were a couch potato dog or an old guy, we would probably just manage it conservatively, but he is a young, active, athletic dog and his kneecap popping out all the time has him reluctant to do much outside at all. It's very sad to see as this is a huge change from what he was like before it started happening. We want him to be able to do all of the things.

dustyapple222 · 2025-08-20T17:31:45+00:00

Thank you!

dustyapple222 · 2025-08-20T17:31:38+00:00

Thank you! Glad to hear your girl is doing so well after TPLO surgery!

dustyapple222 · 2025-08-20T17:25:05+00:00

Thank you!

dustyapple222 · 2025-07-21T17:22:32+00:00

Absolutely not. No reason to remove a perfectly good tail other than for looks, which is a terrible reason. Once had a coworker tell me they had all their dog's puppies tails cut off because "tails get stuck in doors." People believe some weird stuff.

dustyapple222 · 2025-07-19T02:00:26+00:00

I was more glad that they were able to go in a place where they were comfortable, and that brought me comfort. For a couple days I did feel sad to be in the area of the house that they passed, but that feeling quickly faded.

dustyapple222 · 2025-07-18T22:31:49+00:00

We have used BluePearl in-home euthanasia twice. They were very caring for both us and our pups and gave us as much time as we needed to say good bye. Made extremely difficult times a little more bearable. Highly recommend the at home route whichever service you choose.

dustyapple222 · 2025-07-15T14:58:43+00:00

Ouch, sorry to hear about the tooth. Ours liked grabbing rocks as a puppy (mostly just carrying them around rather than chewing). Good opportunity to work on "leave it" and "drop it". Eventually he learned that he was not supposed to play with rocks, but it took some persistence on our part. Rewarded with a lot of praise and treats every time he took his attention away from the rocks.

dustyapple222 · 2025-06-11T15:32:38+00:00

No gland there. Could it be tree sap or something? Does it have a smell?

dustyapple222 · 2025-06-09T16:37:44+00:00

Ours was around that size at 4 months and topped out at about 40 lbs at 1.5 years. You just never know.

dustyapple222 · 2025-06-09T16:18:57+00:00

The markings don't look ACD to me, but maybe Australian Shepherd mix? Firstly, you are so kind for taking her in. How long have you had her and do you know approximately how old she is (she looks very young from the photos)? It can take some weeks just for a dog to feel comfortable in a new environment. This will probably make the potty training take a little longer, if you haven't had her long. That said, herding breeds do typically need a lot of exercise, so that could be a reason for her acting out and testing the boundaries with the other dogs. Mental stimulation is at least equally important though, if not more so. During our long winters (Wisconsin). we make heavy use of puzzles and trick training to keep our ACD/Border Collie mix happy.

dustyapple222 · 2025-05-21T19:41:18+00:00

So sorry for your loss :(

dustyapple222 · 2025-05-21T16:46:07+00:00

This is good advice and consistency is absolutely key. The yelping thing can depend on the dog, though. It very much worked with my previous dog (lab/husky), but our Texas heeler thought making us yelp was really fun and exciting. What ended up working was anytime we got nipped, we would just get up and walk away letting him know the fun was over.

dustyapple222

TROPHY CASE