Luxating Patella in Dogs: Can a Brace Help?

Sometimes, but for a smaller group of dogs than most product pages admit. If your dog is a good surgical candidate and you can afford surgery, we always recommend surgery. A brace is for the dogs where surgery isn't the right answer, or where the kneecap problem is mild.

Either way, talk to a veterinary orthopedic specialist first. Don't buy a brace off a listing that promises to "fix" a kneecap. A brace doesn't reshape the groove the kneecap rides in. Surgery does that.

What a luxating patella is, in plain words

A luxating patella is a kneecap that slips out of its groove. It's common in small dogs, and it's graded from 1 to 4. At grade 1 the kneecap slips out and goes back on its own. At grade 2 it pops out during normal activity and often needs help getting back. By grade 3 and 4 it stays out, and surgery is usually the answer.

Which dogs a brace may help

Two kinds of dogs, in our experience: dogs at grade 2 or below, and dogs with other problems that make surgery a poor fit.

The second group is the one nobody writes about. We fitted a 16-year-old, seven-pound Yorkie with luxating patellas in both knees. Over time those unstable kneecaps were followed by CCL injuries (the knee ligament, like a human ACL) and arthritis. We don't know how long that progression took, and that's the point: the kneecap problem doesn't always stay a kneecap problem. By the time we saw him, there was more going on in those knees than a slipping kneecap.

We built him a custom rigid brace with a patella sling, designed to support how the kneecap tracks. That is a different job from the CCL brace, which is built around controlling the shin bone sliding forward. A kneecap brace has to guide the patella as the knee bends and straightens. A dog with kneecap, ligament and arthritis problems at once may need both jobs done by the same device.

Which dogs need a surgeon first

Send these dogs to an orthopedic surgeon before anything else:

• Grade 3 or 4. The kneecap is out most or all of the time, and a brace isn't built to bring it back.
• Otherwise healthy dogs. If surgery is an option and you can afford it, surgery is the better answer. A brace is for the dogs where it isn't.

A brace may be a reasonable choice if your dog is older, has other health problems, or the kneecap is mild. It can also be the plan if surgery isn't possible for your family. An orthopedic vet can tell you which of those describes your dog, and we'd rather you hear it from them.

Why joint choice matters on a small dog

Small dogs are delicate, and the joints in the brace matter more than anything else on the device. A lot of vendors use polymer-style hinges. Those have stiffness built into them. On a seven-pound dog, that stiffness fights every step.

So we look for the smallest joint that gives true free motion. If the joint isn't moving freely, the dog is working against his own brace. This is a big part of why a small dog can be a candidate when a size chart says no.

What to do next

Start with your vet. Ask what grade your dog's kneecap is, whether the ligament has been checked, and whether an orthopedic consult makes sense. Arthritis often rides along with kneecap problems, and what a brace can and can't do for arthritis is worth reading too.

If surgery isn't the plan, or you want a second opinion on bracing, send us what your vet found. A custom knee brace may help some of these dogs, and we'll tell you honestly if yours isn't one of them.