Old English Bulldog Pattelar Luxation

Question
Our bully has a lateral luxation. We have been crate resting him for 6 weeks, the vet said 8. The vet also said he will need surgery. Is it always necessary to have the surgery or should we try something else. The bully is almost 2years old and seems to be doing a lot better after having the 6weeks of rest.We are mainly concerned with anesthesia problems.

Answer
While I understand your reluctance for your dog to undergo a general anesthetic, a good vet will know how to monitor a bulldog and should have no problem with it.

A luxating patella is not something that goes away because the groove that the patella rides in is too shallow. The vet goes into the knee and carves out a deeper groove for the patella and then it rides the way it's supposed to after that. It doesn't take long to do the surgery and dogs do really well after ward.

I don't know if there is anything else you can do because even exercise to strengthen the leg muscles won't keep the knee in when it is riding on a shallow plate (almost).

It is much better to do this surgery while he is young rather than older and already suffering from trauma from the patella always popping out.
Talk over your concerns with the vet and ask if there is a safer way to do it.

Again, I know of no other way to fix these.