My veterinarian just told me that my dog has a torn anterior cruciate ligament, what does that mean?
The cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) is one of two ligaments that cross inside the knee joint. The cruciate ligaments function to prevent the femur and tibia from sliding back and forth on each other. Your pet has torn one of these ligaments and this causes the joint to be unstable and painful. Tearing (partial or complete) of the CCL is one of the most common causes of lameness in the dog. Why did my dog’s anterior cruciate ligament tear? The top of the tibia is the tibial plateau. During weight bearing, the tendency of the femur is to slide down the tibial plateau. The CCL stops this downward slide, and therefore, is under constant tension during weight bearing. This bio mechanical stress on the ligament leads it to fray and eventually tear or rupture. Less commonly the ligament may be torn due to an injury to the leg. My dog was fine and then suddenly couldn’t walk on one of the back legs. Is this common with tears of the anterior cruciate ligament? Affected dogs typically become sud
