Thread: Ruptured ACL

This is a hard one to write and I need a bit of help.
My best mate of 10.5 years has ruptured his ACL. He is a little foxy x jack russell terrier. Useless at hunting but keep me company and has guided me through some tough shitty times.

I feel like shit cause he hurt his back leg and seemed to recover so as a treat I threw the ball for him in the backyard. Since he is so ball obsessed and a little psycho this is when he ruptured his ACL. We stopped walking him for a few weeks and hopes he would recover. I went away on a fire deployment to Canada for 5 weeks thinking he would be back to his self but he's walking around on 3 legs.
So I took him to the vet yesterday to have a once over. Had some X-rays done and confirmed he ruptured his ACL. Surgery is recommended for him.

I don't know what to do, one side of me says not to do surgery. He never has done well after surgery and the recovery would be hard on him. Let him live life and make him as comfortable as you can with knowing he has the potential of 5 years left or more. Doing some reading it is common that the other knee shits its self from the compensation of the bung knee.

Then there is surgery, potentially he makes a full recovery. But it's also common for the other knee to breakdown in time.

I can afford one surgery but two is getting up there. It sounds like it would be $3000 a leg. I want to do what's best but Im lost here. It seems like to me whatever track I go down will be the wrong one. He's a healthy fit dog but getting up there in age. I just fear whatever I choose it will be the wrong decision.

I anyone has some wise words I would be more than grateful.