Does your small breed dog have limping issues on and off? Does it run three legged one minute and seem fine the next? Then your dog might suffer from a medial luxating patella (loose kneecap) that can be fixed surgically depending upon the severity. A medial luxating patella is also referred to as a "trick knee" which means the knee cap (patella) slips out of the smooth groove that allows it to slide up and down.
There are four grades of medial luxating patella, grade one being the mildest and four the worst. Usually dogs with grade 2 or worse benefit from surgery. Depending on the severity, some dogs are able to pop it back into place on their own after a minute or two. It is possible for a dog to have just one knee with this issue or both, and surgery can be done on both knees at the same time if needed.
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