Understanding the ACL in Dogs: Structure, Function & Injury

The ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) in dogs is normally referred to as the Cranial Cruciate Ligament, so you should not get bewildered if your veterinarian uses this vocabulary. They are one and the same, just one is used for individuals and the alternative for domestic pets. Companion owners most often use the word ACL as opposed to CCL.

Construction of the ACL Ligament

There are a wide range of variations of ligaments in the body, but the ACL in dogs is known more distinctively as an Articular Ligament. All this signifies is that it connects bone to other bones, subsequently forming a joint. It is made up of a very tough group of fibrous connective tissue. There are 100's if not 1000’s of these groups that make up the total ACL in dogs. This is normally why dogs will only partly rip the ligament as opposed to fully tearing it. Another intriguing point about ligaments is that they are flexible, while a ligament, which attaches muscle to bone, is inelastic or not stretchy. As a result the ACL ligament in dogs has the capability to expand or lengthen to some degree.

Within the dog's knee, there are two Cruciate Ligaments. The Anterior (Cranial) Cruciate Ligament plus the Posterior (Caudal) Cruciate Ligament. 99% of times dogs injure only the ACL.

Functionality of the ACL in Dogs

As stated earlier, this ligament connects bone to bone. In this case, it's joining the dog's femur to the tibia to make up the dog's knee joint or stifle, as referred to in veterinary medical science. Its most important features are to stop the frontward movement from the tibia, protect against any inner rotation of the tibia and lastly to protect against any excessive hyperextension of the knee joint.

Should you take a look at a canine from the side, you will see that distinctive from people, your dog's knees are constantly bent to some degree while standing. This is an extremely important issue to understand. Simply because of this ordinary bending from the knee, or flexion, that the ACL in dogs always has some level of tension on it. We also refer to this as the ligament being "loaded", meaning it is actually carrying some weight.

Injuries To the ACL in Dogs

Of the many orthopedic issues in dogs, from hip dysplasia to broken bones, injuries to the ACL in dogs is hands down the most common orthopedic issue observed in veterinary clinics. Why, you ask? Well that is a fantastic question, yet unfortunately there's no one simple answer since there are so many elements involved.

Among the most key elements to think about are highlighted below. Roughly 50% of the dog population in the North America alone are believed to be obese. This excessive fat puts elevated stress on the ACL, considering as we mentioned previously that the ligament is always "loaded". In addition to weight, we have to consider the lifestyle of the many domestic dogs in the present day. As most households have a two-family income, almost all dogs are left at home throughout the day and therefore are not exercising. Generally speaking, most canines are natural athletes and we all recognize that if you don't use it, you lose it. Muscles, ligaments and ligaments have to be trained to stay in their best health in order to prevent injury. Therefore, when our dogs are out running they may be potentially prone to more incidents due to their absence of conditioning.

Finally, it is important to see the difference between incomplete and entire ACL tears in dogs. Often times canines only will somewhat hurt the ligament. Though this incomplete tear still creates an inflammatory procedure in the knee, pain and resulting limping often times with rest and some anti-inflammatory medications canines can recover and go back to normal function. Having said that, the majority of partial tears will ultimately change into full tears and so many veterinarians think dogs even with partial tears are surgical prospects. It is best to go over this with your veterinarian and have them carry out a comprehensive physical and orthopedic evaluation.

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