Cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture is one of the most common orthopedic injuries in dogs, causing significant pain and requiring expensive surgery for full welfare restoration.
CCL rupture causes acute then chronic pain that significantly impairs quality of life. The initial injury causes immediate lameness and pain; without treatment, the joint becomes progressively more unstable and arthritic. Dogs with untreated CCL rupture experience chronic pain every time they bear weight on the affected leg, restricting activity and reducing quality of life. The welfare challenge is compounded by cost: surgical repair that offers the best long-term welfare outcome is expensive, and conservative management (rest, anti-inflammatories, physiotherapy) has lower success rates in medium to large dogs. Physiotherapy following surgery dramatically improves recovery quality. The hereditary component of canine CCL disease suggests that breeding selection away from predisposing conformations could reduce population-level welfare burden.