Body composition of medium to giant breed dogs with or without cranial cruciate ligament disease.

Objective: To describe the body composition of dogs with or without cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) disease.

Study Design: Cross-sectional.

Animals: Adult dogs in which CCL disease was diagnosed (n = 30) and adult dogs without clinical signs of orthopedic disease (n = 30).

Methods: Body weight, body condition score, and muscle condition score (MCS) were recorded. Body composition of the whole body and pelvic limbs were assessed by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Body condition score, whole body, and pelvic limb body composition measurements were compared by using general linear mixed-model analysis of variance. Muscle condition score between groups was assessed by using a Mann-Whitney U test, while paired data were analyzed by using a Wilcoxon signed-rank test.

Results: Body fat percentage (P < .0001) was higher in affected dogs (38.78% ± 1.40) than in control dogs (27.49% ± 1.24). Affected dogs had lower MCS (1.90 ± 0.13, P < .0001) compared with control dogs (2.77 ± 0.08). The affected pelvic limb of affected dogs contained less lean soft tissues (P < .0001) but more fat (P = .0451) compared with the contralateral pelvic limb.

Conclusion: Dogs with CCL disease were overweight compared with the control group.

Clinical Significance: Dogs that are overweight may be predisposed to developing CCL disease. Body composition changes in the pelvic limbs should be considered when managing the care of these dogs.