Anyone with advice on treating a luxating patella (knee/joint)for my 1yr old chihuaha pup? Surgery:last resort

Surgery is expensive and I am seeking an alternative treatment such as vitamin supplements. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

My dog had the same thing a few years ago, except she is a large dog. I have no idea to this day how it happened, it just did. I took her back to the vet every week for 4 weeks and tried antibiotic therapy and steriod treatment and gentle physio at home, but in the end I had her operated on to tighten the muscles in and around her patella. It was costly (AU $1200), but she was only 10 months old at the time and stil a pup, if she was an older dog, I think I could have managed her at home doing physio on her. She is 4 years old now and stil has an occaisional limp when she over does things. I found that swimming is the best excerise for her. I was a uni student at the time of this operation and really couldn't afford it, so I ended up talking with the vet and we came to an arrangement to pay the bills off. Good Luck...

Unfortunately for your pocket book surgery is the only way to correct a luxating patella.

A dislocated, what luxated means, kneecap, same thing as patella, is not something that seems surgical to me. Though I don't know animal anatomy, only human. I say call around to a few Chiropractors and see if any of them work on animals, there are a few out there that do. He/she may be able to reset the bone back into place and then you can immobilize the joint until it heals. BTW if the dog in question is young, you may not have a correct diagnosis. The patella forms in the quadriceps tendon after a few years in humans. A small dog may form sooner but it could be something else.