Next steps for dog’s bad knee

My sweet girl Lilly had a partially torn ACL had surgery to fix it after I noticed it wasn’t getting better. Two weeks after the surgery during recovery she twisted and flat out broke her leg. No ones fault kinda thing. But she had to have more surgery. She had wires placed in and then removed she had intense sores from the bandages that got infected. The wires were even poking out of her leg for a bit while we waited for her knee to stabilize. She now has very bad scaring all over her leg. And she’s still in pain. She still limps and hops all over the place and I thought she was just recovering from the last bit of wire being removed but it’s been about 4 months and it’s just not better. She’s a very stoic dog and she cried out in pain the other night. So that’s how I know it’s gotten worse. I’m just not sure what the next step is. I can’t bare to live with the fact that she’s always in pain and I don’t want her to have to be on pain meds for the rest of her life either. Is there some sorta rehab I can do for her? I will be talking to her surgeon soon but I’d like to get an outside/2nd perspective. If I need to clear something up please let me know. Thanks in advance

Hello! - and I'm sorry, that sounds like a very difficult time, not just for Lilly but you too.  And so, what next? I wouldn't give clinical advice on someone else's patient directly here for professional reasons; furthermore, I can't entirely understand from here what the main technical barrier is to Lilly's comfort / recovery at the present time without more technical information, but that is something that your vet should be able to give you an idea about.  If it's genuinely a second opinion you're after, you could ask them for a referral where they send all of their information to another vet - an orthopaedic specialist, for instance - who works with difficult orthopaedic cases and can give a very educated opinion.  Whether you choose to ask your own vet or a specialist or both, questions like: what can I expect from here?  What is the best outcome I can expect if we operate on this leg again / if we just treat with meds from here / if we  decide to amputate? / Any other option as offered by vet?   What could go wrong?  How much would it cost?  What are the pros and cons / chances of success?  ( there is no NHS for pets and we all sympathise with that, so never be worried about asking about money).  What would my dogs' chances of arthritis / mobility be like afterwards?  What about her quality of life?  What would you do if she were your dog? Once you have as much information as you need, it is then time to sit and digest this information.  There are usually one or two options for you to review and the next decision may seem easier. Meanwhile, it's important that you know how much exercise / movement Lilly can cope with at the moment and what medication she needs to be on. All the best to both of you and please do let us know what you decide and how things progress.