Young lab with crooked leg

I wondering if any of you with a dog have any experience with growth plate issues? My brother and SIL are considering adopting a 1-year-old black lab, named Zeke, who has a very crooked left front leg, which is apparently the result of a growth plate issue when he was younger. It slows him down a bit but, according to Zeke's current vet, he's not in any pain and won't need any additional medical care as a result. My brother and SIL's vet, who has not examined Zeke, has told them the dog will likely need expensive surgery to correct the issue. They are really torn about adopting Zeke and want to be sure they're able to to provide the care he needs and deserves. If anyone has any ideas/experiences to share, I'd be grateful. Thanks!

Boy it's tough to say anything when two vets disagree! I can see why the vet who hasn't seen Zeke would say that surgery will be needed though - this here
http://www.vanerp.net/ilse/GSDINFO/hd-health-talk.htm
is what comes tro my mind anyway, growth plate disorder leads to elbow dysplasia leads to lameness. I'm not a vet so maybe the best idea would be to have your brother and SIL's vet see for himself/herself.
Best of luck that it works out!

I would definitely have another veterinarian or two look at the dog; perhaps get some xrays to see how bad the growth plate issue is, and whether it warrents an expensive surgery or not.

There are other ways to manage growth plate problems too, like keepin the dog on a large breed puppy\\dog food; he may not be totally done growing up yet, so the large breed food is even more important. It keeps the dog from growing too fast; which is the main 'cause' of growth plate problems...that and too much calcium in the diet than the dog needs. Surgery may or may not be the best option for the dog; it all depends on how much damage has already been done, or if the dog is in pain once the growing stops.

I would simply get a few more vet opinions, before settling on a decision

Thanks for the info guys. I'll be sure to share with my brother and SIL. I did found out the dog is 2-years-old, a little older than we thought, and his currently owner says he's compensated for the leg well. Also, Zeke has been seen by two vets who say he's not in any pain and doesn't need surgery for now. That said, it looks like we're going to have a new family member. Zeke will coming home on Sat.

Well good luck with Zeke, I hope it works out!

Congrats on the new family member! I was going to say, after reading the first post, if the dog is 2 years old and basically done growing, I really don't see how anything could be done to correct the leg. I mean I'm sure you risk early arthritis or something... but I don't know that anything could be fixed if the dog is done growing, and the leg has just been left to do its thing.

In any case, yay for the new family member!