Injuries & First Aid

Hot Shot's ears

shadowsgin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:02:54 GMT

Not sure if I am posting in the right place but I read a couple of threads about ears and I am still confused.

I went to scratch Hot Shot behind the ears Saturday and he pulled away (not like him he loves ear scratches) I checked his ears and on one ear it looks like he skined it.... not a scratch, not in the canal, but on the inside of the ear flap?? Its not scabbed over and not really red just like when you might skin a knee or elbow. On the other ear, it had some dried blood, not fresh, but it couldnt be too old cause I cleaned his ears last week. I cleaned both ears with a soft warm wet cloth, he didnt seem to mind it until I used a q-tip closer to the ear canal. I didnt do anything else til I had a chance to check with you guys. I have never had ear problems with any dogs that I remember, I always clean their ears with a warm damp cloth. I did notice yesterday that he would shake his head occasionally but he doesnt seem to be too bothered by it. The reason I think it might be an injury is that the hair on the outside of the skinned ear is a little matted. I know since the cooler weather he has been exploring the neighbors pasture and I am wondering if he didnt get skinned up on a fence. I cant find any major sores or cuts. What are your thoughts? Also the one ear has a huge mat of fur that I have been working on, it is so close to the ear and skin that I am having fits trying to get the knots out, too close to use scissors, hesitant about using a razor blade. Cant use an electric shaver It makes noise:) So I have been using a comb and trying to work it out, he will sit still only so long when I am doing this.

Please, please help me! (It's for Cuddles) UPDATE!!!!

Mechanical Angel — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:38:14 GMT

My cocker Spaniel Cuddles who is seven years old and my Newfoundland/Black Lab mix got into a tiny fight. They both had squeaky toys and were happily chewing away. Well, Cuddles went to a different room and left hers there. She came back in and decided she wanted Lion's toy that was currently in his mouth. Neither dog is agressive but Cuddles went to grab for the toy. He didnt want her to have it so all he did was turn his head away. Her teeth were still coming though. She accidently bit him on the face under his eye. He was scared and suprised by it so his teeth went all the around her neck. He let go within a second but one or two of his teeth had broken the skin.

At Lion's vet appointment earlier in the year our vet had said he needed a teeth cleaning. So, he was scheduled to go in for a teeth cleaning next week. We are thinking the tooth that broke the skin had some bacteria on it, and now Cuddles' shoulder is very swelled up and hard. It feels like a bubble filled with liquid. And there's a smaller spot like that on her neck. The vets is closed and we cant take her till tommorow anyway. What can I do? Please help!

I'm just sick with worry now.

occassional paw dragging; should I be concerned?

jstrawbri — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:27:08 GMT

Snickers my GSP is 4 and for almost as long as I can remember when we take him on walks he will always, at least once, drag his rear paw. I hear the nails scrape, and then I'll watch him walk for a while and then it almost seems like his right hip drops ever so slightly and the paw will drag as he moves it forward. I was wondering if this is a symptom of some genetic condition I should be worried about or am I just being overly concerned? Maybe he's just dragging his foot because "it happens"...or maybe his toenails are a little too long that day...

Food for thought.

Swollen toe!! PICS

akyramoto82 — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:41:43 GMT

what the heck!!!

Sheba has been on 'kennel rest' for the last two weeks due to a injury ( running through the house at breakneck speed & catching her flank on an open drawer!) she's almost better. This morning I notice that Akyra's toe is redish, so i look at it. OMG toe is swollen!! around the nail.i kinda messed with it a bit, looks like there might be puss in there. yuck. trimmed all the hair back - I can't see anything 'in' there. They're kept in a pen in the summer specifically made to keep them OUT of the freaking foxtails. so i hope it's not that. I dont know how this happened - then again I've been really focusing on Sheba.

I irrigated the area out with a watered down betadine solution. then soaked it in warm water & epsom salt to hopefully reduce the swelling & maybe fight whatever is going on down there. My reg vet is booked, so i had to call another one - i really want her seen today. Got an appt @ 3pm.

so officially August is VET month for me. the donkey got her shots - had a reaction ( hives) that was alot of stress. Sheba and Akyra had their annual the following Mon & tue - they checked out fine - negative for heartworm got their vacc's. then 11:30PM on thurs Sheba decided she wanted to go back to the vet with her open wound. the next week drain removal, week after that ( last week) stitches removed. and now this week akyra's swollen toe!!

AHHHHHH!!!!!!

ok here's some pics - i'm going on vacation next week so i dont really have time to find out if this is something *I* could've taken care of. nice little topping of animal stress before i go. I'm gonna miss them like crazy & naturally worry about them the whole time :(

Reoccuring stye?

Laurelin_429 — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:14:27 GMT

Eh, I'm not sure what to do about Summer's eye. On the one hand, the stye isn't swollen like last time. On the other hand, it seems to have popped and keeps re-opening every day and bleeding pretty bad every day. It'll look like it's healed then I'll notice it later and it's bleeding again. But it's not a very big wound so I don't know if the vet can actually do anything. Last time she had a stye they put her on antibiotics to clear it up, but it hadn't opened like this. I don't want to bring her in for nothing but I do want her eye to heal up fast. Here's how it looks now (warning some blood):

As opposed to the last time:

What do you think I should do? It's only been 4 months since the last time it popped up.

Ear Mites!! Please Help

Banks Bulldogs — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 01:38:32 GMT

Please look at my photos I have posted and please email me with any suggestions on what I can do to help my baby! She has had ear mites now for 2 weeks and we have tried everything to try and get rid of them and now she woke up and both ears are swollen almost shut, red with brown stuff all in it and just raw. I don't know how it got this bad in a matter of hours. I've called the vet and they said all they could do is give her an antibiotic. Please help if you can! LALA BANKS

Choclolate Lab With "Happy Tail" Injury - Any Hope?

Magpies — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 13:54:56 GMT

My 10 year old chocolate lab hurt his tail this summer - it's "happy tail" or sometimes I believe it is called "kennel tail" - from whacking the end of his tail on everything. At first we bandaged his tail and did some research. Then a few trips to the vet. Antibiotics and antibiotic ointment. The tail has been getting slowly worse, partly due to the fact that keeping a bandage ON is virtually impossible, I have changed or fixed the bandage 5 times in teh last 2 days, even the vet can't get it to stay on.

So my question: The vet is ready to dock his tail, which I hate to do. Does anyone have ANY advice for me? It seems like the tail might heal if we could leave the bandage off, but then he keeps re-injuring it on everything. I have already spend hundreds of dollars at the vet. . .Has anyone had this problem where the tail really healed?

Thank you for any insight.

Magpie

Talk to me about ACL injuries (Bugsy)

kpwlee — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:29:08 GMT

well the penny has dropped today, no more 'woohoo it isn't hips', changed to 'OK what do we do now?'

They want to do a TPLO, I am not so sure. The amount of fluid in his knee was minimal, I need to call and ask about the 'drawer' test but I dont' think there is serious movement in the joint, some but not excessive at this time.

When it isn't bothering him he is 100% full on psycho beast Bugsy (as he just demonstrated in our yard). Then there are the times it is bothering him and he has a significant limp and he moves at a normal dog speed

I am going to limit his access to stairs

no playdates, fetch, tug etc anything that puts excessive stress on knees

Keep doing leash walks and swimming

He gets glucosamine/chondroitin (sp), nutri-joint (gelatin supplement), grain free high protein diet +raw

I'm going to look into PT and see if there are ways to strengthen his quads (does he really need more muscle LOL)

His weight is good but I am going to try and get it down further

Found an article linking ACL tears to hypothyroidism which is now under control

Not sure what else to do at this time, suggestions? Experiences? What would you do?

I could try to limit all activity except leash walks for a while but let's face it that is going to be exceptionally traumatic and although I know it will be necessary after surgery, wondering if it is best now.

I've joined a yahoo group dedicated to knee injuries now and was amazed to find that I saw two positive references to the place I took B so i think they are OK

Bring on the info folks! Thanks

I found the sore spot (Bugsy) Update

kpwlee — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 20:50:15 GMT

So I caved and took him swimming because was too insane. He showed no problems swimming but when i was drying him off I found the spot that is sore........... I marked this photo, any thoughts?

And no worries I will be taking him for xrays once I do the research and find the right place

that day has finally come, I think :( knee problems

akyramoto82 — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:56:57 GMT

Sheba is limping pretty bad on her 'good' leg last night & this morning. I kept her inside today. I think it's finally happened her good knee has given out. I haven't taken her into the vet yet, I'm going to see if some rest helps. But I'm pretty sure it's gone out. Right now I'm weighing my options. I really dont feel like she should be put down :( she still is energetic about life, but her poor body isnt keeping up with her! She's 14 years old now!

Knee braces are quite expensive & that only supports ONE leg. I'm seriously thinking about getting her a doggie wheelchair. She's so old that I dont know how long she'd be around after an expensive surgery, and frankly I'm not in a postition to get her the surgery at the moment. But I need to discuss things with my vet & Sheba's previous owner.

Has anyone had any experiences with the dog wheelchairs??

thanks

9 month old Bulldog puppy very tender and weak rear right leg

blasph3my — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:54:14 GMT

First information about the dog. I rescued (Kind of) a 6 month old bulldog puppy. The previous owners couldnt contend with how energy packed as well as the amount of work would be needed to raise such a puppy. I have had him for roughly 3 months, and he is up to date on all shots and vaccinations. Roughly 4 days ago, I was laying on the couch with him and all was fine. However, later that night my girlfriend noticed him slightly limping, and I had just assumed he strained his leg because he is nearly off the charts energetic, and when he plays, he plays hard, many times running through the house, making several laps before tiring himself out. Since then, he has intermittenly limped on the leg. Sometimes, he walks with only a little limp, and other times, it appears so weak, he really has to strain to stand up while placing most of his weight on his left leg. He injured his right rear leg.

Throughout the day it appears the severity of the issue comes and goes, as, even though I try to restrict it as much as possible, he gallops through the house regularly. However, over the last 4 days, he has always, at the least favored the leg. The issue is really worrying me because over the last 4 days, granted most have been rainfilled and less than cheerful, he has had extremely little energy. Most of the time moping around, laying on the couch resting it. Tonight he was on the couch, so I moved him so I could lay on the couch and put him almost right back. He began huffing and nipping at me, how he normally does when he plays. So at first I thought he was just being cantankerous. However, while petting him, and checking, it almost appeared as though the right leg was entirely limp. So i picked him up and moved him to the floor to have a look at him and i got back onto the couch. For a slight bit of time, he just sat there, and it almost looked like he was struggling to stand up on all 4's from the sitting position but sat there because he couldnt.

I fully do intend to make a vet appointment as of tomorrow for him, but it is likely my vet will not be able to see me for a few days. Any thoughts/similiar situations/suggestions in the mean time?

Torn paw pad

oranges81 — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:53:54 GMT

Maze tore a hole in the pad of her front paw. The skin is still attached so it's kinda like a flap of skin.

It's not bleeding, or causing her much pain but she is limping.

I'm wondering if I should remove the flap of skin and let it heal that way or just leave it be.

eating anything and throwing up!

Bandit2009 — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:15:54 GMT

We are starting to get used to the fact that anything goes in and then throws it up but this morning Bandit threw up a pair of my daughter's underwear....only God knows how he got to that and he doesn't want to eat or drink :(

I can tell Bandit isn't felling right. We're knew at all this, we've only had our 5 1/2 months old puppy for a week now.

What should I do for my puppy to make sure he starts eating again!

Thank you!

16 wk old chihuahua with broken leg? anything I could give him to help heal?

dllfb — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:34:03 GMT

I have a 16 week old chihuahua that broke its leg. It was splinted last week but after xrays today I'm told that his little bone shifted and he must have an operation tomorrow to screw in a metal plate. I asked the vet what vitamins I could give the dog to help strengthen it's bones and help heal this one. He said dogs bones aren't like human bones and just to give it a high quality puppy food. However....I find that hard to believe and would like to give him something to help mend this bone or strengthen his bones. Can I give him calcium tablets or anything homopathic/naturopathic ???? What dosage for a 2 pound dog??? Any info at this stage would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your time.

Possible Spider Bite?

alieli — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 17:44:30 GMT

Last night around 9pm or so....my husband and I heard our dog (3 year old female boston terrier) yelp from the other room... I didn't think much of it because her nails are long right now and I thought maybe she scratched her face. IT was only one small yelp.....

Then about 5:30am I woke up to hear her vomiting....so I cleaned it up and layed her down to sleep.

It's about 10am now and she is still not acting normal. She has squeeled twice this morning randomly as if something was hurting her on her insides. Her muscles are spazing out- you can see them acting weird under her skin. Her heart is beating strange compared to my other dog. She is eating on her own though. I gave her about a half tablet of a 24mg benedrayl just now so hopefully that will help.

I do not see any strange marks on her skin other than an area on her belly that looks red- but she has skin issues often so it might not be an injection site. Hard to tell.....there is no swelling with is good. But it is obvious that something is wrong with her..she kind of stands around with a blank look on her face.

It's Sunday and I can't take her to the vet...so just wondering how severe this is and if I should take her to the emergency vet or just wait it out and see how she does....

Any advice would be much appreciated! :)

Wasp Sting

Arearis — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:13:48 GMT

My JRT stepped on a wasp this morning and got stung. What can I do for her? The vet is closed and the er vet had no advice other than bring her in. Her paw isnt that swollen and I dont see and actual sting mark but she is holding it in the air limping.

Super dried out nostril - what's safe?

miranadobe — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 02:30:01 GMT

My sister's dog has one side of his nose (essentially, a nostril) that is very, very dried out. I was thinking some bag balm would help, but not sure if it's safe, considering it's on his nose, close to that tongue that could very readily ingest it.

I read here that vaseline is no good - mineral oil is better, but considering how liquid that is, I hesitate to put that near his nose.

Callie? anybody else in hot/dry climates??

dog tail problems

cadams — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:56:13 GMT

I am having a problem with my dog wagging his tail vigorously which is causing injuries to the tip. Wrapping it doesnt last long so I cant seem to protect it long enough for it to heal. I am looking for ideas on how to protect it.

steroids for dogs

nutville — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:40:50 GMT

Do you know of any natural or over-the-counter steroids for dogs? Dog was indirectly exposed to insect killer when the yard was sprayed and eyes are nearly swollen shut - he is 1 yrs old. Already had $200 vet bill who gave antibiotics b/c at the time we didn't know what it was. He seems worse and going on 1 week already.

Metacam?

Liesje — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 14:59:07 GMT

What is Metacam? Is it fairly harmless? Nikon has been limping on and off for about 2 months. Honestly I don't think he's limping anymore. When I showed it to the breeder, that was over a week ago. She then went to Germany with some dogs and told her friend (who stays in her home to take care of the dogs) to give me some Metacam for Nikon to help with the limp. However since she's been gone, I think the limp is basically gone. I showed Nikon several times this weekend and saw no limp, no problems with his gait and the judges sure didn't say anything (they will excuse a limping dog). So I have this Metacam but am thinking of just giving it back. The other problem is I don't know the dosage b/c the breeder's friend didn't know, and the person who does know left early without saying goodbye so I didn't have the chance to have him show me. Is it worth pursuing or should I give it back?

FWIW, I took Nikon to my vet to look at the limp. She pulled and stretched him all over and he didn't notice one bit. Even when the limp was bad, he was still running and playing. My guess is that it's not pano, but some soreness or pulled something from how hard he works and plays (he often trips or slides when he's fetching). The limp was in the left hip. His hips were prelimed at 7 months.

UTI?

georgie4682 — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 23:48:41 GMT

I'm thinking Finn has a UTI. He had 2 pretty serious accidents yesterday. I mean there was an unbelievable amount of urine. Today, no accidents, but he is peeing and acting like he doesn't realize he's doing it. DH and I were training him tonight and he was in a sit in front of DH and suddenly started peeing and then just stood up and walked closer to DH. We've been trying to watch to see if he's drinking more and think he is.

So, does this sound like a UTI? Or something else? If it is, I can't even make the appointment until Monday morning and who knows when I'll get an appt, probably Tuesday.

Thanks!

rw-possible broken toe

rwbeagles — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:27:29 GMT

Hi guys....

Ellie might have busted her inside rear left toe. Weight bearing toe. She is non weight bearing right now...I have given aspirin and soaked her in some epsom for now. Waiting to see how she is in the am. It appeared swollen compared to other foot...not majorly misshapen.

Unfortunately no one saw it happen as she was on a run in the big yard with her Mom...who is fine. No punctures, no sign of a fight....she will take food and seems happy enough...just don't touch her toe LOL.

IF she is still non weight bearing tomorrow I will take her in. Not looking forward to an xray as I am unsure she should have one right now...maybe palpitation enough will give us an answer.

Good thoughts and anything to do I've not done already...she is in a crate on crate rest til then as well.

Need some help for a friend Cat related graphic pictures

oranges81 — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 00:15:28 GMT

Mod's feel free to move this to the kitty section if it can't stay here..

I know this is a dog forum but I need some help...

My friend's cat was attacked by something. We don't know what. She has taken him to a vet numerous times and they're only advice right now is either steroids or PTS. I'm advising that she get a second opinion since the vet she's seeing now isn't doing crap...

I got a list of things that she's been doing so far and what's happening to the cat:
Vit E - to prevent itching. The wounds are drying up and causing rubbing and scratching.
There may be a disease that runs in the family that would be treated with steroids.
There are open sores, itching, he's pulling the hair out of his feet and the sore won't heal.
He's vomiting and dehydrated. BUT he is eating fine. I'm giving her a syringe to get water in to his system.
He's got a deformation on his lips, almost like they've melted away.
He's constantly scratching and grooming himself.
He can't wear a cone due to a wound on his neck.

*Warning! Graphic Pictures*

Again, she has seen a vet and I am recommending she get a second opinion. I'm giving her a syringe to get some water into him. She also gave him an antihistamine. Nothing has helped.

Suggestions, advice, good vibes maybe? Please! I'm gonna be writing her an email tonight when I get some ideas from a cat forum I'm on but I thought since I got some great advice here with my dogs, I'd give it a shot. I'm really worried about Jade...

Ulcerated cornea

lisak — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:59:35 GMT

Kodi evidently gouged his eye on a branch or something in the yard. I took him to the vet as soon as I saw him rubbing the eye. He's on two kinds of drops, pain killers and wearing a cone. It's been three weeks and the cornea is not getting better so he will see an ophthalmologist tomorrow. My vet feels he may need a grid keratectomy. Has anyone had experience with this procedure?

constipation? Yelping?

lisa4kids1pup — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 05:40:35 GMT

They gave Kira that I/D food when she had some diarrhea. Her stool was better yesterday late morning, so I just gave her a couple tablespoonsful at each meal to finish off the can. Well, she didn't poop the rest of yesterday, or all day today. We kept taking her out and waiting and waiting and nothing was happening! She finally went after me waiting with her outside at 1am for 20 minutes and right as she finished up, she yelped a couple of times. Immediately after, she lunged as if she was wanting to take off after the cat (amazing how major surgery doesn't slow her down) and seemed totally fine. I rolled her over when we got back inside, and pushed gently on her belly and she seemed fine. I assume she is constipated. Her incision looks fine and she didn't seem bloated. She is also taking antibiotics, which I guess can go either way digestively speaking. I suppose if she hasn't pooped enough lately, her anal glands could also be more full and painful than usual too. It was too dark for me to see her poop, but it looked like there were about 4 or 5 golfball sized poos that came out, which is what Misty's always looks like.

Should I give her some milk of magnesia? If so, how much? She's 42lbs now. I will wait till morning at this point. I also think she's not drinking enough because it's so hard with the stupid e-collar on. I've been trying to give her some time here and there without it, and I'll just sit with her, but she wants to chew on her tail right away, and I'm nervous she'll move to the incision if I turn my head for even a second.