Is my dog okay? May have pulled/torn his leg.
(Updates are provided down in the replies)
This little rascal of mine and I play fetch every morning. In the middle of a fetch, he suddenly stopped and started to limp on his left hind leg.
Thinking he pulled a muscle, I quickly went to him, massaged and stretched his leg. I gave him some time to recover and had him walk home. But he couldn't put any weight on that leg and slumped down to a sit.
I carried him the rest of the way home. In the elevator, the neighbor gave me a scare about a torn ACL which is common in younger dogs (he's 1.5 yrs old).
He still managed to finish his meal and drank, but I'm concerned. What if it turned out to be something serious and affect him permanently because I didn't take him to a vet earlier?
What's the protocol here, watch him for few days to see if he recovers then take him to a vet?
All of his symptoms fit this article about ACL:
http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/acl-injuries-in-dogs
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jane on
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If he still won't put any weight on it at all I would probably take him to the vet. However, if it is his ACL, I don't *think* it will make the injury any worse if you do decide to wait a day or two to see if he improves. I'd keep him very quiet and don't let him do any running around.
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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Keep him in strict confinement for a few days and see if there is any improvement. A strained muscle can show all the same symptoms of an ACL tear. If he seems to be in severe pain, whimpering or trembling, then get him into the vet asap. An ACL tear can go for some time without causing further problems (unless its a partial tear and he uses it too much and it becomes a full tear). I've seen dogs go for months and months with ACL tears because owners could not afford the surgery, they would just get pain meds and anti-inflammatories and hope things got better. The only problem with this is that it WILL cause further joint damage/arthritis, but waiting 2 or 3 days should be fine if it is in fact an ACL tear.
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Permalink Reply by Zion (pem) & Andrew (me) on
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He's not whimpering, so that's good.
It's been two hours and he's still limping. It's definitely more than a pulled muscle.
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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If he is not able to put weight on it I would take him in. The Cruciate Ligament tear is a very common injury in dogs. If left too long there is a greater chance of arthritis setting in. Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Markley on
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It sounds like he did tear his ACL. I went through this two years ago with Seanna. If you have any questions, I can answer them for you! Just email me...you might need to send a friend request, but I'd be happy to talk to you about it. In the meantime, keeping him contained is crucial. Don't let him run, jump...in the kennel or puppy play-pen unless outside to potty (on leash).
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Permalink Reply by Beth on
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I agree with waiting a few days. Some dogs are very dramatic about minor injuries and will refuse to put any weight on even a minor muscle strain. Others are less pain-sensitive and only behave the way you describe for more serious injuries.
Jack got a toe caught running into his crate and hurt something up front (nail bed, toe, shoulder--- still not sure) a few years ago. He was very lame for a short time, then was occasionally lame for a week or two after. Then every once in awhile for the next few months he'd rarely not want to walk on it. Vet looked at him, gave him some painkillers and said if he was still having problems to bring him back for x-rays. And since then he's been fine.
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Update 2/1/2012
It's been a full day since his injury. He was still limping during his evening pee and it took him about 30 mins because he didn't know how to relieve himself with the limp leg.
It breaks my heart and hurts me every time I look at him. This morning he was still limping. He simply can not put any weight on it. I did a full round of research on torn ACL and it pisses me off to no end this happened out of the blue. I just can't get over the fact that he'll never be the same and surgery is $$$. I am very upset and I'm aching every second about this situation.
I'm going to take him to the vet tomorrow or Friday (or maybe I should earlier?). Hopefully some miracle happens and he gets better. Am I over reacting? I'm personally dwelling as if he did tear his ACL (all signs point to yes).
Any other tips? Please wish our Zion a good luck.
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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on
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Hi Andrew, you are over reacting a little, but it is normal and understandable. Try to keep a cool head and allow yourself to make logical decisions. If indeed Zion's ACL was torn, waiting till Friday will not make it worst. In the mean time, ice the area, try to get the swelling down (knee area, if any) check for the typical drawer sign, if he is still limping the same on Friday, then go ahead and make an appointment. Zion needs you to be his strong stable pack leader, hang in there!
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My parents Chessie tore her ACL when she was about 3 or 4. She's a big gal (around 75 pounds I think) and very active. Yes it was expensive surgery (my parents opted for the "rubber-band" method, actually filament). But they followed vet's orders to the letter re: rehab and she is functionally sound. She hunts, she retrieves, she hikes miles every week and she's now 10 years old and still going strong. She sometimes limps a little after a lot of work or after sleeping hard for a long period, but the limping is brief (first minute or so after rising) and otherwise you would never know she ever had a problem.
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I had a dog who tore his ACL when he was about 7 years old. He was 140 pounds (10 pounds over weight at the time of the tear). Due to his size we had no choice but to do the TPLO. He walked out of the vet's office the day after surgery using all 4 legs. It was amazing. The recovery/rehab is a long process, it took a full 4 months before he was allowed unrestricted exercise, but he regained 100% function of that leg. TPLO tends to be more successful with more dogs returning to 100% function, the other methods that are less invasive give you a higher chance that they will not regain full use of the leg. I know its frustrating when things like this happen, but whats done is done and there is no point in dwelling on it. Just think of how you can fix it and try to move on, it does no good getting upset or angry about things like this. Total cost for my dog's TPLO repair was somewhere around $3500. My dogs are like my children so of course I would do it all again in a heartbeat. I'm still holding out that it may just be a soft tissue injury (crossing fingers). My parents lab injured his leg in December and couldn't put any weight on it for 3-4 days, they took him to the vet, did x-rays, etc and knees/hips/joints were all perfect. They think it was just a traumatic injury to soft tissue, and gave him pain meds, anti-inflammatories, and told them to wait and see. He is now back to being a crazy lab again with no surgery required. It's only been a few days and if you have ever sprained or strained a ligament or muscle you know it doesn't go away overnight, (Just trying to think positive here even though it really does sound like ACL tear, but hopefully not!)
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Most dogs that this happen to before they are two are genetic reasons, the cartilage in their knees is weak. That being said, they told me that Seanna would probably need her other leg done within 6 months to a year. We're two years out and she is still going strong. Seanna tore hers playing outside with our german shepherd mix, so I am thinking hers was just a traumatic tear, and not genetic. It also didn't help that she was 6 pounds overweight. We got her weight down, and she is good. So if your puppy is overweight, then start the diet right now. It will make recovery much easier, and the future a little brighter. Make sure your vet sedates him to do the test- if your dog tenses his leg (because it hurts), then the test won't be accurate. Waiting to get the surgery done is OK, as long as you're keeping your dog quiet. He will end up with arthritis no matter what you do, even with surgery- it just makes it less severe. I really am happy that we chose surgery, and we went with the extracapsular filament. Seanna has done great, and by the next year was completely normal. It's a time intensive program after surgery, but if you can afford to do it, it's really the way to go. Many people do the TPLO, but it's way more expensive- and for a corgi that is below 30 pounds, not a working dog, the filament is fine.
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