Why does he do this?

[Zumie05]

Gary has had a limp in his right arm and to make it better I have stopped his walks and play sessions. It has been a little over 2 weeks now and it still isn't gone. (Yes we've been to the vet xray came back normal so he got anti inflammatory meds, which he is done with).

I got some advice not to let him sleep on hard and/or cold surfaces, which is a huge problem at night.

Gary likes to shuffle his crate pad around at night when he sleeps. He always ends up underneath it instead of sleeping on top of it. I am worried that this could be the reason why his arm is still sore.

Why does he do it? You would think that it would be so much more comfortable to sleep on top of a nice cushion, but no he prefers the hard bottom.

Should I worry about this (is it maybe a reason why his arm is still sore) or just let him be?

[jlhnokc]

He could have a tissue injury that would not show up on xray. they usually want on a hard surface because it's cooler. So, if you want him to sleep on his pad, he probably needs it colder in the room. Jaycee sleeps in front of a fan and sleeps on her bed of pillows covered by a blanket.

[jazzking1971]

how old is he? The vet checked for signs of Elbow Dysplasia?

[Zumie05]

Do they check for elbow dysplasia via xray? To be honest, I was at work when the xray was looked at. We had to leave him at the vet to be sedated for the xray and by the time everything was done I wasn't able to be there.

My boyfriend went to pick Gary up and view the results of the xray. Of course being him, when I asked what the vet said he just said "Oh everything is normal." He did mention something about growth plates being normal too. I wish he remembered details more lol. The vet said it was most likely a muscle or ligament issue and sent us home with some meds.

I'm just worried because the meds are done and he still has a limp, and I am wonderinig if it could be from how he sleeps in his crate??!? It actually really annoys me that he prefers the hard floor over the nice cushion I put in there for him!

And Gary will be 7 months on April 2nd!

[jazzking1971]

young dogs end up with limps as the grow. I'm no vet but if you know he wasn't injured it's prolly Pano. I have seen all of my dogs limping at one time when they were pups for another for no apparent reason.

[Zumie05]

With pano I thought it hurts when you squeeze their limbs? I have done this and he doesn't show any sign of pain. The vet did it too and was stretching his arm and feeling everywhere.

[SABELLESMOM]

Some may not realise this, but elbow dysplasia, is visible to the naked eye. This is what I've been told by the ortho-vet who does the x-rays for OFA. He actually showed me dogs with elbow dysplasia, as I'd told him my suspicions on a friends new dog. I was right! It was quite an experience. I'd wager most of you could see it as well? Particularly if you have experience in any of the performance venues.

Soft tissue injuries, without ligament injury OFTEN take as much as 6 weeks to heal. Surprised? I was. Rae jumped off a platform that was not secure and landed badly, once. I had x-rays and an exam by the ortho guy. Any human athletes out there? You know to keep the joint moving, but not taxed.

Give the dog more time. Ice the area. Lightly stretch (full range of motion) the area, several times a day. Try not to let the dog jump up or off furniture. Some don't even recommend stairs...but I think that's beyond reason. Think about it. Stairs would provide range of motion without too much actual pressure to the joint, right? WALK the dog! He needs to move the joint without stress. The more walking the less "tight" the area will be.

Yes, pressure at the joint would be painful if it were pano.

[TrinaJ]

I have no idea what the problem could be with Gary's leg but i do have a suggestion as to what you can do to stop him ending up underneath his crate pad....

You need to make a pillow slip for the crate try and put the tray inside it so that the tray is like a pillow - also place his bedding inside the slip, a nice soft quilt or something. That way he cant possibly bury himself underneath it.

Hope it helps.

Trina

[Zumie05]

Originally Posted by TrinaJ

I have no idea what the problem could be with Gary's leg but i do have a suggestion as to what you can do to stop him ending up underneath his crate pad....

You need to make a pillow slip for the crate try and put the tray inside it so that the tray is like a pillow - also place his bedding inside the slip, a nice soft quilt or something. That way he cant possibly bury himself underneath it.

Hope it helps.

Trina

I have the plastic kind of crate, so unfortunately there is no pan . I totally understand what you mean though and I wish I could do that. It would work out great!

It's funny how this is becoming a topic more about elbow problems than whether or not his sleeping habits could be hindering his recovery. Oh well!

[TrinaJ]

Could you get double sided tape and tape the crate pad to the bottom on the plastic crate so that it cant be moved?

[SABELLESMOM]

Originally Posted by TrinaJ

Could you get double sided tape and tape the crate pad to the bottom on the plastic crate so that it cant be moved?

Or...some nice WIDE strips of self stick Velcro? You can find it in at least a 2" wide at the fabric stores. Measure either the length of your crate bottom and cut 3 strips, 3-4" shorter than your measurement. Attatch 3" in along the edges and the down middle.

Dogs tend to "make a bed" by rustling things about, like a nest. It's very natural for them. He may also prefer the coolness.

[Denise L.]

Cyrus has elbow displasia and he had Pano. The Pano he outgrew, although late, he was 5. I didn't get either diagnosis from his regular vet, as he was stumped. I brought Cyrus to an orthopedic specialist recommended by a member here.

I find glucosamine supplements and Ascripton as needed pretty much keep him happy and pain free.

That being said, Cyrus won't tolerate a pad of any sort in his crate. He also turns his nose up at a doggy bed...unless it is to carry it around the house

[Ayoka]

I think sablesmom gave some pretty good advice.

Our experience was that Bear was down for 6 weeks (hind end muscle tear) and then not back to active practice for about 10-12 weeks. Anti inflammatories are not magic bullets but the CAN keep the swelling down so that an injury is less painful. we opted NOT to do them becauee I ahve a dog without the common sense to slow down and I feared that if he was pain free he MIGHT make things worse. We did however try some natural anti-inflmmatories (salmon oil & traumeel) and complemented with some massage therapy which was especially useful to help bear regain some range of motion by breaking up scar tissue (she also gave us some stretches to do) we also did a lot of walking on the flat at first then up and down hills/stairs to keep up muscle tone - unfortunately it was winter and we had no indoor doggy pools at the time or we would have been swimming too. We avoided jumping, slick surfaces and rough play with other dogs.

Maybe I take a more wholistic approach to injury because I do run and play rugby and know that there's more to getting back up and running than taking a few pills and aying on my butt. It is true that limited exercise, is good to keep things going and muscles flushed out and to stay in shape. If you don't know about the elbow x-rays & pano call your vet and ask - explain that you weren't there and your BF forgot to ask. I would ask if he knows of any canine rehab places too. Many vets aren't up on treatment for injuries like this if you know any agility/flyball people ask them about someone who is an injury that is not properly taken care of can come back to haunt you and your dog later.

[Zumie05]

Okay, so what I am getting here is that maybe I shouldn't worry about how he sleeps in his crate? Lol I'm glad that Gary isn't the only dog who doesn't seem to want a comfy pad in his crate !

I have been giving him glucosamine ever since the visit at the vet though. It sounds also like muscle type injuries could take up to 6 weeks to heal, which means we are about half way there.

I will continue the glucosamine, not worry about how Gary sleeps in his crate, not let him excersize too hard (yesterday I did start letting him out in the back yard again just so he doesn't feel so cooped up all the time, but I am keeping it at once a day for 30 mins), and just keep close eye on him. If his limp ever gets worse of course I am running straight back to the vet, but so far it seems to be in between...not getting worse, but not getting better either.

Thanks for all the advice so far!