Puppy with bone plate in shoulder.

Dooley · #1 10-21-2009, 07:17 PM

My five month old puppy was hit by a car five nights ago(he bolted out our front door...we live on a quiet road but unfortunately he got hit). He has been in the vet's ever since awaiting xray results and a surgery date. He has a fracture of his front right humeral bone (shoulder). He got his surgery today and comes home tomorrow. He has a bone plate and a pin. I am sure the vet will tell me all about his aftercare, but i am wondering if anyone can give me advice on how to make his recovery easier on him.
Thanks, Dooley's mom

dieselnallie · #2 10-22-2009, 06:48 AM

I'm sorry to hear that he got hit.
Diesel was hit by a car when he was 12 weeks old and had surgery on his back left femer and a splint put on his left front. I felt so bad.
The vet told us to keep him as quiet as possible and he was to be on strict cage rest, carrying him outside to pee and poop. Diesel didn't want to poop right where we would set him so we had to have a leash under his belly to support him while he 'walked around' to find his do-do spot.
The sad thing was that we would bring him back insde and put him in his cage and he start crying again. he just wanted to come out and play. It was heart wrenching.
THe only thing I can tell you is give Dooley lots of love and attention and CHEW TOYS! lol. Lots of stuff to keep him busy if he gets cage rest too. Also, try not to feel bad, your doing the best you can for him and you know that even though he wants to play, it not good for him. My husband was not good and this and cause Diesel was on a lot of pain meds, he felt fine, so husband when he took him out would let him wander by himself and play with the cats. (bad bad bad! lol)
Diesel is a happy playful puppy now at 4 months so it was worth it. (a lot of people told us to put him down cause it cost so much)
We love our Diesel as I'm sure you love Dooley. Hope everything goes well!

LILYLARUE · #3 10-22-2009, 06:50 AM

Awe, Poor Dooley! So sad to hear of your accident. Next time, keep the grass under your paws. It's safer that way.

Hang in there. He'll be burning again very soon!

Dooley · #4 10-23-2009, 02:49 PM

Dooley is home now and can even walk on his leg! He has a pain patch on and is still wearing off all of the surgery drugs so he is sleeping most of the time. Hopefully we will be able to keep him calm for the next 6-8 weeks....but he is a boxer pup so I am worried about that. He has 2 crates and is very used to sleeping in them at night, thank goodness!Can't wait ill the 8 weeks is up and he is (hopefully) back to his crazed lil self!

Tiga · #5 10-26-2009, 04:48 PM

We went through this with our dog when she was 8 months old until she was a year and a half. Eventually they removed the plate because it got infected, which meant we went through two rounds of healing the bone.

We made her crate as comfortable as possible and started permitting her to sit on the couch with us. I found that if she was next to us she wouldn't whine. It wasn't so much the having to sit still that bothered her as it was the having to be away from us.

I whole heartedly think it is worth it to risk a little weight gain and just give your dogs lots of treats to keep them busy while lying still. (I did this and my dog never gained weight but yours might)
we used frozen kongs (peanut butter or oatmeal work well)
bully sticks
raw marrow bones (I would cover her cast with a plastic bag so it wouldn't get raw meat on it)

Games you can play while lying still:

I bought a laser pointer and would shine it on my hand or around the area she was sitting to keep her interested and alert.

We played "guess which hand it's in" a lot, where I would put a treat in one hand behind my back and she would nose the hand she thought it was in. If she guessed the right hand she got to eat the treat.

Dog massage helps, too. It was uncomfortable to lie in a cast at akward angles for so many months so I would rub her shoulders and body

We also weren't allowed to bathe her because we couldn't get the cast wet. You can get great sprays and wipes from most pet stores that you can wash your dog with without water. This is very helpful. By month three our dog was starting to get pretty smelly.

Ask the hospital if they will give you some old IV bags with the tops cut off. They throw these out, but they are the PERFECT size to slip over your dog's cast if you have to take them out to do their business in the rain or just don't want to set them down on a wet surface.

We also tried to keep her entertained by taking her out in public a lot. Even though she wasn't allowed to walk I would take her to the park and let her lie on a blanket. I took her to outdoor cafes where she could lie on the ground, and pushed her in shopping carts around pet stores. We took her on lots of car rides and just generally anything that would keep her from feeling too restless or shut in. It wasn't easy, and by the end of it she would get loose and tear around the house in her cast or try to jump over furniture.

You can also give benadryl to sedate the dog a little without having to give heavy medication.

Good luck! if you have any other questions just ask!

Dooley · #6 10-27-2009, 09:02 PM

Thanks for all the tips Tiga! Dooley does not have a cast ...he doesn't even have a bandage. The reason for that is because he broke his front humeral bone and they can't cast those fractures. At least i don't have to worry about him getting the cast wet and dirty. He was pretty spirited in the first few days after we brought him home. His pain patch is off now and he is slowing down a little because of that. Like your pup, he seems to just want to be right beside us at all times. Probably because he spent five nights in the veterinarians all by himself in a crate.

Tiga · #7 10-29-2009, 01:10 AM

Ah! Well then half of my advice doesn't even apply.

Hope your dog has a speedy recovery

Dooley · #8 10-31-2009, 06:44 PM

I am at my wit's end! Dooley is so hyper...it is impossible to keep him calm. When i put him in his crate (which he is used to sleeping in at night), he goes nuts and jumps wildy against the cage. We went back to our vet and asked for sedatives. They were going to give us Acepromazine but i had read about the dangers of that drug on this forum so I refused it. Instead we got valium and were told that in a small percentage of animals , it will have the reverse effect and cause the dog to become hyper. We gave him some today and within an hour or two, he went nuts. Uncontrollable. He has been developing a swelling at the top of his leg (where the pin is underneath the skin). I called the vet and have an appt on monday. so afraid that his leg will not heal properly (or at all) because we cannot keep him calm.

bawlinkids · #9 10-31-2009, 08:18 PM

Oh poor little Dooley ( I absolutely love his name ). This is one of my biggest fears with Bentley, we live on a very busy road. I am always preaching to the kids just how careful we HAVE to be. I sure hope your appt. on Mon. turns out with good news. Give him a smooch for us will you?

dieselnallie · #10 11-02-2009, 02:39 PM

Poor Dooley.
From our experience with Diesel I understand how hard it is to keep a puppy quiet.
Every now and then Diesel would go crazy in his crate The best thing we could do for him, same as you do when they play too rough, is walk out of the room, We would turn out all the lights and cover his crate with a towel to calm him down. Or at least I would. The Husband would feel bad for him and bring him out and cuddle him. Either way works I guess 'cause your main goal is to keep them calm.
Also, only give him a bone when he's in the crate. Help him think that the crate is the best place to be for yummy treats.
One last thing that would help Diesel, and all of you may look at me like I'm crazy, (I know my vet did) Diesel liked to have a big stuffed teddy bear. It was like he couldn't sleep with out it. He used it as a pillow most of the time and then the rest of the time he chewed it a little. Don't ask my why, but he loved his teddy bear.