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Post by Darren on Sept 22, 2013 7:54:13 GMT 10
Hi Tom, I've had a 19 month old dog break his rail side metacarpal, it's a clean break and the vet has said that we have 3 options for setting it, once the swelling subsides. Just plaster, wiring it or plating the break. If all these options will obtain the same result which method should be used, at this point the dog hasn't been smashing the clock during his pre training, but he is doing everything right and we want to give him every chance of having a race career.
How do i help the dog to heal properly and what is the best way to rehab the dog once healed. He is an over excited pup and he is still jumping up on his cage, even though his damage is just bandaged, any advice would be appreciated
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Post by Tom Meulman on Sept 22, 2013 9:41:15 GMT 10
Hi Darren,
The repair method does depend on how well the ends of the bone at the fracture site are aligned.
If the bone is still in a straight line the best option is to simply to splint or plaster the area so that no movement can occur in the fracture line while the bone heals.
If there has been some sideways movement by one section of the bone it is then necessary to wire or plate the bone to get it to heal straight. Unfortunately with both methods this does require drilling into both bone sections, followed in most instances, once the bone has knitted, by removing the metal bits that stabilised the bone during healing, and that means a second operation followed by more time off.
So if it is at all feasible for the bone to heal correctly by just splinting or plastering the area, this is certainly the best way to go.
Edit:
In regards to keeping him quiet while the bone heals, this is something that is not going to be easy.
Firstly if the dog is inclined to jump up in the air when he gets excited, the only answer there is to put a temporary false ceiling in the kennel.
This could be made from a sheet of mesh and hinged at the rear so it could easily be lifted partially out of the way to facilitate kennel cleaning.
For the rest of it ........ a short lead and tight control is going to have to suffice as I personally do not like chemically sedating a greyhound continually for any length of time, as it is so easy to do liver and/or kidney damage.
Cheers,
Tom
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Post by Darren on Sept 22, 2013 17:55:01 GMT 10
Thanks for your reply Tom, I think that the bone has moved sideways slightly from looking at the X-ray, and I guess that's why the vet suggested the wiring or plating.
The lower ceiling is a good idea, I'll get onto that ASAP, so is it no walking at all while the bone heals, or no walking for a certain amount of weeks, I'm guessing that the vet will give me his recommendations after he completes the procedure, but I'd like to know how you would rehab this dog, and what method of building him up again you would use.
Thanks for your time
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Post by Darren on Nov 4, 2013 21:01:01 GMT 10
Hi Tom, the break has healed nicely, everything nice and straight and no calcification. Wires have been removed.
What sort of work load/ training schedule would you reccomend for building him up to race fitness?
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