Dislocated Toe

[Guest MnMDogs]

It seems like I've been at the vet daily lately (ok, it's every other day, but it feels like more).

 

Our foster Alec dislocated his toe yesterday. It fixed itself, dislocated and fixed again in the span of a few hours. Today we went to the vet and after xrays (and it dislocating for them), they suggested splinting for 4 - 6 weeks with weekly dressing changes.

 

Has anyone had success with this? It seems to be popping out at will, and the initial thought was that perhaps amputation would be needed. But the orthopedic wants to try this first.

 

The splint is more like a walking cast and his huge. He's having a hard time navigating with it on, and I wonder if this is worth it for only possible success. Any words of wisdom would be appreciated!

 

Thanks in advance.

[kjw]

We haven't had that particular problem, when anyone's toe dislocates here it pops back in and stays there, so we're lucky. However, Romi had a toe off for another reason (squamous cell carcinoma) and was pretty much himself again in a week. I would not hesitate to to it again rather than go through weeks of discomfort for whatever reason. This was his innermost toe on a rear foot, but I think most people have had similar results, if you do a search on toe amputation.

[Guest MnMDogs]

We haven't had that particular problem, when anyone's toe dislocates here it pops back in and stays there, so we're lucky. However, Romi had a toe off for another reason (squamous cell carcinoma) and was pretty much himself again in a week. I would not hesitate to to it again rather than go through weeks of discomfort for whatever reason. This was his innermost toe on a rear foot, but I think most people have had similar results, if you do a search on toe amputation.

 

Thank you! That's what I was wondering...is healing from an amp a lengthy process. Mork is missing an inner toe on the front, but that happened before I got him. It also was only taken to the first joint and has been a problem for all the years I have had him.

 

This is also a weight bearing toe in the front, but I would assume if done correctly wouldn't pose any problems. In any event, he's a foster, so it's not my decision. But I thought I would try to get informed with others experiences.

 

[BauersMom]

Here's my horror story with toes:

http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php?showtopic=170595&hl=

 

Yes, splinting worked (with a soft splint), and after that Ivy was leashed walked only for several months. If you don't give the ligaments time to heal, it will keep popping out. We also supplemented with Ligaplex II.

 

And we've been dislocated toe-free for a year now! If we amputated in her case, she would be down 3 toes. Not exactly a good situation, but of course, I think Ivy's case is an extreme one.

Edited March 10, 2009 by BauersMom

[Guest MnMDogs]

Thanks for that link, BauersMom. Wow, that really does sound like a nightmare! Could you give me more info on the soft wrap? This splint is ridiculous, and he seems really uncomfortable already. I wonder if a soft wrap will work for him. He's very unsteady, and I found him leaning on the oven on his way to follow me to the bedroom.

[BauersMom]

Thanks for that link, BauersMom. Wow, that really does sound like a nightmare! Could you give me more info on the soft wrap? This splint is ridiculous, and he seems really uncomfortable already. I wonder if a soft wrap will work for him. He's very unsteady, and I found him leaning on the oven on his way to follow me to the bedroom.

 

The soft wrap is basically a wrap with no hard splint. We started with a hard splint and Ivy got a wicked sore from it, so we had to switch over. You still have to keep it dry, and all that.

 

When my other dog broke his toe, we had to stay with the splint because he couldn't put any weight on the toe at all or the bone chip might cause problems. But for a dislocated toe, I think as long as the toe gets support, you don't really need a hard splint. But it does need to be wrapped, especially if it keeps popping out!

[Guest MnMDogs]

Thanks so much for the info. I bring him in for a wrap change in a week, and I'll ask about it then. This splint really looks like it may be super uncomfortable for him.

 

After reading your thread, now I'm wondering if his other toes are in danger - quite a few of them seem to "bend" a little at the knuckle. That's how this one looked until yesterday, when it suddenly ended up on it's side. The strange thing is, he just started limping a bit; he didn't cry or make a sound.

[Batmom]

Zema's did not pop back out after vet put it back in. Vet wanted to splint. I vetoed that and we went with a soft wrap. Now I can't remember how long I kept her wrapped 1-3 weeks? I did leash walk only for several weeks. She had no swelling, no bruising, no apparent pain, nothing once it was put back. Have never had a repeat, knock on wood.

[BauersMom]

Here's a picture of her splinted hard wrap (one of the many, many, many wraps.... )

 

 

And different toe, now with a soft wrap:

 

[Guest MnMDogs]

That soft wrap looks so much better! I'm definitely going to ask about that.

 

Thanks for all the input everyone

[KF_in_Georgia]

Thanks so much for the info. I bring him in for a wrap change in a week, and I'll ask about it then. This splint really looks like it may be super uncomfortable for him.

 

Did you see the hard splint put on? A friend whose greyhound was hard-splinted found that he suffered further injury because the splint was insufficiently padded. If your boy is that uncomfortable now in the hard splint, I'd worry about waiting for a week unless you're sure the splint was well padded.

 

Here's the friend's blog post.

[Guest MnMDogs]

Thanks for that input. I think it's pretty well padded because I can see the outline of the splint against his wrap. So I assume it's over a lot of padding. I'll keep an eye on him for any signs of irritation. (I'll also read that blog post!).

 

I think the discomfort right now is from him not being able to bend his leg. He's clomping around like a monster.

[Guest Greytnorth]

Our girl Ruby dislocated her toe last year. At first she was in a hard splint but we soon encountered problems. It was not properly padded and she ended up with sores on both sides of her paw and in between one of her toes. As soon as we noticed this, we switched to a soft wrap and put cotton balls between the toes so that they would be supported and not rub against each other. Ruby's foot was splinted for about 3 weeks and we have not had a problem since. I would strongly consider a soft splint for your foster.

[turbotaina]

Splinting can be very tricky and as others have mentioned, you need to keep an eye on it. If you stay with the hard splint, I'd actually do twice weekly bandage changes to make sure no pressure sores are erupting. I'd go with a soft wrap, if at all possible.

 

We had a foster a few years ago whose toe was constantly dislocating. He had apparently stretched out the ligament so much that it would not hold his joint in place at all. If he so much as stepped on a pebble, out would pop the toe. We ended up amputating the toe and he's doing just fine in his adoptive home.

[calif_chaz]

Maggie dislocated an outer toe on hind foot last Aug. Vet first did a splint which she hated and she had a pressure sore within 24 hours. Then they did a soft wrap which had my girlie trying to gnaw her leg off. So I took it off, leash walked her out to potty, even in the house in the morning when running to breakfast. All this with a thera-paw boot on. That is what kept that toe protected. She did not wear the therapaw all the time.

[Batmom]

FWIW, kind of along the lines of calif_chaz, I didn't use a lot of padding in my wrap -- mostly just some firm turns of vetwrap to keep the foot properly shaped and support the toe.

[robinw]

Be super careful not to let the bandage get wet or even a wee bit damp, or else there stands a good chance of infection, which is what happened to Loca.

[Guest GreysAndMoreGreys]

I'm also with the group of if you have to splint to go with a soft wrap.

Those hard cast are just dang hard to maintain without some sort of irritation to your hounds leg/foot/or toes.

 

Also agree with others on making sure the wrap doesn't get wet or damp. Wrap changes 2x a week will be a pain but in the long run will be well worth it.

[Guest MnMDogs]

This is all such helpful advice. I'm going to talk to the group about these options. Right now, he is pretty unhappy with this situation, with seems like such overkill for a toe! Fortunately, I've got a closet full of older TheraPaws from Mork if needed.

 

Thanks for the advice about keeping it from getting wet. We have an IV bag to keep over it, but I wonder how practical it is to keep any moisture off for up to 6 weeks! Every time I hear licking I jump up to see who it is...fortunately, it's mainly Mork.

 

 

[Guest GREYTGLITTER]

When we got our Gigi in Apr 2008 we did not notice any probs with her toes but after a few months (and a move from CT to DE) we noticed that a toenail on her right rear foot seemed to be growing into her foot. This was before we started dermeling our greys nails.We noticed her licking her foot. She did not limp.

 

We treated the sore for a few days or so and when we got her to the vet, it was determined that she had had the dislocated toe for awhile. We kept it wrapped and kept baby socks on her foot - she was so cute. So easy to replace the baby sock when she got it wet outside.

 

We still do not know when or how she did it or if she had it when she came to us.

 

The toe was amputated and within 1-2 days she was running on it. She does not seem to notice it's gone - it surely does not slow her down. MOST people do not even notice the toe is is gone.

 

The toe amputation was harder on us than on her.

[robinw]

Thanks for the advice about keeping it from getting wet. We have an IV bag to keep over it, but I wonder how practical it is to keep any moisture off for up to 6 weeks! Every time I hear licking I jump up to see who it is...fortunately, it's mainly Mork.

I used IV bags to keep Loca's foot dry but some moisture still seeped through and it wasn't unusual for the bag to come off. I ended up taking her to the vet for a bandage change about once a week.

 

[BauersMom]

This is all such helpful advice. I'm going to talk to the group about these options. Right now, he is pretty unhappy with this situation, with seems like such overkill for a toe! Fortunately, I've got a closet full of older TheraPaws from Mork if needed.

 

Thanks for the advice about keeping it from getting wet. We have an IV bag to keep over it, but I wonder how practical it is to keep any moisture off for up to 6 weeks! Every time I hear licking I jump up to see who it is...fortunately, it's mainly Mork.

 

It'll get wet, especially in the spring. Uhh, what a PITA!

 

Have your vet show you how to do the wraps at home. It's easy once you see it. The supplies are cheap - I get mine from KVvet - all you need is soft gauze wrap and vet wrap (and the scissors with the blunt ends are handy too).

 

I used IV bags, but honestly, they didn't really work well for walking, etc. I ended up using grocery bags, doubled up to prevent any leaks, tied around the leg. The softer plastic seemed a little easier on the gait. I have also tried saran wrap, but I don't recommend it (you get creative when faced with months worth of a wrapped foot ).

 

[Guest MnMDogs]

Oh man, this is sounding like a daunting task! I tried to take him for a short walk today, and he was miserable. Fortunately, we're between rains here in Norcal, so the ground is pretty dry.

 

I'm going to bring him in Friday to ask about a soft wrap. I'm getting a little freaked about the whole moisture thing now! The problem is, I'm heading out of town for 10 days next week, and he'll have to go to another foster home during that time. No way can DH take care of 4 dogs - 2 with pretty bad foot issues at the moment - since he's gone at least 10 hours a day. Plus, Mork's corns are horrible and he's cranky about that.

 

This poor foster, though (Alec), it honestly sounds like he's smacking a bat on the ground every time he takes a step. It sounds like it's really jarring to his entire leg! And this is a dog that likes to be wherever we are, so will follow anytime we move.

[Guest MnMDogs]

I just have another quick question. Somehow his toe has poked through the end of the wrap... I've called the vet to move the bandage change up till tomorrow (from Friday).and hopefully switch to a soft wrap. Do you think that's warranted? Ugh, this dog is so hard to keep quiet! He stamps around like an elephant following our every move.

 

Thanks for any advice, I know this is a pretty small issue, but I really don't know what to do with him!

[KF_in_Georgia]

He's clearly uncomfortable, so I think the vet visit is warranted. And if the soft wrap will make him less aware of the bandaging, so he makes less of a deal about the whole thing, then the visit is certainly warranted.

 

And since you're not going to be able to deal with all this next week, it'd be well to get problems ironed out sooner (tomorrow) rather than later.

 

Good luck.