Maybe I Shouldn't Have Looked But I Did

[Guest carolxi]

Today, I started reading the 'gone to the bridge' forum. I guess I was looking for strength for when the time comes with my bunny Anubis. anyway, one of the posts said that their grey had ostea and broke its leg jumping around because he was excited about going for his walk. Welo, tht's exactly the kind of thing anubis does and it scared me. The post said 'losts of screaming and then I got him stabilized and took him to the vet." So, I started to wonder, God forbid, but if anubis does break his leg with this hateful disease, how do yu stabilize it?

thanks

[greysmom]

Same way as with a human -

 

Muzzle your dog first of all. Even a sweetie will snap when he's in pain. Use a nice straight object like a stick or broom handle and place it like a splint where it makes most sense to keep the leg from moving around during transport. Tape or wrap the leg and splint together gently. Transport to the nearest e-vet immediately.

 

If your concerned about what to do there are several good books on dog first aid, an the Red Cross offers Pet First Aid classes and kits.

 

It should be mentioned that the example you stated was of a dog who had an existing cancerous lesion in the bone already, causing the bone to be weaker and prone to breaking. Most healthy greys can jump around quite a bit without any injuries, despite how delicate their legs look.

[Guest mcsheltie]

When Kaylin broke her leg we were out in the middle of a field. We ripped up the dog quit that was in the car into strips and bound around her leg, then took the floor mat from the car and wrapped around it so it couldn't bend. You can use anything at hand for a splint. A couple pieces of wood and any kind of cloth for padding, PVC pipe, duct tape is always useful in the process.

Edited July 29, 2010 by mcsheltie

[Guest mirthlesstroll]

If you're at home, you can use a magazine. Pad the leg with a handtowel or something like that, then roll the magazine around the leg and secure with Duct tape.

[MP_the4pack]

Actually, that was the biggest factor in my decision to amp. It scared the bejesus out of me, that I would come home to find a broken leg. I live alone, so if I were on a walk and it broke, I couldn't go get help either. Our walks are very rural.

 

The first aid is what everyone is saying. Anything stiff can be a splint. Keep meds with you when you go for walks. And especially your cell phone.

[Guest RocketDog]

I keep a cardboard tube from a used up roll of paper towels in my doggie duffel for an emergency splint, along with full first aid kit.

[Guest greyt_learner]

What if it's a shoulder? Seems like a splint wouldn't help much up there - or are I'm more ignorant about first aid than I thought? A fracture is what I'm so scared of too.