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Broken Or Dislocated Toe?


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I noticed this morning that something is wrong with Corinna's toe. The nail was bent completely sideways and at first I thought she had torn the nail partially off but when I looked at it, it is actually the toes itself that was bent. I was able to manipulate it back straight and she didn't yelp or seem to mind at all but within a minute or two it was bent again. she was holding the paw up on the hard tile in the kitchen but is walking and standing fine on it when the carpet.

 

Is a vet visit required and if so is this something I should go to the e-vets for (since it's the weekend)?

Hobbes-Ricard Hatch09/23/99-12/21/09 Always loved, never forgotten. Wally TNJ Boy Howdy, GLS Genuinerisk Corinna

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You know, probably you could just vet-wrap her foot to keep the toe straight. At least to get thru the week-end.

 

My Mccarthy broke a bone in her foot/toe a few years ago, and she walked on it (or held it up) for a day before I got her to the vet. The bone she broke was just above the toe, so technically not the toe itself; but still the vet thought it might not heal right and we might have to amputate the toe. But, it healed great - she was in a splint with the whole foot & leg wrapped for awhile.

 

Since she's standing on it, I think she can make it thru the weekend with it wrapped.

gallery_21421_3253_11008.jpg

Barb, Mom to Grey's Tickertape & Grey's McCarthy.
Always missing: Wizzie and Desi

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If it won't stay put and you're not sure what's wrong, I would say vet visit. If it's dislocated, the longer it stays in the dislocated position, the harder it will be to get healed up.

Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in Illinois
We miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10.

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Guest Swifthounds

Perhaps you could post a picture? If it's dislocated, you need vet attention unless you really know what you're doing. A break normally will heal just fine with a nice vet wrap bandage for a few weeks to immobilize the toe and hold it in place. In either case, you want the toe immobilized to prevent further I jury to soft tissues and allow it to heal. A bandage (never a splint, ugh) is the best option for both and the sooner the better.

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I called my vet and made an appointment for monday morning. I was able to straighten it again and so far it hasn't popped back out. She has been nesting on her bed with the foot and doesn't appear to be bothered by it at all. Its very strange it looks perfectly normal now. If my DH hadn't seen it as well I would swear I was going crazy.

 

Eta if it does it again I will get a picture.

Edited by greytluck

Hobbes-Ricard Hatch09/23/99-12/21/09 Always loved, never forgotten. Wally TNJ Boy Howdy, GLS Genuinerisk Corinna

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Guest FullMetalFrank

Not something I would run to the vet for, but like Heather, we have had to deal with a toe or two and had some help from coursing friends. Jewels dislocated hers and I followed a strict bandaging/rest/gradual rehab schedule and she healed very well with no reoccurrence; she has returned to lure coursing since then. But; we went into it knowing that if our course of action was unsuccessful and the toe would not stay put, then veterinary intervention would be necessary.

You need to figure out how to tape the toe in place well enough to immobolize it; but at the same time be very careful not to allow any chafing, rubbing, etc... to happen, and to avoid wrapping too tight. Any one of those things can end up causing more trouble than the initial injury. I used soft cotton roll to lightly pad between her toes; then used a "sling" type taping method where a loop of 1/2" tape was wrapped around the innermost two toes and up towards the top of the foot, and a second loop went around the outermost toes and up towards the top. The tape was situated in such a manner that the cotton roll kept it from chafing between the toes. Then the foot was wrapped snug but NOT TIGHT with vetwrap, leaving the nails exposed and making sure they weren't digging into adjacent toes. Needs to be kept completely dry, changed frequently, and is generally a pain in the butt, and in our case was well worth the three weeks I followed the taping routine. Then twice daily massages with emu oil, followed by gentle stretching exercises to regain full range of motion (well, close to it anyways) and finally leash walking, then short easy sprints, and finally 100 to 200 yard sprints after the lure. She now has a nice scar tissue capsule surrounding the joint, helping to hold it in place. She was on the rehab schedule for probably 8 weeks before I let her run without any restrictions.

Edited by FullMetalFrank
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Arggg... It happened again tonight as she was going down the stairs. After the second time I put it in on Saturday morning it was fine up until now. I canceled my appointment this morning as I thought it was going to be okay. I iced it a few times and didn't let her run at all but I didn't wrap it as I was worried about causing more harm then good.

 

I'm bringing my cat in for a abscessed tooth tomorrow so i will see if I can bring Corinna in to. Man these animals will be the death of me.

 

Here's a picture of her toe before I put it back in joint.

 

DSC05112.jpg\

 

I know her nails are long (which probably contributed to the problem) but she wont let me dremel them and she gives me a hard time cutting them. I know excuses excuses.

Hobbes-Ricard Hatch09/23/99-12/21/09 Always loved, never forgotten. Wally TNJ Boy Howdy, GLS Genuinerisk Corinna

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Could help to cut the nails back some -- maybe vet could do that for you? I would wrap it in the manner FullMetalFrank describes or as here -- http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/236108-dislocated-toe-our-wrap-job-which-worked/page__p__4146449__hl__dislocated__fromsearch__1?do=findComment&comment=4146449 -- adjusting for the difference in which toe and how it wants to dislocate. The trick is to devise a wrap and some supports that are soft so as not to cause sores but still firm enough to keep that toe absolutely positively in the right position until it heals.

 

Best luck!

Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in Illinois
We miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10.

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Yep, see if you can't get the nails trimmed back. Irrc, a dislocated toe should be wrapped for about 3 weeks to allow for the tendon to heal and strengthen back up.

 

Good luck!


Meredith with Heyokha (HUS Me Teddy) and Crow (Mike Milbury). Missing Turbo (Sendahl Boss), Pancho, JoJo, and "Fat Stacks" Juana, the psycho kitty. Canku wakan kin manipi.

"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire

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Guest Swifthounds

The nails would be the first thing I would address. Long nails are frequently the culprit in toe/foot injuries because the long nails prevent the foot from functioning properly and damage and weaken the soft tissues of the foot that hold everything together. I've seen a few returns with nails that had been so long for such a long time that the feet were badly damaged.

 

I used cotton sheeting to wrap around the toe to prevent rubbing, then wrap with gauze and vet wrap the whole foot. The cotton batting prevents rubbing. Then it's strict rest for several weeks and working back slowly.

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Corinna is back from the vets. She actually had two broken bones in the same toe and not a dialocation as I thought. The vet put a splint on the toe immobilize it (she said a splint was more stable then just a wrap) and she is on restricted exercise for 4-6 weeks.

Hobbes-Ricard Hatch09/23/99-12/21/09 Always loved, never forgotten. Wally TNJ Boy Howdy, GLS Genuinerisk Corinna

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Corinna is back from the vets. She actually had two broken bones in the same toe and not a dialocation as I thought. The vet put a splint on the toe immobilize it (she said a splint was more stable then just a wrap) and she is on restricted exercise for 4-6 weeks.

 

A splint is more stable, but it can also cause a lot of problems. If you see her licking at it, or limping worse, that could be a sign of a splint sore. Sores can go from bad to ugly REALLY quickly, so you'll want to keep an eye on it.

 

Good luck :)

With Buster Bloof (UCME Razorback 89B-51359) and Gingersnap Ginny (92D-59450). Missing Pepper, Berkeley, Ivy, Princess and Bauer at the bridge.

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We had a broken toe here and the vet gave me the options of trying just leaving it alone and see how it went or a splint. Watching activity level and the toe is fine with no limping. Every break and every dog is different, but I'd keep an eye on the splint to be sure it doesn't cause a sore.

june

 

PS yes, they can be little stinkers about the nail trimming :P

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Guest Swifthounds

I'm not sure why, but too many vets have a love affair with splints. For broken toes, they're more trouble than they're worth more often than not - even worse for greyhounds. Unfortunately, track vets seem the only one's with enough experience to know this.

 

The only way a splint is better than a bandage at immobilizing toes is if you don't know how to bandage.

 

I wish you the best of luck.

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