Are You Kidding Me?

[Guest firegypsy]

I swear, sometimes I just wonder if the bad luck ever ends. Last night getting up to go to out and then to bed, Freya did her little stretch-shake-wiggle thing and at the end of the wiggle when her butt was going she caught her foot under a heavy, crate style chair. She yelped and then wandered a second before my husband noticed the spraying blood. She must have caught an artery or something. I mean, it was gushing. I wrapped it and it stopped beautifully. She was able to walk, no problem. Went out, did her business, came in, climbed the stairs etc. This morning all was still well, but her foot was swollen. She was still walking on it. I took the bandage off to check it out and was relieved to see that the bandage was clean and dry. Then of course, she started licking.

 

She reopened it and blood started spurting again. I wrapped it up, cleaned up the blood and checked her out. She's doing fine, there's no blood dripping or even dribbling. I didn't put anything to absorb because I wanted to see if there was an issue. As long as it's covered she's not bleeding. She ate breakfast, ran a bit outside and is now sleeping. I'm home all day so I'll be watching her, but what I'm wondering is if I should take her in? The damage is TINY, but clearly in the right spot. Obviously if it opens up and starts bleeding while she's wrapped she's going in. But if wrapping controls everything and keeps her comfortable is watchful waiting acceptable?

[Guest firegypsy]

AND she just full on chased a squirrel. Didn't catch it (thank god) but there was not real limping even after that. This is very odd.

 

I'm definitely leaning towards NOT taking her in unless there's a good reason to that I'm missing. OR she starts actively bleeding. But please, thoughts welcome.

[Guest OurIndy]

I think you're right to keep her home as long as you can keep an eye on her. If you have to leave her alone, I'd think putting on a full wound wrap (which is sounds like you've already done ) is a good idea so you feel comfortable it won't come off. The nightmare scenario is that the bandage comes off and she's alone with no one to apply pressure, so as long as your comfortable with the bandaging I think you're all set.

 

Oh also, it's a good idea to make sure she drinks plenty of water to replace any volume she's lost while bleeding. If you think she lost a lot of blood (doesn't sound like she did) you can give her some chicken broth or gatorade which will replace electrolytes too. You can check for dehydration by tenting her skin on her neck and seeing if it falls back to laying flat, if it stays tented she's dehydrated. If you're ever worried about blood loss you can check her capillary refill time by pressing on her gums in one spot so it blanches and counting until the red color returns (should be less than 2 seconds). Also just evaluating her gums to makes sure they'e a nice pink and not too pale. Probably more info than you bargained for but they're good first response tests in a bleeding scenario!

 

Hope Miss Freya continues to be a wonderful patient. She seems like she's probably fine, just decided to scare the pants off her mom (and that squirrel)!

[kudzu]

I don't know much about these things but I think I would be taking her to the vet because it sounds like a stitch or two may help speed healing. Wrapping it & waiting to see seems like it was totally appropriate last night. Removing the wrap this morning sounded appropriate as well. When you got to the part about it spurting blood again, rather than just an ooze or drip situation, that's when I thought vet visit. Then again, if you can keep a compression wrap on that is just tight enough to prevent bleeding but not so tight as to be uncomfortable or restrict blood flow to the foot then vet may not be necessary. I just don't have a comfort level with applying that type of bandage.

 

Whatever you choose to do, I hope it heals quickly & good luck returns for an extended visit. Things like this are relatively minor but can start to feel overwhelming when they come in a series or are combined with bigger problems.

[MaryJane]

You mentioned that the foot was swollen this morning and that is not necessarily a good thing - it could mean that the wrapping was on too tight which is more likely or it could be bleeding under the skin which I would think would be less likely but, I suppose could occur.

 

Since it is swollen and it started gushing again this morning, maybe it's time to see if your regular vet can squeeze you in for an appointment.

[Guest firegypsy]

You mentioned that the foot was swollen this morning and that is not necessarily a good thing - it could mean that the wrapping was on too tight which is more likely or it could be bleeding under the skin which I would think would be less likely but, I suppose could occur.

 

Since it is swollen and it started gushing again this morning, maybe it's time to see if your regular vet can squeeze you in for an appointment.

 

 

Thank you. I did call the vet and they recommended a wait and see approach. They said as long as she's walking on it and it's not actively bleeding while wrapped I can stay home. They asked that I take the bandage off later this afternoon and if it starts up again that I should come in.

 

The danger, I guess, is that if they DO need to stitch and I wait too long they won't be able to.

 

So it's a wait and see game at my house. I think I need a cleansing or exorcism or something though....these dogs need to stop getting hurt!

[KF_in_Georgia]

I think I need a cleansing or exorcism or something though....these dogs need to stop getting hurt!

 

Good luck with that. Not only do mine continue to ding themselves at every opportunity, but they only do it when the vet's office is closed. I keep the e-vet on speed dial.

[Guest firegypsy]

HA! I know! This is nuts. She's been fine all day. I'm about to change the dressing. Wish me luck!

 

I swear, these dogs are SO accident prone!

[Guest sheila]

another thing I didn't see suggested is perhaps you should leash her for potty breaks until this things heals up so she can't do any full out running.