a_daerr Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 Out of nowhere, Henry started limping today on his front leg. Upon further look, I noticed that the wrist (at the joint) was very swollen. At this point, he's not putting ANY weight on it and yelping out in pain whenever he tries to move it. I've been putting an ice pack on it, alternating every 30 minutes or so. He's tolerating that well. I also wrapped it in an ace bandage to provide some pressure. He seems okay otherwise, gums are pink. A little bit of panting off and on, as he's clearly in pain. I'm using a towel under his belly to help him get around. I can get him into the vet's first thing tomorrow morning, but I feel so terrible that he's in pain. Is this e-vet worthy? Also, I don't have any pain meds at home. I'm reluctant to give him anything that hasn't been okayed by the doctor due to his seizures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
o_rooly Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 (edited) I would e-vet, for Henry's comfort, and peace of mind at the very least. Edit to add: The yelping is what makes the difference for me -- Aston's very stoic, so if he started crying over something I'd take him in. Not sure if Henry's a talker in general. Edited June 30, 2013 by o_rooly Quote every day a tiny adventure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lanielovesgreys Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 Would that type of stress trigger a seizure? If the panting is continuous I'd take him in. But we all have different thresholds for these types of things. Oh, and it's time to start saving a pain pill or two every now and again for times like this. Signed, antibiotic and pain pill hoarder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 E-vet. Hope it's just a really bad bruise, but severe swelling and/or no weight on leg = e-vet visit. Quote 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 IllinoisWe 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnzaFerrari Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 I'd take him in - swelling, no weight, and yelping would mean I take in my girl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatricksMom Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 I'd take him in for pain relief, if nothing else. Hopping for the best. Quote Beth, Petey (8 September 2018- ), and Faith (22 March 2019). Godspeed Patrick (28 April 1999 - 5 August 2012), Murphy (23 June 2004 - 27 July 2013), Leo (1 May 2009 - 27 January 2020), and Henry (10 August 2010 - 7 August 2020), you were loved more than you can know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RMarie Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 Poor Henry! He's pretty stoic, right? It's easier to dismiss such things with James because he's such a baby, but Henry seems tougher than most. If he's in that much pain and won't bear weight, I understand why you're considering the e-vet. Being this late on the weekend, though, I also see the struggle between taking him in and paying a butt load of money vs. waiting until tomorrow to see the regular vet. Have you seen any improvements? Was he running around and fell down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted June 30, 2013 Author Share Posted June 30, 2013 He's improved a good bit in the last few hours. No more panting or yelping. I gave him two of his Xanax, which won't do anything for the pain, but has managed to calm him down significantly. Now he's quietly lying next to me on the couch. I already called off work for tomorrow so I can take him to the vet's when they open. I think he's going to be alright for tonight, but we're ready to take him to the e-vet if he starts backsliding. My heart really hurts for my boy. Was he running around and fell down? No idea how it happened... Sometimes they go outside and run around, then they fly up the stairs. That's my best guess. I just looked over, and he's roaching now. That's promising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RMarie Posted June 30, 2013 Share Posted June 30, 2013 I just looked over, and he's roaching now. That's promising. Hahaha, he's keeping it elevated, duh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duncan41 Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 How is Henry? Quote Linda, Mom to Fuzz, Barkley, and the felines Miss Kitty, Simon and Joseph.Waiting at The Bridge: Alex, Josh, Harley, Nikki, Beemer, Anna, Frank, Rachel, my heart & soul, Suze and the best boy ever, Dalton.<p> ....for all those hounds that are sick, hurt, lost or waiting for their forever homes. SENIORS ROCK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlies_Dad Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Hope Henry is going okay and vet appointment went well. Good thoughts for your boy. Quote Kyle with Stewie ('Super C Ledoux, Super C Sampson x Sing It Blondie) and forever missing my three angels, Jack ('Roy Jack', Greys Flambeau x Miss Cobblepot) and Charlie ('CTR Midas Touch', Leo's Midas x Hallo Argentina) and Shelby ('Shari's Hooty', Flying Viper x Shari Carusi) running free across the bridge. Gus an coinnich sinn a'rithist my boys and little girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted July 1, 2013 Author Share Posted July 1, 2013 Just got back from the vet with Henry. They took x-rays, and thank God, nothing was broken or fractured. The vet diagnosed it as a soft tissue injury, but admitted it was really bad. It's likely a tendon or ligament issue. She said that when she was looking at the x-rays, she was amazed it wasn't a break because he was clearly in an excruciating amount of pain. I think the process of getting him up into the car and being handled in the office put him over the edge. They actually gave him a pain/sedative shot in the lobby because he was panting hard and was also really twitchy and whiny. I insisted they give him the meds ASAP because I didn't want him having a seizure from the pain. That knocked him out right away (his tongue was fully hanging out of his mouth). Then they also gave him a shot of Rimadyl (for the swelling) and a Tramadol pill, so he seems much more comfortable now. It's going to take a long time for the injury to heal though- anywhere from 3-6 weeks. He has to be on pain meds and anti-inflammatories during that time. No stairs. Very limited activity. It looks like I'm going to be taking a little vacation from work so I can monitor him and help get him outside to the bathroom. It sucks that he has to be so doped up, but at least his pain is under control. Also, I'm very glad I decided not to go to the e-vet last night. The visit cost over $400, so I can only imagine how much they would've charged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carronstar Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 I hope Henry feels better soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neighsayer Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Good news that it isn't a fracture. Hope he feels better soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted July 3, 2013 Author Share Posted July 3, 2013 We're not out of the woods yet. Yesterday, the leg didn't look right to me. The swelling migrated from just the joint to the entire lower leg/paw area. Took him back to the vet's yesterday. Looks like a secondary infection. Either that, or it was some sort of bite or sting all along. He got two shots of ABX, and we also went home with Baytril and Amoxicillin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Davros Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 poor guy : ( hope he heals up again quickly! i can only speak from human perspective as i've never had a dog badly bitten by a bug, but there's been times when i've had a bad bite and swelling that has started lower down on the limb has been quite painful and migrated, to the point that the intial bite site is back to 'normal' and the big lump is entirely further up the limb... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted July 4, 2013 Author Share Posted July 4, 2013 (edited) Update: After starting the antibiotics, we saw no improvement by the next day. If anything, the swelling was even worse and continued to migrate away from the site of the injury. He was also refusing food and water. Our vet recommended that we take him to the e-vet yesterday, which turned into a 7.5 hour marathon event. They aspirated the joint, ran a CBC and TBD panel, and adjusted some of the medications. As it turns out, the joint is now septic. When she did the aspirate, they couldn't even draw it back in the needle because it was a thick pus. The 'swelling' in the lower part of his paw actually wasn't swelling at all- it's edema. The e-vet is recommending a very aggressive antibiotic treatment for at least a month. If that doesn't work, we'll need to bring him back in to have the tissue debrided. Henry continues to be very 'out of it' but stable and in good spirits. At this point, I'm really considering the possibility of a spider bite. While I was waiting, I researched 'spiders native to western PA' and came up with a very thorough study by Penn State. I found one whose bite very closely matches Henry's symptoms. The long-legged sac spider: These two spiders probably account for a significant number of human bites. People usually incur C. inclu- sum bites outdoors while gardening in the summer. C. mildei will readily bite, despite their small size, and they have been observed crawling across the human skin surface and biting without provocation. Although most of these bites are painful at the outset, they normally do not result in any serious medical conditions. For C. inclusum victims and some individuals sensi- tive to C. mildei, the bites will exhibit the symptoms described below... The bite is usually very painful and burning at the outset, with developing erythema, edema, and intense itching. The burning sensation associated with the bite will last for an hour or more, and a rash and blistering will occur during the next ten hours. Some patients may exhibit systemic reactions with fever, malaise, muscle cramps, and nausea. These symptoms are similar to black widow bite symptoms but are much less severe. Edited July 4, 2013 by a_daerr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yamaha_gurl Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Omg...how awful, hoping for a quick recovery! You'd think spider bites wouldn't be as common in Pennsylvanian. Quote Greyhound Collars : www.collartown.ca Maggie (the human servant), with Miss Bella, racing name "A Star Blackieto" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macoduck Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Here's a link to Harold's spider bite: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/293032-spider-bite/?hl=harold&do=findComment&comment=5391023 Is this similar to what you saw in Henry? Quote Freshy (Droopys Fresh), NoAh the podenco orito, Howie the portuguese podengo maneto Angels: Rita the podenco maneta, Lila, the podenco, Mr X aka Denali, Lulu the podenco andaluz, Hada the podenco maneta, Georgie Girl (UMR Cordella), Charlie the iggy, Mazy (CBR Crazy Girl), Potato, my mystery ibizan girl, Allen (M's Pretty Boy), Percy (Fast But True), Mikey (Doray's Patuti), Pudge le mutt, Tessa the iggy, Possum (Apostle), Gracie (Dusty Lady), Harold (Slatex Harold), "Cousin" Simon our step-iggy, Little Dude the iggy ,Bandit (Bb Blue Jay), Niña the galgo, Wally (Allen Hogg), Thane (Pog Mo Thoine), Oliver (JJ Special Agent), Comet, & Rosie our original mutt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gemma Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Oh, poor boy! Keeping him in my thoughts and hoping the new antibiotics kick in soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryJane Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 I'm sorry to hear that he is not better. I might suggest thinking back to what Henry was doing for the hour before the swelling occurred. While it is starting to sound more like a spider bite, I wouldn't discount a snake bite at this point (although it is unlikely) . Have they been able to shave the fur and look for any bite marks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remolacha Posted July 4, 2013 Share Posted July 4, 2013 Poor Henry, that sounds painful! I hope the ABX knock it out, and the pain meds keep him comfortable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted July 4, 2013 Author Share Posted July 4, 2013 Here's a link to Harold's spider bite: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/293032-spider-bite/?hl=harold&do=findComment&comment=5391023 Is this similar to what you saw in Henry? YEP!! Almost exactly, even down to the same spot on his leg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatricksMom Posted July 5, 2013 Share Posted July 5, 2013 How awful, hoping that the new antibotics help Henry feel better soon. What a nasty spider Quote Beth, Petey (8 September 2018- ), and Faith (22 March 2019). Godspeed Patrick (28 April 1999 - 5 August 2012), Murphy (23 June 2004 - 27 July 2013), Leo (1 May 2009 - 27 January 2020), and Henry (10 August 2010 - 7 August 2020), you were loved more than you can know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a_daerr Posted July 5, 2013 Author Share Posted July 5, 2013 (edited) Here's Hen's swollen leg. It looks a little better today, but Ducky, you can see how similar it looks to Harold's. Edited July 5, 2013 by a_daerr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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