Osteo Or A Corn?

[Guest wheelerc]

Jack is our first grey, and we were so excited to celebrate his 6th birthday two weeks ago! We've had him for four years, but in the past 8 months he has started limping. I panicked and did as much research as I could and eventually found a corn on his right front leg. However, our previous vet diagnosed him with arthritis (without any tests and without looking at his feet) and put him on Rimadyl. Jack had a very nasty reaction to the Rimadyl, so we took him off and after more wasted time and money at the vet's we tried to treat the corn by ourselves.

 

Although Jack seems healthy and happy and still plays (and he doesn't seem to limp in the grass), we took him again to a vet recommended by GPA to try to readdress the corn. Since he didn't flinch when she palpitated it (although he does when we do), she ran more tests and suspects osteosarcoma. She didn't find anything conclusive on the x-rays, however, so we will be returning for more tests in a week.

 

My husband and I are completely shocked and at our wits' end. Should we be encouraged by Jack's healthy weight and happiness? Are there other symptoms of osteo that we should be looking for? Is it possible for a dog to limp with osteo for so long? Should we ask the vet to remove the corn just in case? Is it something else entirely?

 

Hopefully we will have more answers in a week, but any advice on how to handle this or what to ask would be amazing!

[MaryJane]

If there are x-rays, consider sending them to Dr Couto - I don't have his most recent contact information but, someone on the forum will probably have it. He is very experienced with Osteo. You mentioned other tests - what other tests was the vet considering?

 

As to the corn, the vet can hull it and should be able to do it without having to use anesthesia. My boy Larry has his hulled all the time. You can also use a dremel to sand down the corn a bit so it is not protruding and sometimes this helps with walking - keeping them moisturized can also help. Note, the corns can causes significant lameness which is usually worse on concrete and better on grass.

[greysmom]

Dr Couto

http://www.coutovetconsultants.com/for-ownersadopters/

 

He is *the* expert on osteo in greyhounds. You can send him a digital copy of the xrays and he wil give you his opinion.

 

Osteo can occur in any of the bones in a dog's body, so rads include the entire shoulder and leg. If he's been limping for this long, I would anticipate a more clearly defined bone lesion, if it was osteo, but this may not be the case. The corn is most likely the problem.

 

Search the forum for threads on corns and corn treatments. If you are on Facebook, there is also a helpful group called "Greyhounds with Corns" that has lots of info and ideas.

[Guest Scouts_mom]

I agree with Greysmom. If he has been limping this long and there is no clear cancer on his xray and he is feeling good--it is a corn. But you may want to send the xray to Dr. Couto just to be absolutely sure. I would try dremmeling the corn before you have your vet try hulling it. Much cheaper and easier on the dog.

[NeylasMom]

Impossible to say for certain, but the corn seems much more likely given what you've told us so far. There's an easy, inexpensive way to tell - numb the toe affected by the corn using a nerve block. If the limp goes away, it's the corn. If it doesn't, there's another issue (although still not necessarily osteo).

 

I too am curious about the "additional tests" your vet wants to run. Nothing related to corns or osteo really shows up on blood work (there are values that can change on blood work when cancer is in the picture, but I've honestly never heard of it actually happening or being what led to the dx - with osteo the pain is typically so severe that the lesion is the first sign of an issue).

[Guest wheelerc]

Thank y'all so much for all of this information! I can't tell you how much we appreciate such quick and helpful responses for our boy.

 

To clarify a little, today the vet took x-rays of his carpus, elbow, and shoulder--but found nothing. She worked a lot with his leg and said that his flexion/extension of his shoulder seemed painful, but it was not 100% repeatable. She also palpitated his corn, but was reluctant to hull it because it didn't seem to cause him pain. Although he also had his yearly today, I'm not sure that he actually had any blood panels completed (I could be wrong though). He also got a steroid shot, though I'm not sure if that was to rule out arthritis/injury pain or if it was accompanying his dental. He actually seems to be limping a lot less this evening, but I don't know if that is due to the shot or just because he is dizzy from anesthesia. Either way, I'm really hoping that it's a good sign and not just wishful thinking.

 

For our return visit, I know the vet wants to take more x-rays and physically examine him again. I'm not sure what else she wants to do, but I think her main goal is just to look more closely for lesions and tumors. Before we go back, I'm going to try dremmeling his corn to see if that makes any difference. I'm excited to try it because the medicine and tape approach hasn't been aggressive enough in the past. If we don't get any mileage out of that, I will definitely ask the vet about trying a nerve block. Also, depending on his next x-rays we will look at consulting Dr. Couto.

 

Thank you all again for such awesome advice. I feel like everyone in my house has gone back to breathing

[NeylasMom]

Have you tried a Therapaw? I'm concerned you're spending a lot of money trying to diagnose a problem when there are inexpensive ways to see of you're on the right path and at least narrow down what additional tests you do. I'm especially having a hard time understanding why she'd want to take more x-rays when she seems to have covered the whole leg. If you really want to continue exploring all possible options and/or definitively rule out osteo, it's probably a good time to see an orthopedist.

[Batmom]

Hull the corn.

[Charlies_Dad]

I agree with others, doubtful it's Osteo as typically it is much more aggressive especially in younger pups. I also second having the film sent to Dr Couto for a second opinion.

[calif_chaz]

Several years ago our first greyhound began to limp on one foot. We were newbies at greys and feared the worst, took him to our vet for xrays, etc. No conclusions after much examining, etc and they finally suggested taking him to U of PA where he would, they thought, probably need surgery on his hip. We were very upset and started researching with greytalk, google greyhound limping, etc where the corn possibility came up. Sure enough he had a corn, verified by a very greyhound savvy friend. Went to the website of the animal hospital that specialized in corn removal (think it was Grassmere), changed vets and our new vet watched the video and hulled Sam's corn. Now, several years later, Sam still gets corns, still has them hulled by vet or DH, and wears therapaw boot(s) when in the yard or on a short walk. I get chills when I think of putting Sam through something that was not necessary. Greytalk has been an immense help and support with various issues through the years.

[ramonaghan]

Grassmere is my vet. Here is the link on corn hulling. Sending good thoughts to Jack--I hope that is all it is!

Edited June 17, 2014 by ramonaghan

[andyjg13]

My boy Hotshot has corns on both his front feet and the Thera Paws work wonders. He hates to wear them, but he walks without a limp with them on.

[Guest akshayv]

I have spent hundreds of dollars trying to find the right shoes for my feet. I have hammer toe and the ball of my foot is large, regular shoes fit well but soon start hurting my feet. Orthofeet's shoes fit perfect, wore well right out of the box, very little break in. These Shoes are so much more than covering your feet. Primarily therapeutic shoes that are designed to alleviate heel, foot, knee and back pain.

[GreyTzu]

Reading really is fundamental!

[BatterseaBrindl]

[macoduck]

Troll! I wonder how akshayv thinks we will attach the orthoshoes to our dogs' feet? Oh, so that's why you guys say to try the duct tape method.

[cleptogrey]

also look up how to hull a greyhound corn on youtube. very simple instructions. as long as there is a raised edge around the corn then it can be done easily. i agree w/ bat mom and hubcity/pam- hull and a $20 some odd therapy bootie are a lot cheaper than extensive testing. unfortunately osteo symptoms can show up before an x-ray detects it, but i'm going with corn. some dogs are far more sensitive to corns than others. let's place our $$ on your dog's sensitivity. it's like take a long hike with a pointy pebble in your shoe....all the time! also, there are other anti-inflammatories out there if it is arthritis. what greyhound doesn't have arthritis or corns?

[NeylasMom]

Well now that this thread has been resurrected I am curious what the resolution was with Jack. Is the OP still on here?

[greysmom]

OP hasn't been to GT since starting this thread in 2014.

[NeylasMom]

Bummer. Well at least I know which shoes to buy if I ever end up with hammer toe.

[Walliered]

I agree, you may be spending a lot of money. Both of my greyhounds wore TheraPaws. I may still have one and would be glad to send it to you. How much does your Grey weigh?? That would help me send you the correct size. If you privately send me the size and your snail mail address, I will mail one to you.

[greysmom]

This thread is no longer active. The OP has not returned to GT since 2014.