Broken Toe

[Guest LadyWallace]

Hi all -

 

New to the forum, but have read a lot since we got our sweet lady 2 years ago and has been super helpful. Our girl (Wallace) slipped down some stairs this morning and broke a rear pinky toe. The vet is recommending splinting with a fairly long recovery period. I think I remember reading that this can get a little messy and take a long time, she mentioned that if there isn't improvement in about a month we'd look at amputation. I'm wondering if people have thoughts about skipping to amputation faster - our lady loves to run and play, and the thought of her missing a whole summer (we're in Seattle, so it is just starting to get nice) breaks my heart, and if a splinted toe is less likely to be fully healed anyways I'm not sure it is worth the trouble.

 

Thanks for any advice!

Hannah

[Hubcitypam]

When Buk broke hi toe the vet absolutely refused to split it as he said that puts more pressure on the leg bone. He was just on light duty for a month or so (can't remember exactly how long).

[WalterWallerson]

I don't think there is anything wrong with wanting to skip the splint and go right to amping.

[KellyandKris216]

Indy broke his rear pinky toe almost two years ago while being a crazypants in the yard. It was splinted for probably the first week I think (maybe 2? I can't recall) and then just a whole foot bandage after that for several more weeks. It healed up really well and straight, and he hasn't had any problems since.

 

I had asked the vet at the time about amputation too, but he was pretty confident that it would heal up fine with a splint/bandage as long as Indy stayed off of it. It could have been the way it broke; based on the X-ray he definitely slammed it straight into something (bone broke like: ->- ), rather than it being broken by being wrenched to the side or something (like: -/ ). I figured we'd give splinting a shot and if it didn't work we could amputate then. I suspect there's no wrong answer and I know others have had mixed experiences with broken toes, but that's our 2 cents

[greysmom]

Personally I don't think there's anything wrong with just wanting to get it over with. A toe amp is relatively minor surgery, especially on a back toe, though you do have the issue of putting them under. Two weeks later they are pretty much OK. Though a lot depends on keeping them quiet afterwards. Lazer therapy after the bandages are off can really speed up healing time.

 

If the break is such that a fully healed toe is possible, you *may* want to consider the long route. There is something to be said for preserving as much of a healthy foot as possible. That being said, I would *never* (never) have my dog in a splint for more than a week. Every time I've let a vet talk me into it, my dog has gotten sores, and the healing time is then extended much longer. This last time, my dog broke the small inside toe (a clean uncomplicated break) on a front leg and she had a splint pressure sore after 5 days!

 

If you do decide to go the splint route I would insist on splint/bandage changes every 4 days - yes, you will pay more, and no, your vet won't want to do it - but the skin on their legs is so thin and fragile it just can't hold up to any longer than that in bandaging without changes.

 

Good luck whatever you decide.

[KellyandKris216]

You've reminded me, Indy did indeed get pressure sores from the splint. We were doing splint changes every 3 days at the vet (and yes, pricey!) so fortunately we managed to catch it before it got too bad, but I bet it still hurt! When we switched to a regular bandage I think it was changed every 5 or 7 days until we all thought it was healed enough to carefully leave it open to the air. That's another thing - make sure you're giving enough pain meds regardless of what you choose. The vet was too conservative at first, and when I called for advice on Indy's crying the vet on call said it was way too little for a broken bone and doubled it. He was happier after that.

 

I hope I didn't imply that amp is a bad way to go; I think it's definitely worth considering! I think we were lucky that Indy healed so nicely considering he's usually such a monkey and won't sit still. Good luck either way, I'm sure your girl will be back to playing in no time.

Edited June 14, 2017 by KellyandKris216

[Guest LadyWallace]

Thanks all - the vet is talking about months of splinting, which seems like there's no way it won't make her (and us) miserable. We just talked though and agreed to move on to amputation pretty fast if it seems like it is causing her pain or not healing. I really appreciate the input!

[dmdsmoxie]

Months? It is time to take the toe off. It is non-weight bearing and will have no effect on your dog. Racers are back running in less than two months.

[Hubcitypam]

Buck's was weight bearing (middle right to on a front)and he was fine in two months.

[Houndmommy03]

We thought our girl broke her toe back in March - I had a lot of questions concerning fixing it vs. amputation and people on the Greytalk FB page recommended I join the Three-Toed Greyhound FB page (who knew there would be such a group!). I explained our options and they were able to answer my questions and concerns. I recommend you check them out. Turns out my girl had only severely dislocated her toe (looked broken on xray). I did the splint thing for 7 weeks - it was insanely expensive and not fun for my girl. She was practically on bed rest the whole time. I regretted my decision the entire 6 weeks, wishing we had amputated. That said, she healed well and is fine now. If we never have any more problems, I will be happy with my decision. If she dislocates it again, I will go back to regretting what we did. Anyway, check out that group. They are a wealth of info on toe amputation. Good luck!

[Guest LadyWallace]

Thanks for the advice all. Just for future readers, I thought I'd report that we decided to go with amputation and she goes in on Thursday. She's been pretty miserable, so I feel good about not putting her through a whole summer of this.