I am new here - so I hope it's ok to start a new thread. I look after my son’s 8 month old Labrador twice a week and have been working on retrieval. He absolutely loves this especially if it involves swimming – if he thinks a dummy is going to be thrown he will totally ignore a lump of juicy chicken in favour of waiting for the throw. A couple of weeks ago he leapt up at a moving dummy, twisted and injured his front elbow. X-rays indicated elbow dysplasia and an operation was organised. However the pre-op scan showed a hairline fracture and we were told that it wasn’t dysplasia and an op was not needed. Dee-Jay has been put on strict crate rest for four weeks but his limp seems to have got worse. We love him so much and hate to see him in pain and unable to do anything but it will all be worthwhile if the fracture heals. Does anyone have any experience of fractures like this?
I think @heidrun 's spaniel Ziggy and @Stacia have both had this experience - with positive outcomes I think. Poor lad. Hope he has some painkillers. Good luck x jac (and a warm welcome to the forum - sorry such a thing has brought you here)
Jac - Thank you so much for your reply. It's much appreciated! Dee-Jay has been on painkillers since the day it happened as we took him straight to the vet. However, he didn't seem anywhere near as bothered by the injury then as he is now.
I am guessing you have talked to the vet some more about this? And have a follow up plan in place. I am wondering if some swimming would be appropriate - I don't know, just guess, as its non weight-bearing. Do you have any canine therapy pools near you? Might be worth asking your vet. Are you in the UK?
One of my spaniels had a broken elbow, but it was a classic Y fracture not a hairline fracture. He was operated on by an orthopaedic vet surgeon who fixed it with a pin and a screw. The dog has made a complete recovery. There is a condition called IOHC which is common in spaniel breeds and can lead to elbow fractures. Minute hairline fractures are a sign of this disorder. I wanted to know if my dog had this condition which can affect both elbows and can be treated by preventative surgery so that it doesn't come to an actual fracture of the bone. The condition does not necessarily show up on a normal X-Ray but needs a CT scan to be sure. As it turned out my dog didn't have IOHC but his fracture was due to the impact of the accident he had. Has your dog been seen by a specialist, an orthopaedic vet?
drjs Thanks for the reply and the hydrotherapy suggestion. We do have therapy pools nearby and I have offered to pay for a course of 10 sessions. My d-in-l is going to ask the Vet whether it would be appropriate heidrun Thanks also for the very interesting reply. The vet who did the X-rays referred Dee-Jay to another practice and it was they who did the scan and who were going to do the dysplasia op, so I assume that they are orthopaedic specialists. Dee-Jay actually belongs to my son and his wife but I frequently (at least two days a week) look after him and also have him to stay over some weekends - but I didn't speak to the second vet myself so I'm not sure of all the injury details. I'll ask my d-in-l. I love Dee-Jay dearly and we've both been really enjoying working through the training manual from the Gundog Club. He's an absolute natural with working parents & I wanted to give him interest and excitement in life. Btw I've had Irish Setters in the past and they're absolutely great dogs but nowhere near as responsive and intelligent as a labrador!
