A fractured leg is one of the most frequent injuries for your furry babies. If your dog has recently had a vehicle accident or had a fall and broken his leg, you’ll have to do some first aid and get them to the hospital immediately. Upon arriving at the veterinary clinic, you can take a look at the different care services and consider how much it would cost you for veterinarian services, which could be expensive. Depending on the severity of the injury, your pet may be advised to undergo surgery or wear a knee brace for dogs.
There are many plausible causes for dogs limping, from common reasons such as strained muscles, bruises, broken bones, tendons and ligaments impairments, and cuts and infections. There are more significant culprits, such as slipped joints, and longer-term problems, such as osteoarthritis and even cancer. The easiest solution to treating a limping dog is to take him or her to the vet, but there are necessary precautions that owners can follow in a variety of mild situations that might avoid the need to do so.
- Check if Your Dog is Showing Lameness
Lameness may be caused by problems such as instability or stiffness, but most lameness cases concerning dogs are caused by discomfort or pain. For this reason, lameness must be treated seriously. Animals cannot verbalize their pain, so it is not reasonable to allow them to suffer in silence, especially if you notice something wrong about them. Vets measure lameness on a scale ranging from one to five, based on the severity of the illness. The grade helps vets to be analytical when assessing whether a dog is getting better or worse.
- Grade 1: The lameness is not noticeable when walking, but is seen as a slight shift in gait while the dog is running.
- Grade 2: The lameness is hard to see when the dog is walking, but it’s evident when he or she is running.
- Grade 3: The lameness is evident whether the dog is walking or running.
- Grade 4: The lameness causes the dog to have a difficult time standing still.
- Grade 5: Non-weight bearing lameness causes the dog to hold its leg up all the time, which may send owners to take surgery or knee brace for dogs as a solution.
- Identify The Injured Leg
Many pet owners have an instinctive capacity to determine when a dog is limping, but it may be more complicated than you would expect to find out which leg is compromised. Moreover, the injury is apparent in grade 4 or 5 lameness. In lower grade lameness, it is far more difficult to identify which leg is injured. You may have to observe your dog’s movement to determine it successfully carefully.
- Determine The Injured Area
If the distressed limb has been successfully identified, the next step is to determine the exact location of the injury. Unlike humans, a dog cannot clearly describe the source of the pain, and the best way to figure it out is to dig, pinch and pull the leg of the dog so you can carefully identify which specific area hurts. While this may sound a bit harsh, the process can be accomplished gently. Depending on the level of pain, some dogs yelp and pull away when you do something to them, so you should take that into account how tightly you should touch, press, or twist their joints.
