When to worry? (sedation)

I've had a very loooong day :sad:
This morning my boy injured his paw. The neigbours dog came onto our property and began charging and barking at Adi right after we had let him out (my boyfriend was just closing the gate). Seeing as how he is somewhat territorial and the little beast caught him off gaurd, he slammed into his pen with a few very loud barks. His foot got caught through the chain link and he was limping quite badly after that. He showed no obvious signs of pain other then the pronounced limp. After he was inside I checked his paw and toes (which he let me do without issue) nothing seemed broken. I let him do his thing for about half an hour, thinking maybe he just twisted it. After 30 minutes though he began showing obvious signs of pain and distress, including licking his paw furiously and hackling at my boyfriend (which he would never, ever do in his normal state). At that point I called the vet and told them I was on my way.

When we arrived, the vet sedated him and did xrays as well as physical exams. Turns out he has a very handsome leg and crooked toes:o, but luckily no breaks or fractures. The vet deemed it a soft tissue injury and gave him pain meds for the next couple days. If he is not showing improvement within the next 5 days we are supposed to bring him back in for further testing.

Well when it came time to pay the 400$ bill, the card was declined. :eek::wall::yell:
The bank messed up majorily and at the worst possible time. We knew we had money to pay the vet, the money was IN THE ACCOUNT YESTERDAY. I was soooo mad. My boyfriend ended up having to drive ALL THE WAY back to where we live (an hour away) so he could go to our bank and straighten things out. They apologized and gave us our money. Meanwhile as all this is happening I'm laying on the concrete in a kennel with my passed out dog as everyone is looking at me like I'm the broke crazy lady.


Maybe I am weird for laying in a dog kennel, but to be fair I don't believe in making your dog do anything you would'nt do yourself.:crazy: Infact, I was almost asleep when the vet tech came in to tell me my boyfriend had arrived. I'm not below snuggling my dog in public, lol. Plus who wants to sit in a busy waiting room.....

My question is, he is really groggy and it's starting to scare me. When can I expect him to "wake up". He is just laying beside me and can barely stand. When he tries to stand and walk he is very disoriented and wobbly. He will sometimes just stare off into space. I'm very worried as I'm use to him being very alert and active. I'm also worried about dehydration, he hasn't had a drink all day. He is trying to drink now, but I still worry that he is not intaking enough water.

At what point should I call my vet?

She told me he would be very groggy, so am I just overeacting and being a worry wart?



Sorry for the long post and grammer errors. I'm extremely stressed and tired. It's been a very hectic day.

How long has it been, Blackdog? Depending on the drug used, they can be groggy and uncoordinated for quite a while. Sometimes they give them a drug to reverse the affects of the sedation, but we've had dogs just suddenly collapse and go back to being nearly comatose when the reversing agent wears off. :eek:

Normally, our vets only give a light sedation for xrays, though--full anesthesia can take 24 - 48 hours for the effects to completely disappear, but our dogs generally recover in less than 12 hours if just given a light sedation for xrays.

I agree ...it depends how much sedation the vet gave him. Our vet only gives the least amount necessary and we've picked up our dog 4 hours later and he was a little disoriented but fine within the next four hours.

I'm sure your boy will be fine and hope he has a speedy recovery. :fingerscr :goodvibes:

Btw, I've laid on the floor in the vet kennel beside a few dogs I've taken in and I understand that part completely. :D

Some sedatives are worse than others for side effects & lasting past when the vet says it will wear off. Also depends on the animal's tolerance to the meds.

I recently had to take my kidney failure cat in to a conventional vet & she needed a light sedative, I was told it would wear off in about 4 hours........she was still seriously loopy 12 hours later & I had to get my homeopath vet to prepare a remediy to counter-act the effects.

:goodvibes: speedy recovery for Adi to get back to himself

I was just being paranoid. He is 100% back to himself with the exception of the limp. The vet used a very mild sedative and a heart protectant on him, no anesthesia. He drank a bunch of water last night about 4 hours after we got home. That was a relief!
Now he's eating breakfast.

I'm still really worried about his paw and I think I'm going to take him in again soon. Now he is licking his back right paw as if it's hurt and the limp in his front leg is still very pronounced. I'm thinking it could be some type of infection, but I'm baffled as to what it could be. The vet didn't really seem that concerned though, and was very optimistic about his prognosis. Anyone know of any diseases or ailments that can affect the paws of a dog?

It's so heartbreaking seeing the little fellow limp around. I also feel super bad for giving him "crate rest" for 5 days. I have a feeling he is REALLY not going to appreciate or understand that.

Awwh, BD, so sorry to hear about Adi! Poor guy. I just hate it when we have to watch them suffer.

I love that you laid in the kennel with him! :D That doesn't say crazy to me, but rather AWESOME MOMMY!! I'm sure your dogs think the same thing!

As for the limp and the constant licking; I wouldn't be too concerned that it had turned infectious. Soft tissue damage will take a while to heal, he could easily still be limping for a week or two. I'd try as much as possible to keep him resting on it - but of course, if you're worried - no harm taking him back to the vet!

I hope he feels better soon, I don't blame you a bit for wanting to be close to him while he was recuperating form his exray.

Thanks Bailey and Lukka'sma

I think I will listen to the vet and stop worrying my butt off. If he's not showing some improvement in the next week I will take him in again.

Urgh, it's medication time....I really doubt he is going to like this. They gave me liquid pain meds. I hope he doesnt just spit it all out. We shall see I guess!

I used the liquid pain med several times with Lukka, no real problem with her spitting it out. You will be fine giving it.

Glad to here all is well with the sedation. As far as laying in the kennel with him. I do that with boys all the time. More so when they are sick. Best comfort.

I used the liquid pain med several times with Lukka, no real problem with her spitting it out. You will be fine giving it

lol. Yeah he took it like a champ.
I didn't realize how powerful the squirt was on the 'syringe' and sprayed him really hard. It caught him off gaurd, he had the most outrageous suprised look on his face. It was pretty cute.

I agree matt&murph, nothing is more comforting then being close to the one you love when your sick. I imagine it's the same for dogs.

Now he is licking his back right paw as if it's hurt and the limp in his front leg is still very pronounced. I'm thinking it could be some type of infection, but I'm baffled as to what it could be. The vet didn't really seem that concerned though, and was very optimistic about his prognosis.

Just a word of caution here, don't allow him to constantly wash that foot - doing so he will cause an infection by keeping the area moist & irritated by the washing. My last :rip: dog did that :rolleyes: when he bumped his foot on the way up the stairs, it was "comfort washing" that lead to a swollen & infected paw :rolleyes: :D

:goodvibes: speedy healing Adi

It might just be a sprain, Blackdog. Our Ms Macie sprained her paw a few days ago and it's still swollen and sore. Sometimes it can take up to a week for the soreness to pass...and even though he'll be feeling better, it's a good idea to try to keep him fairly quiet for a few days after the limp disappears.

I hope he heals quickly :goodvibes:

Thanks guys.
I am pretty nervous about the licking. I have a doctors appointment this morning, so I might as well pick up some bitter apple or lime to help prevent licking.
Sorry to hear about Ms. Macie, I hope she is feeling better soon.

It might just be a sprain, Blackdog. Our Ms Macie sprained her paw a few days ago and it's still swollen and sore. Sometimes it can take up to a week for the soreness to pass...and even though he'll be feeling better, it's a good idea to try to keep him fairly quiet for a few days after the limp disappears.

I hope he heals quickly :goodvibes:

Same thing happened to Bailey, with similiar results that Adi is experiencing. It took a week and a half and she was back to her old self.

Like Hazel says, the more you can keep him resting, the sooner it will heal. Hope he feels better soon BD!! :thumbs up

Thanks guys.
I am pretty nervous about the licking. I have a doctors appointment this morning, so I might as well pick up some bitter apple or lime to help prevent licking.

When my lab had a lick sore starting I used apple cider vinegar on it and it was the only thing that worked for us. :shrug: Good luck with Adi. :fingerscr :goodvibes:

Poor Adi and you. You mentioned he was licking the wrong foot. I would think that just might be a stress thing and wouldn't worry too much about it, although I would try to limit it. Would he take a frozen kong of something to take his mind off of sore foot??

Good luck for a speedy recovery.