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-   -   Pelvic fracture question (http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=69417)

Bob Caygeon April 5th, 2010 11:24 PM

Pelvic fracture question
 
I have a 7 month old male Golden Retriever that was hit by a car 3 weeks ago, the Vet suspected pelvic fractures, which radiographs later confirmed, he was also treated for a minor Pneumothorax and spent the night in care. The next morning the Doctor consulted with the surgeon and surgery was deemed unnecessary and it was suggested that a conservative treatment would suffice.

It has been exactly 3 weeks to the day since the accident, the first week the dog seemed like he was in good shape for the shape he was in, seemed to be comfortable and happy, could walk outside to do his business without and issues, other than he had a small limp, he was given his pain and anti-inflammatory every 12 \ 24 hours for the first week. By the beginning of the second week he was walking with ease, so I started to cut back the pain med to limit his movements, he really wanted to start playing and horsing around like a pup should, but it seemed even with limited pain meds he wanted to be active again,

The last few days he has had no meds and he seems be loving life, he seems like there is nothing wrong with him at all, not even a limp or any distortion to his walk, the 1st re-check is this Saturday, so hopefully the Dr. will have good news about his condition.

Until then I do have a question ? is this normal for an injury of this nature, to shows signs of a speedy recovery so soon ?. I'd love to let him out of confinement, he's going crazy but I will obviously let the Dr. make that call at the re-check, but I thought I'd put it out there to here some feedback from others who have dealt with this injury and treatment and there experiences with the healing process.

Thanks in advance for any reply

Bill

hazelrunpack April 6th, 2010 08:44 AM

Welcome to the board, Bill!

There may be some knitting and regrowth, but limiting exercise at this point is still critical to good healing. It takes much longer than a few weeks for the bone to be solid. But he [I]could [/I]be showing signs of healing this quickly.

The only experience I have with a pelvic fracture is with a neighbor's dog, also hit by a vehicle, also broken in three places. But in his case, the whole pelvic girdle rotated and skewed. Unfortunately, by the time the regular vet referred them to a specialist (about 3 weeks after the accident), the bones had begun to knit and the hips were deformed permanently. So there is definitely some bone growth by week 3. But the bones won't be solid for a few weeks yet, so as tempting as it is to release him, keep him confined until you get the okay. Good healing now will help prevent problems with arthritis later in his life.

I hope he's healed up and back to his happy-go-lucky golden self soon! :goodvibes:

Bob Caygeon April 6th, 2010 12:45 PM

Hello Hazel and thank-you for the welcome !

We are lucky to have a good Vet with 24 hour care and a lot of understanding and willingness to work with us. The Dr. had informed us that immediate attention was required to assess the injury propmpty and within 1 hour he was being cared for by the clinic. he also told us that after 7-10 days the bones will begin to adhere and start the repair process on it's own and that if surgery was to be performed it had to be within the 7-10 day period as after that surgery would not be an option and depending on bone displacement he could possibly be a likely candidate for euthanasia as the quality of life would severly be diminished otherwise.

Fortunately the displacement was minimal and the conservative treatment was the best option and does seem to be working very well so far, so as much as I would like to let him roam, I'd rather be safe than sorry so I'll let it take it's course and take your advice as well as the Dr. and let him rest a few more weeks before I start putting the miles on him.

Thank-you for your reply I appreciate it !

hazelrunpack April 6th, 2010 07:22 PM

I hope he heals fast. I know how hard it is to keep a 7-month-old quiet :eek: :laughing:

Best of luck to you! :goodvibes: And when you get a chance, if you have pictures of your boy to share, we'd love to see them! :D

hazelrunpack April 17th, 2010 12:53 PM

How is your boy doing, BC? Got an update for us? :goodvibes:


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