Cast Protector for Dogs?

[Cookiesmom]

Hello to all my old friends here on Pets.ca. Sorry I haven't been around for a long time. Hope you are all well.

I am looking for some suggestions for my young 15 year old lab/spaniel Tasha. Tasha recently broke her toe and is in a fibreglass cast for 6 weeks. While she is 15 years old, she is a very healthy, energetic pup who LOVES the water and LOVES swimming. Here is my problem....we recently rented a lakefront cottage for the 1st week in July. Cottage has a shallow entry beach and also a dock with a deeper entry. Of course, she won't be able to go swimming now with the cast and I know she will go absolutely crazy when she sees the water, so how can I keep the cast dry? I have also purchased a life jacket for her just in case she somehow manages to get into the water. (She will be closely supervised at all times). If anyone has any suggestions, would love to hear them

P.S. Sorry mods, you will probably have to bump this thread to the General Forum.

[Dr Lee]

There is no method to waterproof a cast for swimming as the water will "wick" under the fur into the cotton where you can get cast dermatitis and infection. For dogs that walk in wet grass or sprinklers, a plastic bag (like for vegetables at the grocery store) with some tape work well to keep the outside protected. For the bottom of the cast where the dog bears weight, waterproof tape works great to protect the cast.

I hope that this helps. Luckily casts are temporary and swimming may resume after healing has occurred. In fact, swimming is often a great addition to a physical therapy regimen.

I hope that this helps.

[Cookiesmom]

Thank you Dr. Lee for your advice. I will try and find some strong plastic bags along with the waterproof tape and use as per your instructions. Hopefully we will be able to keep her away from any water, but if we can't I will do my best to keep her cast dry.

[Goldfields]

If it is any help, when my old sheltie was wearing support casts, I bought boots to go over them to keep her casts dry if it had rained, been frosty etc.. Made of vinyl, leather sole, a zipper up the front, also a velcro fastener around the boot. Had to have several sets of boots so there were always dry ones and it was vital, as Dr Lee said, that her casts remained dry.