Dog support needed..

[damnyankee]

My lab jumped up into my new truck this past weekend and immdeiatly went to yelping. She isn't limping but won't jump at all right now, and will only fetch at half speed.
I figured she probably pulled a muscle but my fiancee had me take her to the vet today anyway.
Well the first thing he starts into is Hip Dys. etc.... I realize labs and big dogs are prone to this but I had her hips are certified(realize this isn't a guarantee) and she's only 3. It would seem to me there would have been other symptoms and it coming on the way it did makes me believe a pulled muscle.
The reason I told you about the new truck is it sits considerable higher than my old one so perhaps she wasn't ready for the big jump.
I've got her on anti-inflamatories right now and bed rest the rest of the week.
What would symptoms of Hip Dys. have been?
Make me feel better!!

[bear]

I hope that you find this encouraging. My experience with Hip Dys. is that the dog starts limping, not yelping. If your dog is not limping, I see that as encouraging.

Hopefully, she simply pulled something. The biggest problem is jumping down from a high truck bed, rather than jumping up?? Jumping down can hurt their sholders.

As tough as Labs are, they can be big babies if they get hurt. They will act like they are dying until they forget! Let her rest and she will probably be ok!! [img]images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

[Anatidae]

'Had a bird dog (Brittany Spaniel) that strained ligaments of the inside of his spine. Was painful for first few days, but he eventually recovered. [img]images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

I'm not qualified to diagnose anything other than a torn pad, [img]images/smiles/icon_sad.gif[/img] but I DO know (from past experience) that the only sure way to confirm hip diplaysia(sp?) is with X-ray's.

I don't think much of a vet that'll give ya a worst-case scenario before all the little things have been ruled-out....methodically. That'd be like goin' to a dentist with a toothache and him tellin' you might have bone cancer.....and it mighta spread to yo teeth. [img]images/smiles/icon_eek.gif[/img]

'Course, some just want to prepare you for the worst, so when they finally tell you it was just a popcorn kernel, it's such a relief to know that it wasn't cancer, that it'll make'em (the dentist) look like a real 'Saint.......hopefully makin' you eager to pay yo bill! [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

I wouldn't even bring displaysia up, before I had ruled-out everything else and had some X-rays to look at. That would flat piss me off! [img]images/smiles/icon_mad.gif[/img] It'd be alright to think that to himself while he's trying to figure-out what's wrong, but he shouldn't get you all rialed-up by spoutin'-off everything it COULD BE! [img]images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

[ December 03, 2001: Message edited by: Anatidae ]

[bwm]

My lab sprained his back once jumping up and down in the kennel. He did alot of whinning and couldn't run much less jump. Had to spend a few nights in the bedroom to make sure that he didn't overdo it. Just took about a week of him taking it easy. 100% now.

[Webb Foot]

Good news on the truck exit device for your dog. The Orvis catalog for dogs has a lightweight ramp for dogs to enter and exit trucks. I am not sure of the price. I can check on the price tonight and will post tomorrow. Hope your dog gets better.

[Dirty Duck Hunter]

You also need to check his/her toenails. About 4 years ago my lab did the same thing and pushed one of her toenalis up into her paw. The vet looked her over everywhere beacuse she thought it may have been a hip displacement or a pulled muscle. Come to find out later on it was the toenail, chek it out and see.

[landscaper]

I'm sure your vet would have picked up on this right away but just incase: What about tail shock? Its kind of like jamming your finger (I think) only its at the base of the dog's tail. I have seen this make a dog not want to jump, run, walk, sit, stand, lay down, eat, drink, sleep, be awake. It just make them miseralbe in general. Have you noticed if she her tail posture is abnormal?

This probably isn't the problem, but it just came to mind. Something to check out anyway.

[damnyankee]

You know it's funny you say that her tail is hanging awful low and it seems bigger than normal at the base.
When she is real tired after going hard for 4-5 days of nasty hunting her tail looks like it is broken but never swollen at the base like it is now?

[ December 03, 2001: Message edited by: damnyankee ]

[Battle]

I found some information for you DY. I had heard of this condition before. I believe I read it in the HRC mag a couple of years ago. The article described the condition with the tail that you refer too and attributed it to the dog over-exerting its tail. The tail is used heavily in swimming and preseason training will usually take care of this if in fact this is what happened. If I remember correctly a little time and the condition cures itself. Here is another possible explanation that is soemwhat different from what I described above. I found this one on the net on a site about Labs.
This is copied and pasted from the site:

Cold Tail
Also called "wash tail" and "limber tail", "cold tail" occurs when your dog's tail goes limp and he bites at it as if it were a foreign body attached to him. This condition is not serious and should go away in two or three days. It seems to be associated with swimming in cold water (hence the name). It's thought to be a reaction on the part of one of the glands at the base of the tail, or perhaps a sort of muscle spasm. M. Christine Zink covers the condition in Peak Performance; it is not typically listed in veterinary handbooks

[landscaper]

I lived with three vet students in college. All their dogs had problems with tail shock. It seemed worse after good hunts with lots of long retrieves. Over use of the tail as rudder and stabilizer I guess. They always tried to just let the dog rest a few days (make her rest if she doesn't want to) and keep it on the anti-inflamitory drugs. Maybe some asprin for the discomfort. Should clear up soon, but could happen again at any time.

[booger]

I'm sorry to hear about your dog but I figure at three years old she's gonna be alright.

Cabelas has that dog ramp at $149.99 [img]images/smiles/icon_eek.gif[/img]

[Meeka]

This is our story. I one time after I got my present truck with a very high bed, Meeka bailed out when I dropped the gate like she always does when going hunting. It looked like she hurt herself but she didnt act hurt. She hunted anyway and didn't really show signs of being hurt, that I noticed and paid attention to.

Last season, after every hunt she was VERY sore and lame. It hurt me to watch her get up. I figured arthritus. She is 9 now and often ran in and out on hunts, sometimes 3-5 miles.

A post season trip to the vet and an x-ray revealed what looked like a bone chip in her right front shoulder. A trip to LSU resulted in a diagnosis that she likely previously injured her biceps where it joins the elbow and calsification occurred at that spot. THEY SAID THAT IT MIGHT NOT HAVE OCCURRED IF SHE HAD BEEN GIVEN SEVERAL WEEKS OF BED REST WHEN SHE HURT HERSELF!

Now, they can fix it by cutting her biceps and letting it grow back. We are gonna try Rymadyl for now cause we spent a lot of money on another problem.

Someone need s to come up with a dog exit device for high trucks. Any suggestions are very welcome.

[Anatidae]

Well fortunately, we don't have a problem with our dog jumping from the truck bed.......she rides up front with the 'white folks'......'doesn't matter how muddy or wet she is.....we got gortex on, most of the time, anyway.....and are likely to be just as dirty as she is. [img]images/smiles/icon_eek.gif[/img](Where in the heck do ya'll hunt?) [img]images/smiles/icon_sad.gif[/img]

We figure she saves us from sloshing thru the muck and the snags to get our birds.....she's part of 'the team'. SO WHAT, if we have to clean the inside of the windshield more often than the outside. 'Really helps the re-sale value, TOO! [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[ December 03, 2001: Message edited by: Anatidae ]

[chance]

Which vet did you go to? I like Pattberg in Hernando--County Seat Animal Hosp. He is very knowledgeable. The other vet in town can be a bit of a pessimist but does have a caring way with animals.

[damnyankee]

I went to the one in Horn Lake on Goodman. Don't get me wrong nice guy but I'm sure glad my fiancee wasn't with me, she would have been a basket case right off the bat.
Today is the dogs first full day on the Rimadyl and she's almost back to 100%, but I'm not letting her jump around or anything bed rest the rest of the week.

As for the dog ramp, this dog is a front seat rider, she just jumps in the back of the truck for fun I guess, she knows she isn't riding back there with the "second class".

Thanks for all the great advice. I think I'm going to take her in and have her X-rayed for peace of mind.