Carpal Hyperextension Injury

[rugerfly]

Has anyone had their dog opperated on that has suffered this injury?

[Charles Kuntz]

I have done about 25 of these using pancarpal arthrodesis. Obviously, the joint is fused. The success rate is about 80-85% with these, as in good function of leg.

Charles

[rugerfly]

I need to find myself a vet husband I keep telling myself.

Somebody better send me some good DVD's looks like Ruger and I will be couped up over summer

[VJB]

I need to find myself a vet husband I keep telling myself.

Somebody better send me some good DVD's looks like Ruger and I will be couped up over summer

My vet is mobile, single, very nice, organized, clean, and not bad looking too ...... could be ideal :rofl:

[rugerfly]

Name and number please

[mjk05]

Hi Rugerfly- just posted in the border collie thread but thought I'd put it here too:

yep, my first kelpie suffered a carpal hyperextension injury when she was 3, at an agility trial (dangerous course design ). She limped for a few minutes after the actual injury, but then seemed fine and it wasn't until days later that I realised that it was serious.

Long story short- after much investigation and research, I decided against surgery, because she was a young active dog and arthrodesis would basically make her unable to run normally again. We talked to a specialist who wanted to try a program of progressive splinting that has been used in the US, but that fell through (he basically didn't have the facilities to make the casts).

In the end, I rested her for ages then started a gentle exercise rehab program, and the breakthrough for us came when I found neoprene support wraps made for dogs with this sort of injury. Wearing her wrap seemed to support her wrist well, and we used it whenever she was running. Eventually we restarted agility again, and the progressive agility community and

sensible judges in most places didn't have a problem with her wearing the wrap on her weak wrist to compete- she won OJ at the Melbourne Nationals wearing her wrap. Unfortunately when we went to Canberra the next year it suddenly became an issue for some people . And she died just a few days after that trial, so I don't know how things would have turned out.

My feeling was (supported by vet advice) that arthrodesis would significantly reduce her activity at a young age, irreversibly, and I didn't feel she'd be happy with that. Continuing to run on her wrist, even with the wrap, would mean that she would be likely to develop arthritis and possibly deformity in the joint at a fairly early age, but when that happened we could go ahead with arthodesis. The wraps did seem to really help support her wrist, she almost never limped and repeated clinical and radiographic examinations showed no significant progression or degeneration- I think she would probably have continued happily with agility for at least another couple of years (she died when she was 5, two years after the injury).

Hope that helps, feel free to PM me for any more info.

[rugerfly]

Thanks for that info, will send a pm

[dressagegirl]

I posted about this sort of injury on my GSP back in August and decided against all the vets advice and went the conservative option as well. Charles may remember my post.

Well I am happy to say after two months of splinting and some intensive laser therapy, the dog has now had his splint off for 6 weeks and is fantastic. We have been introducing more and more exercise over this period and we estimate that in about two or three weeks he will be fit enough to go back into general population with the other dogs up on the farm (at the moment he is living in town with my husband and I so we can make sure that he doesn't over do it - all you GSP owners will understand I am sure LOL

So glad I didn't go for the operation as we have had fantastic results without it, at a fraction of the cost.

Vets all prediced doom and gloom for the conservitive treatment, told us how we would not be able to manage pressure sores etc etc so on and so forth - well we did and the dog only ever got two little pressure sores right towards the end when he started to feel a little too good but we just treated them with paw paw ointment and they never amounted to anything much at all.

Thanks everyone that helped me out and gave me advice on here as well.

Regards

Emma

Thanks for that info, will send a pm