Keeping an injured dog occupied & potty issues

[JMFS]

So I'm waiting for a call from the vet's office to see what Gertie's next days or weeks hold for her. Yesterday she came up to the door limping. Oh boy. Upon inspecting the foot I couldn't find her toe nail, but there was no blood and she wasn't whimpering or whining. Closer examination revealed her 4th toe was twisted to where the nail was buried in her 3rd toe. As I was on the phone with the emergency vet's office (because these things never happen during normal business hours!) my husband was palpating the toes and foot, trying to determine where the toe nail was, and the toe released on its own. I put ice between the toes to help with potential inflammation (that was a task!) and took her to Doc first thing this morning. She's not putting weight on it when walking - it's the full on pathetic hopping on three feet thing going on. We're fairly certain the injury occurred while the pups were rough housing - back to supervised play it is!

 

X-rays were taken and the vet tech thinks there may be a break, but the Veterinarian wasn't confident enough to diagnose without the Radiologist's eyes on it so that's the call I'm waiting for.

 

Regardless of whether she has to have surgery, get it set, or just rest, we're looking at a presently undetermined amount of recovery time, which brings a set of conundrums. She was able to pee, but she would not even try to poop last night or this morning. She's excellent about peeing on command, but poop is a little tougher because she likes to hide behind her tree to do her business and gets distracted along the way. The tree is on the other side of our half acre and she's likely not wanting to hobble over there . . .. So, here are the questions.

 

1. What are some ways I can help her with eliminating?
   
2. Most of the Brain Games involve a mobile pooch. Here's what she plays inside currently:
   
   • Find It (I hide treats and toys around the house)
     
   • Meals are normally served in the Kong Wobbler
     
   • Muffin Game
     
   • Shell Game
     
   • Hot and Cold
     
   • Flirt pole play
     

 

Doc initially indicated he'll be sending her home with pain meds so I'm guessing she'll be a bit sedate; but I know dogs and they don't stay down for long before getting bored! If there are any ideas to keep her mentally stimulated and physically relaxed I'm all ears!

[JMFS]

Finally home. It's a small fracture - no surgery (yay). He offered to splint it but said it would likely be more trouble than it's worth due to having to change the splint and dogs' tendency to tearing off foreign objects. So, it's rest and relaxation. He gave us a Rx for Rimadyl to give her for pain and inflammation and we'll go back on Monday to have healing progress assessed.

 

I bought a couple new Nyla bones that are flavored - I don't see how they're flavored, but I'll take their word for it, a new plush with crunchy stuff and a squeaker inside, and some Blue Buffalo Wilderness biscuits to put in her Kong. Other than that I'm short on ideas. She's sedate right now, sleeping off the last of the drugs from today.

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Pheew... glad to hear surgery is not needed. These pups surely keep us worried, don't they?

 

In many dogs, their outputs are often altered when they sustain some type of injury that causes pain, especially when it affects their mobility. To help her eliminating, I don't think there's really much you can do other than wait for when nature calls and hope that the need would have grown impellent enough that the sense of urgency would be enough to evoke her going closer to the house. If worse comes to worse, and she is hopping on 3 legs, you can always use the popular method of using a towel as a sling placing it under her front legs or back legs to help her walk to her designated favorite tree. A disclaimer is warranted here; if at any time your dog appears in discomfort or is showing pain due to the obstipation, give your vet a call. Sometimes vets may prescribe a laxative (or some home remedy) that can help for obstinate cases. As scary as it sounds, when I worked for the vet we got phone calls of some dogs who weren't going for 4-5 days after surgery (especially when opiods were prescribed for pain control!).

 

You can still play some of her favorite brain games, but you may have to find a way to limit movement. For example, if your dog uses mainly her nose when playing the muffin game, you can have her laying down with the muffin tin in front of her while you are nearby to make sure she stays nicely put. Hand targeting can be fun to play as well with her laying down next to you while you are sitting on the couch and treats are delivered directly to her mouth.

 

You can also push a ball in her direction (while laying down) and have her catch it with her mouth and ask for her to drop it in exchange for a tasty treat. Free shaping can be fun too. Or if you want to have a particular goal in mind, you can train her to do some cute tricks. I don't know what legs are affected and at what point her training is, but if her front paws are not affected and she's laying down, you can try training shame on you, shake or if you feel particularly inspired to play the piano using the nose. I have a client of mine who when her dog was recovering from a surgery trained her dog to cross her paws. Of course, all these games/tricks need to be played in a very controlled setting, best if your dog knows a good down stay so that she's discouraged from getting up and acting rowdy in the midst of all the fun. Stuffing a Kong is also a great option although you might have to offer it inside a crate.

 

As a side note, for very active pooches who are still bouncing off the walls no matter what and where exercise restriction is key to recovery, sometimes vets will prescribe some sedatives (Benadrly comes to mind).

 

I hope this helps, of course, use your own judgment. You know your dog best so avoid some of the suggested games if your dog is prone to getting too excited or feels compelled to using her injured paw. Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

Edited July 11, 2018 by Adrienne Farricelli

[JMFS]

Thank you, Adrienne.

 

It's her left front paw, 4th toe to be exact. The 4th toe was twisted into the 3rd, ouch. She's mostly using three legs, especially in the grass and when running (dogs :rolleyes:), but she's starting to put some weight on it. Dogs are amazing in their tolerance of pain and keeping a good attitude.

 

We tried Cover the Eyes but she's so doggone tolerant that she just sat there twitching her ear, lol. I think I'll take advantage of the situation to work on focus (Look at Me) and Leave It. I like the free shaping idea - always doing something right is a great way to feel better.

 

I feel mean saying it, but the lack of mobility is actually helpful to training. I have a captive audience. When we go outside for potty she's less inclined to have a look around and chase the lizards, bugs, squirrels (she's Almost trained to leave birds alone, but the rest are tougher due to their quirky movements) - she's doing her business and coming right back to me so I'm using that to reinforce differentiating pee and poop. My husband got a kick out of me saying, "good poop!" the other night because to me that's a taboo subject :o.

 

She has an aversion to the bells on the door the other dogs use as a potty indicator. Maybe we can do target training with that to turn it into a positive thing.

 

Thank you, again.

 

Jennifer

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Sounds like she's on the mend! Actually, it's nice to hear how you are turning a mishap into a great opportunity to train some impulse control which may have been more challenging to train otherwise. Hopefully, it'll stick once she's back to being fully mobile. Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

[JMFS]

Update: Check up on Monday went well - no more drugs, restricted activity for 4-6 weeks, basically use common sense. She's putting weight on it again but doesn't like it to be touched. She's running in the yard when I take her to potty (dogs /sigh) and one trip around the perimeter is enough to tire her out right now so I know she's still healing.

 

However, with being able to put weight on it that means we have many more options for indoor play! I got a Level 1 Nina Ottoson bone toy that I can alternate with the Wobbler for feedings to keep things interesting. A tree stump plush with 6 squeaky squirrels she can pull out of the stump. We're back to playing "Find It." I found an old headband that she'll try to swipe off so we're back to trying to learn "Shame on You." I'm saving the Nina Ottosson Dog Tornado for a couple weeks, but that's waiting in the wings.

 

Bonus: It's all been for the better because Florida has been rainy so outdoor activities are limited. Momo, whom I've had resource guarding issues with for all his life (it's fear / anxiety, not aggression) owned the bone game. I had to make him go to the crate because we had a confrontation on the first round when he thought I was taking his food away (I was refilling . . . ). Yet another testament to why crate training is beneficial. Gertie kind of manhandled it and trotted off with the bones in her mouth, leaving the treats behind. With a couple more practice rounds she came to understand the treat is the prize, not the plastic bone. Momo was a pro from the start. I started him off in difficult mode because I know him to be clever (which is why he's such a p.i.t.a. sometimes). He took each bone in his mouth, set it aside and gulped down his rewards. Honestly, I don't think he even knows how to chew. Once done he was told "crate" so I could reset the game. A fun feeding for once! :)

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Thanks for the update. You canine crew sounds like fun! Make sure to post some pictures of your cutie doing the shame on you trick when you have a chance!