Broken leg

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kel0424

Boxer Pal
Hi Everyone,

Cosmo (6 month Brindle boy) broke his leg in two places Thursday night. Just a real freak accident. He jumped into the air to catch something I threw for him and came down wrong. He was in so much pain. We were able to find a really great orthopedic surgeon ( I had no idea a traditional vet could not help us! I had to call 12 vets before I found one that could). He put Cosmo in a cast and we are hoping for the best. If this doesn't work, it will have to be surgery, and if that doesn't work he says we will have to amputate the leg!

He is doing much better today with the help of pain killers and light tranquilizers, but I am wondering if anyone else has gone thru this and can give advice on helping him move around. The vet says no moving except for potty breaks. So far that hasn't been too hard, tho he says we have to keep Cosmo still for 6 weeks!!!!! Anyway, my husband is home this weekend and is getting him outside but come Monday, it will be just me. Cosmo weighs 60 pounds and I cannot lift him easily with the broken leg in a cast. We are trying a sling under his belly to aid in keeping the weight off his leg, and are building a ramp down the back steps, but would appreciate any suggestions to make it easier on him!

Thanks for reading - Kelly
 
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Net45582

Banned
Poor guy...just make sure he doesn't try to chew the cast off....get a kong and keep filling it to keep him occupied,maybe a couple of soup bones too. Good luck
 
B

Boxer Babies

Super Boxer
broken bones

kel0424 said:
Hi Everyone,

Cosmo (6 month Brindle boy) broke his leg in two places Thursday night. Just a real freak accident. He jumped into the air to catch something I threw for him and came down wrong. He was in so much pain. We were able to find a really great orthopedic surgeon ( I had no idea a traditional vet could not help us! I had to call 12 vets before I found one that could). He put Cosmo in a cast and we are hoping for the best. If this doesn't work, it will have to be surgery, and if that doesn't work he says we will have to amputate the leg!

He is doing much better today with the help of pain killers and light tranquilizers, but I am wondering if anyone else has gone thru this and can give advice on helping him move around. The vet says no moving except for potty breaks. So far that hasn't been too hard, tho he says we have to keep Cosmo still for 6 weeks!!!!! Anyway, my husband is home this weekend and is getting him outside but come Monday, it will be just me. Cosmo weighs 60 pounds and I cannot lift him easily with the broken leg in a cast. We are trying a sling under his belly to aid in keeping the weight off his leg, and are building a ramp down the back steps, but would appreciate any suggestions to make it easier on him!

Thanks for reading - Kelly
Click to expand...

Hi Kelly,

My boy broke his leg when he was about 16 weeks old. It was truly horrible. But you will find, once he adapts he wont have any trouble getting around. Be careful though because with a cast on his leg he can be dangerous, especially rolling around on the flor next to windows.

we actually got hold of a babies play pen and kept him inside in that. We would just let him out for toilets breaks. It worked really well and might be worth a try.

Good luck with it
 
J

Jill's boxer

Banned
aw poor Cosmo! Definitely use a sling of some sort to support his weight and keep him from trying to bear any extra weight on that leg if possible. Keeping him quiet and still is difficult. I have worked for vets for years and I will say that we often overstress the need for NO movement/activity because we know the reality is that many owners will not follow our advice so--that said, as long as you keep him as still and calm as possible, it is okay for him to be out with you in the room rather than confined to a crate as long as you are hyper-vigilent and do not allow him to play--keep him tethered with you while you watch tv, for example. YOu could also invest in an X-pen or similar to allow him a bit of space to move around and feel like he is out in the open without giving him too much room to cause damage! Is he is a hard cast right now or soft bandage cast? once he is in a hard cast or has pins, he can have a bit more freedom, but I would still be sure he is leashed when going outside for sure--nothing more than potty breaks on that end. In the house, I would say just be sure he is confined to small areas. I am not trying to contradict your vets advice or instructions, but I do realize from a practical standpoint that it will be very difficult to keep him solely confined and still...so just use your best judgement and careful supervision. For example, at night keep him leashed and lay on the floor with him while you watch tv, etc so he doesn't feel punished or isolated and can be with you, but still under strict control.

Nice meaty raw bones work wonders to distract him as well--but be careful with marrow bones while he is convalesing as he will most likely gain weight due to the inactivity if offered too many fatty marrow bones--beef back ribs work well--lots of meat and little fatty marrow!
 
K

kel0424

Boxer Pal
Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes and advice. It is amazing what a couple of days can do! He really wants to play, but we are keeping him quiet w/ Benadryl, which also helps with his itchy leg! The vet did say it was okay to have him out as long as we kept him still. I am sleeping on an air mattress with him and he is never out of our site! He is such a good boy, really understands that we need to work as a team when taking him out.
 
J

Jill's boxer

Banned
Glad to hear he seems to be cooperating with his recovery! Keeping positive healing vibes in mind for you both for continued good luck! :D
 
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