[hasahorse]

My baby girl hurt herself at the barn today. I have no idea how, she came into the barn 3-legged lame not putting weight on her right hind. After a panicked call to her doctor and a very speedy car ride, we can't figure out the problem. She is normally the least stoic, brave dog on the planet. Her doctor palpated her leg and hip and she never flinched. She is on pain relief now and she is resting. I can't get her to potty, so my concern is growing. Her doctor didn't want to xray yet with her not flinching and showing where it hurts. I will most likely be dropping her off on Monday morning, so now it is just a waiting game.

Has anyone else had a suddenly stoic dog? Could the issue be in her pelvis? I hate seeing her hurt and not know what is going on.

On the plus side, she has lost 9 pounds since April - down to 30 from a high of 39.

And we were doing so well not having emergencies.

[SquishTheBunny]

Could be anything... soft tissue, cruciate, patella, fracture etc. Stoic dogs are very hard to assess. The one thing I have learned from general practitioners is that they are not all good at the tibial thrust or drawer test (to check for a cruciate ruputre), especially on the stocky little dogs like corgis. Hopefully it really is nothing and by Monday she will be back to normal

Just because your vet doesnt think its necessary to xray, doesnt mean you cant request it. If its for YOUR piece of mind, ask for them to be performed.

And congrats on the weight loss

[Abberlaze]

The drawer test is very easy, never seen a GP screw up one of those.

How long has she gone without urinating or defecating? That is definitely worrisome!

[hasahorse]

I finally got her to potty last night about 10:30. I got her to go again this morning, and she had a bowel movement when I got back from the barn. It was hard for her to keep her balance trying to do it, but she got it done. In a strange twist of events, we have a wheelchair ramp in our back yard so that my mother in law can get in out house - Sissy has figured out that it is a great way to get into the yard and back into the house.

She still is not interested in putting weight on the leg today. I am dropping her off on the way to work so she can get xrays done - she hasn't made enough of a change to make me want to wait any longer.

[SquishTheBunny]

The drawer test is very easy, never seen a GP screw up one of those.

How long has she gone without urinating or defecating? That is definitely worrisome!

No, unless the cruciate is completely ruptured the drawer test is frequently missed or not even performed by some GP's. Majority can perform a decent drawer test with a typical rupture, but they arent always following textbooks. We frequently get referrals for "hip dysplasia" while it is infact a cruciate rupture.

[Kinsella]

Mine did the exact same thing. Partially torn ACL. 8 weeks strict crate rest or surgery were the options I was given. Considering I had just spent close to $10K on the other dog, I opted to try crate rest first, with surgery as a backup if that didn't work. Over a year later she's (mostly) fine. (she will gimp a little if she plays too hard for a couple of days)

[propspony]

Hey, so any updates on the stoic corgi?

[hasahorse]

She has torn her ACL, which sucks - both for her and me. Her vet has never seen a torn ACL in a Corgi. I am sure it has happened, but not many Corgi's in our neighborhood. We discussed one surgical option this morning, but he doesn't think that it would work for her because her legs are so short. The option we discussed works better in taller or bigger dogs with more leg. So, we are waiting to hear from the surgeon to see what other options there may be. She is so not happy about being on stall rest and the fact that she can't play fetch all day long.
So, we shall see. I don't think I can do the surgery right away. We have had 3 other vet emergencies this year, and I don't know that 2012 can take another. It may have to wait until after the new year.

[propspony]

Hmm... One of my facebook friends just went through this with her corgi. If you have a facebook she'd probably be happy to tell you what the surgery and all that was like with him. :-)