Injury Help

FlushingSetters1724

FlushingSetters1724

Active member
Long story short, Marty hurt his front right leg/shoulder and I’m wondering if anyone in Wisconsin has had a dog that needed surgery/rehab and where they might have gone?

He was given two weeks of rest, seemed to be 100%, and then after a 90 minute hunt he was limping pretty bad once again. It’s like his shoulder pops out or angles funny when he’s tired. I’ll throw a photo in at the bottom that kind of shows it.

I don’t want to bring him just anywhere.. I want him to get the best, and hopefully cheapest, treatment he can. I worry my local vet will suggest something unnecessary or won’t understand the amount of miles & physical demands he puts on each year. Any help would be awesome. As of now I think we’ll head down to UW-Madison.
 

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Was it your vet that said to give him 2 weeks of rest? Did they take an x-ray of the area? I'd see your regular vet first. If he can't determine the problem have him refer you to the vet school at UW-Madison. I've taken dogs to the University of Minnesota a couple of times when my local vet wasn't able to make a diagnosis.
 
Went to two emergency vets in about 12 hours 3 weeks ago.. they essentially said nothing major appeared to be wrong. Give him some rest and reevaluate. He was sprinting around like a mad man retrieving ducks a couple days ago.. and then yesterday after about 90 minutes of pheasant hunting he slowed down a ton and this was the result.. I have a video which shows it very well.
 
Emergency vets tend to me more experienced in trauma and severe illness. Not taking anything away from their abilities, but orthopedics isn’t their forte. I’d go to your normal vet to get their opinion, and possibly another vet (just like we humans seek out second opinions), and then make the decision if UW vet hospital is the direction you want/need. They are good, but not cheap. Hopefully you can get a diagnosis, and determine the best course of treatment for your dog and wallet.
 
FlushingSetters1724 said:
Went to two emergency vets in about 12 hours 3 weeks ago.. they essentially said nothing major appeared to be wrong. Give him some rest and reevaluate. He was sprinting around like a mad man retrieving ducks a couple days ago.. and then yesterday after about 90 minutes of pheasant hunting he slowed down a ton and this was the result.. I have a video which shows it very well.
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How old is your dog?

If x-rays didn't show anything then you might need have an MRI done.
 
UW-Madison is very good, would be one of my suggestions. Another would be BluePearl Fox Valley. The reference I have for these two places is the work they have done on and for several of my agency's K9s, one of which was shot up pretty good.

I do like my own vet, Country Hills Pet Hospital in Eden. Very professional and knowledgeable doctor, I'd trust him to diagnose and do surgery on me!
He has dealt with my labs through injuries and disease. 1st one had developed diabetes.....he was able to diagnosis it when another vet couldn't and start treatment. He has treated my current lab through injuries to include ACL surgery tomorrow morning. They do all the rehab on-site too through various methods tailored to your dog and the injury.
 
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I’m in Oshkosh, I have an appointment at my normal vet for Wednesday.. but when I looked up Country Hills Dr. Thompson looks pretty great. I might see if they can get me in, we’re on strict couch arrest right now and only going outside on a leash. If he was let off the leash he’d sprint all over.

We have two trips to SD on the books, hoping if he can’t be ready in November he can be by December. Might be overly optimistic thinking. The wife thinks he’s out for the year.
 
FlushingSetters1724 said:
I’m in Oshkosh, I have an appointment at my normal vet for Wednesday.. but when I looked up Country Hills Dr. Thompson looks pretty great. I might see if they can get me in, we’re on strict couch arrest right now and only going outside on a leash. If he was let off the leash he’d sprint all over.

We have two trips to SD on the books, hoping if he can’t be ready in November he can be by December. Might be overly optimistic thinking. The wife thinks he’s out for the year.
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Here’s a video of him after our hunt.. now he has no limp whatsoever.

Limp
 
My guess is sprained something and it's starting to heal but he overdoes it and inflames whatever was trying to heal.
 
Looks exactly like my lab that had elbow dysplasia. I sure hope not. I would get to a vet asap, then let them tell you which specialist you should see if needed. Good luck.
 
That made me cringe like seeing an old man walking with a bad knee, that needs checked out by a vet you trust. Snap reaction to me is a shoulder moving in and out of socket. Good luck with your pup!
 
Have an appointment scheduled with the best person around.. vet out of Green Bay who breeds setters.. said he’s very confident he’ll find out exactly what’s wrong. He’s in Seattle right now but gave me his cell and we’ve been texting back and forth about the injury. Said it appears to be a shoulder injury allowing rotation of the leg, but can’t pinpoint exactly what’s causing it. Next week we go see him. Sure sounds like he’s the real deal. He specializes in sporting dogs, so it’s exactly what I wanted.
 
Update: doc checked out the leg and was able to recreate some discomfort when moving it away from his body.. thinks the issue is with tendons or ligaments on the inside of shoulder, going back tomorrow for some PRP injections, he thinks that’s the best course of action. He said the November SD trip he’s out, but might be able to do it in December. Overall, a bit of a bummer, but at least it isn’t surgery.. yet.
 
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