Keepers is hurt!

[KeeperBoy]

Please tell me to calm down. I am so worried about him This morning he seemed ok but now his front right shoulder is hurting him. He is putting weight on it but he is yelping if you touch him hard enough. Can I wait until Monday for the vet? How in the world do you keep a boxer still? I don't want to give him a baby asprin because I'm afraid if he doesn't know he's in pain he will hurt himself even more. I feel so bad for the big man

[Ron]

this sounds similar to what happened to tie a few months back. He had a pinched nerve. I took him to the vet right away and she medicated him which seemed to help ALOT

[daisy'smom]

Oh no!! Can you take him to the emergency vet???? Does your regular vet take emergency calls? I will keep my fingers crossed for poor Keepers!! Take a deep breath and calm down.

[KeeperBoy]

I just called our agility instructor, since she has seen a lot of muscle/nerve/tissue injuries. She said to wait it out until Monday, since he is weight baring and isn't too lethargic and is eating and drinking. She said an E vet would only be a good help if he had a broken bone, which I'm nearly positive he doesn't. I talked out what happened this morning and my guess is when he was in his crate is got his paw stuck in the bars and twisted his arm. I'm going to buy him an airline crate if he isn't better by Monday (I'm taking Monday off work anyways).


Luckily? I am really sick also, so a day of me and my sweet man laying in bed reading is just what we both need. Dear Lord, I love this dog more than just about anything. How do people live without a boxer?

[Spyglass Sally]

Sounds like everyone could use a few days of rest. If Keepers can walk on it, and is eating and acting okay otherwise, I would agree with your instructor. If he twisted or sprained a muscle it may take a few days for it to feel better, but it sounds like he's doing okay as long as no pressure's applied. That's good. So take a deep breath and tell yourself, "He's a little hurt, but okay." Maybe a nice raw meaty bone will keep him quiet and content. Keep us posted.

[whitedaisy]

I hope he's feeling better soon and will be content to lounge around. Sounds like a good day for a really big RMB to keep him quiet!

[Ruby Red]

Poor Keepers, and poor you! Wish you both better.

Heres something that maybe of help if it's muscular:

Today, you can put an ice pack on his shoulder to bring any swelling down – 5minutes max [ideally you should do this immediately after injury] – I don’t know when this happened so this may not help him much now.

From tomorrow, you can do alternate hot and cold treatments – you probably know what I mean by this but I’ll write it up for others who may not know.

The idea behind hot/cold treatment is that it stimulates the blood supply to the damaged area. It is most often used for muscular injuries – strains, and is very effective because by alternating the temperatures you force the blood capillaries to close [cold] so the blood supply carries away any broken damaged tissues. Then introducing heat to the area causes the capillaries to open and fresh blood comes into the area bringing new components to build new tissues. It can also be used for sprains [ligament/tendon damage] but is not as effective as these areas have a much lower blood supply.

I must stress that hot/cold should NOT be done on day of injury as any damaged blood vessels need to have healed.

From tomorrow, you could do 3 lots, e.g., hot/cold/hot or 5 lots - hot/cold/hot/cold/hot – whichever, but always finish with hot. 3-5 minutes each temperature, e.g., ice for 3-5 mins, then heat for 3-5 mins. The heat should only be as hot as you can tolerate for that length of time. An ice pack should be wrapped in a towel. You can do this, 2 or 3 times a day.

Now, how you get Keepers to lie still for this I don’t know! Lots of treats maybe??? Especially as he’s hurt, poor lad!

[KeeperBoy]

I don't know if it's because he's hurt or I'm so sick, but he has been happy to lay around with me, especially now that my parents are gone. The poor guy was trying to hard to play with my dad today but his arm just wouldn't let him. Thank you for the advice!

[bruinsBoxers]

I hope he starts to feel better soon . be sure to let us know how the vet visit goes .

[AussieGirl]

I hope you BOTH feel better soon.