Broken tendon

[leegreen 2,221]

Dog done one of its toe tendons last night and now has a fairly flat toe, I never noticed her do it and didn't see it until this morning. She doesn't seem bothered by it and there is no noticeable pain, although she isn't walking perfectly, but only an experienced eye could see it.

Now my question is how long should I leave it before I run her?

She is a four and a half year old Bull x and there would be no hesitation if I were to let her run.

[leegreen 2,221]

Feck me! no one knows about popped tendons?

[RubyTex 1,957]

Dog done one of its toe tendons last night and now has a fairly flat toe, I never noticed her do it and didn't see it until this morning. She doesn't seem bothered by it and there is no noticeable pain, although she isn't walking perfectly, but only an experienced eye could see it.

Now my question is how long should I leave it before I run her?

She is a four and a half year old Bull x and there would be no hesitation if I were to let her run.

 

Does that experience not extend to injuries?

 

I'd give it a week or two then give her a run.

[skycat 6,174]

It will be the ligaments that have been torn or over stretched, usually as a result of dislocation of the joint. It is the ligaments which hold the bones of a joint in the correct place. The tendons are what attach the muscles to the bone: they're the rubbery bits at each end of a muscle: like when you find when you eat a cooked chicken leg. Ligaments and tendons are fairly similar in that neither are very good at healing quickly; poor blood supply. If the ligaments have been completely ruptured then the toe will stay flat. If they are just a bit stretched then a month of complete rest may see them return to their original shape. But doesn't often happen.

 

Cut the claw right back to the toe to remove pressure on the toe when the dog runs. And keep the claw short ever after. Shouldn't be too much of a problem though some dogs do suffer a bit running on hard/stony ground afterwards. I've had a couple of dogs with a flat toe and they're fine to work, though can go lame after a hard session if they smack that toe hard.

[leegreen 2,221]

Yes ligament is the right word and I assume the ligament is completely fractured as the toe is pretty well flat.

With regard to cutting the nail back to the toe, after this is done I will need to stem the blood flow with potassium permanganate? And if completely ruptured a months rest is enough?

My line of thought is, if the ligament is ruptured then the other toes will need to compensate the bad toe. The lack of support from the bad toe, increases the pressure on the other toes by 25% and this compensation can only be achieved over time.

Would your honour say this is correct?

[sandymere 8,263]

I’ve found they cope well with the odd flat toe. The other toes will have an increase in work but as the flat toe is still it will continue to function to a degree so the shortfall wont be 25%. I’d go with the month rest then gradual increase in work load to build up the whole foot, you have plenty of time till next season now. The nail will wear less as the toe does not point down towards the ground so gets less contact, just trim till its not catching from here on.

[leegreen 2,221]

Thanks.

Is it usual for the dog to have no swelling and feel no pain?

[sandymere 8,263]

Depends what its done, different tissues have varying amount of nerves, middle of tendons very few and just walking may not be overly painful whereas running very.