Many thanks to everyone for their comments yesterday... at this point I think we can drink our way through the day, starting with mimosas for brunch, white wine with lunch, moving on to margaritas with appetizers, followed by more wine with dinner, and finally some scotch to end the day. Party at my house, anyone?
Anyway, back to Saga... yesterday morning I dropped him off at the vet. I got a call mid-day saying that the farrier had been out to the vet clinic, and both Dr. Joyce and he had assessed Saga. There were no hot nails, and no abscesses to be found (yay!). Instead, they thought that the pad plus the pour-in gel were putting too much pressure on his sole, causing him to be lame.
So, they pulled the shoes, removed the gel, and cut out the pad, then re-applied the shoes with just a leather rim pad. The purple stuff is Durasole, which the farrier recommended I apply regularly to help form a harder sole. The chemicals in it are kinda scary, and it won't help form a thicker sole, but... maybe it's a step in the right direction?
For those who were wondering why I said that Saga had a relatively good foot before shoes were applied, hopefully this picture helps. Fat frog, relatively good heel, and the deep crack in the central sulcus is healing up. Maybe they're not the best feet EVER, but definitely much improved from what they had been. Of course, there's still the pesky problem of a thin sole and event lines that have to be dealt with... but first I need to figure out what's causing them.
As for Saga, he looks almost normal. He was stepping out well when I picked him up from the vet, and is clearly putting weight on that RF that was bothering him so much just 48 hours ago.I've been doing a lot of thinking about diet and such, and what's causing the thin sole and event lines, and I'm working on a plan of action. I'm worried about changing too many things at once, because then I won't know where the problem lies... but on the other hand, if I don't change things (and probably pretty drastically), his feet won't get better. More on that in a day or two, when I have a better plan.
And since we missed mid-week critter and we probably all need some comedic relief, here's Elias trying (and failing) once again to sleep IN his doggy bed.
So glad to hear that at least he's comfortable! even if there is a bit of a mystery to solve, it's always nice when they are willing to put pressure on all their little footsies. :)
ReplyDeleteImportant suggestion: Hammock for Elias.
ReplyDeleteNic, your comment made me picture a rope mesh hammock with four legs sticking out of the bottom, dog swaying gently in the breeze. Probably you're suggesting one of those dog beds that are up off the ground, but I admit, the rope mesh hammock picture was MOST entertaining! ;)
ReplyDeleteBesides, if all of Elias was actually in the dog bed, I wouldn't have any amusing pics to post, now would I?
No, Jen - an actual hammock - really - your mental vision is spot on...We put one up in the garden years ago - we had a rescue GSP at the time, and to our amazement he took a running jump into the middle of the hammock and swung there in absolute bliss :-) I never got a photo but will never forget it! He was a goofball like Elias too ;-)
ReplyDeleteI think Elias is telling you he wants a REAL bed... at least a queen size.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad removing the pads and gel has given Saga some relief. Lilly had the same problem when we did pads and gel too... it had the opposite effect of what we were going for.
Oh, and when's the party!!
I'm glad that he's feeling better.
ReplyDeleteDuring my sole woes, I found that a higher protein diet did the trick. It obviously took a while for the new sole/wall to come in, but one it did it was as hard as rocks and much more thick. I haven't had problems since, and I can only attribute it to the change of diet.
I think we should have a blog entitled 'Bed fails for Dogs'. Elias could be the poster boy!
Oh Saga!!!! Don't you just love Dr. Joyce? I do agree with the high protein diet. It's working well for Greta. The feed given at Graymar is a really nice feed with lots of protein and multivitamins and alfalfa meal and rice bran, do you want me to snatch up a tag for you? Hope Saga man is feeling better :)
ReplyDelete