Jess - Fractured Tarsel Bone

[FeeFee]

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My whippet x girl Jess has been lame on and off for the past 2-3 weeks, and finally went in on Monday for X-rays which show she has a fractured Tarsal bone, a small part of bone has actually sheered off and it's this that 's causing her lameness.

I have no idea how/when this can have happened, she's had no obvious injuries, falls or bumps that I'm aware of, but it is apparently a common area for stress fractures in racing dogs. I got her as a 7 yr old rescue so I don't know anything about her past, she may possibly have had a previous injury or an old partial fracture. She is also a complete loony off lead, and really goes for it, she's by far the fastest dog I've had even at 10 yrs old and loves to run.

The choices seem to be:

1. Surgery (which is what the specialist recommends) to remove the bone chip. However it's a difficult operation with significant risk of complications and the chance it may make things worse rather than better. It would also mean a longish period of complete crate rest afterwards, which would drive her nuts. On the other hand it could lead to complete recovery

2. Management with pain relief and limited exercise (which my vet favours), probably for the rest of her life. She is on Metacam at the moment which seems to be keeping her comfortable, though she is is still not putting full weight on that leg so I don't think she's completely pain free.

I'm really feeling quite lost as to what to do for the best. At the moment I think I'm favouring surgery despite the risks, because I don't feel that the pain relief is 100% effective, and because I think she will be miserable if she's never allowed to run free again, but the thought of the risks and recovery period are pretty daunting.

Does anyone else have any experience of this kind of injury and in particular of surgery and it's outcome longer term?

 

[wild whippies]

Difficult!!

Chips or spurs of bone tend to be problematic as they can't knit if they're fairly displaced from the bone so they're stuck in a half way house of trying to heal all the time. However I don't like the idea of surgery either.

Can a happy medium (well sort of) be reached whereby it's monitored, given the opportunity to heal and if it is problematic then opt for surgery?

If her pain is bad then obviously she needs the metacam but pain relief might prevent her from protecting the foot during a healing period and could risk exascerbating the injury.

If she was mine, I'd ask about continuing the metacam for a few weeks and her being splinted during that time (so she didn't knock it) then take her off the metacam and remove the splint and see how she goes.

In the worst case scenario your in exactly the same situation your in now but a few weeks down the line. Considering the likelihood of a previous break there anyway, I don't think a waiting game is going to be detrimental and it might just pay off. :luck:

 

[FeeFee]

Thanks for that. I had another chat with my vet yesterday and he is also advising a period of management to see how she gets on then assessing her again before making a decision on whether to operate. As you say we'll be no worse off in a few weeks' time than we are now, so that seems like a sensible option.

He didn't suggest splinting, so I'll ask if that might be helpful :thumbsup:

Poor Jess, she had a rough time for the first seven years of her life and has been through rescue at least twice and was in really poor condition when I got her. She has the sweetest nature ever, I just want to make the best decision to keep her happy and comfortable for her last years

 

[rm1]

it will almost certainly need more than a few weeks rest. 3 mounths on the lead for a start. Speak to a greyhound physio or vet as they maybe able to offer a more expert assessment than a general vet.

 

[FeeFee]

It is an orthopaedic specialist who reviewed her x-rays and has recommended operating. Their opinion is that because the bone chip is detached from the bone there is no chance of it 'healing' so it needs to be removed. My vet is arranging a time for me to speak to them directly, I hope tomorrow, so I want to get my list of questions organised before then!

Unfortunately it looks as though the operation would involve cutting and re-stitching the tendon, so it would be pretty major stuff and lots of chances of complications. If she was a younger dog I'd go for it, if she was an 'old' 10 yr old I probably wouldn't consider it, as it is she's a very fit active dog who really lives to run, she's getting quite depressed with tiny lead walks only and I suspect is doing herself more damage bouncing around the house in anticipation of going out. I'm feeling quite gloomy at the moment that she will ever be able to run free again

 

[~Annie~]

Oh no, poor Jess, poor you :huggles:

I have nothing much helpful to add I'm afraid beyond that when assessing the best approach to Scruples pup Jim's elbow dislocation I found having the opinion of both a mainstream orthopedic specialist vet and a running dog specialist vet extremely helpful ... two equally expert takes on the same injury from different perspectives gave us more options than we might have otherwise thought we had. We saw Paul Evans in Oldham and none of the vets we dealt with (three in total) had any problem with our seeking additional opinions.

Good luck whatever you decide :luck:

 

[FeeFee]

Thanks Annie and rm1. We have a specialist greyhound vet just up the road, it definitely sounds like a good idea to get an opinion from him if we can. It's Simon Gower, I don't know anything about him, does anyone know if he would be recommended for this sort of thing?

 

[wild whippies]

Simon Gower's been mentioned and recommended a lot on here over the years, I'm sure he'll be worth approaching. :thumbsup: