Bad news for Max (aka Stinker Pot)

[Lil Missy]

Here's a picture of Max a month ago. He's almost 5 months old now.



He is so ornery and full of spunk that it is hard for me to keep a straight face when I discipline him sometimes. He is so "puppy cute", and he adores his mama.

It's been a slow process to get him to stop terrorizing the cats by chasing them up and down the hallways, to the basement and back up around the house. *groan* He just thinks it's too much fun.

Unfortunately, he wipes out running around the corner into the kitchen and onto the linoleum floor, and last Friday he injured himself. I took him to the vet later that afternoon and he was found to have a ruptured crucial ligament. This will most likely result in a surgery to repair the tear, (thank goodness I took out pet insurance on him.) But he's not done growing yet, so we need to wait a month or more for his bones to stop growing. In the meantime he is to rest and have a pain pill every day.

I just talked to the vet again and she ordered him to rest inside a kennel - for 4 weeks! Poor Max! I guess I can take him out at bedtime to give him his daily snuggle time. What a bummer for a little guy. ;(

[Kali]

1. that seems pretty restrictive for a puppy

can't they splint it or something so he can get some exercise?

[Lil Missy]

4. I asked her that this afternoon. The splint is not recommended because

they want him to use the muscle/leg. He's just not supposed to put weight on it.

[femmocrat]

2. Awww. poor little guy.

That is a long time for a puppy to be kept confined. Hope the pain pill helps to sedate him, too.

When we had our puppy spayed, it was difficult keeping her inactive for 10 days. Good luck! :hi:

[kimi]

3. Oh, poor little guy!

Still. Vet's orders, but I feel for ya both.

Way back when we lived in IL, we adopted a Catahoula Leopard Dog, who had heartworm. The treatment was 2 arsenic-based injections, after which the dog had to be kept confined in a crate for 6 weeks, except for trips to the yard for her duty. We were told to keep her strictly confined, since the breakdown in the bloodstream of the worms could throw a clot if she got worked up. Well, the day she got loose and ran free for an hour or two about gave the kids and me heart failure. She was okay, but it was a bad day.

That was a looooong 6 weeks. But she went on and got well, and never looked back.

Best of luck to you and Max, I'm glad he has something for the pain. It may calm him a bit too, maybe?

[riderinthestorm]

5. If I'm not mistaken your pup is a Jack Russell

either a full JRT, or at least half.

They are so energetic that I'm guessing that kind of R&R is going to be really difficult.

Take this as you will, and do whatever you think is correct but a small anecdote....

My older JRT got kicked by a horse when he was 14. His leg was broken in 5 places and we took him to a specialist in Berwyn IL for the surgery to ensure he had the best care. I only say this so you know how invested we were in making sure the dog had the "best"! (Dr. Tom Turner, one of the pioneers in hip replacements for dogs, a brilliant dog surgeon). He put in several screws and plates and when I went to pick him up after the surgery the next day he had on a fentanyl patch. Dr. Turner said he would need to wear it for at least 5 days, strict R&R in a confined space etc. So I set up a lovely pen in front of the fire with a 5 foot wire "pen" constructed out of chicken wire so he could be comfy and in his usual spot during the day while I was working.

We came home from the vet and I put him in his new spot. It took him less than 10 minutes to climb out. I about had a heart attack.

So I set up a place in my laundry room which had a dutch door on it that was solid. Again, 10 minutes to climb over and out.

Now I remind you, the dog had just had surgery less than 24 hours before this, 5 clean breaks in his hind leg, had multiple plates and screws and was climbing over the gates and then "jumping up" on the sofa to greet me. (for those scolds who would tell me to crate him, this was 20 years ago and "crate training" wasn't popularized and I never gave it a thought. I don't even own a crate now!)

I removed the fentanyl patch.

That stopped the climbing out nonsense within an hour. He slowed down and finally rested. I have no idea what kind of discomfort he had, he never whined, moaned or showed any discomfort (brilliant surgeon? great attitude? high pain threshold?) but he did stay confined finally.

Pain is nature's way of telling us (and them) to slow down. While I would never advocate that you keep a dog or any other animal in pain, JRT's high energy levels can be stratospheric. My 14 yr old sedate guy is proof of it. To assist them in recovering for the long haul, sometimes you have to be tough in the short term.

Good luck and so sorry to hear of your pup's trauma. He's a cutie. I've got 2 seven month old sibling pups right now that are bedeviling my older dog and the cats as we speak. Usually they are sacked out by now but (you guessed it), they are JRT crosses! Ready to rumba.

[Lil Missy]

6. Thank you for the thoughtful response. And BTW, he's a pure Rat Terrier.

He's definitely very playful and energetic. He was rescued from a commercial breeder and had spent his first 60 days of life in a kennel. So it really pains me to have to restrict him so severely again. But, it will be a chance for me to get a better handle on his potty training. He sneaks off to the basement to poop, and blocking off access to the basement would also block the litter box for the cats.

Good luck with your pups.

[hobbit709]

10. Actually, they are Rat TERRORS

Here's mine: Wheezie-aka-Devious and Conniving Little Weasel.

[WillParkinson]

7. Aw, poor baby...

Give him an extra snuggle for me, please.

[Lil Missy]

8. puppy kick

[TZ]

9. This is a common injury in terriers

My sister has a Border Terrier that did this to herself...TWICE...She's okay now but as you can imagine that leg hasn't been quite the same but she still was a very atheletic dog in her prime (maybe the fastest dog I've ever seen..and she won her share of terrier races). Make sure you have lots of stuff for Max to chew on...he's gonna need an outlet, and chewing is a big one for pups.

[Lil Missy]

11. Oh, TELL me about the chewing.

:eyes:

The little shitpot will pry open file cabinets, kitchen cabinets to steal anything from papers, underwear, and dish rags and brushes to scamper off with and chew.

He has several squeakies to keep himself busy too. ;)

[TZ]

12. LOL

My sisters terriers (terrorists) could destroy a new squeaky toy in ONE day...They spent a fortune in dog toys..but I guess thats better than spending a fortune replacing everything in the house...:)
On the serious side, get one of those rubber cones with an empty center and fill it with peanut butter. It will keep your boy occupied for long amounts of time