Joint Pain

[SteffiS]

Ripple appears to have some sort of joint pain and is in quite a bit of discomfort, unfortunately our vet is not open until Saturday and only emergencies then.
I gave the last of the metacam to Toffee for his tail last week so I’m not sure what I can give Ripple to ease his pain, can he have paracetamol? and what would be the dose? Any other suggestions? He has fish oil every day but he seems to have moved awkwardly at some time today and hurt himself - he screeched when I tried to brush him and again when he was laying on the kitchen floor (on his own so we don’t know what happened at that time).
He was fine on his walk, and going out for a wee just now, so I don’t really know what’s going on with him.

 

[Stacia]

You could phone the emergency vet for advice. My vet has prescribed Paracetamol with something else in and I cannot remember what! Have just looked on the bottle it is called Parade -v 500mg and the dosage is two tablets morning and evening, which I think it too high! Rourke is 40kg and I would have given him one 500mg tabs. I have never used them! You could use ordinary Paracetamol in the short term until you can see the vet on Saturday. I am sorry, horrid to see Ripple in pain.

 

[SteffiS]

Thank you @Jelinga - he just tried to move beds and is reluctant to put any weight on his back leg, I just can’t imagine what he has done. He weighs about 32kg so I guess 500mg would be ample.

 

[kateincornwall]

Poor love , he does sound miserable x Reuben was given paracetamol after his recent surgery and when he hurt his tail as he cannot tolerate NSAID`s . The dose was one or two twice a day ( 500 mg tabs ) , he weighs 37 kilos but I only ever gave one at a time . Hoping he feels better soon x

 

[SteffiS]

Stupid question - How did you get Reuben to take it? Covered in cheese or something?

 

[SwampDonkey]

You could try cold packs to the injured area. I do have cold packs you can buy them but frozen food wrapped in tea towel works. Apply for a few minutes the repeat. It's does help I use it a lot and I have used it on all my dogs at various times. I would also ring the vets for any advice they can give. Rory is 33kg and he has half a paracetamol twice a day. I give paracetamol in a squirt of cream cheese. I hope he's ok

 

[kateincornwall]

Stupid question - How did you get Reuben to take it? Covered in cheese or something?

Yes , I shoved it into a cube of cheese, but then Reubs eats anything ! x

 

[SteffiS]

I think I’ve got some cold packs somewhere @SwampDonkey - hadn’t thought of that, thank you.

 

[Jacqui-S]

Lilly started with Pardale V, a doggy co-codamol and then switched to OTC paracetamol- cheaper and as effective for Lilly.

I looked at the dosing at the time, and I found that the advice was between 10mg and 33mg PER KG up to 3 times daily.

So Ripple could have for the lower dose (10x32=) 320mg three times daily (=960mg). Easier though to go for a normal 500mg tablet twice daily.

The higher dose of 33mg/kg = 1056mg 3 x daily = 2 normal 500mg paracetamol 3 times a day. Which to be honest is a bit of a scary dose and definitely in the realm of vet prescribing.

Lilly gets, at 25kg, half a tab (250mg) twice a day, 3 times a day if she is looking sore, or she is going to have a very active day.

So much of what you Google says NEVER give your dog OTC paracetamol but if you speak to your vet, as we did, they are happy for you to do so.

THIS was one of the websites I used before .

Hope Ripple is OK.

 

[SteffiS]

Thank you @Jacqui-S I decided to give Ripple half a tablet ( in some liver paste ) , I’m hoping after a nights rest he will be a bit better. I’ve also found some ice packs for him. On investigation I’ve discovered our vets have passed all their emergency care to a vet hospital in Yarmouth for the bank holiday so I’m going to give them a ring tomorrow.

 

[Natalie]

sorry to hear about Ripple's pain, ,,@SteffiS . My vet specialises in pain management and rehab, and has long been an advocate of paracetamol in conjunction with other medications. She recently ok'd monty to have 3 X 1 normal paracetamol tablet per day as an absolute maximum - he's 32-33 kilos. She's increased this from previous guidance of 3/4 of a standard tablet 3 times a day. We never give monty more than 1-2 tablets per day anyway, but reassured to know we can safely give this to him on the occasions we might need to.

 

[HAH]

Poor Ripple, @SteffiS - hopefully whatever it is will ease a little with a night’s rest. Typical timing isn’t it? I like Sonia’s suggestion of phoning the vet for advice whenever they’re open, but I really feel for you. If it’s still sore tomorrow then our vet advised cool packs on the sore area can make quite a difference, as Swampy mentioned.

 

[Granca]

How is Ripple this morning?

 

[Selina27]

Oh poor Ripple. Hope you can get some answers from the vets today.

 

[SteffiS]

Ripple has refused to get out of bed this morning, he’s normally desperate for a wee and poo. OH tried to put an ice pack on his leg whilst I was out with Toffee but Ripple screamed so much that OH was really upset when I got back. I might try some cold flannels instead.

I’ve fed him his breakfast by hand but he won’t drink anything ( I had soaked his kibble so he has had some liquid ). I’ve also given him a paracetamol (thank you @Natalie ) and will ring the vet hospital. At the moment I can’t see how we would get him in the car if I need to take him in, but I’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

 

[kateincornwall]

I am so sorry to read this @SteffiS , poor lad . Hoping you can get some help for your dear boy today xx

 

[Cath]

Will your vet not make a home visit @SteffiS. Hope you can get him some help soon.

 

[Jacqui-S]

Oh poor chap.
What a worry.

 

[HAH]

Poor Ripple, I really feel for you both - it’s horrible seeing them in pain. Might it be possible to carry him in his bed into the car, if you did it between you? Hopefully the vet hospital will help xx

 

[M.F.]

So sorry to hear about Ripple. Are you sure it’s his leg? When Snowie was like this, he’d slipped a disc between S1 and L7 (dogs have 7 lumbar discs, humans have 5)—apparently a common weak spot in dogs, where the pelvis is close to the spine. At the time, I also thought it was his leg or foot. My regular vet thought it was his neck. But the orthopaedic vet correctly diagnosed it and then confirmed it with an MRI.

To get him to the vet, we used a towel as a sling under his chest and manoeuvred him to the car. Very stressful! He actually found it easier if we manoeuvred him backwards! But first we gave 2 Rimadyl at home just to get him inside to sleep overnight cos he would absolutely not move. Next day got him to the vet where he got pain injections that totally took the pain away.

If it’s his leg, could you massage it? I find that Snowie really responds well to massage. I’d also gently massage his back. If it is his back, rest helps greatly, and things will improve and get better.