Dog Fracture Healing

Dog fractures: In almost every accident involving dogs and vehicles some of the dog's bones are fractured. When your dog has a broken bone like a leg, the first thing you want to do is immobilize the affected area. Broken bones that are not immobilized could cause further damage to other parts of your dog (nerves, arteries, internal organs), or the break in the bone could become worse and prevent proper healing. To make a splint place some stiff material on the sides of the affected bones and bind them in place making sure that the splint is long enough and wide enough to guarantee no movement of the fractured bones. Cover any open wounds gauze bandages or any other clean material you have if no bandages are available. Do not touch any protruding bones but simply cover them as best as you can to prevent infection. Staunch any bleeding by applying firm pressure to the wound with a gauze bandage. As long as the dog is in a safe place do not move it, instead the best thing to do while you are waiting for emergency medical assistance is to give your dog shelter from the elements (keep it warm or cool, etc…) and watch for the symptoms of shock, which are fast shallow pulse and faintness. Should your dog be in an unsafe spot (the middle of the road) then you should move it using extreme caution due to the possibility of damage to your dog's spinal column.  Never move a dog with back injuries without first carefully and gently placing a stiff, rigid and flat object (a door, board or table top) completely under your dog. Make sure that no part of your dog is hanging off of the "stretcher" as you are moving it. Always seek immediate medical attention if you dog suffers a broken bone.