I noticed today that my 11 month old Dalmatian one of his elbows appears to be swollen and I don't even know how, when, where, etc. I noticed he has these "sores" or more like callus on his elbows and the only thing I can think of is pressure points from when he lays in his crate-they have been there for quite some time. Plus a few months ago we replaced our floors with all hardwoods so its not like he has anywhere to "cushion" these pressure points. I would put a bed down for him in his crate or outside of the "home" but he is a chewer-a really bad one too at that. It would only get chewed up so why spend the money? This dog can chew through ANYTHING as well. Seriously. Can't even keep toys around for more than a day without him shredding it to peices but that is better than my furniture getting chewed up.
I know it probably warrants a trip to the vet but if its "pressure points" from where he is laying down what can you do to solve that? Am I going to have to go to the vet each and every time a new callus forms or his elbow(s) swells up? It's just the one elbow that is swollen so seems like he may have done something to it rather than the pressure point theory. A warm compress or cold compress might help but there is no way he would EVER sit still long enough. I thought Ibuprofen but then I did research and this can be highly toxic to a dog .....guess I am going to have to take a trip to the vet....ugh! I hate taking him in there too because his behavior is soooooooooo bad! Yes, we have had extensive training but he is one stubborn you know what! NOTHING like my first Dal boy~
If someone has an old bedspread, comforter or blanket, put that down for him in his crate. After my outside dogs wore out their beds, I had two old bedspreads that I put in their doghouses.
Yeah, take him to the vet - they can take x-rays to see if it is something with the joint itself, but from what you described it sounds like a hygroma. It's a fluid-filled swelling that forms, most commonly over the elbow, because it is a pressure point and it does tend to happen most often on just one instead of both. Usually it just happens once and eventually will go away with time if the dog is allowed to lay on a cushioned surface. Sometimes people ask me about draining them to get rid of the fluid but they tend to just fill right back up again. My friends' young Lab had one and given enough time, it resolved on it's own. Get it checked out by the vet to make sure it's not something else, you can also look up info on a reliable web source like the AAHA web site. And yes, ibuprofen and many other over-the-counter pain meds/NSAIDs for dogs are no-no's. Thanks for making sure first! :)
It sounds like you know what you are going to do. Vet trips can be stressful for animals and humans alike. Try to stay calm and remember the training. Any way your vet can be ready for you when you get there? Our Rott was always very bad at the vet. She hated car rides too. She was dumped at a shelter when she was a puppy, left outside tied to the door over night, and she had parvo so we always assumed that she associated with that anytime she had to get in the car. Our awesome, wonderful, fantastic vet (we really love her) always made sure that the room was all prepped and ready for us. We would call when we were 5 minutes away and they would open the back door for us so she didn't have to go through the waiting room. She still didn't like it but at least we could minimize her stress some. As for the chewing our boxer had this problem until we increased her play time. Once she wasn't bored anymore she stopped. Good luck!
I think you'll probably need to get him something cushiony to lay on in order for his elbow to heal. You can find some fairly cheap dog beds at the usual places; Wal-Mart, etc. What I did with my previous GSD when he was young was just sew up the bed when he chewed on it. It doesn't have to be pretty, just efficient. I sewed it a few times. Eventually he grew out of chewing.
Something else you could try, in order to get him used to the bed but not chew on it, is give him the bed and something to chew on at the same time. Give him a favorite chew toy, or a chewy treat. I found some real beef bones at PetSmart the other day--they are naturally hollow and the company fills them with some type of goodie for the dog. I gave one to my dog, and once he ate the goodie out of the middle, I started filling it with peanut butter (I've also used Easy Cheese). This keeps her busy for a while, and out of trouble. I give it to her when I leave for work, so she has something else to do besides dig up the yard or chew on the privacy fence or eat the new tree (all of which she does/has done, and which my husband blames on me because she's "my" dog--argh!). But you could put the bed down, have your Dal lay on it and then give him the bone. Take the bed up when he's done. Introduce the bed to him in this way and maybe he won't see it as a chew toy and eventually you can leave it out all the time.
Just a suggestion--haven't tried it myself, but if you try it, let us know how it goes.
I'm not a dog expert but a neighbor of mine is. She has rescued a couple of dogs and one of them was very difficult to train so she brought him to this woman, Angie. My neighbor swears by Angie. Angie is supposedly the "dog whisperer of GA" and her web site is: http://www.uscanine.com/About.html. I highly recommend getting your dog to her asap. Apparently there isn't a dog she can't train. She works with the dog owners too to make sure you know the techniques so when your dog is back with you he/she continues to behave.
As for the chewing...we adopted a dog this year and his teeth/jaws are so strong he could chew through anything. People recommended the black colored Kong chew toy (supposedly indestructible) and my dog ripped through it in minutes. The one item he hasn't been able to chew through is an antler. My dog expert neighbor suggested it and she was right, he loves it and hasn't been able to destroy it. I know of a store in Alpharetta that sells them but you can probably find one near you.
Hope this helps,
L.
I think the callus and the swollen joint are separate issues.
Look at http://www.drsfostersmith.com/
I love their products! They have a chew proof bed!
Once the joint is checked out, you might want to try increasing the walk time significantly to expend some of your dogs energy so he won't chew as much.
Is there anyway you could put bactine on it and bandage it? Probably going to need an elizabethan collar (petstore) to keep him from chewing that....
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UT...
here are some good places on raising and training a dalmation ... and I think a trip to the vet is in order ... you will most deffinatly want to seek out assistance.
