Broken leg (updated)

[Hunter]

I have a 3 month old pup that was hit by a car the other day. It broke is leg smack in the middle between the knee and ankle. He required some stitches, splint, and lost alittle off his tail. I asked the vet if this would hinder him once he was older. She said as young as he is most likely not. Acouple of the guys I hunt with said I should have put him down because he will never be able to hold with a "good" pack of bear dogs. (I said I would just go with those guys that way he could not only hold but lead) There are several reasons I didn't put him down. 1 my fiance took him to the vet. 2 everyone around the house (kids, family and me too) just love his attitude. 3 he's already showing some promise at only 3 months.

What is everyone's feelings on a situation like this?

[Mt Goat]

My feeling is hes your dog, and your paying to feed him so thats your choice and no one elses business.

Aside from that I've seen some fast moving birddogs that have broke legs and recovered just fine, never slowed them down a bit. Just dont push the pup to start running around to fast, let it heal up for a couple months. At first even when its all healed up, he may still limp on it out of habbit but that doesnt mean there is still a problem, some dogs just do that with injuries, as long as the bone is set right it should heal up fine.

[Melanie Hampton]

I had a pup fracture his growth plate at 7 weeks old.. Not to mention the vet's office decided to leave the hard cast on for a week longer then they should have and his leg was like mush when it was taken off.. I figured he was never going to hunt like he should... He does... You would never believe that he had injured such a crucial spot to a growing puppy...

I personally have a hard time not giving a pup a chance to get over an injury like that.. As long as I am willing to pay the vet bill.... and I have spent probably ridiculous amounts on pups... then they get their chance... I may have "sucker" written across my forehead

[Bearhunter]

well since you asked for "opinions" Personally I find it real hard to put that kind of money in a pup that age. No matter how well thought out a cross is or if its a second cross,a pup is like a lottery ticket. Its all a matter of opinion and personal preferance.If you're happy gambling your money and possibly ending up with a hound thats may end up being no more than a pet(due to unjury or not turning out,harder to cull when you have more $$ than normal invested) So be it,its your dog and your money.

One other thing,if the pup recovers and makes a "dog" odds are his "prime years" will be shorten due to ole arthur setting in sooner than an unijuried hound.

[slidecreekdan]

Its your dog. Do as you feel fit. But I see nothing wrong with having a pet if the family loves the dog. Nothing wrong with love. Just my 2cents worth.

[Hunter]

Thanks for the imput. I got this dog to use as a hunting dog. I was raised up that if you couldn't eat it or it didn't do some sort of work don't feed it. Anyways, it's been kinda hard swallowing the bill but I have moved on past that. He's doing just fine and it's one hell of a battle just to keep him subdued as much as I can so it will heal as best as it can. I have thought about some vitamin suppliments but figured that would just be a waste of money.

[Big Horn Posse]

There is a difference between houndsmen that only have dogs as tools and those that actually have a bond and care for them as part of the family. I have been in the hound business for years now and I have seen all kinds of houndsmen and all kinds of hounds. I personally will not sell a pup to a guy that only wants the dog for just a tool to hunt with. I believe you get more out of a dog the more you put into it. If you like your pup and think he is worth more than a vet bill or two then by all means give the pup a fighting chance. If you just want a tool then well, then tools can be easily replaced. Sounds to me you have bonded with the pup so good luck and hope he heals well as expected!!

[houndsnmules]

I had a young dog with a broken leg and it healed quite well never had any problems when he got older.Young dogs like young kids heal much better then older ones

[Hunter]

Well after spending enough money to buy a pack of well trained hounds I think he's alright. Atleast he's acting like it. I started feeding him cooked meat from my stash in the freezer that was getting alittle age on it not a day or two after he broke it. I mixed up a big pot of noodles, deer, bear, hog and turkey meat that was just iffy for the table. (now I have the vac sealer no more questioning) I also threw in some beef fat from the slaughter house. His size has doubled and when I took him back for X-rays the vet couldn't believe how much weight he had put on. The bones didn't heal exactly butt to butt. However, they took together nicely and have formed a calcium deposit over the joint. He's still in my hunting room down stairs and he's wanting out as bad I want him out. He favors it alittle but puts weight on it. The vet wanted to keep a big stupid looking collar thing on him to keep him from licking his foot that had the bad cuts but I took it off and let him lick it. Between that and the antiboidics it's healed like a champ. He's going to have some bad scars and a stumpy tail but I don't mind. I let him loose in the house when I get home and try to work with him on basic commands but he's so hyped up from being penned up it's useless really until he plays it off alittle.
I want to start working with him but don't want him to over do it and hurt his leg again. I am going to start hideing pieces of hot dog threw the house and let him learn to use nose to find things just to keep his mind occupied. Any thoughts on anything else we could work on in our spare time?

[houndsnmules]

bones need a certain amount of stress on them to help them heal. ask your vet how long before you can walk him. That way you can get some leash training on him

[Vance M.]

Swimming will help him out. Also dont let him get over weight