FWIW Rick it took 4-5 days before the pads came back so putting a 24hr time frame on limp that is minor is unrealistic. After those 4-5 I did a short 1 hour or so track. After that my dog being a Mal she went out in the backyard chasing squirrels and the like after and reinjured her pads. I now use Kopper Kare $14 and Mushers secret $18 for a big jar to toughen and protect her paw pads. She is a lot better now I just need her to slow down! Wish me luck. My wallet thanks me for not going to the vet.

Rick, just to add from my experience with sprains and strains (as different from torn pads) we usually give Oscar upwards of a full week without a lot of activity. NO activity other than potty breaks for 2 days, then, if condition is improving, we'll walk longer, still no running. Only after a week will I take him running with me again.

I have a 95lb dog, so when he pulls something, I want to make sure it's as healed as it's going to get before I get him pounding on all fours again Better to be overly cautious than end up with a CCL tear, or something similar, from jumping the gun on recovery... a few extra days of rest do NO harm.

~Natalya

I just want to first thank you two, as you have been especially helpful...

I am going to give her rest for the next few days, and see if the limp improves. I am glad you all picked up on the one day part; I should give it a few days w/o activity to heal before I jump to any conclutions. If the limp gets worse after a few days, I will go to the vet.

The hardest part is keeping her occupied, and happy while she sits there and recouperates. She needs to get a hard workout in to be able to really "crash" and she cannot get that lying around all day. So, I think she is frustrated with the lack of activity more than anything else...

Two days ago, I took my Corgi in for the exact same thing (he's always trying to keep up with the GSD), and it was quite clearly his elbow. She suggested...surprise, surprise: R&R (Rest and Rimadyl).

After a couple of days, he's acting back to normal, but keeping the dog from running is a good idea for a week or so. Dogs will try to go out full blast as soon as they can, even when they're not fully healed and therefore the risk of reinjuring it or making it worse is high...and then you're talking x-ray costs on top of everything else.

And remember, many dogs won't act like there's something wrong with them unless it's really bad. They just want to move as soon as they can do it!

When I was a kid, I did this too! I had a sprained ankle and since I missed playing with my friends, I headed out before I should have and wound up tearing ligaments....which knocked me out a lot longer than a sprain would have!

A high quality product: http://www.recoverysa.com/recovery_sa.htm

I've been giving this to Lear since he was 9 weeks old. It's a preventative to as well as a help in healing injuries, arthritis, etc. More info on the site. One bottle lasts a long time because the dose is quite small (1/4 tsp - 1/2 tsp). It's a powder, mix with food.

I highly recommend it.

i dog sit 2 goldens,the young male loves to nose his ball and catch it befor it goes down the stairs,he slides befor catching ball,i day was limping,i was panicked,called the owner in france at 3am!we just took ball away and he was fine within a week.i run to the vet right away for anything i went a few weeks ago freaking out that my dog maybe had a mast cell tumor,it was a misquito bite.crazy me

 Quote: sue lessner

i run to the vet right away for anything i went a few weeks ago freaking out that my dog maybe had a mast cell tumor,it was a misquito bite.crazy me

Don't worry Sue, I'm the same way. If Oscar ever starts to limp it's like my mind just races to the worst possible scenario - dysplasia, CCL tears, bone fractures - "that leg's gonna have to go!!" I'm a wreck when he's not feeling well (it's a constant source of amusement for my boyfriend, who thinks I'm absolutely crazy for being such a Nervous Nelly... he keeps me grounded when I'm signing Oscar up for chemo-therapy on a belly ache

We all just love and care about our dogs, no fault there. And don't get me wrong, I'd morgage my house (if I had one ) if Oscar needed seriously expensive medical treatment. However, the longer you live with a minorly accident prone dog, the more you realize that a lot of injuries can be healed at home - just like with many human injuries. With vet consults running at least $50 a visit, it's worth a shot anyway.

~Natalya

 Quote: rick miller

I am going to give her rest for the next few days, and see if the limp improves. I am glad you all picked up on the one day part; I should give it a few days w/o activity to heal before I jump to any conclutions. If the limp gets worse after a few days, I will go to the vet.

Rick you never really said what she was doing in the first place to injure herself.. Did you see what she did to hurt herself? How is she doing today it has been 48 hours right?

I know when a dog limps yes it has to hurt.. But in all fairness I'm learning that you can jump the gun by heading to the vet. i.e my blistered footpad scenario, My daughter saw my dog trip over her own feet I assumed it was a elbow and was totally fixated on that and it caused me to misread the real injury (which was minor).

Sure it can go the other way too but more often that not it is not a serious injury. Especially if the dog can walk away under their own steam.

My old Malamute Timber Wolf X had eaten whole cobs of corn out of the garbage one time. (yes the whole cobs, I guess he liked the butter on them) So I freaked and brought the dumb dumb to the vet. 3 days at the vet for X-Rays, Doggy Laxative, observation and a $1200+ dollar Vet bill later he had a tough bowel movement..

2 years later he did the same thing (got into cobs of corn in the garbage) at a friends cottage. There was no way I was bringing him to the vet this time and yes this time nature ran it's course without the help of a vet .. the dog lived.

Sandy Moore says it best by "Read your Dog" just a dog is not as easy to read as a book, especially for relatively green worry wart handler/owners like me!

Right on Geoff!

You know, if I were the ewe in your signature photo, I'd be running a heck of a lot faster!! Your girl is gorgeous, but I sure wouldn't want her after ME!

~Natalya

 Quote: Geoff Empey

Rick you never really said what she was doing in the first place to injure herself.. Did you see what she did to hurt herself? How is she doing today it has been 48 hours right?

Thanks for the concern, Geoff...

I am not sure when this occured. And she hasn't improved very much since I posted. But, I have just been keeping her in a down, or in the kennel except to go to the bathroom, so I really don't know what else to do except wait it out with her...