Puppy jumped off couch (terrier, yorkies, vet, toy)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We have a 9 week old yorkshire terrier puppy that was sleeping up against my leg and suddenly decided to hop off the couch onto the carpet (16 inches) to chase our other adult Yorkie. He is a small puppy, about a pound and a half. He has never done this before (but we have only had him for a week) and I was caught off guard. When he landed he whimpered a couple times so I thought he was ok just a bit scared. Usually when he gets upset (like if I put him in his crate but he would rather go play) he is VERY vocal (we are working on that too), and this time he only gave a short small whimper.
I picked him up and inspected his legs. I gently felt up and down to make sure there wasn't serious apparent damage. He gave no signs of tenderness, but setting him down he favors one leg. He can put some weight on it and walk but it seems to give out and bother him. I put him in a safe place where he went right back to sleep for a nap. Obviously I am not a vet and I cannot get a clear diagnosis without tests and a more professional hands on diagnosis... but does it sound like he may have just bruised or strained himself? I would think that if there is a tear/fracture or something worth taking him to the vet, he would be showing more signs of distress. He has full range of motion and lets me poke/prod/move his leg in question without any sign of pain.
I am going to keep him resting for the next couple days to make sure he will recover even if it turns out to be no big deal, and certainly be more careful with him and heights (I am sure 16" is a lot to him, this is the smallest puppy I have ever had by about 10+ pounds). I would like to hear thoughts from experience (preferably not flaming me for carelessness or not rushing him to the vet immediately). Thank you in advance.
I agree with Katie1. Take him to a vet. Better safe than sorry. My son and daughter in law's Yorkie-poo jumped off a bed higher than she was used to at 1 year old and broke her front leg. She had a splint put on and healed up fine. No limp at ALL at 3 years old now.
I would take the puppy to a vet. Being vocal about being crated is very different from showing pain. Dogs try to hide pain. I had a dog with degenerative disc disease. The only sign his back hurt when you touched it was he would close his mouth. If you have not studied dog body language it is very possible you missed signs of distress in your puppy. A toy puppy jumping off furniture and coming up limping is worth a trip to the vet. If you do not want to go to the e-vet tonight at least call your regular vet in the morning. I would go tonight as I would be worried about the puppy doing further damage by trying to use the leg.
We have a 9 week old yorkshire terrier puppy that was sleeping up against my leg and suddenly decided to hop off the couch onto the carpet (16 inches) to chase our other adult Yorkie. He is a small puppy, about a pound and a half. He has never done this before (but we have only had him for a week) and I was caught off guard. When he landed he whimpered a couple times so I thought he was ok just a bit scared. Usually when he gets upset (like if I put him in his crate but he would rather go play) he is VERY vocal (we are working on that too), and this time he only gave a short small whimper.
I picked him up and inspected his legs. I gently felt up and down to make sure there wasn't serious apparent damage. He gave no signs of tenderness, but setting him down he favors one leg. He can put some weight on it and walk but it seems to give out and bother him. I put him in a safe place where he went right back to sleep for a nap. Obviously I am not a vet and I cannot get a clear diagnosis without tests and a more professional hands on diagnosis... but does it sound like he may have just bruised or strained himself? I would think that if there is a tear/fracture or something worth taking him to the vet, he would be showing more signs of distress. He has full range of motion and lets me poke/prod/move his leg in question without any sign of pain.
I am going to keep him resting for the next couple days to make sure he will recover even if it turns out to be no big deal, and certainly be more careful with him and heights (I am sure 16" is a lot to him, this is the smallest puppy I have ever had by about 10+ pounds). I would like to hear thoughts from experience (preferably not flaming me for carelessness or not rushing him to the vet immediately). Thank you in advance.
To the vet you and your pup should go. Dogs can be amazingly stoic, even baby dogs. So no, his reaction may not be an indication of the severity of an injury. Or it might. You don't yet know him well enough to know.
Are you familiar with signs of pain in a dog? Could be as unobtrusive as an eye blink or a lip lick.
You have two possible outcomes if you don't take him to the vet: 1) he heals fine on his own and you saved some money or 2) he doesn't and he lives a life of easily re-injuring whatever got messed up.
You have two possible outcomes if you do take him to the vet: 1) nothing is majorly wrong and you get another opportunity to teach your baby dog that vet visits are fun by showering him with yummy treats as the vet examines him or 2) the vet repairs the injury and you feel relieved cause your baby dog is fixed and you put your pup's welfare first.
Get a low foot stool and teach the pup to jump to the floor by way of a midway step, using the footstool.
Rule of thumb for puppies: they should not be up on anything that they can not get up onto under their own power. If they can get up, it is generally safe for them to get down... unless you have a pup who climbs like a monkey, which isn't impossible with the toy breeds.
If you lift the pup up onto anything, then keep a hand on him so he can't jump down.
My little guy is five years old and he recently hurt his leg jumping off the bed too. We were lucky, there was nothing serious and we are just finishing up his meds (he got an antibiotic and an anti-inflammatory). He is completely fine now - so you shouldn't worry too much about a serious injury.
BUT, he showed no real signs of injury either, just favored his leg a bit (and would limp sometimes). And you definitely need to have the vet check it out. If your little guy did any significant damage to his ligaments or joints, it could cause long term problems as his bones grown.
Get to the vet for Xrays. Yorkies have fragile bones. Ours was with another family before us, and she fell and broke her leg as a pup. She now has arthritis in that leg and limps from time to time (much more often now that she's nearing 7). Our vet doesn't think it was repaired properly when it happened.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
