So, I get a text from my cousin who was borrowing my computer at my house while I'm in class, "What's the name and number of your vet? Koda got nailed!" Thinking my heart dog just got hit by a car I call to find out that in their rough play, Hailey must have grabbed Koda's side and punctured a gaping hole into his side/ribcage. You could see muscle.

So I head to the vet to meet her. Luckily I had just been let out for lunch so I could leave immediately. I spoke with the vet via phone on the way there and he wanted to use a local anesthetic to put in a few stitches. Fine, I would be there soon, he could start (At first the vet tech was saying he needed to go completely under and into surgery, but there was no way I was allowing that.)

Here's the picture the vet took of his side before he began to sew:


When I took him home, I thought I'd just about die trying to get him out of the car. He was screaming and I couldn't get him out without hurting him Here's what it looks like now:


I gave him the pain meds when I got home. I THINK they are starting to work, but he's still crying and whining with every breath. The vet is open until 8pm tonight. If he doesn't get some sleep or his crying doesn't subside, I'm asking them for something stronger. I can't take his pain. It's quite literally killing me inside. :'(

I'm definitely not the one to help with you with the emotional part. It was just playing that did that? I suppose since you weren't there we will never know. That's a nasty one. Sorry for the worthless post.

Unfortunately I wasn't there to see it. Amy (who regularly takes care of my dogs when I am away, so I trust her completely) said that they were outside playing and she was inside. She never heard a yelp, growling or even barking. She went to let them in and Hailey came inside right away but Koda was on the ground by the deck licking himself and wouldn't come in. Amy went over to coax him inside and when he came in, she noticed the gash which wasn't bleeding, but he was clearly missing a huge chunk of skin. That's when she called.

So we really have no idea how it happened, but my guess is that Koda was running at Hailey and launched himself at her. In her play, she reached out to grab him like she always does, but just got him in just the right spot that she just tore into him. I'm sure that he probably swung around by her bite too, putting a lot of pressure on it. I've seen them do it before and have always been surprised they never got hurt. But then again, they normally get the neck where there is the extra skin to do that... she must have caught him on his side.

Ah, well hopefully his crying fades as the skin adjusts. If he wasn't crying when she found him maybe that's a good sign for a quick heal. I've had some to deal with some shit around here, but nothing that required sewing up. Have you tried the Tellington Touch stuff rubbing around his eyes and face? I had to do that for Limbaugh when Coco nailed his saliva gland (but later at the e-vet I let them put him under to get samples and I think that bought us some healing time before the crying). He wouldn't breathe right and his pulse wouldn't slow and then I remembered that.

oh i remember Limbaughs baseball sized wound! that was bad.

oh Tori, just looking at that chunk missing my heart is hurting for you and poor koda! are you sure he could not have gotten caught on something in the yard? like squeezing into something or under the deck?

how is Hailey acting around him now? keep us posted i hope he can get some rest.

Sending our well wishes to Koda. Hope his pain meds start giving him more relief soon. Poor boy, I hate to think how he's going to deal with getting up to potty and all that. Keep us updated, Tori.

Ouch, that looks pretty painful. I'm so sorry! I hope he starts to feel better soon. Drogo and Navi play very rough, I'm always scared they're gonna end up hurting each other somehow.

Honestly, he could have gotten caught on something in the yard, but I just don't know. Amy didn't say his wound was dirty at all and if he got caught on something I'd think there'd have been dirt or debris? Then again he was licking it, so who knows? I'll be going out to walk and check the yard tomorrow for sure though. By the time I got home tonight it was dark and I didn't have time to check when I got him home from the vet.

Hailey doesn't seem to understand that he's in pain and he actually acts a bit timid around her. It could be from the pain, or he could be slightly afraid of her now. Whatever it was, it was an accident. Amy would have heard growling or something if it had been a fight. I can't rule anything out, but I just don't know

The vet just called me back and he's prescribing a slight narcotic and a light tranquilizer to help him sleep. He said the morphine should stay in his system for a good 12 hours so he definitely shouldn't be in this much pain. The poor dog hasn't gotten any sleep since he got the stitches done and they told me he should have come home and passed out :'(

Wow, that's a bad one! Poor Koda! I feel horrible that he (and you) are going through this I would be completely freaking out! Sometimes while running in the yard Mya lunges at Kody in an attempt to catch him (he's way too fast for her) and she's actually caught him a few times. He always gives out a little yelp, but never hurt. I'm always scared that one day she'll seriously hurt him like this.

Poor Koda. I feel horrible

Koda wrote:

I'll be going out to walk and check the yard tomorrow for sure though.

just look for a patch of fur, but you do have a huge yard! i kind of am hoping he caught something and it was not Hailey i hope once he is feeling better you can better judge their interaction and see if he is timid around her.
i hope the new pain meds help him sleep it off. if it was me i would for sure take the rest of the week off to watch him! do you have anyone to stay with him or can you get out of class?

Poor Koda! I hope the new meds work and he's able to get some sleep.

I'm glad the vet is giving you something extra, I'm sure it will give you more peace of mind tonight. I know it certainly makes me breathe a little easier knowing you have it if you need it. Hope Koda will be sleeping it off soon. Poor baby.

Poor thing. I hope you both get some rest tonight.

Ouch! Poor Koda. I hope he gets well soon.

His appetite is actually kicking up since I got back from the vet (he's currently licking his bowl that I filled with peanut butter and kibble and what's left in the kong). He still sits down and does nothing but cry though, but I'm hoping that this goes away with the new meds. Tramadol for the pain and a light tranquilizer called Acepromazine.

Jenn- I wish I could stay home, but honestly, being home is going to do nothing for him and if I did, then I'd have to make up a lot of class time. I am working with my broker on Thursday and Friday though, so I will definitely try to see if we can do some work from my house instead of hers just for the day if he's not doing better.

Thanks for all the well-wishes, everyone! I'm so worried about him, but I'm hoping these new meds will help!

Poor Koda! Wow, I can't imagine seeing that - that freaks me out just seeing the pictures!!! I'm terrible with wounds but am usually the person left to clean them. Ugh. BTW, for everyone cleaning/disinfecting wounds, our daycare recommended Vetericyn and it's AWESOME! Expensive but available at Petco!

Poor baby! Hope he recovers quickly.

Aw, poor Koda!...and I'm sure it's not easy for you either.
I hope Koda feels better soon, and heal up quick!

Poor koda! That had to hurt!

Wow! That's a serious chunk! Hope he feels better soon...

I'm sorry to hear about Koda! I hope he heals quickly!

Ouch! Poor Koda Hope he starts feeling better soon

Update from from my phone (so excuse typos):

Koda is MUCH better this morning. A friend who works at a shelter suggested that the morphine sometimes makes dogs whine. I'm wondering if Koda was just scared and loopy? He DID seem a LOT better after the new medication. His pain cries changed. I don't know how to describe it but you could tell that he was no longer in pain but he was just really uncomfortable. So I'm wondering if it was the morphine wearing off? Vet said it should have been in his system for 12 hours.

This morning he was so much better. More alert, more active, ate his breakfast when I put s raw.egg on it. He is not 100% but he's no longer whining and he seems a lot more comfortable.

One drawback to the meds? They make him wet himself. Annoying, but manageable. He and I slept in the living room so John and Hailey could sleep. Koda is my heart dog, I couldn't let him sleep alone in his crate or without us I lined the carpet with garbage bags and blankets and he stayed on them. That way I could pick them up and throw them in the washer this morning.

That's our update. He's in his crate with his ecollar and a peanut butter Kong. I'll post more when I get home!

Koda wrote:

He's in his crate with his ecollar and a peanut butter Kong. I'll post more when I get home!

Another great reason to have our dogs crate trained. Koda should be safe in there while your all at work.

I'm glad he is doing better on the new meds. How long does he need to stay on them? Sucks that he is weting himself but what a good momma you are to sleep with him

I'm glad that he's doing so much better!