Pets are often brought to the veterinary clinic after suffering soft tissue trauma. Bones are considered ‘hard tissue,’ anything else is ‘soft tissue’.
This can be from impact from vehicles, falling from high surfaces, or suffering an athletic injury (sprains, strains or muscle tears).
Some surgical repairs cause soft tissue damage by virtue of incising or stretching and moving tissue and muscle out of the way. Tissue trauma causes inflammation and swelling. This means increased blood flow, an increase and release of inflammatory chemicals into the surrounding area, and results in pain and reluctance of the animal to use the body part.
Pets can suffer the same soft tissue injury that we do: bruising, tendon strain, joint sprain, muscle tear. Minimal treatment includes, ice, analgesics (pain control), and anti-inflammatory medications. Limping dogs often indicate a mild soft tissue injury that needs minimal intervention as listed above.
One of the non-injury scenarios of a dog limping would be a soft tissue sarcoma. This tumor arises from soft tissue and is often removed if it’s caught in the earlier stages. Point being: please do not wait too long to have masses medically evaluated: something that can be cured at an inch in diameter may not be at two inches.
As canine rehabilitation specialists, our goal is to return the dog to pain-free, normal activity as quickly as possible within the bounds of normal tissue healing. Bones (hard tissue) actually heal on average 50% faster – meaning return to previous strength. This is a very general statement, considering the age of the animal, body condition, medications, and the specifics of the injury are all among the variables. Generally speaking, a bone can heal in 14 weeks, as can a large muscle tear. Tendons will only have 80% of their original strength a year after a severe injury; ligaments even less. This explains why significant soft tissue injuries can be so important, especially for a sport or working dog. Minor muscle strains and bruises are common, and not a big issue.
Early physical therapy sessions for these significant soft tissue injuries often include a warming ultrasound, massage and/or stretching, perhaps electrical stimulation on a muscle, targeted exercises to encourage stretch, and a cold compression at the end. As the injury begins to heal and recover some strength, our therapeutic exercises increase and adapt to further the healing and strengthening goals. So, the first time you look outside and think: “Oh, my dog is limping!”, don’t panic! But if it continues, or worsens over a few days, a vet visit is very important so that something serious is not overlooked!
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