# Laila got impaled today!!!!



## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

My poor little girl was running and playing in the yard with Lexi when I heard her yelp. But she then continued to play so I didn't think anything was wrong. She then came to me for snuggles, and THAT IS NOT NORMAL, so I knew something was wrong. I saw this stick (4 INCHES LONG) by her leg, and I tugged on it, she yelped and I tugged again, thinking it was just stuck in her hair. But.. It was straight through her flesh!! We had to break the stick to pull it out of each side.   I have cleaned it out and wrapped it up, but wonder if I should get her antibiotics tomorrow???


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## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

Awww Poor Laila. Ouch ... If it was me, I'll take her to the vet just to be sure everything it's OK . Good luck. Feel better, little Laila.


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## clare (Feb 6, 2010)

Poor little Laila,you did very well to get the stick out of her,it's so hard to know if they require antibiotics,vets tend to pump them in regardless,but on the other hand the last thing you want is for her to get an infection.Hope all goes well and that she is a good patient!


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

yeah Laurie , I'd get her checked out by the vet.


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

Oh ouch. Poor girl. I'd want it checked by a vet too.


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## Lizzie'sMom (Oct 13, 2010)

I showed this to my hubby and he says you should get antibiotics today.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

OUCH! poor girl! I'd DEF get her to the vet asap, infection can happen very fast!!


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## miller123 (Aug 13, 2011)

Did that go right thru her leg,OMG, and i thought miller had it bad when he had a thorn in his foot


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Yes, it went completely through! 2 inches on each side. We had to break it in half to get it out.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

yeah Laurie. Check with the vet on this ,as I',m not sure. Sometimes when someone or an animal gets "implaled" with this sort of thing, you are better off leaving it in, and getting to a vet right away. Sometimes when you pull it out they can bleed profusely. It depends whether an artery is there. Check with him on this. This obviously didn't bleed bad, but it could have if it was a different area. ??


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

I'm a human doc and not a vet, but I would suggest that if in this situation again better to take to the vet to have stick removed than remove it yourself. Sometimes it is thru a major blood vessel and can bleed once removed.

AS for antibiotics: controversial. If it were a person then I wouldn't; i would just clean it well and watch closely for signs of infection and only antibiotics if infection. Vets tend to be a little more "liberal" with the antibiotics. Definitely clean it well, flush with lots and lots of clean water. Watch closely for signs of increased pain, pus draining, redness of the skin around the cuts, etc. 

I would go to the vet tomorrow as a precaution for sure.

Poor little pup. Hope she is okay.


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

yes, get her in right away,
poor Laila, hope she is OK through this and you too


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Yikes! Poor Laila. That stick is think and she is small boned. I would definitely take her to the vet ASAP. Keep us posted. Hugs and kisses to Laila!


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## Kalico (Jan 11, 2012)

OMG, I live in fear of this kind of thing. Thank goodness it was her leg and not her chest! I heard a story about a dog impaled in the chest by a sharp stick - it lived. But since I heard that story I think about it all the time when my dogs are playing outside. It may be this kind of accident isn't that uncommon.

I hope she heals up fast! So sorry this happened!


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

Omg. Laurie, how is Laila doing now? You are so brave. I would have been to the vet the minute I knew.


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

OMG! What does the openings look like before you bandaged them up? Vet for sure, the wound may need to be flushed out to make sure all the stick was removed. 

Watch for signs of infection for sure! Keep us posted.


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

Well what they said about the vet...but if I had to cross the plains states back in the day, I would have wanted you in my wagon to pull out the arrow.


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## ivyagogo (Sep 11, 2007)

Yowch. I would definitely take her in to get checked out.


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## The Fussy Puppy Gang (May 21, 2007)

Luciledodd said:


> Well what they said about the vet...but *if I had to cross the plains states back in the day, I would have wanted you in my wagon to pull out the arrow.*


Amen to that, Lucile!

If you don't take Laila to the vet today, definitely get her in tomorrow so the vet can check the wound and make sure it's okay as is. My "old school" vet told me that if our dogs got a puncture wound, administering antibiotic ointment or solution within 30-minutes of the injury happening will cut down the risk of infection a good deal (provided the wound is cleaned/flushed thoroughly). It has proven true for us on a number of occasions, but we always follow up with a vet visit to be sure nothing else needs to be done.

Hopefully Laila will be okay and just on limited activity for a while.


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## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

Poor little girl, but she sure is tough. Hope she is OK.


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## CarolWCamelo (Feb 15, 2012)

I completely agree with Dave - DON'T pull an impaled object out - rush the dog to a vet instead. Same with anything protruding from the anus - even grass - you can cut off the ejected part with scissors, but don't pull the rest out. You can cause a lot further injury that way.

Hope you get her to the vet right away and get this checked out. I believe the vet will prescribe antibiotics for that kind of injury.

I'll be watching for updates, and offering up prayers!

Sun, 6 May 2012 17:42:30 (PDT)


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

CarolWCamelo said:


> I completely agree with Dave - DON'T pull an impaled object out - rush the dog to a vet instead. Same with anything protruding from the anus - even grass - you can cut off the ejected part with scissors, but don't pull the rest out. You can cause a lot further injury that way.
> 
> Hope you get her to the vet right away and get this checked out. I believe the vet will prescribe antibiotics for that kind of injury.
> 
> ...


I've never had a through and through injury like this with a dog, but I know with both borses and cats they often want to put a drain in to make sure it heals cleanly from the inside out. Punctures have the bad habit of healing over on the surface, where they can trap infection inside.


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## CarolWCamelo (Feb 15, 2012)

Karen - you raise an important point about keeping the wound open so it can drain, and heal from the inside out.

Sun, 6 May 2012 20:34:00 (PDT)


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Thankfully my little trooper is good today. She appears to be in no pain at all. The bandage looked big only because I was trying to figure out a way to keep it covered & on her!! 
I flushed it with peroxide and covered it with neosporin. Last night left if open and besides her licking, it looked ok. 
I just got back from the vets - they flushed the wound from one end to the other - and she didnt even flinch!! she is on antibiotics and in the Cone of Shame   She sure is NOT happy about the cone!!!! 

Thankfully she is so much better. I would have rushed her in if she was bleeding a lot, but there was not a lot of blood and she was having no problem walking or moving the leg. I guess as the Mom of two boys, I didnt panic about it when it happened, I just took care of it! 

Thanks for all your support. Here is a picture of her two wounds, entry and exit. And the poor little girl in the cone!


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## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

aww poor baby..such a pitiful looking little girl. Feel better soon!!


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## CarolWCamelo (Feb 15, 2012)

Glad Laila is doing better! Thanks for the pics. Which leg was it? And where on the leg? Laila's not limping? (So many questions!)

Sooooooo glad you got her to the vet! I'm curious; which antibiotic is she on?

Hope the wound heals quickly and easily! Please keep us posted!

Mon, 7 May 2012 09:15:57 (PDT)


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## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

Ouch ... Laila, so pretty. So happy to hear she is doing good.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Carol, it appears that the wood entered on the thigh area above the knee and pushed toward the groin where it came out. Thankfully it appears that it was under the skin - and no muscle - it was such a freak accident. 

She is walking fine - no limping and does not appear to be in pain. she is a tough little girl. They have her on Clavamox.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

I have a friend with a Labrador who was walking in the woods with her one day, and took off after a squirrel. She heard a single yelp, and then he kept going. when he returned to her (I'm sure when he realized the squirrel wasn't going to come back dodwn out of some tree!:biggrin1 she saw this HUGE stick in his side, going right in between his ribs. 

She rushed him to the vet's office, who turfed him to emergency services at Tufts. The stick had gone right through his ribs and punctured a lung. Being a Lab, he hardly noticed. After VERY expensive surgery and some recuperation time (which he did not enjoy) he was good as new!


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## Carefulove (Mar 20, 2009)

Laurief said:


> ... I guess as the Mom of two boys, I didnt panic about it when it happened, I just took care of it!...


Laurie,

Pre-Kids, I would have said your comment was BS, but after having my two boys, I totally agree with you!!!

Glad she is doing better today.


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

Glad Laila got the a-okay and that her wound heals quickly.
ha ha cone head, does she really need it?


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

great news.


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## Kathie (Jul 31, 2008)

Just seeing this and so happy to see the outcome right away! My husband was a Navy Corpsman so he takes care of all our emergencies around here - the kids used to want dad not mom when they got hurt!!!

Laurie, I would feel safer with antibiotics, too. You did a great job getting her fixed up - I sure couldn't have done that myself.....lol


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## Pipersmom (Jul 27, 2009)

Aww, poor Laila! I'm glad she's ok. 

Hope she'll be back in tip top shape and ready to play in a few weeks-she was the life of the party at the last playdate


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## Brady's mom (Dec 1, 2006)

Poor girl in her cone of shame. Glad to hear she is okay and recovering well. Nothing stops that little one!


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

I'm so happy I came to this discussion late. I could feel her pain when you first wrote about it. I suspect I would have rushed mine to the vet, but I give you credit for keeping your head and doing what had to be done. Give little Miss Laila a kiss from me as she heals from her freak accident.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Gelbergirl - sadly she does need it. Every time it comes off she starts to lick the wounds. The vet wants them dry so she will have to have it on for a bit. I take it off for her to eat, but if I leave it off more than 15 minutes - she is licking it. She is diving off and on the deck with it on - so she has adjusted to it quite well. 

I suspect in a few days she will out of the cone!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Happy to hear she is ok!


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## anaacosta (Sep 1, 2011)

Awwwwww Laurie I'm so glad she's ok!! Now how are YOU?!


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

I am so happy she is getting better. Thank you so much for the update.


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

Laurie! :grouphug: I am sorry to hear this and am just now seeing it!! Poor baby :kiss: I'm glad she is okay, scary! That could happen to any of our babies

Kara


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

It was such a freak accident but I will tell my landscaper that I want different mulch next year. He mulched the entire house this year and all the gardens but it was very large pieces of wood. Never again!


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## Tom King (Aug 2, 2006)

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Somone-T-shirt-Dog-Is-Good/dp/B004LDVHRW"]Amazon.com: "It's All Fun And Games Until Somone Ends Up In A Cone" Unisex T-shirt (Slate) by Dog Is Good: Clothing[/ame]


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Tom King said:


> Amazon.com: "It's All Fun And Games Until Somone Ends Up In A Cone" Unisex T-shirt (Slate) by Dog Is Good: Clothing


:biggrin1:


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

Wow, how scary, so glad to hear your girl is doing well. Gee we all try to keep an eye on them and they still manage to get into trouble.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

ound:ound:

Funny Tom


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

Just Checking in on Laila Laurie...how is she doing? I can't believe how brave you were!


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## Miss Paige (Apr 4, 2008)

Laurie-How horrible & scary. Sorry I did not see this before-sending hugs to you & sweet Laila.

Pat


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## StarrLhasa (Jun 6, 2010)

I just read this thread and am so relieved that Laila wil be ok. Very scary.


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## Flynn Gentry-Taylor (Jan 17, 2008)

Ohh, I cannot believe MULCH!!! Who would have thought? I agree with Lucile, you must have been a pioneer in your past life and a white medicine man/woman, who knew how to pull out arrows.ound: I could not have done it..and I was a crime scene technician...but never could deal with hurt animals!! So glad she is okay, and hope you are!!


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Laila is doing well. Her wounds are healing but she still needs to wear the cone. 
You guys make me laugh! I guess growing up in the country makes you a little more "qualified" for the yucky things you have to do in life


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