My dog was hit by a car and seems to be ok except he is struggling to breath.is this normal his lungs r bruise

Question

He is a 2 yr old boxer. he broke the front door and darted out into traffic. We took him to the vet a block away and they took x rays. he has bruised lungs and ribs. He has pulminary contusions??? Hes alert and eating, even barked when a neighbor came to check on him, my only concern is his breathing. His breathes are shallow and very short. he really seems to be struggling with every breathe. The vet said just keep an eye on him the next 24 hrs are critical but he may be just sore. Has anyone experience the same situation?

My entire family is sleeping downstairs next to my dog that is loved very much! To the jerk who thinks hes knows my situation...we took him immediately to the vet with the credit card on the counter and said " do whatever it takes" Of course we did NOT refuse a hospital stay. we were told by our vet if it were his dog he would take him home and give him plenty of tlc. I did call the 24 hr clinic just to notify them all that had happened and again they said nothing about coming in! I AM CONCERNED so i was seeking someone who may have dealt with a situation like this! When I said is it normal....I was refering to the vet just sending us home instead of transfering us to the hospital! Your the dork sitting up reading my question. Im on here because i have a serious situation going on and I dont appreciate your crappy comments!

To the person who is a vet, thank you so much for your info, Its been 12 hours and he hasnt gotten worse. I pray for the best

Answer 1

I've nursed more than a few dogs through this, and it is certainly not a comfortable situation for him. Pulmonary contusions are basically bruises affecting the lung tissue, and he no doubt has quite severe bruising of the tissues overlying his ribcage as well. His breathing is shallow because it hurts him to expand his chest as for a deep or even normal breath.

As you are monitoring him at home at this stage, the best you can do for him is to keep him very quiet- try to avoid anything that's going to make him want to get up and bark, or get him excited, as this may cause him severe respiratory distress. Something you can look at other than his breathing is his gum colour- it should normally be quite pink. When you press it with your fingertip, it should go pale, then pink again as soon as you take the pressure off. If his gums are pale, or have a blue tinge to them, or if his breathing worsens, you need to take him back to the vet straightaway.

If you're getting concerned about him, I would talk to the vets again about bringing him back in. It sounds promising that his breathing has not become any worse, as other possible causes of his shallow breathing could be a very slow leak of air (pneumothorax) or blood (haemothorax) into his chest that was too small to be detected when he was examined at the vets.

ADD: Thumbs up to 'Terrier'. There has been an influx of "im a vet's" lately. I know very well that my knowledge and advice is sound, but anything offered on here needs to be used secondary to people communicating with their own vet!

Answer 2

I'm so sorry about your dog's accident. I hope he recovers quickly!

I - well, my dog - had a similar experience but the ER Vet said my dog couldn't come home right away. When he was able to come home (after 3 days - he had a lot of complications and just wasn't improving) he was just worn out. He literally walked into the house, drank some water, then walked right to his bed and passed out for the next 4 hours (with me watching him like a hawk the whole time.) His breathing was a bit shallow at first but then he improved.

I was so careful with him for the next month you would have thought he was made of bone china. But lung injuries are serious matters and for my dog the healing was quite slow.

Like the Vet said, watch him carefully. I bet your family will take shifts watching him, right? All of you should just go with your gut; if your instincts tell you that something isn't right, then put him in the car and go to the ER Vet.

I sure hope he'll be okay.

Answer 3

Yes. My pet had a collapsed lung and in her case hospitalization was the only way. We didn't expect her to live but she managed to survive and heal.

Why do you say he is struggling to breathe and then in the same sentence ask if this is normal?! Of COURSE it's not normal! If you had trouble breathing, would you consider it NORMAL?!!! Run out and play a game of tennis? Continue on with your daily duties? Or would you consider it to be a real problem! What a stupid thing to say. At least someone had the brains to take the poor dog to the vet. The vet said that the next 24 hours are CRITICAL. That is not to be taken lightly. Did he recommend hospitalization and you refused - or did he say you could take him home? If the vet recommended hospitalization you should have done so. Should anything happen overnight, a vet would have oxygen, etc. available. Or book your dog into the emergency vet overnight, if your regular vet does not keep staff on the premises overnight for the animals. Many do not, and a lot of people don't realize that. I don't even use a regular vet anymore. I use the emergency vet for everything because I know that should my pet have to be there for any length of time, there is ALWAYS a nurse and doctor on the premises at all hours. And it doesn't cost that much more.

Your dog is NOT "just sore" for God's sake! HE WAS HIT BY A CAR! Why is that so hard for you to understand? Your dog could still die, so you'd better start paying attention to the vet and keep an eye on your dog -- NOT fritter your time away on the computer talking to strangers! If he should die, you need to spend as much time with him as you can. But don't bug him; be sure and let him get some rest.

Answer 4

Oh poor dog. I hope things turn out OK in the end. Yes you will get a lot of twats replying who immediately get on your case and assume your haven't taken the dog to the vets... a lot of people on here assume you're incompetent, irresponsible and an imbecile. Just don't take any notice. They like to think they are the oracle, font of all knowledge.

I know when I had cracked ribs I found it hard to breathe! I had to take shallow breaths. Coughing or laughing was very painful! I expect your poor dog has a lot of soreness and feel tender. He probably has bruised ribs even if they aren't broken.

I hope he has a speedy recovery. Best of luck.

Answer 5

There's some pretty rude, unhelpful people have answered your question - I'm sorry you've had to put up with that. That does sometimes happen on here I'm afraid.

If I were you I'd be directing this question at your own vet. That's what s/he is there for. Your vet has seen your dog and so is definitely the best person to ask.



**********IMPORTANT**********

I'd be VERY wary of people on here who claim to be a vet. Of all the people on this site that claim to be a vet, there are only TWO people who I believe - and they are in my contacts list (raspberryswirrrl isn't one of them). Even they cannot diagnose a dog's problem (let alone treat it) through a computer screen.

I could tell you I'm a vet - doesn't make it true.

Speak to YOUR OWN veterinarian. They are the only ones who can judge the extent of your dog's problem. Please don't rely on strangers in cyberspace for something this important.

Good luck - hope the dog is ok.

Answer 6

I haven't been in your situation, but if I were and my dog seemed to be struggling to breathe I'd bring him to the 24 hour hospital for a second opinion. They may change there tune once you're there.

An oxygen cage would really help his efforts to breathe and make him more comfortable.

Answer 7

I personally have not had this experience with a pet...but a bruised lung or cracked or broken rib is awful (I've had a couple)..and this can cause difficulty in breathing...greatly. If you have had you pet checked by a vet and you and the vet are sure that it is only a bruised lung or rib then go with your vets advice (as long as he/she the vet, was sure there was not a puncture of the lung).....given time your pal should be o.k. if the vet is right...Good Luck to you both!!!

Answer 8

It may just be down to the bruising, but I think, for your own peace of mind, I'd take him back to the vet just in case there is any fluid on his lungs.
Really do hope he recovers....good luck!

Answer 9

My dog was kicked by my horse and also seemed to have some trouble breathing. My vet said nothing broken just bruised. Basically it would be like if someone punched you in the ribs hard enough to bruise them you would try to take "small" breathes to ease the discomfort. Follow your vets advise if you dog gets worse take him back to your vet.

Answer 10

My friend was in an accident and received similar injuries. He said at the time it hurt to breathe in so he too took shallow breathes. If you are worried return him to the vets, but as the x rays showed no damage except busing I expect he is just very sore.