Dog lameness

Question
QUESTION: Hi,

My lurcher (deerhound x whippet we think)has gone lame on his near foreleg. I think he has sprained/strained the carpal area. He was playing with two other dogs on Mon (28/01/008) and suddenly started limping on it. He broke his foreleg in October last year and had a plate put in. He has been sound on the leg for about 2 months now, even after running and jumping. His carpal joint has been quite stiff since his op but has caused him no problems. Now the joint seems looser after Mon (which concerns me slightly)but when I bend it, it hurts him. He can weight bear at the walk but will hold it up when running. He is not depressed so can only assume it is not causing him great pain but have given Metacam (anti inflam & painkiller) for 3 days so far just in case. There is no obvious swelling. Could you tell me what you would suggest the injury could be and what type of treatment you would recommend? I am wanting to give it till the end of the week to see if there is an improvement before taking him to the vets.

ANSWER: Anytime you have some metal in your leg you are prone to hurt the areas around it since they are not stabilized as well.
I would think that from Oct. his break should be healed well.
He most likely sprained it as it could be a weaker joint now.
I think your treatment plan is right on target as is waiting a few days to see if it warrants a trip to the vets.
Does it hurt when you gently bend it? That would be tell tale of a sprain but not so much a break as he wouldn't walk on it most likely if it was re-broken.
By the way, what is a 'lurcher'?

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks ever so much for your prompt response. Are you from outside the UK? A lurcher is a sighthound (greyhounds, whippets etc) crossed with a one of the working breeds (collies, terriers etc.) It is chiefly a British term, apparantly they are not heard of outside the UK very much. It comes from the Romany (Gypsy)word 'Lur' which means thief, as they were bred by travellers for poaching.

To confuse matters more, if Alfie is a Deerhound x Whippet (he is a rescue dog so we dont really know alot about him) he would be classed as a Longdog, which is 2 sighthounds crossed together!!

Yes it hurts when I bend it, but not when I squeeze it, this is why I reckoned it wasnt a re break.

What is your view on aspirin (childs dose) as a painkiller as have approx 1 dose of Metacam left? Also are you any good on equine lameness? I have a lame horse too (its just not my month!) xx  

Answer
Thank you so very much for that description. No, I am in the USA, California to be exact. I had another question once with that name in it and they never answered the same question I asked you, namely what is a lurcher. Interesting concept about naming them after a cross like that. Aren't Deerhounds more of a sight dog than a working breed? I will have to look at my manual on that one.
Baby aspirin is fine in a pinch, it's just that I have seen the damage one aspirin does to a dogs stomach and it was really shocking. So I try to steer people away from it when there are other alternatives. I had a feeling you were British with the mention of Metacam.
I belong to a veterinary group called E-vets that is run by a UK vet name of Peter Knapp (look it up in yahoo groups). He runs this group for lay-persons also where you can get lots of questions answered by him.
I know a small amount about equine lameness since I was a horse owner for over 40 years but by no means an expert.
I might be able to steer you one way or another is all.
So if you want to submit the question go ahead.
I am off to work so it will be a while till I get to the answer.