[bonniehelen]

Our puppy broke his leg 2 1/2 weeks ago when he was just 12 weeks old, and had to have surgery. For the first 2 weeks we had to keep him confined to a crate almost exclusively, which we did. We were able to take him out and hold him when he was sleeping or very calm, but if he started to jump around it was back in the crate. Now the vet says that as an alternative we can tether him to something heavy and keep him somewhere where he has a very small area to roam, as long as that area is carpeted. We've been doing that for the past few days, moving him from room to room with me as I work. He gets a lot more physical contact that way as opposed to when he was in the crate. However I just read an SPCA article on how bad it was to keep dogs tethered for long periods of time, and now I don't know what to do. He seems happier on the leash than in the crate because people are always petting him and interacting with him. That's kind of hard to do with him in a crate. But I don't want to hurt him socially. I have 4 more weeks before he can run around, and I'm agonizing over how to best care for him during that time. The vet has given me plenty of advice for keeping him healthy, but I need to know how to best keep him happy.

 

[Abbylynn]

Poor puppy! How did he break his leg?

Which leg was it?

What kind of puppy is he?

I personally would not want to tether him ... only due to the fact that he could get tangled in the lead and injure his leg even more. I would choose to have him on soft carpet when I was able to supervise him with undivided attention .... until his leg is totally healed. When you cannot supervise ... I would keep him in the crate for safety's sake. I would also ... providing he is up to date on vaccines ... carry him ... if he is a small puppy ... and allow him to visit other friends and relatives to keep his socialization current.

This is just how I would handle the situation for the next couple of weeks ... and maybe two weeks from now ... feel a bit more secure about using a tether.

Also .... something I used a million years ago was a soft heavy cardboard box to contain a puppy in ... as long as they don't try and chew their way out. Of course it would have to be under supervision and the pup would only be allowed in it if they could not tip it over. It would have to be a tall box.

There is always the x-pen you can set up if the pup doesn't get his leg caught in the wire. That way he could be right with you and people could still pet him and give him attention.

There is also an old wooden playpen ............ hmmmm ........ just trying to think of alternatives. You wouldn't want mesh ... next a toe nail could get caught or the leg get twisted?

 

[bonniehelen]

Abbylynn - thank you for the feedback. He broke his left front leg jumping off a step in our backyard. He was chasing a ball around the yard, and it looked like he just landed wrong off the step. He's a foxhound, lab, mix. I've tried setting up a play yard for him, but he seems to think we're challenging him to jump over it or knock it down. I hadn't though of a playpen. I haven't even seen one in ages. Maybe e-bay would have one. I do put him in a porta-crib while I'm working in my office, just so we can be together, but he's not overly thrilled with it. We have been going on regular outings so he gets to see people and meet other dogs. The vet says it's ok as long as he doesn't get too wild with the dogs. Holding and carrying him is kind of tough for me at this point. He weighs about 23 lbs. and he just pushes away from me to get down and walk (kind of like my kids did when we were toddlers).

 

[Abbylynn]

Abbylynn - thank you for the feedback. He broke his left front leg jumping off a step in our backyard. He was chasing a ball around the yard, and it looked like he just landed wrong off the step. He's a foxhound, lab, mix. I've tried setting up a play yard for him, but he seems to think we're challenging him to jump over it or knock it down. I hadn't though of a playpen. I haven't even seen one in ages. Maybe e-bay would have one. I do put him in a porta-crib while I'm working in my office, just so we can be together, but he's not overly thrilled with it. We have been going on regular outings so he gets to see people and meet other dogs. The vet says it's ok as long as he doesn't get too wild with the dogs. Holding and carrying him is kind of tough for me at this point. He weighs about 23 lbs. and he just pushes away from me to get down and walk (kind of like my kids did when we were toddlers).

Lol! I guess he is a tad bit large to be carrying around!

Maybe ebay will have an old play pen ... they seem to have just about "anything" a person is looking for! ... provided they have not been outlawed for choking and strangulation issues. I would think it would be tall enough and sturdy enough ... and he definitely couldn't knock it over! Lol! Please keep us informed on what you come up with ... it could be useful for others in the same situation.

Poor guy ... I hope he gets better quickly!