Swiss Lick Swissies

Winter Pain

Tuesday, December 29th, 2009 | Beowulf, Gryffindor, Indigo

The dogs love the snow for the most part. At least the Swissies do. But they are not always a fan of the ice or the cold, and sometimes they end up injuring themselves. Usually it’s on the way up the stairs to the back door. Or it’s unhappy pads on the paws from the snow, ice and salt.

So, what do I do, you ask? Great question, if I don’t say so myself.

I’ve learned from past experiences that keeping the steps clear from snow, unless I’m going to continuously salt them, is not always a great idea. They frequently end up full of ice, which means a higher likelihood of someone slipping. I’ve salted back there, but no matter how plant or animal friendly the product claims to be, the dogs pads are super irritated, or the bushes and other stuff back there ends up brown and dead in the spring. So, I tend to leave the snow there and only clear it if it becomes a large block of ice.

I learned last winter that Musher’s Secret is great on paws. It helps with hot or cold pavement, gives them a little extra grip (IMO) when it’s icy, and helps protect against the salt. At this time of year, all the dogs in my house are getting it applied to their pads once a week.

But, inevitably, someone tweaks something. A muscle is pulled, a nerve is pinched…you know, the stuff that makes you wonder if they are hurt bad enough to take them to the vet.

Case in point-Sunday night, Gryffin is hanging out on the stairs near the gate (we keep it up so we don’t have to go find Indy when it’s crate time) looking weird. I thought he might want more water, so I removed the gate and started downstairs. But he wouldn’t come with. He went all the way up, turned around, took two steps down and started whining. After some poking and prodding, it appears is if his front and rear passenger side was tender and caused more whining. We maneuvered him slowly down the stairs and got him on a dog pillow, gave him a nice massage, and a small bit of peanut butter with one buffered aspirin inside. The next morning, the whining was gone, but he was not jumpy like normal. Same with last night and this morning. So we’ve been continuing with the single, buffered aspirin at meal times plus one in the middle of the day. If he’s still having issues in a few days, we’ll make a quick trip to the vet. I don’t want to give Mr. Sensitive Belly aspirin for more than a couple of days, because it will cause other issues.

But this brings up another point–aspirin. Yes, aspirin can be safe for dogs. Not for puppies or cats, though. Most vets recommend approximately 5-10mg per pound of the dog’s weight during a 12 hour period. If you want to be safe, start out with the lower dose, 5mg per pound, and see what happens. If you are uncertain, call your vet.

Tags: Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, Gryffin the Swissy, Indy the Swissy

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