Leg injury

[Island_Mama]

Aloha everyone

my boyfriend has a chihuahua mix dog and a few days ago she peed on a chair and the person that was supposed to be watching him threw her outside. We are not 100% sure the story is correct, the injury seems to be more like something you get if you are hit, kicked maybe.
My boyfriend refuses to take her to the vet, even though we are so concerned.
The thing is she is still limping and still won't put her paw down. It is one of her back legs. she has put it down but it is rare and most of the time it seems as even though she is holding it up, it is dangling in mid air, it is sort of limp as she holds it off the floor.

I told him I know we don't have money for a vet now but my vet clinic would work out a payment plan and my personal belief is the person that caused the injury should pay at least.

I don't know what to do for her, she doesn't yelp or anything when I touch it, it doesn't feel or look swollen, doesn't feel broken but I don't know. I think he wants to wait all the way until wednesday to take her to the vet and it is only saturday.

What can I do for her? are there any other signs I should be looking for to diagnose an injury? am I worrying too much? she is still active, eating and drinking water. She does seem to be panting more than usual and looks uncomfortable.

Thanks for any advice shared!

[stardogs]

Denying veterinary care is considered neglect - please get her to the vet asap. The person who injured her should certainly pay for her treatment and if they don't you can likely take them to court. Documentation is key, and the longer you wait the more easily the person can say that the injury did not happen in their care...

If she were just sore but was putting some weight on the limb I wouldn't be as concerned, but non-weight bearing days after the injury does not sound like a simple soft tissue injury. I'm not a vet, but it certainly sounds like more is going on.

[Zach'smom]

Did you take the dog to the vet?? How is she doing. Also most animal shelters have vet clinics that will give you low cost care and work out a payment plan.

[Eyelet]

Poor doggie!

Please take her to the vet asap.

[Ola_]

I agree to take her to a vet if it's been a couple of days and she's still not bearing weight on it or showing significant improvement. Really, by delaying the cost could go up, so I don't see a benefit to waiting. And especially with little doggies they can get serious injuries even from what seems like a small amount of force.

[stardogs]

I wanted to add that if it's a break, waiting days can equal a much more expensive bill; by then the break could be healing badly and the vet will effectively have to break the bone again to set it so it can heal well.

I had a foster years ago who had untreated broken legs and the vet guessed that he was 8 weeks post injury when I got him - nothing could be done as the bones were almost fully healed, albeit in the wrong place. He has a permanent limp and will get arthritis earlier because he did not receive prompt vet care.