If you know what your greyhound looks like when it is healthy and well, you can become better at picking up the subtle changes in your greyhound’s behaviour or gait that may suggest your greyhound is injured or unwell.

Some injuries are very obvious, but some injuries can be so mild they take an experienced and watchful eye to detect. Being able to identify these minor changes can mean that the injury is treated early and correctly, reducing the risk of it worsening and potentially ruining the greyhound’s career.

Spend time each day watching each of your greyhounds to become familiar with the individual quirks and peculiarities of their behaviour and gait, so you will notice the little things that may indicate your greyhound is ‘off-colour’ or is feeling pain.

Common signs of illness include:

• less appetite
• more tired than usual
• coat appears rough or fluffed up (can be a sign of fever)
• hair loss
• coughing
• discharge from nose and/or eyes
• vomiting and/or diarrhea
• belly distended or swollen
• urinating more or less frequently than normal
• red or brown coloured urine
• increased water consumption
• poor performance in during training, trialling or racing
• poor performance in the second part of a race when the first part was normal

If you suspect your greyhound may be unwell, seek veterinary assistance as soon as possible.

Assessing gait and movement

Lameness may be very obvious, with the greyhound not wanting to put weight on one of its legs, or it may be harder to see. Often the best way to assess the gait is to have someone else ‘trot’ the dog for you so you can watch it move. Trotting is a two-beat gait with two legs moving together at the same time. Lameness may show up as a change to the rhythm of this beat, or an increased head bob on one of the two strides. The greyhound’s body will be trying to protect the injured leg by taking some weight off it, and this leads to the head being lifted up as the sore leg touches the ground. Trotting the greyhound in a circle, first to the left, then to the right, may also help highlight an injury.

Watching the video of a race or trial may help assess if anything looks abnormal in the greyhound’s galloping gait such as running wide, slowing into the corner, ‘throwing’ a leg, ‘flicking’ the tail or a shortening stride.

Feeling for injuries - examining your greyhound

Get into the habit of examining your greyhound by feeling with your hands and fingers. By following a set procedure, you can examine the greyhound from head to toe in a relatively short time and won’t miss anything along the way.

Feel for soreness, heat, swelling, or changes in shape and feel. Tense tight muscles are often protecting an injury, reduced range of movement of a joint indicates pain or damage, and hot, painful areas indicate active inflammation. Assess both sides of the body and compare them.

The book ‘Care of the Racing and Retired Greyhound’ (Blythe LL, Gannon JR, Craig AM, Fegan, DP, 2007) suggests examination techniques both for common muscle injuries and for a more thorough evaluation. Videos are available on the internet, and you can ask your greyhound veterinarian to give you a demonstration of how to perform examinations and what to feel for.

Muscle injuries

Not all injuries will lead to changes in gait or movement. A low-grade muscle injury may not lead to any changes in the greyhound’s gait but will decrease its speed and may predispose it to further injuries.

If the muscle is torn or ruptured, the damage should be easier to detect. The muscle will be sore, the greyhound may be limping, or there will be swelling or fluid accumulation at the site of (or below) the injury. Bruising is often seen at the site if the area has little hair.

If a muscle injury is suspected or detected it is important that it is dealt with properly straight away. The amount of damage and swelling needs to be minimised and the greyhound should be rested from running or training until the muscle has had time to fully repair. It is vital that the greyhound does not continue to race or trial. Injured muscles can cause a greyhound to be ‘off- balance’ and can lead to the development of ‘track leg’ - a bony callus that develops due to the elbow striking the inside of the back leg.

When a muscle is damaged, muscle pigment (myoglobin) can leak into the bloodstream where it is passed out as red or brown coloured urine – something all greyhound trainers should be looking out for after a run or race. (Red or brown coloured urine can also be a sign of bleeding within the urinary tract or some diseases.)

Severe muscle damage can progress to a condition called rhabdomyolysis (acidosis) which is caused by excessive stress and requires urgent veterinary attention.

Depending on the severity of the injury your veterinarian may recommend rest, ice packs, anti-inflammatory treatment, massage, stretching or the use of one of the therapies designed to help heal the muscle tissue. If your greyhound is treated with anti-inflammatories, ask about the withholding period as these drugs will lead to a positive swab. It is vital that your greyhound does not run on anti-inflammatories as they simply mask the pain and continuing to run is likely to result in more severe injury.

Early return to function is important for the physiotherapy of the injury. Once the muscle has had some time to repair, the dog should be graduallybrought back into full work - not returned immediately to its former workload. The rest needed during the recovery phase leads to a reduction in fitness, and it is easy to put too much stress on the newly healed tissue too early if you overdo it. It is also important that the greyhound receives a proper warm up and cool down to further prevent damage to the muscles.

Track leg

Track leg is the common name for swelling on the inside of the tibia (the main hindleg bone between the knee and hock) and is most commonly seen on the left leg.

It is caused by the outer point of the elbow colliding with the inside of the tibia as the greyhound runs. Usually this happens when an injury unbalances the running style, such that the elbow turns out or the hindleg inadequately arcs around the elbow.

Track leg ranges in seriousness from mild to severe, and the treatment varies accordingly:

Mild track leg is described as a little puffiness after one or two glancing blows during a run. Treat minor swelling with an icepack held in place for 5-7 minutes, 3-4 times daily.

Moderate track leg shows more significant and obvious swelling with subsequent thickening and scarring. Treatment of moderate track leg requires a veterinarian. The most common treatment involves draining the fluid, reducing ongoing fluid build-up and bandaging the site.

Severe track leg presents as a break or rupture of the skin with bleeding and ongoing oozing from the site. Treatment of severe track leg must be undertaken by a veterinarian.

In all cases, treatment also involves attempting to identify and correct the cause for the abnormal gait leading to the development of the track leg.

Feet and paws

Feet need to be checked thoroughly after every run as foot problems will very quickly affect performance. Examine the greyhound’s feet for cuts and cracks, uneven wear, papillomas (warts) and corns (painful growths in the pads). The nails and nail beds along with the webbing between the toes also need to be thoroughly inspected. Each toe should be gently flexed and extended to check for damage or soreness, and any problems investigated.

It is not uncommon for the side ligaments of the toe to be damaged or stretched leading to ‘sprung’ toes or ‘dislocated’ toes. These injuries are very painful, especially with the huge pressures applied to the toe during cornering in a race. Webbing injuries such as sand grazes are often due to problems with the action of certain ligaments or tendons.

Another important foot problem is ‘sesamoiditis’ which is inflammation or damage to the small sesamoid bones that are located at the back of the top toe joint where the top toe bone joins the shins. Sesamoiditis is a very common injury detected during the education phase of training, leading to painful toe joints with a reduced range of movement. The pain caused by these sesamoids can lead to problems turning, jumping out of the boxes and changing direction at high speed.

Pay particular attention to these joints during an examination and if you notice that the joint is swollen or painful, or if the toe does not move as far as it normally does, then you should have the area checked by a greyhound veterinarian. Many cases of sesamoiditis will resolve with rest and treatment, but others require veterinary intervention.

Having any painful toes checked early by your veterinarian will provide your greyhound the best chance of returning to full speed and will reduce the risk of long-term problems developing.

Micro-fractures

Micro-fractures or hairline fractures are tiny fractures of the bones that occur when the forces placed on the bone are greater than its strength.

They often occur in a younger greyhound beginning its training because its bones are still growing and hardening. Micro-fractures are also common in greyhounds at their peak, while training and racing frequently on circular tracks. The forces applied to the bones while running around curves is greater than when greyhounds run on a straight.

Common contributing factors of micro-fractures include:

• training and/or racing on hard surfaces, which increases the forces on the bones;
• training and/or racing too often, preventing the bone from having enough time to heal;
• high intensity training involving tight or multiple turns.

Micro-fractures may go unnoticed initially, but generally present in a greyhound as any of these:

• mild heat, pain and swelling in the area of the fracture
• mild lameness
• affected gait
• poor cornering.

The main treatment is rest from its normal racing and training activities. In some cases, a greyhound may need periods of isolation to prevent it from becoming excited and causing additional stress on the bone.

If the area of the micro- fracture is swollen or hot, apply icepacks to the affected area for 5-7 minutes, 3-4 times per day until the swelling and heat reduces. However, if no improvement is seen within 24-48 hours, seek veterinary attention. Heat in a greyhound’s leg could be a sign of an infection that may require antibiotic treatment, or indicate that the micro-fracture is actually a larger fracture that requires different treatment.

Always seek veterinary advice if you suspect your greyhound has a micro-fracture. Your veterinarian will provide advice on:

• rest periods and when your greyhound is likely to be ready to resume training or racing;
• medication and/or treatments to support fracture healing;
• the greyhound’s diet, exercise, training and racing regime to try and establish how the micro-fractures occurred and how to prevent them from occurring in the future; and
• alternative exercise options such as swimming that will help you to keep your greyhound fit while they are healing.

Preventing micro-fractures involves:

• feeding a nutritionally balanced diet that is appropriate to the age and activity level;
• seeking low impact exercise options for building and maintaining your greyhound’s fitness between races and while recovering from injury;
• having your training facilities assessed by a track expert to determine whether your surface is too hard or too soft;
• regular examination of your greyhounds for soundness.

Also, pay attention to ‘warm-up’ and ‘cool-down’ techniques before and after a race. Warm-up exercises for greyhounds may include light jogging or brisk walking, rubbing or massage, and gentle stretches. In cold weather, the greyhound may also wear a warm coat right up to the time of racing to maximise the circulation to the muscles.

If you ignore the injury, it is likely that a minor problem may worsen very quickly into a more serious, potentially career-ending one if the greyhound continues to trial or race.

Physiotherapy and massage

Physiotherapy and massage can be used to help prevent injuries by preparing the greyhound’s muscles for a race and can also be used to help treat problem areas when there has been an injury to a specific area. Many greyhound veterinarians will recommend massage of injured areas, and gentle stretching and flexing to assist with improving the range of movement of a joint. Do not overdo either the massage or the stretches as this can cause damage if a joint is pushed too far. Ask your greyhound veterinarian to give you a demonstration of the right amount.

A range of physiotherapy treatments are available. The best treatment will depend on whether the aim is to prevent or treat an injury, and what sort of injury it is. Find out which treatment is best for your greyhound, how often you should be doing it, and for how long. Incorrect treatment can lead to further problems as well as a worsening of the original injury.

Some old practices in greyhound medicine such as ‘blistering’ (applying caustic solutions to the skin over bones and joints) are ineffective and can lead to prosecution under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act if it leads to skin burns and damage to the deeper structures.