The small breed dogs that present to you with a fracture of the radius and ulna are typically young (although not exclusively) and have likely fractured their limb by jumping off of a not so high surface.
These fractures are located in the distal third of the bone and are best managed with a plate. Their prognosis is EXCELLENT and the complications with surgery few; so you can confidently encourage your clients to pursue this option.
However, if surgical repair services are not an option for your client then for sure splint the fracture. Be aware that the prognosis with splinting is far better in the younger patient (less than 1 to 1.5 years of age). The adult dog is more likely to suffer complications and failure to heal with a splint. That does not mean, don’t splint it, it means inform your client and maybe encourage surgery more.
If you do splint this fracture in the DISTAL radius/ulna:
-You do not need to reduce the fracture, simply align the bone.
-You can exclude the elbow from the splint/bandage.
Now if you have a fracture in the PROXIMAL radius/ulna, then you MUST include the elbow in the splint/bandage. A spica splint can work very well for these proximal fractures.
For more information on bandaging/splint go to my YouTube channel.
