My 8 year old Staffie cross has managed to do himself an injury around the hock area.

Hes been on  Rimadyl for a week, had xrays and ligament damage is suspected (though not major as its still attached to the bone) now the swelling has gone down the vet thinks there are tears to the ligaments.

Hes obviously under strict rest for several weeks, which as you may understand is a nightmare with a staffie type dog!

I was wondering if supplements would be beneficial to his healing process?

Has anyone been through this before? What do you think really works? I dont want to buy something that turns out to be a load of rubbish.
I just want to help him as much as I can.

Any suggestions would be gratefully received! :)

Hi we had the same problem with our 7 year old staffie about 5 months ago & were told that she would probably need surgery but to try alternative measures 1st as surgery was a last resort. We were advised to rest her, then gradually increase excercise.
We found a canine hydrotherapy centre a few miles away and have been taking her there weekly for the last 3 or 4 months.This helped by increasing the muscle mass around the injury & had the added benefit of making her fitter and she was doing really well . But as you know staffies are notoriously boisterous and  on Bank Holiday Monday she undid all the good work and ruptured it completely.
We took her back to the vet & as we live on the IOW and vets here do not have enough expertise in the field we were referred to a vet on the mainland.
She had her operation on Friday last week and sad to say have had a nightmarish sleepless nights since. We were told that the op went well and to take her to our local vet on Tuesday for a post op check up. We followed the aftercare procedure we were given to the letter and on Monday evening she stooped for a wee in the garden and yelped.
Another trip to the vet and 3 xrays later and it was revealed that the bone that was operated on has fractured.  She is obviously in considerable discomfort and I am now thinking that we have made the wrong decision in having the surgery. My advice is to think very carefully before surgery - I hate to see my dog in so much distress & discomfort.
I am sorry  if this sounds negative but this is how I feel at the moment.  You put your faith & trust in the Vets but it seems that all they want is the  cash. The operation cost us over £2000 and when we had to take her back on Monday we were issued with another bill for £230! The dressing that was applied on Monday to keep her leg stable and immobile has now slipped & I have to make another trip to the vet this morning to get it redressed. If they charge again - its another £30.

I don't have any experience of the sort of injury you describe but I would look at Dorwest Herbs for good advice on supplements.  It's a good place to start and you can then research the specifics elsewhere too.

I see they'd probably suggest Cod Liver Oil or Glucosamine & Chondroitin tablets - I know people who'd swear by the latter so that might be one to try first.  Hope this helps :)

My SBT Spud was plagued with ligament injuries, they really were the bane of both our lives, no sooner would he have recovered from one injury and he'd do it again, i was seriously thinking he'd have to be walked on lead for ever. Thankfully he hasn't done it for about 4 years ( touch wood ) the only explanation I can come up with is that I changed him onto a high protein diet ( Orijen ) and I think the extra protein allowed his body to heal the ligament properly as protein is used for cell repair and replacement. Obviously I can't swear that that's why he no longer has a problem, but it does seem likely to me.

Homeopathically you could use Ruta Grav (from Holland & Barratt or Boots) which supports tendons and Rhus Tox may also help, you can also look at magnet therapy - there's an excellent 'wand' you can get (check out Norstar) although there will be others.  Also you could look at ceramic fabrics - check out http://www.camddwrcanine.co.uk which may also be beneficial in support self healing.

This is great form of exercise. Check out any dog swimming pools around your area. Also, i would suggest that you try to make sure he rests his foot.

But by resting too much, this will cause muscle wastage, and this is where the swimming comes in. If you do walk him then try a special type of harness just recently introduced on www.dogaids.co.uk.

Also there are splints available if you write down dog splints. The ones in the Uk costs far too much at around £700/800 whereas the ones in America are only around $80 dollars and they do ship overseas.

Good luck

Thank you everyone for your suggestions, you have been most helpful!

I'm definately going to pick up some Glucosamine and Chondroitin supplements. I've seen NAF Canine Superflex Liquid on the Hyperdrug website, does this look like a good option? I have no idea what the best levels (mg/ml) are for this sort of thing.

He is being kept as rested as possible, no walks as per vet instruction. Luckily our garden isnt big so he wouldnt be tearing around the place, plus we have eyes on him at all times!
I have seen adverts for a hydro pool for dogs near us, so I'll be looking into that. He normally loves swimming so he should enjoy it.

I'll get the ok from the vet regarding the splint. I had a look online and found some american ones for around $80 as suggested. If vet says it would help then I'll definately get him one.

He's not hopping as much and will stand properly now, so fingers crossed were heading in the right direction. Really hoping he doesnt do something and undo all the progress made so far. Were going through rawhide chewies like no ones business but at least it keeps him occupied! :)
The vets also lowered his Rimadyl dose and split it from one tablet a day to two (but with a combined lower dose than the one tablet).