Some advice needed please - (also bit of a rant!)

On Boxing day a couple of hours after being home from about an hours (lead) walk Morse got up limping and not weight bareing on his front right paw. I thought he was just a bit stiff but by the next day he was still limping. I managed to get a vets appointment for later that day and despite being the only person in the waiting room and seeing two vets milling about behind the reception desk we had to wait about 10 mins to be seen. By the time we got into the consultation room Morse's right shoulder had started to tremble slightly, I presume because it was getting tense from having been holding the paw up for so long. The vet had a prod about his paw, felt his shoulder and diagnosed something wrong with his shoulder (on the basis that the muscle was tense) and prescribed a weeks worth or Rimadyl "to see how he gets on!"

The next day he seemed fine and I took him for a fairly long lead walk on the beach but the following day he started limping again, especially after he's been lying down for a long time. I reduced his exercise for the remainder of the time he was on the tablets but the limping didn't seem to ease so I booked another appointment for the following day. Within 3 hours of him taking his last pill his paw had swollen up to twice its size. We saw a different vet this time and he said it was definately the paw (wrist joint) and probably arthritous (Morse is 9 next month) so he prescribed Rimadyl for over the weekend. There was a marked reduction in the swelling but he continued to limp so come Monday morning I was on the phone to the vets telling him the situation and that now the paw had started to swell again. He mentioned the option of getting it x-rayed but then prescribed another weeks worth of Rimadyl, suggesting it was a very bad flare up of arthritous. I checked the paw again before going to collect the pills and the swelling was now more localised. A pea sized bump just above his third toe and swelling of his first toe. I collected the tablets and booked him in for an x-ray the following morning (yesterday). The x-rayed was absolutely clear - no arthritous and no fracture - nothing! He said it was a possibility that there was something tiny trapped inside the paw and to bathe it in warm water and continue with the Rimadyl i'd collected previously.

Morse didn't appear groggy when we got home so I took Ozzy out for a very quick walk, leaving Morse alone in the house for 10/15mins. By the time I got back Morse had chomped his way through the paperbag and through the plastic bottle containing his weeks supply of tablets, that I'd left on the kitchen counter! He hadn't eaten all day and I guess he thought a life without food just wasn't worth living! Back down the vets we went (thank heavens they're close by and I hadn't been out too long) for an injection to make him sick, a heavy course of gut soothers and a replacement bottle of Rimadyl to be started this morning. We were told to keep a very close eye on him for the next few days as he had ingested such a high dosage and it could lead to liver and/or kidney failure and ulcerations. Morse was very wobbly last night and still limping with his swollen paw. He seems to have puked all the Rimadyl out and has to take the gut soothers 1 4 times a day for the next 4 days in conjunction with the Rimadyl that he was suppose to start this morning. I am now reluctant to give him the Rimadyl incase it causes internal problems and I don't like the idea of him being on so many strong drugs at the same time. I will start him on the Rimadyl tonight but wanted to give him longer to get over the events of yeterday. In hindsight, I wish i'd asked for an alternative to Rimadyl.

I don't like the fact that the Rimadyl is just reducing the swelling and not addessing the real problem which the vet can't find. Poor Morse has been in pain for two weeks now and we don't seem to have gotten anywhere. I'm think about taking him to a different surgery for a second opinion as I feel we need an accurate diagnosis that can be treated accordingly but should I wait to see how he is after yet another week on Rimadyl? At the moment he's not suppose to be walked at all but he shouldn't be lying down for too long either, as movement will help reduce the swelling. Try telling this to a geyhound!

Any advice greatly appreciated!