Hi all, (this is long, again, sorry! lol)
I will be updating with pics that I took just now a little later today but I think I have revised my hypothesis as to what happened, with a little added info.
We think it might have been the 1 year old (he will be 1 this month) he is in his throwing everything and hitting things stage and he does hit pretty hard. The other kids said he hit the dog with a toy. Whether or not this is true I will never know for sure.
However, the bruising is about the size of a quarter now and right on the center of his breast bone. It is really bizarre to me because it was HUGE. It even made me wonder if the vet was wrong about it being a bruise at all??
I was so freaked out, obviously, as you can see from the pics, but now you can barely tell it's there and this was how it was most of yesterday too. I've personally never seen a bruise clear up that quickly... I still have a tender spot on my leg where I ran into a guard rail at a movie theater months ago and had a deep large bruise for several weeks.
Princeton went there on Friday evening, and I picked up on Sunday evening and noticed the bruising on Monday. It is now Friday again. Now when I wrote my post I REALLY couldn't tell if it was a bruise or a rash, the pictures make it appear darker and more purple, but it was a really angry red color in person which is why I thought rash.
Now, there is a tiny purplish-red area around the center of his breast bone/top of his chest, but it's not very large or very dark at all.
I'm properly confused. Was the LARGE area a reaction to being hit in a centralized area? Was it a reaction to something else entirely? Was it a rash!? It really was nearly the shape of his harness, which is where that potential idea of what happened came from. He hasn't worn that harness at all since (but he'd been using that one for quite a while with no problems)
Sorry these updates are so wordy! I wish I could just ask my boy what happened!! So I'm sorta thinking out loud as I post. I was really upset and really scared at first. I'm definitely relieved that he is fine and that the massive size has gone down, but I am honestly bewildered. I dont see marks on his neck anymore, or near his armpit or the majority of that side of his chest, just mainly center on the bony area where the ribs come together.
I will have to say I didn't too much care for the vet, he gave him a good once over to make sure he was bending and moving okay and in no pain and no signs of infection/illness but he said bruise very quickly. It was not the vet we normally see and the appointment was quick. Granted for a bruise there isn't much you can do and Duke (I call Princeton this sometimes, don't know where it came from, Lol -- neither name has anything to do with either school!) wasn't in pain so he didn't need pain management. But the vet seemed pretty dismissive into really investigating it and was more worried about what he could have me spend more money on instead ("wanna schedule surgery today?!" even though I expressed fear and hesitation about having him neutered and wanted to discuss everything in depth he just wanted me to get my credit card out. It was dismissive and rude and definitely didn't set me at ease.)
I am going to see if I can get him in with his groomer today or tomorrow, but I got his chest wet again to get a better look and there just isn't much there. It's really odd you guys.
Him being smacked with a toy against that bony part where his ribs come together seems feasible and perhaps the redness was just a reaction? I dont know if he was smacked Friday or Saturday or Sunday. If that's even what happened.
The worst part of this is not knowing what exactly is going on and if it wasn't the kids at all then what was it? I am happy he is okay but I don't ever want to see that sort of coloring on him ever again, that's for sure.
Unfortunately he does have to have bloods drawn in a couple weeks for routine care (heartworm check) and I really hope he doesn't bruise up from it!! |