Everything crossed here for you and Sam - good luck with that wretched sore.

Sending warm wishes for a recovery to your elderly boy Brierley .

I wonder if something placed on the leg to take the pressure off that particular point might help . I was thinking about something like the blow up arm bands babies use for swimming.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/BEMA-Baby-Ar...1801289&sr=8-2

Thanks everyone. I'm not good at photo's (never managed to work out how to do all that's needed to get them onto sites especially at the right size).

Sam is a black and white border collie (farm stock). In his younger days he loved to round up his ball (which was his favourite reward in training too) and loved to learn new tricks and party pieces. He helped me to pass the practical assessments at college with flying colours and also managed to raise a few smiles with his cheeky and affectionate antics whilst we were there. We did have to adapt a few of the tests as in lowering the jump to accommodate his HD etc, but he just loved the training - particularly his favourite trick of picking up toys and putting them away (think it brought out his natural herding instinct )

We've been together a long time. He's been with us while our kids settled down and had kids of their own and he just adores the grand kids, especially my granddaughter who loves to lay with him for cuddles (she's 7 now and he's watched both her and her brother who's now 9 grow up). He used to join in their games (well nick their ball when they were in the garden), but, of course, he hasn't done that for a long time now.

They are coming over in a couple of weeks for a few days and I really do want my special lad to be here when they come. It really is breaking my heart to even contemplate losing him and it will be devastating if, in the end, we lose him to a pressure sore after how well he has managed his other ailments, but we will do what's right for him when the time comes. I'm just hoping that that time is a way off in the future.

This next week is going to be unbearable with the 'what if's', but I'm truly hoping and praying for a happy outcome with this.

Lots of vibes for Sam from us here. xx

It's padded out with loads of cotton wool and bandaged. We have bought loads of foam pads which are all around the house so that he is more or less forced to lay on them (he's a devil for hard surfaces to rest on which hasn't helped). Because the sore is right on his elbow, anything that inflates would make it difficult for him to lay down at all and would very likely keep slipping down his leg (and the little devil would probably find a way to burst it).

The sore looks horrendous and just has to hurt, but Sam is a stoic lad and never shows when he's in pain which sort of makes it worse because it makes it more difficult to assess if things are improving or getting worse

One of those, 'if only they could talk' times

Lots of psitive vibes from here.

Fingers crossed and good thoughts for you.

Sending lots of vibes from me and mine, hope you can get that nasty sore under control.
xxxx

Sending tons of healing vibes to your boy. he sounds so adorable xx

Thanks all and Brophy, he is adorable (but I may be just a tad biased ).

He had a combination of antibiotics for the last course and they didn't have any effect at all. He started the new lot today and has had quite a bout of the dreaded dire rear, but I'm hoping that's a good sign as he didn't have it with the last lot. Does that sound just a tad strange? I'm hoping that it's a sign that they are much stronger and will do the job of healing better (I'll clutch at any straw going at the moment).

He's now peacefully sleeping with his bad leg held out in front to show off his fetching blue bandage. The carpet (new one) is drying out nicely - he didn't have time to get outside and it's hit and miss these days whether or not we get there at the best of times. One of his mat covers has already been washed and is in the dryer as I type ready to go back on tomorrow morning and put back down with the others again.

Hopefully, tomorrow's dose of the new antibiotics won't have the same effect because he really didn't like it, bless him and particularly didn't like having to be washed down afterwards - not nice having a wet bum to make you even more uncomfortable.

We won't know until the day after tomorrow if there's been any improvement or otherwise as that's when the bandage has to be changed - something I'm not looking forward to - but keep those fingers crossed