Limping Question

[Guest Downtownhoundz]

I purposely don't follow the cancer threads because I get so paranoid, but now over the course of the last two days , Bunny has been limping. First it was on the back leg , then last night it was on the front leg...he's making me nuts! We have an appointment tomorrow with his Dr.

Are there any other reasons tthey can limp? It hasn't been constant and it seems to be at night. He's only 7 years old.I'm scared.....

[Guest Gemma]

Arthritis could be the cause, especially since he's limping at night when it's cooler and he's less active. He also could have pulled a muscle, either in his legs, or somewhere along his spine.

 

There could be a lot of other causes. I know some tick borne illnesses cause pain/swelling in joints. I am sure your vet will go through everything with you and, hopefully, put your mind at ease.

[KF_in_Georgia]

Take a deep breath and don't panic: A limp that moves is less likely to be cancer.

 

But limping can be caused by back trouble--arthritis, or just a strain or something like that. And that can be a moving limp: he can compensate for back pain that makes him limp on his back leg by changing his gait, and that in turn could produce the front-leg limp.

 

Other possibilities are corns (and he could have them on different feet and just limp on different feet depending on which one hurts worse). He could have pulled a muscle in his back leg playing or running, then hurt the front leg by trying to "baby" the back leg.

 

If you have a way to video him when he's limping, that's really a good thing to take to your vet, especially since Bunny's limp has been sporadic on different legs. He might not be doing it when you see the vet, so a video will help a lot. Also, take notes: what's he doing before he starts to limp, does he only limp when he does certain things or when he walks on certain surfaces? (A dog with a corn usually will limp more on hard surfaces like asphalt and concrete than on softer surfaces like grass and carpeting.)

 

And two limps could just be two different things: a corn here, a pulled muscle there.

 

Take your notes with you when you go to the vet's, and take notes on what the vet says. Good luck, and please come back and tell us what's going on.

Edited October 18, 2012 by KF_in_Georgia

[45MPHK9]

Get an x-ray. Don't wait.

[vjgrey]

Get an x-ray. Don't wait.

 

This.

 

If nothing else, it'll give you some peace of mind.

 

Our first indication of Gabe's osteo was an awkward gait in his back legs. Not a full limp, and not constant, but just an "off" walk. X-rays found primary tumors in one front leg and one back leg, although Dr. Couto said it's very unusual to see them in both.

 

I'm sure it's just a little arthritis or strained muscles, but I always, always think it's best not to wait to X-ray limps.

[racindog]

Check spine.

[Guest Downtownhoundz]

We just got back from the vet and Bunny got a thorough check up. He's negative for Lymes disease, so I'm happy about that. She checked his feet for corns , no corns...happy there! Then she went over his spine, nothing there..yay! She felt his joints and legs, and it would appear that he has just a small torn cruciate of something in his left knee. This is an excellent vet who was the vet for the track in Kansas and has extensive knowledge of greyhound anatomy and health issues.She said that old injuries can flare up later in life in the ex racer. While didn't tear up the track having only run three times, that is a possibility. He is on bed rest...no problem there and pain meds if he needs it. He's not limping at all today. So overall, I can semi relax!

[TINMANPDX]

Glad to hear he had a thorough once over and isn't limping today. I get scared every time one of mine limp - they both have had corns, and the limp starts well before the corn is evident, so it's hard to know, and my mind always races to the worst thing it could be.