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Random Limp


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Hi everyone!  I have a random mystery in regards to Miss Nova Noodle.  She developed a limp on her front right leg a couple of weeks ago.  
Because it persisted, I took her in to the vet last week to get her a full work up.  But here’s the catch- nothing seems to be physically wrong with her.  Bloodwork is good (for an 11+ year old hound), and nothing was discovered with her paw, paw pads, wrist, elbow, shoulder, lymph nodes, spine, bones, etc.  The vet did some range of motion activities and can’t even really pin point the place the limp is stemming from.

Both the vet and I have done lots of physical searches to find a source that might be causing discomfort, but we can’t even get a pained reaction out of her (and this is a dog who screams if she even thinks something might hurt).  We’re stumped.  

In the meantime, she’s taking 1/2 previcox with her morning breakfast to break down any potential inflammation.  She’s also technically on bedrest, so we are skipping our long walks.  She is still eating like a starved wolf, bounces when she thinks there might be food, and is not demonstrating any lethargy.

Any thoughts or experiences?

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Have you done x-rays? Our girl is limping and she has some arthritis issues in her wrist and calcification in her shoulder, which we wouldn't have found without images. 

Dave (GLS DeviousDavid) - 6/27/18
Gracie (AMF Saying Grace) - 10/21/12
Bella (KT Britta) - 4/29/05 to 2/13/20

 

 

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We did, but nothing is really presenting.  The plan for now is to keep her on the anti-inflammatory meds and keep her from leaping about too much.  Most likely we’ll do more imaging in a couple of weeks to compare them and see if anything has popped up.  
Is the calcification only on one side?  Nova did race until she was 5, so arthritis is entirely possible.  I’ve had her on Cosequin for about a year as a preventative.

It’s only been 3 months since I lost Luna, and I admit that this has probably amped up my worry as well.  But I want to do anything I can to keep Nova happy and healthy.  

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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I should add that her limp is a bit worse after she explodes into activity.  You’d think resting an old greyhound would be simple 🙄.  It does not seem to get worse when she moves from a resting position to standing.  Nor has it affected the different positions she sleeps in.  
I’m praying for a pulled muscle 🤞

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Also hoping for a soft tissue injury. Is she any better first thing in the morning after resting all night? Sweep always is. You know my saga with her, so I sympathize on the mystery limps. So stressful and frustrating. Gentle scritches and best wishes for a speedy recovery for Nova. If it persists, Dr. Calfee and Dr. Streppa at NVS are board-certified ortho specialists and were the ones who finally diagnosed our problem. (I know the pandemic makes everything more complicated, but just throwing that out there!)

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Rachel with littermates Doolin and Willa, boss cat Tootie, and feline squatters Crumpet and Fezziwig.
Missing gentlemen kitties MudHenry, and Richard and our beautiful, feisty, silly
 Sweep:heart

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That’s really helpful, thank you, Rachel!  I’m going to add them to my notes just in case.  


I would say her limp is always there, and doesn’t really get better or worse, unless she takes off and gets silly before we can quick stop her and get her to settle.  After exertion like that, it does seem to be more pronounced, though only for a little bit.  

And yes, vet visits are tricky right now.  Fortunately, this one allowed me in with my mask on, a temp check, and lots of sanitizer.  

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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I'm wondering if she has a corn that just hasn't presented, or something like Petunia has which is an extra nail that grew out of the pad.  We are dealing with both in Kate and Petunia.  Neither of them knows that they are 12 or acts like it, but Kate has a definite limp due to corns that just seem to get worse over time. 

We kept dremeling the extra nail at each nail trim.  The last time she had them trimmed the groomer said it was gone.  According to our vet, those extra nails do happen and they often just eventually fall out. When it first presented in Petunia it was obvious that it was hurting when she walked on concrete or pavement. 

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Camp Broodie. The current home of Mark Kay Mark Jack and Gracie Kiowa Safe Joan.  Always missing my boy Rocket Hi Noon Rocket,  Allie  Phoenix Dynamite, Kate Miss Kate, Starz Under Da Starz, Petunia MW Neptunia, Diva Astar Dashindiva, and LaVida I've Got Life

 

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I was going to ask if you had checked her nails as well. Val doesn’t have an extra nail (that’s weird!) but a couple of her nails are brittle and they were causing her to limp. She doesn’t have SLO, but her vet thinks it is some kind of mild auto immune condition. My other thought was  a corn that hadn’t come out yet.

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Google "cutaneous horn" for pics of the extra nail Don was talking about.  It's a form of hyperkeratosis and is usually benign. 

If she's more symptomatic on hard surfaces it could be a corn that hasn't erupted yet.  Press straight down on the toe pad to check for a reaction.   Really inspect her toe pads and in between the toes above and below.  Use a flashlight to se if she has any pokes or sores.  

Really if it was soft tissue she should be showing some improvement after 4-6 days on an nsaid.  Arthritis is a distinct possibility, and she might need a stronger pain med if that's the case.

Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora)

52592535884_69debcd9b4.jpgsiggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr

Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly

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Good idea on the toes, everyone.  I messed around with her paw for quite some time this morning, but nothing seemed to be bothering her.  But I will keep checking in case something appears in the coming days.  I can’t say that she limps more on hard surfaces than soft, from what I can tell, there’s not a huge difference.  

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Hello, I’m back.  Nova still has her limp.  It was getting a bit better with previcox and bedrest, but yesterday she took a bit of a spill and exacerbated her woes.  You’d think bed rest for an 11.5 year old dog would be more simple.  With Nova, no matter how careful I’ve been, it feels like one step forward and three steps back.  Her limp starts to improve and she decides to try to bolt after a squirrel (even though she was being leash walked only for a quick potty break), and now her fall.  The vet still isn’t finding anything definitively wrong with her.  He’d like to try another 10 days on previcox and extra vigilant bedrest.  I will do everything I can to try to keep her calm and moving slow.

Here’s my question: for those who’ve had greyhounds develop bone cancer, particularly in the shoulder, what did that limp look like?  Was it worse after exertion or bouncing around?  (Nova has a habit of rearing like a horse when she’s excited). Could your dogs still sleep in any position and bend the affected limb any which way without pain?  Were there any other changes to personality such as lethargy or not eating?  And could you maneuver and poke at the affected area without any visible or audible signs of pain from your hound?

This has me stumped.  I want to help Nova any way I can, so any insight would be greatly appreciated. 

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Before we knew Sherman had osteo, he tweaked himself while charging around the yard.  A couple days of NSAID and he was good to go.  Then, he had a major tweak and we took him to the vet immediately.  She poked, prodded and manipulated the leg and decided he hurt his knee.  (Their x-ray machine was on the fritz.)  He still had an intermittent limp a week later and we had him x-rayed.  Cancer.  His appetite was good up to the end and he would sleep in all kinds of crazy positions.  

His limp was most prominent after going up the deck stairs.  He would lag some on walks, but it wasn't really noticeable unless you were strictly paying attention, as we had two others and Paris thinks every walk is a death march.  He was still jumping on and off the couch.    

I hope your experience is way different than ours.  We still miss our big, goofball boy.

Sending good thoughts.  

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Cindy with Miss Fancypants, Paris Bueller, Zeke, and Angus 
Dante (Dg's Boyd), Zoe (In a While), Brady (Devilish Effect), Goose (BG Shotgun), Maverick (BG ShoMe), Maggie (All Trades Jax), Sherman (LNB Herman Bad) and Indy (BYB whippet) forever in my heart
The flame that burns the brightest, burns the fastest and leaves the biggest shadow

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I'm sorry to hear this. When you said she's taking 1/2 Previcox, do you mean half a dose or half a 227mg pill (a full dose)? Just trying to determine if you have room to bump it up. It doesn't give you a diagnosis, I know, but it might give her some relief. 

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Rachel with littermates Doolin and Willa, boss cat Tootie, and feline squatters Crumpet and Fezziwig.
Missing gentlemen kitties MudHenry, and Richard and our beautiful, feisty, silly
 Sweep:heart

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4 hours ago, dante2zoe said:

Before we knew Sherman had osteo, he tweaked himself while charging around the yard.  A couple days of NSAID and he was good to go.  Then, he had a major tweak and we took him to the vet immediately.  She poked, prodded and manipulated the leg and decided he hurt his knee.  (Their x-ray machine was on the fritz.)  He still had an intermittent limp a week later and we had him x-rayed.  Cancer.  His appetite was good up to the end and he would sleep in all kinds of crazy positions.  

His limp was most prominent after going up the deck stairs.  He would lag some on walks, but it wasn't really noticeable unless you were strictly paying attention, as we had two others and Paris thinks every walk is a death march.  He was still jumping on and off the couch.    

I hope your experience is way different than ours.  We still miss our big, goofball boy.

Sending good thoughts.  


I’m so sorry you had to go through that with your Sherman.  If you don’t mind me asking, where did they end up detecting the osteo?

From what I can tell, Nova’s discomfort seems to be coming from her triceps/armpit area.  But again, it’s hard to tell because she doesn’t react to much of anything.  

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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4 hours ago, ramonaghan said:

I'm sorry to hear this. When you said she's taking 1/2 Previcox, do you mean half a dose or half a 227mg pill (a full dose)? Just trying to determine if you have room to bump it up. It doesn't give you a diagnosis, I know, but it might give her some relief. 

She is currently taking 1/2 of the 227 mg pill, or a full dose.  Luckily, she seems to be digesting it just fine, and hasn’t had any issues gobbling it up with her morning breakfast. 

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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Sherman's tumor was in his knee area.  It was a diagnosis that we didn't see coming based on his presentation.  But, having these guys and already having been through it twice before, I am paranoid.  

gallery_16605_3214_8259.jpg

Cindy with Miss Fancypants, Paris Bueller, Zeke, and Angus 
Dante (Dg's Boyd), Zoe (In a While), Brady (Devilish Effect), Goose (BG Shotgun), Maverick (BG ShoMe), Maggie (All Trades Jax), Sherman (LNB Herman Bad) and Indy (BYB whippet) forever in my heart
The flame that burns the brightest, burns the fastest and leaves the biggest shadow

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1 minute ago, schultzlc said:

Great question, lol.  I think my files are too big. Is there a good way to post videos these days?

Upload the video to YouTube first and then paste the link here. It will embed the video automatically.

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Rachel with littermates Doolin and Willa, boss cat Tootie, and feline squatters Crumpet and Fezziwig.
Missing gentlemen kitties MudHenry, and Richard and our beautiful, feisty, silly
 Sweep:heart

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Probably a bruise from the fall.

Have you xrayed her whole leg - toes to neck?  Because osteo in any bone along the limb can cause limping.  Also neck issues (strains and sprains) can show up as a front end limp.

If you want an expert second opinion explore getting a consult on your rads from greyhound expert  Dr Couto.  That involves emailing him high quality digital copies of your xrays, probably from your vet's office.

https://www.greyhoundhealthinitiative.org/

FWIW, our guy never limped at all.  The first evidence we had that he had osteo was when he broke his leg running in the yard.

Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora)

52592535884_69debcd9b4.jpgsiggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr

Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly

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4 minutes ago, greysmom said:

Probably a bruise from the fall.

Have you xrayed her whole leg - toes to neck?  Because osteo in any bone along the limb can cause limping.  Also neck issues (strains and sprains) can show up as a front end limp.

If you want an expert second opinion explore getting a consult on your rads from greyhound expert  Dr Couto.  That involves emailing him high quality digital copies of your xrays, probably from your vet's office.

https://www.greyhoundhealthinitiative.org/

FWIW, our guy never limped at all.  The first evidence we had that he had osteo was when he broke his leg running in the yard.

I’m guessing the vet was trying to be a bit more conservative at first with just x raying some areas and trying nsaids.  I’m waiting for a call back now and would like to request more.

I’m hoping it’s just bruising from her fall.  There’s a bit of pooling, almost like a little pouch in there (not attached to bone or muscle), if that makes sense.  I have some frozen peas on the spot to help.  
 

I’m wondering if I shouldn’t give her the nsaid if she’s bruising though.  Another question I’ll hopefully get answered once I hear back.  

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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If the bleeding doesn't stop on its own fairly quickly she may need emergency intervention as it could mean she's not clotting properly.  So watch that bruise carefully to see if it grows.  You can draw around it with a black permanent marker to mark the growth (or lack thereof).

It could also answer your question about cancer - not osteo, but another kind (hemangiomas, lymphoma, etc) that affects the blood or blood supply.

Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora)

52592535884_69debcd9b4.jpgsiggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr

Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly

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I took Nova in right at 8 am.  Had to leave her there.  They’ll be doing some bloodwork in addition to sedation and x rays.  Please keep my girl in your thoughts today!  I’m a pretty nervous wreck.  

Laura, mom to Luna (Boc's Duchess) and Nova (Atascocita Venus).
Forever in my heart, Phantom (Tequila Nights) and Zippy (Iruska Monte).

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:goodluck :bighug

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