# Back leg spasms



## Toby2712 (Sep 22, 2008)

I have a 10 year old male GSD cross, who has recently started to have back leg muscle spasms after sleeping, or lying for a while. He will get up and his back left leg will kick out continually, or scratch the floor. He's not in pain when this happens and to stop it he'll lie or sit down. He can't control his leg when it does this and it lasts for up to 10 minutes or so.

He's always had a bit of trouble with his back legs. He doesnt have HD, but every few months he would yelp in pain as he was playing with his ball and limp around for a couple of days. The vets said it was probably muscular and gave him Rimadyl.

He is impossible to examine at the vets, and gets extremely nervous/wound up, to the point that he would need to be sedated to be examined. I am making a visit to the Vets for this problem though.

Has anyone experienced something like this themselves ? Im worried that it may be more serious than just a trapped nerve or something

Thanks

Liz


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

Tick disease?

Chiropractor?

You could try stretching the legs and the back out, gently.


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## dogless (Jan 7, 2005)

I had a 9 year old GSD that would involuntarily kick out her hind legs, not really bad, but kind of like after a male dog pees he'll kick out his legs and scratch the grass. She wasn't in pain when this happened, and it went away after only a few kicks. So I'm not sure if it is similar to what your dog is experiencing. 

Unfortunately for us, that was the first symptoms of DM, which eventually took her to the bridge at 11 1/2. Hopefully that is not the case with your dog. 

To show the vet what is happening, I videotaped her when she was doing it, because it was random and could not be reproduced. That way the vet could see what it was without stressing the dog.


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## Toby2712 (Sep 22, 2008)

I did video him doing it, on my phone. The vet watched it, and said it was strange and is now looking at the process of eliminating what it's not.

He gave him a two week course of Rimadyl. He's not done it since starting the course, but I'm not reassured that it's because of the Rimadyl, as it was so random in the first place.

I'm sure a test for DM can be done as part of that process of elimination can it ? I'll also look at the other suggestions, to see if it fits. It is a movement like he does after doing his poop, tearing the grass up, but just on one leg, and much less controlled.. It's like he panics a bit when it starts and just wants to sit/lie down!

Thanks for the advice though )


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## Karmakay73 (Apr 23, 2021)

dogless said:


> I had a 9 year old GSD that would involuntarily kick out her hind legs, not really bad, but kind of like after a male dog pees he'll kick out his legs and scratch the grass. She wasn't in pain when this happened, and it went away after only a few kicks. So I'm not sure if it is similar to what your dog is experiencing.
> 
> Unfortunately for us, that was the first symptoms of DM, which eventually took her to the bridge at 11 1/2. Hopefully that is not the case with your dog.
> 
> To show the vet what is happening, I videotaped her when she was doing it, because it was random and could not be reproduced. That way the vet could see what it was without stressing the dog.


Thank you for your post. My 6 year old shepherd has started to have back right leg spasms. It’s when he lies down. I’ve noticed it’s one leg only. I took him to an orthopedic doc- labs normal and nothing on physical exam. I have a neurologist appointment in 2 weeks. Very worried it’s DM. I have a video of it.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

@Karmakay73 -- There is no diagnostic test for DM. It's a rule-out diagnosis. However, there _is_ a genetic test to see if the dog has the pair of "affected" genes to make it even a possibility. You can do it at home with a cheek swab. It's $65 through OFA:








Degenerative Myelopathy in Canines - Orthopedic Foundation for Animals


Degenerative Myelopathy is a debilitating disease that causes gradual paralysis in many dog breeds. Order a test to check your canine for this condition.




www.ofa.org




Or you can order a big package of lots of genetic-health tests from Embark that happens to include it ($199, but often on sale for around $149 -- this month code BIGLOVE gets you that sale price on their site through the end of the month): Decoded - Embarkvet . I'm not sure that you'd have the results back in time before your neuro appointment.

Having the A/A (at-risk) gene pair doesn't mean your dog is suffering from DM though -- it just means it has the genes that can be "turned on" at some point to possibly have the disease, and that's a hard distinction for most consumers to make. It means it can't be ruled out and has to stay on the list of "possible things." OTOH, if your dog doesn't have that pair, you _can _pretty much rule it out and stop worrying, and that's worth knowing!

Have you done sedated xrays of the spine? I think I'd start there. Your regular vet can do them. Some spinal problems have the same symptoms as DM -- but they might be fixable with medical or surgical intervention. Spinal problems in GSDs are rampant, and our breed rescue's vet now is routinely imaging the lower spine along with the hips whenever we bring in a new dog with hind-end issues.

I have seen wonderful benefits for my ancient dog from vet chiropractic -- we do acupuncture too, but the chiro seems to give my arthritic geriatric dog the most benefit. He moves like a younger dog right after his adjustment. For nerve issues, though, vet-acupuncture can sometimes be great supportive care.


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