# Puppy Limping without pain



## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

Hi Guys,

I've posted before about something similar, so I apologize beforehand for any repetition. 

Sitka is a 7 month old working line male. I got him from a breeder when he was 4 months. For the past month or so I've noticed a slight limp and I thought it may have been hip related, but my vet gave an external evaluation and said Sitka's hips seemed normal. I'm now 95% sure it is not his rear that is limping but his front right paw - the same place as a previous injury.

When he sits on command or naturally, he often lifts his right paw slightly off the ground. When he walks casually (ie not excited or tracking), he seems to put most of his weight on his left paw favoring his right. The limping is most obvious because his head and shoulders bob up and down a lot. He tires quite easily after walks and sometimes whimpers when he is laying down after a long walk.

I've been trying to upload videos, but they're all the wrong file type. 


BUT

His limp disappears when he is focused on tracking a scent or chasing after birds - his mortal enemy or rogue leaves. He also does not show any discomfort when I hold, bend, or squeeze his paw/ankle. It is not swollen.


The previous injury:

The same day I met him (16 wks old), he decided to brave the breeders deck, but not the stairs, He jumped off the deck and landed badly on his paw about 1-1.5ft down. The breeder brought him to the vet where he was xrayed and his xrays sent to a radiologist. The radiologist said there may be a slight fracture, but nothing that could be seen in the xray. He was put on crate rest for a week and given an anti-inflammatory. I carried him up and down stairs and restricted his exercise until he was just over 5 months.

Does this sort of limping sound familiar to anyone?

Is there an at-home anti-inflammatory or pain remedy I can do?

Of course I will take him to the vet at need be, but this is a last resort as we're on a very tight budget. Again, I'll go it if I have to, but I'm hoping people have some other suggestions.

Any input would be appreciated.


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## Pan_GSD (Oct 2, 2016)

just throwing out an idea, not trying to discourage you, it's just a possibility, since limping for more than 1 week straight is not really good.

your dog could be experiencing early signs of elbow dysplasia, again just possibility.
your dog's age falls in line with when dogs first experience symptoms.
in early stages, the x ray won't show anything, so your vet may think everything's good.
but you can't really tell unless they do a bone scan (scintigraphy) and find out at exactly which point your dog chooses not to exert pressure.
for this you need to be referred to a specialist.

i wouldnt let your dog run or jump for the time being, and if it persists for 2 weeks or more, then it's definitely not a simple muscle cramp

if there are no visible fracture, or your dog doesn't express pain when you touch and manipulate his joints, it's something to consider...


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

I've encountered a few dogs who had undiagnosed TOE injuries from those sort of jumps. It's not all that uncommon to jam a toenail on landing hard enough to break the distal (pinky) toe. It happened to one of my dogs, and we focused on the carpus (which was injured too), but the xray didn't catch the toes at first -- a follow up xray just happened to have a bigger field of view, and the radiology report caught it.

I've also seen a few with wrist, elbow and shoulder problems from jumps and falls, and they developed arthritis early -- but that can be seen in an xray. It's the reason my dog with the carpus/toe injury was put on Adequan, to prevent arthritis from setting in and support really good healing of the joints.

I think it's probably time to go beyond the "external evaluation" by the vet and xray. See what's going on inside. If you're on a budget, call around and compare prices on xrays at a few clinics -- sometimes there are wide variations that can make a difference.


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

Well this is a bit embarrassing.... When I double checked the vet's notes from Sitka's original injury it was his LEFT paw, so not the same site as this injury.

Last night he was whimpering/crying at 12:00 am, 3:00 am and 4:00 am. He is not kenneled at night and has free roam of the house. And he has never cried since I've had him. He was kennel trained with the breeder so he was already quite comfortable when I brought him home.

I didn't know elbow dysplasia was a thing... And yes, it has been going on longer than a week.

I will budget other areas of my life and bring Sitka to the vet this afternoon. Hopefully we can get some anti-inflammatory meds and postpone more x rays a little while longer. 

I will update this evening after we get home from the vet.

Here is a photo where you can see all of his weight is on his left side. Often he goes one step further and lifts his right paw.








Thanks,

Sitka & Ruth


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Has he been checked for Panosteitis? That's a common condition, especially in fast growing males, which they tend to grow out of. I am surprised this hasn't been mentioned or ruled out by your vet yet. Squeezing the long bone is painful with Pano. But dogs are experts in hiding pain so you have to look for pain signs, could be a small muscle twitch.


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

wolfy dog said:


> Has he been checked for Panosteitis? That's a common condition, especially in fast growing males, which they tend to grow out of. I am surprised this hasn't been mentioned or ruled out by your vet yet. Squeezing the long bone is painful with Pano. But dogs are experts in hiding pain so you have to look for pain signs, could be a small muscle twitch.


Some members have mentions Panosteitis on a previous post I made. I will definitely ask the vet bout this this evening.

He has gone from 30lbs when I brought him home at 16 weeks to nearly 70lbs now that he is 7 months, so he's definitely growing quickly.

He does not seem to show any pain but I have noticed that when he is sitting, If I lift up the right paw (the one he is limping), it is completely limp with no flex - all of his weight is on the left. But, when I lift his left paw and his weight is on the right, his left leg is still flexed or engaged, as though he is still trying to take some of the weight off of the right.


What is the typical treatment for Pansteitis?


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

SitkatheGSD said:


> What is the typical treatment for Pansteitis?


My breeder recommends keeping the dog pretty skinny so you will see the last two ribs shining through his coat. And he gives them 1000 mg vitamin C a day (2 x 500 mg). Do not give him anything until you have the correct diagnoses but keeping him skinny will never hurt as well as mild exercise, no sprinting after balls or jumping of any kind, just hanging out with you.


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

wolfy dog said:


> My breeder recommends keeping the dog pretty skinny so you will see the last two ribs shining through his coat. And he gives them 1000 mg vitamin C a day (2 x 500 mg). Do not give him anything until you have the correct diagnoses but keeping him skinny will never hurt as well as mild exercise, no sprinting after balls or jumping of any kind, just hanging out with you.


He is very skinny as is, the vet said slightly underweight. I'll feed him as much as he'll eat, but he's often not interested in food.

I always add coconut oil to his food, and yesterday added wet food and that definitely got him more interested.

I hope its as simple as giving him some Vitamin C and restricting his play. Thanks for the input!


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

UPDATE

I just got home from the vet with Sitka. The vet agreed that Sitka does have an obvious limp, but does seem to be showing pain as he lets people touch his paw, ankle, shoulder, and does not limp when he is excited.

The vet does not think it is pano because there is no fever, lethargy, or obvious pain. 

The vet said it could be elbow dysplasia, but there is no way to know without full xrays which will be very expensive. We agreed that the best time to Xray would be when he is neutered so that we can xray both the front and hind legs, and hips while he is already under full anesthesia. I have no plans to neuter him until he is at least 12 month of age and hopefully later, and the vet agreed its not urgent now.

I was given Medicam, the same anti-inflammatory he got for his first injury; I'll monitor and see how he does in the next few days. Also, I'll restrict exercise to 1-2 short walks a day.

The vet think it may be caused by the same soft-tissue injury he had at 16 weeks (see below). OR from excessive exercise. I forgot, until speaking with the vet, I took Sitka on a trail I was unfamiliar with - I thought it would be about a 6 kilometer loop but after 8 kilometer we had to turn around, making for an almost 16km walk -- way too far for a puppy of his age. We hardly ever go past 5km.

Also, he is 68lbs and the vet thinks he's reached a healthy weight now.

Thanks for the input everyone.


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## cloudpump (Oct 20, 2015)

SitkatheGSD said:


> UPDATE
> 
> I just got home from the vet with Sitka. The vet agreed that Sitka does have an obvious limp, but does seem to be showing pain as he lets people touch his paw, ankle, shoulder, and does not limp when he is excited.
> 
> ...


Let him fully mature. He's not done growing at 12 mos and if their are issues, neutering is not the best option.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

I had a male GSD with Pano (diagnosed by x ray) but he didn't have a fever. Only x ray can tell you. It may be well worth the money. GSDs are expensive in their care.


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

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cloudpump said:


> Let him fully mature. He's not done growing at 12 mos and if their are issues, neutering is not the best option.


Agreed - I don't plan to neuter him until after 12 mos and hopefully closer to 14


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

wolfy dog said:


> I had a male GSD with Pano (diagnosed by x ray) but he didn't have a fever. Only x ray can tell you. It may be well worth the money. GSDs are expensive in their care.


Yes, x rays may be needed eventually, but I'm happy to see if the limp and pain go away with the Medicam.


I know GSDs are expensive in their care. That being said, not everyone can afford every expensive option. I pay for food, treats, toys, training, pet insurance, preventative care, and vet visits. Sitka is my dependent, wholly. That being said, the cost of xrays and everything that go along will make it so that I either a) cannot provide the aforementioned or b) have to work more, ie a second job, which will reduce the care and attention I can give Sitka. 

In talking to the vet I'm ok with postponing xrays until I can fit them into the budget, providing the Medicam brings Sitka back to normal. As mentioned, Sitka will definitely be xrayed, hips, hind and fore legs, in the next few years.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Wouldn't pet insurance cover your xrays if it's a different paw?


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

Magwart said:


> Wouldn't pet insurance cover your xrays if it's a different paw?


It might cover some, you're right, if the xrays show there is an accident/injury yes. 

That's something I look into. Thx


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## Muskeg (Jun 15, 2012)

Hey Sitka, just a quick thought. Have you tested for Lyme Disease? It shows up well after the tick had contact with the dog. What you describe sounds similar to what happened with my young dog this summer. She was fine, then had a minor limp that I thought was just a strain, then woke me up in the night whining and hardly wanted to move. She was completely lame- non weight bearing- on her front leg the next morning. I took her to the vet as soon as I could that day. She had no fever, no lethargy, but tested positive for Lyme. Within 24 hours of Docycycline she was basically back to normal. 

Lyme is weird, it can present in all sort of ways. Vet was considering x-rays because she was so lame, but I wanted to try Doxy first. I've seen all sorts of weird things with tick diseases, and ticks are evolving pesticide resistance rapidly. My pup got Lyme despite monthly Advantix II. Now I use Bravecto. Only thing that is working. 

Might be worth a call to the vet, just to ask.


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## SitkatheGSD (Aug 24, 2017)

Muskeg said:


> Hey Sitka, just a quick thought. Have you tested for Lyme Disease? It shows up well after the tick had contact with the dog. What you describe sounds similar to what happened with my young dog this summer. She was fine, then had a minor limp that I thought was just a strain, then woke me up in the night whining and hardly wanted to move. She was completely lame- non weight bearing- on her front leg the next morning. I took her to the vet as soon as I could that day. She had no fever, no lethargy, but tested positive for Lyme. Within 24 hours of Docycycline she was basically back to normal.
> 
> Lyme is weird, it can present in all sort of ways. Vet was considering x-rays because she was so lame, but I wanted to try Doxy first. I've seen all sorts of weird things with tick diseases, and ticks are evolving pesticide resistance rapidly. My pup got Lyme despite monthly Advantix II. Now I use Bravecto. Only thing that is working.
> 
> Might be worth a call to the vet, just to ask.


 @Muskeg I had not even thought about Lyme disease! We do a lot of hiking and trail walking, some of which he is off leash for, so it seems very possible. Thanks for the suggestion, I will definitely talk to my vet about it.

Sitka is not lame and he bears weight on the foot if he is excited or chasing something. I gave him medicam last night and it seemed to help a bit, though he mostly just slept afterwards so it's hard to tell. But he didn't whine at all last night, and was running around the yard chasing leaves this morning.

Great suggestion - thanks!


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## Hjaros1 (Apr 11, 2021)

@SitkatheGSD Hello, I know it’s been 4 years, but I wonder how things turned out with the limp.. Our GSD puppy has almost identical symptoms for the last 2 weeks. Thank you for your help.


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