Deneen Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 ...at least that's what my husband said. We decided this morning that my husband should take Sydney with him while he went rollerblading. I told him to just do our loop (it is just less than a mile) since it was warm out. Well, she did great, but he went his normal very fast speed. Prior to this adventure, she normally goes on walks with me and sometimes we jog (but I don't go fast). She runs in the backyard quickly, but it's only in short bursts. Anyway, the reason I'm explaining all of this is because she can barely walk now. Well, she can, but she keeps stopping to sit down and then roll over on her back. It's like she can't straighten either of her back legs/hips all of the way out. She's not limping on one side or the other. Is it possible that her muscles are just sore from this new activity? I hope she's just sore! My poor baby. She is laying on the couch looking very pitiful. I tried to take her otuside to go potty, but she didn't go very far before she laid down. She has never acted like she had hip pain before, and all of her exams have been good (as far as joint movement goes). ~Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Watch Debatable Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 How are the pads of her feet? Granted, I'm a world-class worry wart, but if she were mine I imagine I'd want a vet to see her right away. Is there a good emergency clinic nearby? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deneen Posted July 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 The pads are all fine. (I just checked them out.) She seemed a little stiff when we walked back to the house. My husband met me on the road, and I took her back to the house while he continued rollerblading. It just seems like she got stiffer over the last few hours. She has been laying on the couch, so that might make it worse. My husband thinks she may have pulled something, but like I said, she's not limping to one side. It's very strange. We are keeping a close eye on her. ~Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anda Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 Kelly, I hope Sydey will start feeling better soon! Keep us posted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 Did she start this right after the run? If so I'd be REALLY worried about heat stroke since that can cause dogs to collapse and have muscle weakness if I remember correctly. Muscle soreness usually shows up several hours after exercise ime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deneen Posted July 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 Maggie, I did think she was walking a little stiffly while we walked back, but when we got back to the house she seemed fine. I just took her outside again, and she walked up the hill and went to the bathroom in her usual spot. She was really slow walking down the hill, so something is sore. ~Kelly edited to add: she hasn't collapsed. She'll just sit down and then roll on to her back in a submissive position, so I don't think it's heat stroke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allie Oop Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 If she doesn't improve by the end of the day, you should definitely have her looked at. I worry about heat stroke and heat related issues all of the time. We did the walk/frisbee/ball at the park this morning (8:00 a.m., but it was already 85 degrees) and Allie was not as fast as usual. She also took the frisbee and headed straight for the river (which is something she never does until we have played frisbee for over 30 minutes). Did Sydney get breaks for water during the exercise?? I always carry no less than 2 qts. of water for Allie for 30 minutes exercise in the heat. (We usually end up sharing with other dogs, too.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deneen Posted July 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 She was only out for about 10-15 minutes - I think Syd and Stu did the loop in about 7 minutes and then sat down and waited for us (Sarah and I were jogging the loop). Stu tried to take Syd for a second time to catch up to me, but she didn't want to go. I picked up Sydney when I was done and then we came back to the house. We actually jogged back to the driveway (only about 100 feet). It is very odd. It seems like she is improving though. ~Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allie Oop Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 So glad to hear she is better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deneen Posted July 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 Thanks for the well wishes. She was just walking around the kitchen, so that's a big improvement. She is slower than normal, but we're not pushing her. If she did strain or pull something, I don't want to make it worse. We'll keep a close eye on her all weekend, and I'll definitely bring her to the vet if she gets worse (or is not getting better). ~Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Anne Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 I second the keeping a very close eye out for possible heat related issues. Is she eating and drinking normally?? Appparently heat stroke can be very difficult to detect to the untrained eye, and has many different symptoms. Dehydration causes muscle cramping and stiffness also... Hope she is ok.. Phoenix had a herding lesson today, it was early but still pretty hot, and he just decided to quit after a real good start in only very short time, and bam he stopped and wouldn't go back. I don't know if it was heat or the fact that he is young and new at herding and the sheep intimidated him today??? Last week it took him 2 days to get back to normal after our lesson in pretty hot weather. He was very lethargic and wouldn't eat right, he did drink, but laid around sleeping waaay more than usual. Anyway keep us posted . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordercentrics Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 I think a dog would have to build up to an adult male's usual rollerblading speed. She probably overdid it keeping up. How old is she? She may be too young for that strenuous an exercise. Kathy Robbins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixie_Girl Posted July 29, 2006 Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 Hope she is getting better! I think it is just the extra use of her muscles. JoeAnne hope Phoenix is okay! Don't worry too much about him shutting down! It seems when they are first starting some dogs have at least one lesson where they are just like, hey, I ain't getting the point in this, I hate sheep, I hate this, I just wanna go chase something and use MY rule book! You will also find they have days like that way after they are trained! Just ask any seasoned trialer! They will have many stories of their top dogs running "retarded"! LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deneen Posted July 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2006 Thanks, everyone, for keeping Sydney in mind. She is being pretty lazy at the moment, which is fine with me. (She's snuggling with my husband on the couch). She did eat dinner normally tonight, and we've been feeding her ice cubes. She also took off running after a squirrel very normally for about 3 seconds on one of our trips outside. I'm hoping a good night's rest and plenty of fluids helps her. Maybe it was the heat. We are in the midst of a brutal heat wave with humidity. I have been moving her limbs around and rubbing muscles, and there have been no yelps or nasty looks. Oh, and Sydney will be 2 years old at the end of November. Thanks again. We appreciate it. ~Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deneen Posted July 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2006 Sydney is doing better today, but we've pinpointed why she's walking funny. Her front left leg (upper portion) is a bit swollen. I have been rotating her joints, and they seem fine. Would a pulled muscle result in swelling? We assumed it was muscle related, so we put off going to the vet because they can't do much for muscles. However, I am still nervous about my girl. At the very least I want them to give her something to maybe help the inflammation and pain. She has not yelped or cried out, but she is just moving slowly and laying around a lot. I'm glad she's taking it slow because I don't want her to make it worse. She is eating and drinking normally, and her gums are a good pink color. She has no signs of fever or anything else. Anyway, that's my update. Does anyone else have experience with pulled muscles and dogs? ~Kelly edited to add: I just checked her leg again, and there isn't any swelling. She is also walking around a lot more. I'm so glad! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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