Robin limping

[ejano]

Robin was exhibiting a noticeable limp last night on his right front side. He was reluctant to put weight on his paw but there was no sign of injury to the paw, up the leg or obvious tenderness in his shoulder. I kept him curtailed last night and this morning he is fine; showing no signs of any injury or hesitation to put his full weight on that leg.

 

1) He spun out on some new gravel at the farm last night. He didn't go down but he was quite low; when he cut the turn, the injured leg would have been on the outside (high side). He ran full speed through the field with no hesitation and no sign of limping but it's possible he might have gotten a stone bruise on the pad of his foot, though he didn't react when I touched the pads.

 

2) I didn't see him get out of the SUV (DH let them out) when we got home but it is more possible that he landed wrongly jumping out - Robin never does things carefully.

 

As I said, he seems fine this morning but what should I watch out for?

 

More importantly, we're starting lessons again next week - I can sub Brodie so the schedule isn't a problem if Robin needs to stand down for a bit, but it does make me wonder about general fitness. Robin isn't exactly in shape, though he's not overweight -

 

3) I've never really done anything to get him fit - just let him run at the farm and take him swimming but if I'm going to be working him, are there other things we can do to help him prevent injury?

 

Liz

[Maralynn]

Dogs do just come up lame sometimes.

 

Things I always check for with limping dogs

 

- foot pads and nails to make sure nothing is torn

 

- check the lame leg to see that it looks/feels normal

 

- look for bites/stings

 

- check the following day for any swelling/inflammation

 

If I find something I can treat or I feel they need to see the vet for, that's what I do

 

Otherwise my rule of thumb for limping dogs is limited activity for 3 days. If they aren't improving in this time period, I take them to the vet. If they do improve, I still keep them on limited activity until they are sound for about 3 days then work them back up to normal activity over the next 2-3 days.

 

So with Robin I'd recommend continuing to limit his activity for another day or two and if he's still good, just work him back up to normal activity and as long ass he remains sound, you're good to go.

[gcv-border]

Mara gave good advice. If he did not injure his pad or toe, it could be a soft tissue injury. Rest is best. I use a product called Traumeel to help my dog recover from repeated muscle overexertion. I do not use it often because I don't think he exerts above a threshold usually, but I will use it if I am running him in a multi-day agility trial (no recovery time) as a preventive. My rehab vet prescribed it for Torque when he strained his ileopsoas 3 years ago, and I have always kept it on hand. Heck, I even took it once myself for a really strained back, and was amazed when I could actually feel a difference. Tastes awful though. Give a treat after administering.

 

Fitness: As you know, swimming is an execellent exercise. I know some folks like to exercise their dogs using one of the large, inflated exercise balls. I forget the brand name of the ones specifically targeted to the canine market, but when you buy one, it comes with a DVD of a few easy exercises to get started. I would think that YouTube might have examples also.

 

As always, if his limping repeatedly returns, a trip to a specialist vet is recommended.

 

I hope Robin gets better soon.

 

Jovi

[ejano]

Thanks folks. I'll check his toenails -- we're overdue for a trim.

 

Liz

[juliepoudrier]

Liz,

Sometimes they can have a stone bruise and be mostly sound everywhere but on gravel (that is, they will be intermittently lame). Try walking him on gravel tonight (or whenever you're at the farm) and see if you see gimpiness. It never hurts to rest for a few days if you see lameness and no obvious cause.

 

As for improving his fitness level, swimming is good. If you have a means (bike, 4-wheeler, golf cart) to take him on long walks/runs that would help too.

 

I don't think his fitness level will be a major issue as you start up lessons again. The more he works at lessons, the fitter he'll get too.

 

J.

[ejano]

Liz,

Sometimes they can have a stone bruise and be mostly sound everywhere but on gravel (that is, they will be intermittently lame). Try walking him on gravel tonight (or whenever you're at the farm) and see if you see gimpiness. It never hurts to rest for a few days if you see lameness and no obvious cause.

 

As for improving his fitness level, swimming is good. If you have a means (bike, 4-wheeler, golf cart) to take him on long walks/runs that would help too.

 

I don't think his fitness level will be a major issue as you start up lessons again. The more he works at lessons, the fitter he'll get too.

 

J.

 

 

Thanks for the tips - I really think it must have been the stones as he sent up a cloud of gravel when he steered around the corner. It's a new surface for him so he wasn't prepared. He seemed fine yesterday and today here at home.

 

I didn't take him to the farm last night because I didn't want him running flat out yet. Yes, we have a golf cart - I was a little reluctant to introduce them to it after losing a dog with a wheel fixation to a car several years ago but they don't pay the least bit of attention to it - except for dear Ladybug - she likes to thumb a ride now and then when she gets a bit weary.