Dog is limping - any advice welcome (professional or otherwise)

[needastrongone]

Briefly.

Springer Spaniel. Slight build. 10 months just turned. Very active and used to 2.5/3 hours exercise or more a day in 2/3 bursts. Hip scores for parents very low, much lower than breed average.

We are on holiday, a week into a fortnights stay. Dog is having a ball. He's getting far more exercise than usual but in the same amount of bursts. We are knackered before he is, he's always up for more!

Today we went to the beach, arrived at 12pm, stayed until 3.30pm. He adores the sea and will chase a stick into the water for hours so he did. We stopped him twice for a break and he's like a never ending battery otherwise. DH walked him for an hour this morning too as he couldn't sleep.

Getting out of the car back at the cottage, he started limping, back right leg. Not weight bearing at all initially, then will hobble. No damage to pads, no cuts that I can see. Wasn't limping at all on the beach. Will let me examine the leg and put pressure on it.

My plan is (obviously) rest for the rest of the day and tomorrow (toilet breaks etc but no more) then reassess from there.

Am I able to do more? I have human ibuprofen with me but clearly no dog medicine. Imho, he's weeing a bit more than usual too, he's usually a bit of a camel but DH did give him a lot of bottled water at the beach to compensate for the sea water and sea weed.

Any help gratefully received. I do stress about the dog.

Grass seed?

This week, mine suddenly started limping, then refused to put her paw down at all.

We looked at the paw, couldn't see any obvious damage so I took her to the vet - who discovered and removed the dreaded grass seed. The wound was very sore looking and swollen

The limping lasted a further 24 hours before she would put the paw to the ground.

It's probably best not to give your dog human medicine. Instead, seek professional advice.

Good luck

Thanks, I have just squeezed his paw on his right leg and he yelped, so it sort of makes me feel a bit better in a way, as that's more likely to be a cut or as you say, grass seed rather than muscular with I think is better?

narrowed it down to a specific toe/pad, he yelps and shakes but can't see a thing and it doesn't look angry?

Definitely don't give him human ibuprofen, it is toxic to dogs.

It could be a grass seed or something, but have you been anywhere that he may have picked one up? Once they have worked their way in, there is usually a red, angry looking swelling between/on the toes. Springers are good at getting them because of the hairy toeness! Might be worth bathing the foot to see if that makes anything more obvious and may soothe it a bit for him. (Teaspoon of salt:pint of cooled boiled water to amke a saline.)

There is a chance he is just reacting to the toe squeezing, and yet it could be a cruciate ligament injury. This does cause sudden, non-weight bearing lameness. Sometimes they will put the foot to the ground for a bit, but not bear much weight on it.

If he is still lame tomorrow I would consider getting him to a vet, if only for pain relief.

HTH.

*make

I'd say get to the vet - probably best tomorrow rather than Sunday out of hours. If you hadn't narrowed it down to the one paw then I'd suggest rest before seeing vet, but if it is a grass seed you don't want it to be absorbed into the body. Good luck.

Hi guys, thank you for the advice.

After sleeping snoozled up to DH all night he woke up on Saturday morning weight bearing normally and charging around like a loon (or trying to, given a chance). I did notice he was a bit more cautious on the gravelled drive though and down the cottage steps so we stuck to the plan and kept him off exercise, apart from the grassed area of the grounds to where we are staying.

Last night was the only night we were going to leave him all holiday anyway to go to the local tattoo so he just slept from 6pm until 9.30pm.

Today he's fine, no limp at all. I think he might just still be being cautious up the steps but DH says he can't notice that an that's me being paranoid.

He did manage to catch his first pheasant today, so clearly not near amputation stage yet!

Think I get a bit 'oh' about limps that's all

Mine gets a limp occasionally - usually after launching himself off the highest point of the sofa arm because he's heard a leaf blowing across the decking in the garden.............