Hello, my male cardigan corgi, named Rocky, is about 8 years old, about 55 lbs and in pretty good shape. He is walked 2-3 times a day to relive himself and for exercise, as well as played with in the house chasing toys. About a 3-4 weeks ago, when outside walking (and it has been hot and humid lately) all of a sudden he acted momentarily funny and not in a good sense.

His back paw seemed to be limping (but no burrs or junk in his toes). We figured he exercised too much and strained himself. Next day he's fine. Then it occurs again. same pattern. Now in the last two weeks, he seems to lose control of his back legs and starts to go down. the last few times he fell over sideways as if drunk. When he hit the ground, he did not shake like a seizure but did act shocked and tried to get up. he was bouncing like a fish out of water on his side. I told the vet about it and she seemed to dismiss it. It's not like a full seizure with eyes rolling and bodies shaking but its almost like one. Afterward he is fine except for his back legs which limp. When we get home he drinks water like hes out in the desert. He does not drink a lot during the day when we are gone. If he drank constantly I would suspect possible diabetes. an hour after we are home from the walk he is bouncing up the stairs. I'm not sure if the heat and strain of going to the bathroom (the squat stance) are playing a role in this. It may be temporary but it frightening to watch. We just reassure him when he goes down. I'm not sure how much Rocky "blacks out inside" cause he doesn't appear to on the outside.

The vet thinks he may have arthritis and we are starting him on 50 mg/day Rimadyl tomorrow. Anybody know of any similar experiences, and what might cause this strange drunken behavior ? Rocky only drinks water, usually from the filtered refrigerator spout.

Thank you for your input.