My Rosie will limp occasionally, especially after she has played and ran for any length of time. Sometimes she has a hard time walking for a few seconds after she wakes up from a nap. It is always her left back leg that seems to be the problem. She has scooted herself across the floor for a bit until she stands up. She doesn't do this all the time. When I took Rosie to the vet, my vet said that Corgi's have very curvy bone structures and it is common for their joints to get out of line, but they will go back into place. She examined her but did not take x-rays. My vet gave me some pain pills to give Rosie when she does this. Rosie is sixteen months old and I would not consider her to be overweight. Should I insist on x-rays?

Views: 947

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

I had started Timmy in agility at about 14 months and he ended up limping as well. Ended up going to an orthopedic specialist in another city and after many x-rays, his opinion was that Timmy had panosteoitis??? (sp) AKA growing pains. (Normally this is only seen in large dogs with long legs) It was in his left front leg. This was only determined after the radiologist and orthopedic doctor conferred. End result was that Timmy had to have complete rest for 2 weeks, then only on leash walking (short trips) for another 4 weeks and then slowly build up his endurance. Any sign of the limping and he would have to go back to the lower level of exercise. It took almost 6 months for him to get back into his full exercise routine. Today, no problems!!!, but it was torture on him during the process, since he was a really active dog before this all started.

If it continues, I would ask for xrays to be done, but to save yourself some money, have them done by a specialist the first time. I paid for the xrays from my local vet, according to the specialist they needed to be done again!!
Pano is more common in corgis then many think. Many of the folks I know that breed corgis feel that it is best to put them on adult food at 4 - 6 months old and that perhaps the extra protien offered to growing corgis is a contributing factor. I think it may be a good idea to get baseline x-rays on her and agree with Sylvia that you would be best to do this with an orthopedic vet. Even better would be to find someone that is familiar with the dwarf structure of the corgi. Heres hoping you can find the source of the pain and a simple remedy for it.
Gonzo has a similar problem in his right hind leg. He limps when he gets up from lying down or sitting. He stops after a few minutes. Our vet examined him and took x-rays and believes his kneecap is slipping out of place just a little bit, and then it pops back in so he can walk again. She was hoping he'd stop limping once he finished growing, but he's still doing it so I'm going to take him back in. It isn't as bad anymore though. We got pain pills also and they didn't change his limping one bit, which was a good sign because it meant the limp wasn't because of a pain.
Gonzo's limping sounds just like Rosie. She really scared me though because we went to her agility class Monday night and she seemed to be fine for the first 1/2 of the class. We were doing the weave poles (which she loves) and she started to limp and hold her back right leg up. We immediately stopped participating for the night,but she limped off and on the rest of the night and at times holding her leg up. She has an appointment with my vet this coming Tuesday to take x-rays. I live in a small farm town. How do you find a vet who specializes in orthopedic problems? I am afraid that where I live that there won't be one. Most of the vets in my area work with large farm animals in addition to cats and dogs. The University of Illinois is about a three hour drive from my town and they have a vet school and animal hospital there. I don't want to take her to the University if they will experiment on her. I am really worried about her.
Laurie,
I live in a rural area as well and know what you mean by finding an orthopedic vet. I had to travel 4 hours. In your situation you'll probably have to have your vet take a couple of xrays. After he/she looks at them, be straight up and ask if they feel confident in the diagnosis. My vet referred me to the specialist cause he didn't feel confident in giving a diagnosis. That's when Timmy and I made the trip. I don't think that the Univ (if they have a vet hospital) would do any experimentation. If you're worried, explain your concerns and stay with her. Lots of times we don't know until we ask that they have no problems as long as we don't interfere with the technicians. I asked everyone to explain the procedures. (i.e. anesthetic used, duration, effects,etc) and they were happy to answer. If they are hesitant, ask why and make your decision to stay or go elsewhere.

Secondly, have you spoken to Rosie's breeder? Sometimes knowledgeable and responsible breeders know of potential problems or conditions in a particular. They may also want to know of the diagnosis and they may have referral vets they use. At the least, they should be interested in the outcome. (For example, with hip dysplasia, responsible breeders will have the parents both xrayed and listed with OFA and will want to know if any of the pups in a particular litter come down with the condition)

Lastly I would google orthopedic veterianarians "+" the state you live in and see what comes up. The state should have a record of vets and their specialties.

I really hope it's nothing serious, maybe just a muscle thing. I'll keep my paws crossed for you. Please keep us posted.
My vet straight up told me that if Gonzo keeps limping she will refer me to a specialist because she isn't able to care for something like this, so I really liked that she was honest. Nothing showed up on the x-rays that she could see, but she said a lot of times the kneecap thing won't show up if the kneecap is in place at the time of the xray. I would also suggest asking your vet about the confidence level of the diagnosis and if they know of any specialists you could see.
Gonzo's limping has gotten better, but I'm going to bring him into the vet soon to see what she says.
You might try this link to the ACVS Diplomat Directory for Board Certified Veterinary Surgeons. You can narrow your seach down to Small Animal Orhopedics in your state.

http://www.acvs.org/AnimalOwners/FindaSurgeoninYourArea/

Good luck to you and Rosie. Please keep us posted.
Emmy used to have the same problem in her Right Front. No one could ever find the causes of her limping, xrays were done with nothing showing up. One day while patting her she jumped when I hit a certain part of her shoulder, after massaging that area for a while she stopped limping. From then on when ever she would start to favor the right paw I would always massage the same are and she would be back to her old self again. She would away test her abilities again by chasing the cats around the house.
Hi-

Did the ever return? How old is your dog? Our pup 11months has had a limp on and off for the past month, mostly appears after running hard. The dog thought it was a strain so he was on rest and ibuprophen (doggy) for a week. Limp went away then came back for a few days, again after chasing my son in the yard. Next step would be xrays but someone told me this could be a growth issue in the shoulders common to Corgis.
My Abby just got up a few minutes ago and was limping with the right rear leg, the second time in 2 weeks. It almost seems as if her leg goes to sleep and then after she is up for a few minutes the limp gets better. It ccertainly has me concern but it is somewhat helpful to hear others have the same issue. Abby is 8 months old and likes to play outside. She almost seems to soar out of happiness as soon as she is released into the yard. I will take her to the vet to have her checked, however I wonder if they will be able to assess her when she is not limping.
I also thought Gonzo's leg was asleep, but we brought him to the vet when we noticed he did it no matter what position he had been in, and it was always the same leg. The vet was able to assess him without the limp, but she only found that his kneecap was a bit wiggly. She did get to see him limp a bit for the third visit. My concern is that it is a nerve problem. I think if it is his kneecap slipping out, he shouldn't be able to put his leg down at all - but he does try to walk on it a bit, then picks it up.
Abby puts a little weight on her leg as well, this am she seems some better, but I will take her in to be checked. I want to be sure I do whatever she needs. I had not even thought of a nerve issue-she does not seem to be in any distress when I touch her. It does seem to slow her down-

RSS

Rescue Store

Stay Connected

 

FDA Recall

Canadian Food Inspection Agency Recall

We support...

Badge

Loading…

© 2024   Created by Sam Tsang.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report a boo boo  |  Terms of Service