Hey there and welcome back! Here on the Acoma Animal Clinic blog, we try to provide you and your furry family with useful information to ensure you are living healthy and happy lives at home. To that end we wanted to cover a common affliction you may see in your pooch, limping. There are lots of reasons for this, and the range from common every day injuries to much more serious.
Torn Paw
A torn paw pad can be one of the most common culprits of limping. They spend all their time running around on their feet and over a wide variety of surfaces it can be caused by a myriad of things. Check your pup’s paw, and if you see, it is cut or torn do your best to keep your pet off their feet.
Broken Nail
Another all too common cause is a broken nail. Depending on how the nail broke or split it can be causing your friend a whole mess of pain or even lead to an infection! To prevent this ensure your dog’s nails are trimmed and maintained to avoid injury.
Panosteitis
This sounds very serious, doesn’t it! Panosteitis is a condition that many large breeds have as they grow, usually between 5 and 18 months old. While the cause is unknown, it manifests as bone inflammation and can last several months but will eventually leave on its own.
Broken Bone
Sure this seems obvious, but your pup could have broken or fractured a bone.
Hip / Elbow Dysplasia
These can be diagnosed early on with radiographs. Sometimes our friends just have bad hips or elbows, and their joints slip.
Muscle Sprains or Tears
Just like us, dogs can sprain or tear their muscles. The most common are the CCL tear, analogous to an ACL tear in us. These are very painful and need immediate attention.
While these vary in seriousness, the one thing they all have in common is the fix: Talk to your vet! Even in the less serious injuries, they can grow if not managed correctly and the last thing any of us want are for our pooches to be in more pain.
