Over the next few months, I plan to write articles about many of these conditions, explainiYour dog is limping, and you're panicking. But now comes the really difficult part - difficult part - diagnosis. There are simply so many different reasons that a dog will limp. Think of all the different reasons that you will limp: a splinter, a stubbed toe, a cut foot, a twisted ankle, a sprained knee, shin splints, a pulled muscle, arthritis, a torn ligament, a bone bruise, a broken leg, a bad hip. The list goes on, but you get the idea. There are not so many differences for a dog: a cut pad, a broken toe, elbow problems, shoulder problems, hip problems, lyme, arthritis, panosteitis, bone cancer are all among the possibilities. UAP, FCP, ED, OCD, HOD, HCD, ACL, IVDD all sound like alphabet soup, but when your vet mentions one, it's time for concern. Here's a new one for those of you familiar with the ones listed above, Mineralization of the Supraspinatur Tendon. That will be a separate post too.
Puppies play, and get injured. Dogs play, and get injured. But how do you tell a trauma related soft tissue injury from Canine Hip Dysplasia? When do you check for lyme? When do you insist on x-rays? It's not easy, and it's usually a judgement call on the part of the vet, with input from you. It's important to know how the limping started, when is it the worst - in the morning? after exercise? all the time? Did it start suddenly, or has it been building for awhile? Always be aware of your dog's behavior so that you can notice when a problem starts. Watch them when they play. It's easy to tell a broken bone from a pulled muscle, but recognizing a ruptured cruciate ligament is difficult even for a trained observer. You come home and Bernie won't put any weight on his front left leg, but was he acting normal the night before? Or was he acting somewhat off, as though he were coming down with a cold? You're the vet's eyes and ears for all of these things, use them as best as you can, make notes to help you give the vet a sequence of events if necessary.
Over the next few months, I plan to write articles about many of these conditions, explaining what the problem is, how it can be recognized and diagnosed, and how it's treated - using a great deal of input from the back list digests. Ruth Reynolds has written the next installment, which is about helping a dog recover from trauma induced soft tissue injuries, so stay tuned!