Limping, or lameness, can occur in any dog and any breed for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it’s a passing thing, comparable to a strain whilst playing sport, and sometimes it’s something more serious or ongoing. It can occur in any leg and sometimes in more than one leg. Because there are so many different causes, sometimes it can be hard to work out why your dog is limping.
How easy is it to spot?
A lot of people can recognise a severe limp in their dog – for instance because of a broken bone or a thorn in the foot. More subtle limping can be harder to spot. The problem is that the vast majority of dogs just ‘get on with it’ – they’ll rarely yelp, whimper or cry, but this doesn’t mean it’s not painful. In fact, for all but the most serious of injuries, it’s far more likely that they’ll simply hide the signs, which makes it hard for us humans to notice a problem. So how can you tell if your dog is limping?
What does limping look like?
If the lameness is just in the one leg, dogs may hold the leg from the floor and not use it at all. This suggests a severe level of pain. They may also use the leg, but spend as little time on it as possible, either by lifting it when running or favouring the leg, producing a waddling motion or a noticeable ‘head bob’ if the front legs are affected. This is even harder to see if a dog has two sore legs – for instance arthritis in both elbows or hip dysplasia in both hips. Sometimes they may lick the affected area in an effort to soothe the discomfort, especially if the affected area is easy to reach.
What can cause my dog to limp?
Joint Disease
Joint diseases such as cruciate disease, joint infections and joint fractures are all possible, and dysplasia (malformed joints) is common in some breeds. Arthritis is the most common cause of limping in dogs, and affects 80% of geriatric dogs. It’s a degenerative disease – meaning it gets worse over time – where the smooth sliding motion of the joint is lost, resulting in pain and inflammation. Your dog is more likely to have arthritis if they:
- Are a large breed
- Are obese
- Are older than 8 (although arthritis can occur at any age, it is more likely in older dogs)
- Have done heavy work or exercise (such as agility or sport dogs, or working farm dogs)
- Have had a previous injury to the joint (such as a fracture or knee injury)
- Have been diagnosed with dysplasia of the joints
Bone Problems
Injuries to the bones themselves are usually restricted to fractures, but some rarer diseases, such as bone cancer, can cause severe lameness too. Fractures are usually more common in younger animals, and usually have a defined traumatic cause, whilst bone cancers start without a cause and get worse over time.
Strains and Sprains
Injuries to the soft tissues of the muscles, tendons and ligaments can cause limping. Sometimes these are simple strains that go away with a little rest. It’s also possible that they can have a more serious injury that doesn’t right itself (such as a cruciate ligament tear or rupture).
Foot Injury
Foot injury such as cuts, torn nails and masses can cause a dog to limp, especially if the injury is to the pad. Foreign bodies, such as grass seeds or thorns, working their way in are also a common cause of sudden-onset limping. This type of injury often results in your dog licking the affected foot repeatedly.
What should I do if I notice my dog is limping?
If your dog is limping, it’s a good idea to book a vet visit. A subtle limp that has been going on for some time is unlikely to be an emergency – although remember that your dog will likely be uncomfortable and will hide signs of pain, so getting them into the vets for pain relief and an assessment is still important. If your dog cannot bear weight on the limb for more than a few seconds then they’re in severe pain and should be seen as soon as possible.
What will the vet do?
Initial assessment
The vet will conduct a clinical examination. Normally, they’ll ask you a few questions about your dog whilst feeling along your pet’s limbs. Be sure to tell the vet which leg you think it is that hurts, but don’t be surprised if they check all the legs – this helps them to compare your dog’s flexibility and reactions as well as make sure nothing is missed. Taking along a video of your dog limping is very helpful, especially when a limp is intermittent or subtle – dogs tend to be extra brave at the vets and stop limping, so it can be hard for us to tell where the problem is without a video.
Narrowing down the cause
In some situations, the vet may suggest a pain relief trial at home to help narrow down the problem, or when it seems to be soft-tissue injury. Often, however, x-rays are suggested. Your dog will need to have a sedation for these to be taken, so will usually stay in for most of the day. The x-rays allow your vet to see broken bones, inflamed joints and arthritis, although they don’t always show an answer. If nothing appears to be wrong on the x-rays, a pain relief trial or further imaging are both options your vet will discuss with you.
What about treatment?
Treatment will depend entirely on the cause of the limping, but usually involves some pain relief, supplement support, rest, and weight loss if required. A few injuries, such as fractures and knee injuries, are usually surgically repaired to reduce pain and the risk of later arthritis. Degenerative or progressive diseases such as arthritis and bone cancers can’t be treated, but there are several management options that your vet will discuss with you.
Whatever the cause of your dog’s limping, your vet is best placed to help you evaluate how serious it is and what the best treatment options are.
Discussion
Two weeks ago, I took my dog to the vet for his left front limp, she told me that his fourth digit looked inflamed and put him on an anti-inflammatory, last week after no improvement, I had an x-ray taken and they could see no broken bones or fractures. They put him on another anti-inflammatory, but it seems to be getting worse. What can I do?
The best thing to do would be to go back reporting that the treatment isn’t working: whatever is going on clearly isn’t getting better so more investigations are required. It might even need some exploration of the area under sedation or anaesthesia to see if there are any foreign bodies in there, like a grass seed, as these don’t usually show up on X-ray.
Hi my dog is limping for 3 months now i have taken my dog to the vat and exray done the vet says it might be cancer but my worry is that he is only 2 years how possible is that
Sadly it is quite possible – the main bone cancer, osteosarcoma, is most commonly seen in young adult dogs. I would advise repeat X-rays, and consider referral to an orthopaedic specialist and/or an oncologist if that’s a suspicion – early treatment maximises the survival chances!
My 13 year old dog very active with his big doggy friend he has now started limping, no swelling eating well still runs after big dog but limp not getting better even though he is on nsaids from the vet for joint pain, he sometimes knuckles the paw when standing still jumps on sofa when I,m not looking.can this take a long time to heal
It depends what the underlying issue is – it might be time for more diagnostic tests. Knuckling over is a bit worrying as it can be a sign of nerve damage, for example.
My dog is limping on her left rear leg and we took her to the vet, but they did xrays and checked her leg out and said everything looked good. They prescribed her a pain med, but every so often she limps on her leg even though she is on the pain meds. Do you have any ideas about what could be wrong with her?
There are a HUGE number of possibilities! However, if she’s not responding to treatment, it might be worth having a chat with your vet about more tests, or even a referral to an orthopaedic specialist who can do more advanced workups and tests.
Hello, if my dog is limping for only two days. After falling on a gate for one time. Do you think he has arthritis or maybe just a sprain.
It’s impossible to say without a clinical examination and maybe some imaging – but if it was triggered by an injury, most likely it’s due to that injury. Muscle strains and bruises, tendon injuries, ligament tears and sprains, even partial bone fractures can all present the same way, and you’ll need to get your vet to check him over to make sure there aren’t any serious injuries.
Hello Dr. My pet dog is limping from both back legs and my vet Dr. said that he is affected from arthritis , which medicine I used.
Your vet will need to prescribe the most appropriate medicine for your dog; however, do not use human medicines unless the vet says so – many human medicines are toxic to dogs.
My dog has been limping for many months now. I brought him to the vet numerous times. They are calling it arthritis after having had an xray. They are treating him with remidyl but that increased his liver enzymes so we switched to gallaprant but that doesn’t seem to be working so im not sure its really arthritis although he is 13. You article is making me wonder if its bone cancer. Thoughts?
It is a possibility, but unlikely – sadly, bone cancer typically progresses pretty fast causing fractures, weight loss, difficulty breathing within weeks to months of appearing. It is also usually very obvious on an X-ray.
It seems more likely that he just doesn’t get on with grapiprant (the active ingredient); it might be worth talking to your vet about multi-modal analgesia, with a mixture of medications, and lifestyle changes – arthritis can be very hard to manage until you crack the combination each dog as an individual needs. Take a look at the factsheet for more info: https://vethelpdirect.com/pet-health-library/dog-osteoarthritis/
Hello dr. My vet said that my dog is having tendonitis and soft tissue damage in her right front leg. So please suggest me what should I do. It’s been now 9 months.
After 9 months, soft tissue injuries would normally have healed – I’d suggest talking again to your vet about either further diagnostics or physiotherapy.
Thank you