Hip problem?

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

Monty is coming up on 4.5 years and I've noticed this summer that after a vigorous play, he limps for a while. We were in San Diego and he got to run on the beach and swim in the ocean. He had a blast, but then after we got back to the hotel and he slept for a while, he had a hard time getting up and seemed to be limping. After a little bit of movement, the limping was gone.

This repeated itself on couple of other water/sand adventures.

During our vet visit to get his rabies shot, I mentioned it to our vet. And she said that she would be stiff and hurting too if she was running like that on the beach and in the water. She attributed this to "extra" exercise that he was getting.

I was not sure if I was content with her answer since Monty had "extra" exercises like this in the past years and there was no limping afterwards. So I'm keeping a close eye on him.

We go to a park every morning, where he chases his ball. Then we go back home, I go to work and both dogs sleep. The other day I came back from work and Monty had a hard time getting up to come great me. The truth is, many times he sleeps against the staircase, rolled on his back, with his legs against the stairs. My legs would go to sleep after a while.

I was determined to call the vet the next day, but Monty was back to normal in the morning.

This evening Auggie wanted to play and he jumped Monty from the back. Monty fell flat on the carpet and after he got up, he was holding his right back leg up. I massaged it for a while and after a few steps he seemed okay.

Now I don't know what to think. Until today, I thought it was his left back leg.

I'm calling the vet tomorrow morning. He is only over 4 and this should not be happening.

What test can they do to figure out what's going on? Anything else I need to ask the vet to check?

Thank you!

[F, Calla & Luca]

I hope Monty continues this way.

[Camilla and Darwin]

Just saw this and I'm really relieved to hear that he hasn't been limping for the past couple of days. Hopefully the positive trend continues!

[Sheila & Finnley]

Yes, let us know what you end up finding out. Poor guy. If she was talking Rimadyl, I'm guessing she is thinking arthritis ? He seems young for that.

I hope that he remains limp free, and it was just a fluke.

Smoooch to Monty !!

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

I'm sorry to hear this Jarka.  It could be a pull or muscle strain, and I sure hope so, but Monty's symptoms are very similar to Finn's.  Played hard, loved it, all fine, came home, went to sleep for awhile, then struggled to get up, and had a hard time walking and climbing the stairs to bed.  Next morning, all's fine and ready to play again.  Every once in a while one of his rear legs would "hitch"up (he'd hold it in the air) --just for a couple seconds, and then he'd go on playing. It doesn't happen all the time, and anyone who's seen Finn "romp" would say that dog doesn't have HD but he does. I'd advise you have Monty x-rayed.  I took FInn to an orthopedic specialist.  FInn's physical exam was so good the doc didn't think it was a skeletal problem. But he was able to do x-rays without anesthetic - which is unusual but he was willing to try and he was able to position FInn, tell him to stay, and he stayed.  Better to know sooner rather than later I think.  With proper management you can slow down the progression and help minimize arthritis. Sometimes surgery is an option. I give FInn RImadyl but not on a regular basis and not often…he gets 50mg if he's going to do something strenuous (a run on the beach, a romp) and 50 mg after.

Hugs to you and Monty. 

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

Wow, that does sound so similar. We are going to a doodle romp at a lake tomorrow, so I'll see how Monty does. I do have a number for a specialist in the area, just in case.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I'm just reading through all this now and just wanted to let you know that I too would be concerned but these guys sure do scare us sometimes. I am using a good supplement called SynFlex as Boris is at risk of osteoarthritis following his operation on his shoulders. Kisses to Monty please from me X

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

UPDATE: I took Monty to the Canine Rehab center last Friday. The vet spent an hour examining his every muscle and did not find anything. So we are still without a diagnosis. She recommended getting an x-ray of Monty's hips. I'll have to schedule that with our regular vet. No limping recently, but we have not done any extra activity. Our neighborhood pool is closing today so I'll be taking both boys for a swim. I'm sure I'll see whether Monty still has problems afterwards. This is his third week on Cetyl M supplements as well.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

This sounds somewhat positive, Jarka. Thank you for the update, please keep us posted.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Good news so far though I doubt the supplements have anything to do with it.

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

Another update: Took Monty to the neighborhood swimming pool. He had a blast, but the lameness was back after he settled down at home. I'll be scheduling an x-ray with our vet tomorrow.

[Bonnie and Kona]

Hoping for the very best for Monty! I'm sorry for all of you.

[Jill, Woody & Maxi]

We'll be thinking of you guys..hope everything goes well with his x-ray