right leg injury 8 month old Paddy

[Mindy]

My Paddy (8 months old) has a bad right rear leg. He holds it up, is not dragging it...this is the second time this has happened to him. I believe he took a fall the first time, and I am unsure what could have caused this second one. The first time this happened was shortly after Paddy was scared by one of the cats and he slipped backwards down the stairs. I followed the Vet's recommendation and kept him home from doggie camp and he sayed in his crate for (4) days and the rest seemed to cure him. A couple of days ago, I thought I noticed him holding his right rear leg up again and he seemed to walk it off and I left him at camp. This morning, he woke and is holding his left rear leg up again. Can puppies simply strain muscles every once in a while? He is a mini australian labradoodle, however at 8 months is already the size of a small medium ( 18 inches tall and 22.5 lbs)....do doodles have problems with stairs or jumping (he jumps on and off the bed a lot too). Thanks for your help.
Mindy

[Carla, Lucca and Izzy]

Have the vet check his knee. He might have torn his ACL.

[Kathy Brady]

I agree with Carla and Lucca, and Jane. There are a variety of possible injuries from sprains to tears (ACL); this happened with one of my labs and it turned out to be severe Lyme disease even though it manifested overnight. Tully can fly (literally!); he will take a running start off the steps or porch and sail 6 or 8 feet, ears blowing in the breeze (we actually consider them to be like rudders on a boat!). I've heard of lots of Doodles who just love to jump so I guess injuries are an occupational hazard! Keep us posted on Paddy.

[Patti]

Take him to the vet. Very rarely, a dog develops a problem (don't know the name) with the leg. I believe the ligament or muscle grows around the bone and holds the leg up in an odd position .It requires surgery to correct. One of the puppies from a litter of labs that we had developed this problem. The wonderful owners took him to the vets, xrays, .... couldn't figure out the problem. It was blamed on injury, sprain, etc...They then went to an orthopedic vet at OSU and got it diagnosed and surgery done. It is very rare, but does occur. Something just grows in the wrong place. Hopefully, your puppy just has a strain, but it should be checked again.

[Mindy]

Thank you all! I spoke with the Vet's Office and they suggested I rest Paddy and see what happens, if his leg is no better, I will take him in later in the week. The first occurance was around Thanksgiving, and I believe he fell sort of backwards on the stairs after one of the cats scared him. I rested him in his crate for 3 days as the Vet suggested and then, Paddy was fine. This second occurance occurred this past Sunday morning, we were outside a good part of Saturday, and he woke up Sunday with this....
Paddy runs and runs and runs...he attends camp all day and could continue running right up to bed time . Although I am going to wait a couple of days, I am worried there may be an ongoing issue with his back right leg. He is home from camp this week, resting in his crate. If he is not improved by WED morning, I will take him back to the Vet.
It is just this weekend too, I have been looking into pet insurance for him.
He is a very very active doodle...even at camp, the camp owner says "Can you imagie what Paddy would be like if he didn't attend camp every day and attend obediance classes with you"....nope, I cannot imagine. Paddy is very very very active and I just love him, and we have a lot of snow and ice...and it does not slow him down a bit, perhaps a lesson for me to insist he take things a bit easier.... it is hard for me to concentrate on anything when I know his right leg is bothering him. He is eating, pooping, peeing, and has hopped around. I will let you know later this week just how he is....the vet said give him a couple of days and then take him in, so that is what I will do. I pray it is just a strain....it's like I have a baby, he is my baby. Thank you all...the very things you are suggesting have been lurking in my mind.

[Carla, Lucca and Izzy]

Keep us informed. We'll be thinking of you.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We have an English Springer Spaniel that developed a problem with a back leg as a puppy. It was actually in the hip. He would periodically limp or favor his back leg. It turned out that the ball and socket were not fitting well. The home remedy the vet suggested was to let Gordie run a lot and "wear the ball" into the socket. It worked. But this was done after xrays etc. and with a vet's blessing.
This is what comes from getting a dog from a breeder wannabe who didn't know enough to have the mama checked before breeding her and from buyers who didn't know enough to make sure they got a pup from an experienced breeder.

[Mindy]

Update Thursday regarding Paddy: Well the vet suggested letting Paddy rest and look for improvement in his rear right leg...thank you GOD, there is improvement, and the last 2 days I have kept him home from camp, the rest is doing him well. He is slow on both of his rear legs and at times limps on the left leg for a couple of seconds when he gets up....he is much improved when we walk, he seems to walk himself back into healthy walking with both rear legs. I am still concerned though as he does seem to have difficulty sitting and getting up, so I called the Vet, he suggested giving Paddy the weekend to continue avoiding camp, and simply walking and resting, walking and resting...if he is not fully back to normal on Monday I will take him back to the Vet. Everything mentioned sounds like a possibility, thank you, and I will fill you in again on Monday.