YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community - View Single Post - Teagan - Sudden Severe Limp, No Apparent Reason...

Fash · 10-05-2007, 07:12 PM

Hi Everyone,

I don't post on the forum that often, but I'm always lurking and reading the posts...anyway, my 7-year-old Yorkie girl, Teagan, is having some trouble and I really don't know what to do.

She seemed out of sorts exactly two weeks ago - it was a Friday night and I was home with her all day. She was completely normal, but then later on in the evening I noticed she was just sitting in the middle of the floor and staring blankly at the wall. She would respond if I petted her or spoke to her, but she didn't acknowledge me if I just walked into the room or stood near her - that is NOT normal. She would also sit and stare at nothing with her back to me, something she never does.

Anyway, I thought she just wasn't feeling well and didn't worry too much. She was scheduled to be groomed the following morning and I kept the appointment. Teagan was still acting weirdly, but didn't seem to be in pain or anything. I mentioned to the groomer that she wasn't herself when I dropped her off and asked her to keep an eye out for anything unusual. When I picked Teagan up, the groomer said she seemed depressed, but that she didn't notice any physical symptoms.

I took Teagan home and she perked up a bit - she was on the couch with me and she spied her toy. She leapt off the couch and grabbed it off the floor, then started to shake the toy back and forth when I noticed she was limping. She was NOT limping at all prior to this.

Since then, she has been limping consistently on her front leg. It's almost like her leg occasionally buckles under her weight, making her stumble and stagger around. It's particularly bad after she wakes up. If she has to bend low to the ground, for food for example, she will lift that leg and sort of tuck it underneath her - it's in the air with her paw pads facing her belly. She doesn't always do this, just on occasion.

Her front legs have always been bowlegged, but this leg now looks especially bowed to me. It seems like when she does walk, she steps on the outside of her paw, which sometimes makes her lose her balance and fall on the outside of her leg. Does that make sense? It looks a bit like if you placed your palm flat on a table with your arm extended, then bent it at the elbow to collapse. When she is sitting, her paw is often turned almost completely inward. I have also noticed that lately, if she is sitting on the couch with me and moves around some to make her nest, she will sometimes take a few steps with her bad foot with her toes turned under, like she was walking on the tops of them. (Just her toes - she doesn't bend her entire foot that way.)

I'm sorry - I know this post is getting long. Thanks to anyone that's read this far!

I took her to the vet on 9/25 and she said her knees looked fine - she saw no sign of luxating patellas. She thought it was probably a pulled muscle and gave me 7 Rimadyl tablets, told me to keep her from jumping and/running, and to check back in a week if there was no improvement. She also said Teagan was too fat and that could be causing a problem. She said give half a Rimadyl every 12 hours, but I have been reluctant because of the bad press I've seen AND because when I do give it to Teagan, she starts tearing around the house looking for toys and leaping away from me like an idiot when I try to slow her down. It makes me laugh, but then her leg will buckle and she will suddenly stagger and my heart flies into my throat - that part is not so funny.

I know Teeg needs to lose about 1.5 lbs, but the primary cause of that is her inability to take her daily walks, etc. She is typically a very active, high energy dog, so I've never really had to police her food intake. Now, of course, she wants to eat her usual amount of food, but with no exercise, that's a problem. But she hasn't been fat prior to this, so I don't think her weight has anything to do with her limp.

I can't think of any incidents that happened recently that would cause this to happen so suddenly - does anyone have any experience with this? She showed some improvement earlier this week, but then she heard someone at the door on Wednesday and bolted off the couch before I could react.

When she landed, she kind of froze in place, lifted her paw to take a step, set it down, and then just laid down under the table. I felt like such a moron for not catching her before she jumped that it brought tears to my eyes. I don't allow her on the couch with me since then, which makes her (and me) feel even worse! During all of this, she hasn't yelped or whined or made any sort of sound to express that she's in pain, but if I judging from the way she limps, I feel like she must be! Is it possible that she isn't?

I'm calling the vet Monday to make another appointment, but I am really dreading that I will just be sent home again with another prescription.

10-05-2007, 07:12 PM	#1
Fash Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Madison Posts: 42	Teagan - Sudden Severe Limp, No Apparent Reason... Hi Everyone, I don't post on the forum that often, but I'm always lurking and reading the posts...anyway, my 7-year-old Yorkie girl, Teagan, is having some trouble and I really don't know what to do. She seemed out of sorts exactly two weeks ago - it was a Friday night and I was home with her all day. She was completely normal, but then later on in the evening I noticed she was just sitting in the middle of the floor and staring blankly at the wall. She would respond if I petted her or spoke to her, but she didn't acknowledge me if I just walked into the room or stood near her - that is NOT normal. She would also sit and stare at nothing with her back to me, something she never does. Anyway, I thought she just wasn't feeling well and didn't worry too much. She was scheduled to be groomed the following morning and I kept the appointment. Teagan was still acting weirdly, but didn't seem to be in pain or anything. I mentioned to the groomer that she wasn't herself when I dropped her off and asked her to keep an eye out for anything unusual. When I picked Teagan up, the groomer said she seemed depressed, but that she didn't notice any physical symptoms. I took Teagan home and she perked up a bit - she was on the couch with me and she spied her toy. She leapt off the couch and grabbed it off the floor, then started to shake the toy back and forth when I noticed she was limping. She was NOT limping at all prior to this. Since then, she has been limping consistently on her front leg. It's almost like her leg occasionally buckles under her weight, making her stumble and stagger around. It's particularly bad after she wakes up. If she has to bend low to the ground, for food for example, she will lift that leg and sort of tuck it underneath her - it's in the air with her paw pads facing her belly. She doesn't always do this, just on occasion. Her front legs have always been bowlegged, but this leg now looks especially bowed to me. It seems like when she does walk, she steps on the outside of her paw, which sometimes makes her lose her balance and fall on the outside of her leg. Does that make sense? It looks a bit like if you placed your palm flat on a table with your arm extended, then bent it at the elbow to collapse. When she is sitting, her paw is often turned almost completely inward. I have also noticed that lately, if she is sitting on the couch with me and moves around some to make her nest, she will sometimes take a few steps with her bad foot with her toes turned under, like she was walking on the tops of them. (Just her toes - she doesn't bend her entire foot that way.) I'm sorry - I know this post is getting long. Thanks to anyone that's read this far! I took her to the vet on 9/25 and she said her knees looked fine - she saw no sign of luxating patellas. She thought it was probably a pulled muscle and gave me 7 Rimadyl tablets, told me to keep her from jumping and/running, and to check back in a week if there was no improvement. She also said Teagan was too fat and that could be causing a problem. She said give half a Rimadyl every 12 hours, but I have been reluctant because of the bad press I've seen AND because when I do give it to Teagan, she starts tearing around the house looking for toys and leaping away from me like an idiot when I try to slow her down. It makes me laugh, but then her leg will buckle and she will suddenly stagger and my heart flies into my throat - that part is not so funny. I know Teeg needs to lose about 1.5 lbs, but the primary cause of that is her inability to take her daily walks, etc. She is typically a very active, high energy dog, so I've never really had to police her food intake. Now, of course, she wants to eat her usual amount of food, but with no exercise, that's a problem. But she hasn't been fat prior to this, so I don't think her weight has anything to do with her limp. I can't think of any incidents that happened recently that would cause this to happen so suddenly - does anyone have any experience with this? She showed some improvement earlier this week, but then she heard someone at the door on Wednesday and bolted off the couch before I could react. When she landed, she kind of froze in place, lifted her paw to take a step, set it down, and then just laid down under the table. I felt like such a moron for not catching her before she jumped that it brought tears to my eyes. I don't allow her on the couch with me since then, which makes her (and me) feel even worse! During all of this, she hasn't yelped or whined or made any sort of sound to express that she's in pain, but if I judging from the way she limps, I feel like she must be! Is it possible that she isn't? I'm calling the vet Monday to make another appointment, but I am really dreading that I will just be sent home again with another prescription. __________________ Visit Teagan on Dogster!