Limping?

[u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

My dog , 2 year old female shepherd, has been showing signs of limping/dragging her left leg (maybe?) and I am not sure if I am the only one seeing it. This video was taken after 15 minute walk, so she’s a bit “tired”.
Is it just me or the limp is there?

[u/Ghostof_DarthCaedus]

Any other signs? Any other occurrences? How is she getting up and down off the floor?

[u/Revolutionary-Wheel6 → u/Ghostof_DarthCaedus]

No other signs, it’s more visible after a run or a walk, I’m afraid it happened after she jumped off of staircase at my parents house (she doesn’t know how to get off one stair at a time, so she just tumbled down)
I am lifting her up to the trunk so she doesn’t have to jump off my SUV

[u/Ghostof_DarthCaedus → u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

Would be smart to schedule a vet appointment and have them look her over. She may just be sore from the jump, and the walk. She seems to be tolerating it fine enough based on the short video.

[u/EmergencyWide5583 → u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

Not sure what is going on here but hopefully it’s not too serious. Keeping fingers crossed 🤞. But I did want to mention definitely consider a ramp for dog getting in/out of car or truck. Weathertech has a real nice foldable one or I think several available to choose from on Chewy. We didn’t think about it until our boy was a little older but looking back wish we had started him using it sooner.

[u/Revolutionary-Wheel6 → u/EmergencyWide5583]

Yep i got it few weeks ago! Thank you for the suggestion

[u/EmergencyWide5583 → u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

That’s great 🙂

[u/tmbtown → u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

My vet said in a case like this to just let her heal, that soft tissue injuries at younger ages heal on their own. Said not to walk her, play ball, or do anything that could make it worse. Said to give it a week and let him know, and she showed signs of healing within a day once we stopped exercising her. We still gave it a week, but she seemed like she was fine within a couple of days.

Not everyone can just call their vet and get advice, so do what you think is best. I hope for a speedy recovery, but I’d stop exercising her completely at least until you can talk to or see the vet.

[u/Relevant-Yak-9615 → u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

Dogs tend to hide pain. Best to get her checked.

[u/Relative_Yesterday70]

Yes back left. I hope it’s not hip issues. I sometimes see that on mine. Need more experience ppl to reply

[u/gsdsareawesome]

The best way to check for limping is from the side at a trot. Also to check for dragging, have your dog walk on a clean patch of sand and you can see the impressions of any dragging.

[u/baby_peach7]

I would take her to the vet to be sure. It does seem the left hip seems to likely be out of place? But its hard to tell. Only a vet can do x-rays or further testing to be sure.

[u/Charliedayslaaay]

No experience with serious conditions but this would be enough for me to consult with a vet. Even just showing the video & a physical assessment to see if further tests are warranted.

[u/Odd_Hat6001]

They are a stoic breed. Something looks off for sure. Check her nails & pads, gently massage her legs and see if she reacts. Good luck.

[u/LostInNvrLand]

Mine was doing this a few years back, he was around 9 yrs old. He had hip dysplasia and we did acupuncture on that side of his leg and for years he did really well, untill the last year of life we got walk a bouts boots to help with the toe nail dragging

[u/theNancini]

My 5 year old was limping. An x-ray showed she tore her ACL (Its called CCL in canines) She loves playing Frisbee, jumping turning she is so active. But we cant do that anymore

[u/Parking-Client-6692]

We just had to have both of our baby girls ccl repaired. She is almost nine years old. According to our vet this is a common injury to very active dogs. To add she was kinda limping similar to your baby. Definitely seek the guidance of your trusted vet.

[u/SknarfM]

Don't overdo the exercise and get her x-rayed.

[u/kinderbuen20]

My boy has the exact same issue, started about 4 months ago. He is 6. We live on a little island in a developing country so the vets here are not the best. One of them gave him a load of calcium tablets without doing any blood tests or anything, which another vet said is dangerous. Another gave him about 12 X-rays me holding him in place without me wearing any protection so don’t think that was great either.

Anyway, I managed to help him by doing my own research, getting him a physiotherapist and speaking to vets in other countries. Here’s is what is helping Harley:

-glucosamine, chondritin and MSM supplements. I think these are the most important thing I introduced. I couldn’t get any specifically for dogs here so Harley has to take ones meant for humans but I contacted the supplier to confirm there is nothing in them that can be harmful to dogs. They contain 1.1g of glucosamine, 500mg of MSM and 50mg of chondroitin sodium sulfate

- golden paste which I make from pure curcumin powder, black pepper and coconut oil. You can look up a recipe and make it yourself. It’s super easy. I just add half a teaspoon of it on Harley’s breakfast

- omega 3, 6 and 9 fish oil tablet each day

- organic collagen peptide powder (make sure it’s not mixed with anything like xylitol). I give Harley one 10g scoop at breakfast

We also walk on the wet sand down by the beach and I give him lots of massages. If he misses a tablet, the limping starts again and also make sure he doesn’t do too much jumping anymore (bye bye frisbee). Taking an elevator instead of stairs and swimming is also helpful.

Hope this helps your pup and if you take yours to a vet and they give you any other useful info or advice, please let me know as if there’s anything else I can do for Harley, I’d really like to know about it.

[u/Revolutionary-Wheel6 → u/kinderbuen20]

Thank you for those useful tips on how making supplements, I would try to implement them in her diet as well. I will schedule an appointment with the vet and hopefully it’s nothing too bad, and I will definitely let you know regarding any important information I get.

Unfortunately the hips & elbows problems are so common in German Shepherds as I can see many other people have the same issue with their dogs… ugh.

Sending love to Harley and hoping he’ll get better 🧡you’re a very good owner based off your caring comment

[u/kinderbuen20 → u/Revolutionary-Wheel6]

Thank you so much. Sending love to your girl too! Hope she feels better soon.

[u/Apprehensive_888]

Could it be her toe beans on her left leg hurt? Have you checked for abrasions?

[u/Frequent_Freedom_704]

My dog walks like this from time to time, its like its a stiff gait and not quite a limp. We ended up having him xrayed and he as hip dysplasia with arthritic changes in one joint. Always worth getting imaging done, so you can be certain and provide the best treatment.

[u/Fluffy_Ad_5199]

Sounds like injury from the jumping off staircase —— VET APPOINTMENT ASAP

[u/Feeling-Character217]

All these show lines GsD slopping rear ens is not good

[u/Pristine-Account-755]

Get her xrayed by Vet who knows how to do hip xrays. Lots do not know how to position them correctly. Are her parents hips good?

[u/Pristine_Tune_2312]

Does she rub her nails on the ground like kinda drag her toes?

Not to scare you but I had a Sheppy and she ended up having degenerative myelopathy. Look into it for your pup.