My dog won't put weight on his leg and has a soft lump. What to do?

Please make an appointment to have Tammh seen by a vet as soon as possible. She is likely in pain, and may have a muscular or nerve injury, a fractured bone, a mass, or a foreign body in the leg. Your vet can assess the leg during the physical exam and may recommend x-rays to help determine the cause of Tammh’s limp. Pain medications meant for humans can be very dangerous (and even deadly) for dogs, so I do not recommend giving any to Tammh without consulting with your vet.

This appears to be swelling in the knee joint. What we would consider the "ankle" is much lower in the leg. There can be a pocket of joint fluid on the inside of the leg. It is possible this is a skin lump at the exact spot of this fluid pocket, but I doubt it. I suspect she is not putting weight on the leg because she injured the knee, and now as the swelling increases it is becoming more and more painful. I recommend she be seen by a veterinarian to check the stability of the knee to determine if she ruptured her crainial cruciate ligament or CCL (which is like a human's ACL).

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. When dogs are 'non-ambulatory'- not walking on a leg, this is usually a sign of significant pain. Also, swelling is concerning for either a significant injury (fracture/dislocation), an infection or abscess (pocket of pus), or in older animals we worry about cancers. I would recommend having Swayde seen by a vet to see if anything serious is going on, and would recommend x-rays. Best of luck with Swayde.

With this amount of pain and swelling he must be seen and assessed by a vet. A tumour or abscess may give such pain and deformity, but it is impossible to diagnose from a picture. There is no appropriate home remedies that can be recommended until the underlying cause is known and it is not fair to delay treatment in such a case

Do not give any medications to your dog without the advice of your veterinarian. Many OTC medications can be toxic to pets. Ideally, Ziggy should be examined by your veterinarian or a veterinary orthopedic specialist to diagnose ligament damage, arthritic conditions, fractures or tumors. X-rays of the knees and hips will likely be recommended. These can be done under anesthesia or sedation. A veterinary house all service may be an option for an exam. Afterwards, a sedative and/or pain management can be dispensed to make the trip to the clinic easier and less stressful for all parties.

Please do not give Oreo baby aspirin, it's not safe for puppies or dogs. It causes GI ulcers and bleeding. The only safe pain mediations for dogs are available from the vet. I would call the vet first thing in the morning to get an appointment for him to be seen. He's limping because he's in pain, and since he is so young, it's very important he's seen by a vet as soon as possible to make sure he doesn't have an injury such as a broken bone that negatively affects his growth. The only way to know for sure he hasn't broken anything is with an x-ray. Please take him into the vet tomorrow.

It really depends on the cause of the swelling, but usually pain medication the route you would have to go. Generally for issues like this that are not treated surgically, we manage the pain and inflammation with long-term medication at the lowest effective dose. While there are some potential side effects, most dogs can be treated rather effectively this way. It will be worthwhile to have a blood screen done to make sure the liver and kidneys are functioning well prior to starting the medication and it may be necessary to take blood periodically to ensure they are not causing any damage. Your veterinarian should be able to help you out with all of this. I hope that helps and Oscar feels better soon.