My dog has a shoulder injury. Is 8 weeks of limping normal?

If the lameness has persisted for 3 weeks and you notice that there is a difference in the shape of the shoulder area and leg position, I fear that the injury could be more serious than a sprain. Muscle injuries normally recover in 4-5 days of rest and antinflammatories. I would recommend to have him reassessed, there is a medication that can be given at home prior to the visit to help with the stress, I would ask your vet. Hope this helps !

Poor Lily! There are many different possibilities in this case. It may be that she has simply bruised herself or damaged a muscle or ligament. However she may have a more serious injury such as a fracture or ligament rupture. If she seems to be comfortable and nothing looks out of place you could let her rest 24 hours then if she is no better or getting worse head to the vet.

Good Evening...thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am sorry that Luna is experience some trouble with her left front leg. Since the lameness seems to be reoccurring, I would recommend you bring her into a veterinarian for an examination. Young dogs can often experience many conditions that can cause lameness. These can range from conditions such as panosteitis (growing pains) to congenital conditions such as elbow dysplasia, or OCD lesion of either the shoulder or elbow. Certainly a soft tissue injury (muscle strain or sprain) may also be the culprit. Regardless, it may be nice to see if the veterinarian can determine her "pain point" and localize where her lameness is coming from. They will also be able to give you prescription medications that ma help to ease her discomfort. I hope this information helps, good luck and I hope Luna gets some relief soon! :-)

Poor Lily. When a pet isn't showing a pain response but limping on their back leg, it could indicate that they have either torn a ligament in the joint or have a severe muscle sprain. Also if you don't notice any obvious swelling, then a fracture is likely not the cause. Rest her, no running, jumping playing and leash walk only for the next couple of weeks. You can also do cold compresses on the limb 1-2 times a day. if there is no improvement within 3-4 days, then it's best to get her seen by your veterinarian for a full exam and pet friendly pain medication. She may also need x-rays of the leg to determine the underlying injury (cause). Do not give her people pain meds however because these can be quite toxic to pets and cause major liver and/or kidney damage. It's better to get all pain and anti-inflammatory meds from your vet. Even though she isn't crying out, there is presumed inflammation at the very least, so she can benefit from medication at any time. I hope your puppy gets well soon. Best wishes.

Considering she fell 5 days ago and she is still limping, I would recommend a veterinary check up as medications are likely to be the only way to decrease inflammation and relieve pain/discomfort and speed up recovery. Complete rest is essential as well and even though no fractures are visible, severe ligament or tendon injury can be serious enough to cause the presenting signs. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation (where you can post pictures ) if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Hello. Unfortunately, x-rays do not show every kind of injury that can happen, especially when it may involve soft tissues like muscles, ligaments & tendons. A torn or partially torn tendon can take twice as long to heal as a broken bone & you can not tell Bane to take it easy or use crutches. I would give him at least another 4-6 weeks to see if this will heal, especially if he is showing some improvement. Rest & gently exercise are important, so working with a canine rehabilitation medicine specialist, especially if they offer water therapy can be very helpful. If you really want to diagnose the problem, the best solution would be an MRI, as this is how most sports injuries are diagnosed. It may be something to consider & talk to your vet about. Good luck & thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Limping can be caused by several different problems - if x-rays didn't show a fracture, then it is likely that Bentley has some type of soft-tissue injury causing him to limp. One of the most common injuries like this that we see in dogs is a torn cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) - this is the same ligament that human athletes sometimes injure, called the ACL in humans. This ligament is responsible for stabilizing the knee joint when the dog walks, so if it is torn it causes significant lameness that does not improve with rest and pain medication. Other possible causes of limping for over a month would be a torn muscle, or a torn tendon or ligament in another part of the leg. Unfortunately, these injuries will not show up on x-rays. If your veterinarian doesn't have any other suggestions for further testing (such as a sedated orthopedic exam to check joint stability), then I would recommend asking for a referral to an orthopedic specialist. Bentley may need an MRI or other advanced imaging to diagnose the problem.