My dog skips when trotting and holds his paw up. What's happening?

It could be that Chispa is suffering from a luxating patella, which is when the kneecap comes out of it's correct anatomical position. When this happens, you notice the dog skipping and not using the leg. Because it happens sometimes, that means the kneecap is going back into place. This can be felt with palpation of the knee, so you can take her into another vet for a second opinion. Depending in the severity of the luxation, surgery may be needed to keep her kneecap in place if she does have a luxating patella. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

It could be Panda has a luxating patella, which is when the kneecap comes out of it's correct anatomical position, and it can cause the skipping. Rest him this weekend, and have him seen by vet on Monday.

Yes, this is a common sign seen with luxating patellas (dislocating knee cap). Small breeds like Bailey tend to be affected by it and it can have various ranges of severity. If Bailey is skipping, then it is likely a high-grade luxating patella and may need surgery to correct it. In order to get his condition diagnosed and treated, you'll need to start by scheduling an exam with your veterinarian. For more information about this condition, I recommend you read the article at the link below. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/luxating-patella-or-kneecap-in-dogs I hope that helps and Bailey gets better soon.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I would be looking into the possibility of this being something affecting the joints per se such as immune mediated polyarthritis or perhaps something like hypertrophic osteodystrophy given his young age. These are possible things your veterinarian can look into. Treatment of course would depend on findings. At the very least they can try pain control medications and anti-inflammatory drugs. Best of luck!

I'm sorry to hear about Freddie Harte's limping. I am not seeing any obvious defects on this x-ray. The challenge is that the findings on exam are extremely important in trying to diagnose orthopedic issues; it would help to know if Freddie has proprioceptive deficits in his hind end, decreased range of motion, muscle atrophy, medial buttressing, etc as well as trying to localize any pain that may be contributing to his limping - all of this information would be combined with findings on x-ray to try to reach a diagnosis. Small dogs such as Shih Tzus are prone to luxating patellas, which may not always be evident on an x-ray but would be detected on exam. Did your vet discuss the option of referral to a specialist for a more concrete answer? I'm happy to give you my input on the x-ray - but referral to an orthopedic specialist who will be able to put their hands on your dog, as well as look at these x-rays, will give you much more beneficial input. I know its frustrating to have a chronically limping dog without an answer! I hope this helps!

Hello. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Sorry to hear this happened to Scrappy. Did you check the bottom of his foot to see if there is a sticker or splinter in his paw? If not, please check that. If you don't see anything there I suggest you just rest him for a few days to see if the symptoms resolve/improve. If not, then get him to your vet for an exam. I am a bit worried based on your description that he may have injured his cruciate ligament in his knee. He wouldn't necessarily show pain when you move the leg. You need your vet to manipulate the knee is a certain fashion to check for this type of injury. There is no harm in giving it a few days to see if it resolves. He could just have a mild sprain/strain. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively! Based on you description of what he has been doing with his hind limbs, I would be more suspicious of something like patellar luxation and possible arthritis as well based on his breed and weight. That is something that can be checked on physical examination. Typically, this is treated medically first to improve comfort though surgery is sometimes needed. Good luck and have a great day!