My dog suddenly won't put weight on his rear leg. What's wrong?

There is a possibility that your dog tore a cruciate ligament in his knee. I would make him rest, ie only leash walk him to do his business outside, and otherwise not let him run or jump around. If the lameness is not gone tomorrow or significantly better, then I suggest you make an appointment with your vet for an exam. Your dog will need anti-inflammatory medication to reduce inflammation and pain.

If it just started you can let Bruno rest for a few days with minimal walking and minimal physical exercise, if it does not improve within 3-4 days you will have to take him to the vet in order to get it checked and treated, he might need pain killers for a few days. if the vet think it's something more serious such as a fracture, joint injury or foreign body, he might recommend to have an xray done as well.

Hello and thank you for using Pet Coach to address your concern. Without examining Bruno it is difficult to say what it could be. He could be dealing with a nerve injury or neurological condition, soft tissue injury (strain or sprain), ACL injury, bone trauma, infectious, etc. If x-rays have already been performed, I would suggest having an orthopedic specialist take a look at Bruno. Bruno may need a CT scan of the leg to help determine what this could be so that the most appropriate diagnostics and treatments can be recommended. It is also possible that this is a soft tissue injury and Bruno will start feeling much better and then run or jump leading to a re-injury of the leg. You may need to look at keeping Bruno crate confined or restricted to a small area so that he cannot run or jump for at least 4 weeks to see how he does with limited activity. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any additional concerns. I am also available via consultation if needed.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Bruno. I recommend that he sees a veterinarian. He may need x-rays of his rear legs. I am worried that he may have arthritis or another joint condition that is contributing to his pain. The skin can be assessed at the same appointment. However, it is probably a separate issue from the mobility problems. In the meantime, do not give any over-the-counter pain medications as these can be toxic to dogs. I hope this information helps!

It sounds like the leg is injured, possibly a sprain or tear, or a broken bone. It would be best to bring Dozer to your vet to have the leg examined and X-rayed to check for this, especially if he won't put any weight on it at all. Until you can get to your vet, keeping him on kennel rest with leash-only walks to go potty is best to avoid further irritation to the injury.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Bruno! Possible causes of Bruno's limp are: strain or a sprain from being stepped on, if he is older it could have aggravated arthritis, a toe or a bone could be broken, or it could be something unrelated like Lyme disease. Since Bruno can hardly walk on the leg that indicates pain. I recommend having Bruno seen by your Vet for an exam. If there is concern for the paw then they may want to take X-rays, otherwise they may just prescribe anti-inflammatories and rest. I hope this helps and I wish Bruno a speedy recovery!

Hi there. It's hard to say why Brunoo might be limping without being able to examine his leg and take some x-rays. If he's been limping for a year, this indicates that something serious may be wrong. He may have a torn ligament in his knee, a fracture somewhere that has not healed, or a joint problem such as hip dysplasia. I would recommend taking him to the vet for an exam when you are able to. He/she can do a complete orthopedic exam under sedation if needed to evaluate the laxity of his joints, range of motion, etc. and check for any evidence of swelling or other issues. It's likely that he will also need x-rays as part of this visit to help determine the problem.