hi,one of my collies seems to have a weak shoulder muscle,shes been to the vets for the second time in a few months,with a limp,the vet diagnosed a swollen muscle and shes on pain killers (carprox),and has to go back soon,shes still limping.a few months ago she had to visit the vet for the same problem,was x rayed,nothing showed up,so she was put on an extended course of carprox and limited exercise,which eventually worked. my question is,are there any supplements that might help strengthen the damaged muscle?i know there are loads for arthritis and stiffness,but have never heard of any for the muscles.thanks in advance ,pam.

Sounds like you need to talk to a canine chiropractor or as we in my area call him the greyhound man he deals mostly with racing greyhounds and competitive agility dogs for muscle and sprains, in your area ask around for any of the above people or Google canine theropry for anyone local I'm in the north east

oh now i never thought of that!thanks,and i love corgis too!x

Whispa has been having chiropractic for his various conditions.including muscle weakness nerve pain and spondylosis it is certainly helping and I agree it's worth investigating. Another therapy that can help is acupuncture.

> Another therapy that can help is acupuncture.

Totally agree re acupuncture.   When my current hound was suffering with lameness (front), he had two sessions with a vet we were using at the time, who specialises in 'alternative medicine' alongside 'normal' treatments.  I'm sure it helped - he basically dozed off while it was being done!

I’d consult a canine Physio. Mine previous dog had a shoulder injury that he couldn’t shake but after being given the correct exercises and progressions he was back to running normally in just a few months. All the vet suggested was rest and build up gradually but if he went any faster than a trot the limp returned and that’s when I got in touch with a Physio who was excellent and not expensive either. I think we only had three sessions.

Some collies can have larger abduction angles the shoulder; this is what makes them good at agility and herding but as such can cause issues.

thankyou,ill see if i can find a local one,good idea-pity she cant join in with mine!x

thanks everybody,i will look into this-i really hadnt thought of it,brilliant x

I'd go chiro first, to correct any misalignments, then physio (good one might do acupuncture as well, River's did).  Soft tissue injuries can be an absolute sod to heal and take months, if not longer so it's important that you get the right therapy now.

My first dog injured his shoulder at 3yo and it never fully healed.  X-rays, examinations couldn't find a cause.  Some 8 years after that, he went to a physio for acupuncture for a slipped disc and she told me after about 5 seconds' examination that it was biceps tendonitis.  Had I know that when it happened, he could have been put on a rehab program and the issue probably sorted out.

definately going to find one-thanks nikita x