I am very worried (or maybe paranoid) that my 5 month old Labrador has started to develop a limp in her back leg after she has been on a 3/4 hour walk. Is this just a stiffening of the muscles or could this be something more serious. I am aware of the problems this breed may have with Hip Dysplacia and have been careful not to over execise her. She is a very placid natured dog and is not excitable, ie charging around the house and garden. Am I worrying over nothing? Any advice would be appreciated. Are there any supplements that could be recommended. 

To be honest, she shouldn't be going for a three-quarters of an hour walk yet. A general rule of thumb is 5 minutes walk per every month of the pup's age - so at five months her walks should be only about 25 minutes long. Hope this helps.

Do you think that there will be any lasting damage or if the walks are reduced in length will this sort itself out.

Hi Paul, I would suggest that if you have any concerns, you should pop her down to the vet and discuss any worries with them-they will be the best people to advise you and answer any questions regarding her condition.  :)

Hi Paul.
Obviously no dog should limp and if your puppy is limping then it has a problem of one sort or another. Labrador puppies do tend to throw themselves into life with a gay abandon and as such are inclined to pick up the occasional bruise! So saying, if this is an ongoing thing then it definitely needs looking into.

As Jeangenie has said, you are walking for rather more than I would be and would suggest around half would be a good figure. Aim for a steadily increasing amount of exercise which is the beauty of the "5 minute rule". You cannot make hips better by limiting the exercise but you can most definitely make good ones worse.

You say you are aware of the problems this breed may have with hip dysplacia. In actual fact, well bred Labradors have an enviable record when it comes HD with a relatively low and falling Breed Mean Score (15 total) This from a total of 44383 Labs tested! Of course, hips are not an exact science and bad puppies with hips can come from parents with good hips. Labradors are a heavy puppy and it is the weight combined with exercise which does the damage.

Regards, John