I have a purebreed boxer who is 11 months old and has developed a limp. actually he just lifts up the front left paw and hops. Duke does not yip or growel when I massage the leg,flex the joints or feel between the toes. I have not noticed any inflamation or swelling and the shoulders and brisket appear to be summetrical. I have been told by the vet that my breeder does not have a problem with hip displaysa. Is there a problem with the breed in joints or what else should I be looking for?

My bull Terrier developed a similar problem. I checked his feet, his paw, his leg, shoulder. Really had me stumped.......
Then the limp went worse and I looked and could see a small cut on his paw but it didnt look really serious enough to cause a limp.
The following day while examining the paw again the sun came out and in the tiny cut I saw a glint when the light fell on it.
Got my husband to give me a hand and we extracted a shard of glass, which must have been embedded in his paw and worked its way back to the surface. No wonder the poor dog was limping, I wouldnt have been able to put my foot on the ground if there had been glass in my toe.
So check his pads really well, it could be one reason for a sudden limp.

sharon
bullywood Bull Terriers

My little yorkie hurt his foot many years ago by pulling a muscle , even though it is 8 years later he still limps when he wants sympathy:)

Thanks for the quick responses I have a vet visit in the morning hopefully every thing turns out alright

It could be a number of things from standing on something sharp and bruising the pad, to straining a muscle to a joint problem like OCD of the elbows. The vet may suggest a few days rest and some anti inflammatories if he can't feel anything and then if it still appears to be painful they'll probably take an xray to see if there is something more serious than a pulled muscle going on.
Good luck :)

I took Duke to the vet today and he(the vet) just scratched his head and said it must be growing pains, and to give him a childrens asprine?!? If it dosnt clear up in a month or so to come back and he will do x rays

Keep an eye on him, and if it carrys on i would take him back sooner, have you put his foot in salt water, maybe that would draw something out if it was in. fingers crossed

Hello Jamie
I Bought a Rhodesian Rhidgeback Puppy about 5 months ago which started to limp for no reason,the vet
checked her over and said he could not find nothing wrong,I got a second opinion from a specialist who xrayed
straight away,To find a small chip on a bone.Hopefully your dog has just gone lame and it will correct itself.

Hi Jamie

Growing pains in a dog can be Panosteitis also known as wandering lameness as it tends to appear in various legs. This is possibly unlikely at your dog's age as it generally starts younger but may be something to keep in mind if it happens again or he becomes lame in another leg

Christine

I WOULD REALLY CONSIDER HAVEING HIM X-RAYED. THEIR WAS NO SIGN OF HIP OR ELBOW PROBLEMS WITH MY BREEDER BUT MY 9 MONTH OLD GERMAN SHEPARD HAS DYSPLASIA ON BOTH THIS STARTED WITH HIM HOLDING LEG UP.