I have a seven year old springer spaniel that occasionally wimpers and whines when lying still. She's normally a very active dog, jumping on the bed, sofa and just generally active and funloving. A few months ago, she had a spell where she would be lying down and just start whining and yelping for a few seconds. We took her to the vet and they did xrays and felt around her joints for any apparent pain. She couldn't find anything wrong with her except for her anal glands needed to be expressed. She was fine for several months and now she is acting like she is in pain again and doesn't move around much. Could this be related to the anal glands or does it sound like maybe she has arthritis? The whining and wimpering is not an ongoing thing and we haven't been able to establish any type of pattern. Any ideas on what this may be?

My first thought would be indigestion/tummy trouble. Has she eaten something she shouldn't?

No, she only eats dog food, once a day.

Wow! How do you manage that? Mine are always on the lookout for something "tasty" when we're out! Does she ever vanish into the undergrowth when she's on her walks? All sorts of things get thrown in there to make a tasty snack.

When abouts in the day do these attacks occur? What had she been doing in the few hours leading up to them? Where had she been? (I'm thinking cramp/pulled muscle from swimming/playing with other dogs here). What was the temperature like? What time of day is she fed?

If the vet says her joints are fine it's 'internal', muscular or neurological. Question is, which?