My 3 year old black labrador has occasionally a limp. When he does we reduce his walking and it goes away. Then a couple of weeks later it starts again. Had him at the vet and no swelling found but should I have an X-ray or should I give him supplements to help his joint? Any replies would be welcome.
Hi @jabaldwin I have a 3 yr old who was diagnosed and operated on for ED at 8 months of age. I would be going back to the vet for further investigation as if the limp is recurring there is normally a reason for it. Also your vet us best placed to advise on the suitability or need for supplements. I use a glucosamine/chondroitin supplement and salmon oil daily but we are in the midst of a nasty arthritic flare up in both elbows.
My dog (nearly 4 years old) had an intermittent limp that started about 6 months ago. The vet felt her all over and couldn't find anything obvious. He said it might be early onset arthritis and prescribed Metacam to take when needed. She was overweight so I at last put her on a serious diet. In the end, at the end of May, I had x-rays taken, which thankfully showed no arthritis or any other problem. The limp went away and hasn't recurred for 10 weeks (she hasn't had Metacam since then) -the vet said it was possibly a soft tissue injury, which can take a long time to heal. Molly is continuing to lose weight and I can't help but feel that was the deciding factor. The x-rays were an expense and a worry (because she had a general anaesthetic) but on the whole I'm glad I had them done as it ruled out ED and arthritis. My vet also suggested glucosamine tablets (Yumove). I did buy them but I'm dubious about how beneficial they are -there seems to be very little proper scientific evidence to show they have any effect. I don't think I'll buy more when they've been used up. Whatever you decide to do, I hope your dog has a good outcome.
Thanks for the replies. Think I will have to go with the X-rays. Its just really strange as he limps after a walk and then goes into the back garden and runs around as though there is nothing wrong!
We have just been through this so I feel for you. Xrays were inconclusive . We had Sam on limited exercise, no stairs, put him on a diet and he has a bob martin flexible joint supplement plus the odd can of oily mackeral thrown in . He has had no limp , no painkillers and back on his walks ( although we keep him on the lead) for 5 weeks now so we are seeing how he goes. Hope this may help
