Advice on lameness please

My beautiful border collie Blue has been having some lameness issue's lately. He's 8 1/2 years old and 27kg.

His first onset of lameness started 6 months ago. I came home from work to find him hopping around on 3 legs (his lameness is in his right fore). I took him to the vet who gave him a weeks supply of previcox (anti inflammatory). It seemed to do the trick for a couple of weeks but then he became lame again. I took him straight back to the vet who gave him a months supply of previcoc. He recovered nicely and we continued with our normal daily activities.

I have another 3 border collies Skye 7 1/2 Fenn 6 1/2 & Bess 6. We do walk at least 1-2 1/2 hours a day. Normally 1 - 1/2hrs in the week and the longer duration at the weekend. Over the easter holiday we walked the full 2 1/2hr which i think i have induced his lameness by over exercising him

He is now lame again. So he's back on the previcox for 30 days and is on strict rest. The upsetting problem i have now is that he is lame on both forelegs. I think its probably because he is weight bearing on his good legs and he's probably strained it.

The vet said if it continues he will have x-rays to find the route of the problem.

Blue doesn't like the vet at all and gets very stressed when he's being looked at which doesn't help give a true diagnosis. I normally come out bleeding or covered in bruises after holding him. She thinks he's probably got the onset of arthritis which bothers me because his dad was pts with severe arthritis at 12 years old

I have also started him on joint aid.

Has anybody had any experience with this kind of problem. I would love to hear because i am getting very distressed watching him hopping around. It could be soft tissue or ligament damage.

Thanks in advance x

Hello Jules, and given that it is now quite late at night you may not have many replies until tomorrow.

I just wanted to say that if it IS arthritis, then it is not the end of the world as there are many drugs and treatments which can manage the condition effectively for a great number of years, so don't despair.

I do sympathise over the vet issue.........it certainly makes things so much harder when our dogs are terrified of vets, and I hope that before long you have a firm diagnosis which will enable you to start on a treatment programme.

Good luck, and I am sure that others will come along tomorrow with some sound advice

hi

27kg the likeliest thing is arthritis,but its not the end of the world,their are lots of different anti-inflams to try so dont be dissheartened,if its ligament or soft tissue it should clear up after 5-10 days of the anti-inflams and rest,if the lameness comes back, defo rads are recommended ,then you know what you are dealing with then can form a plan,we worry more than they do i promise,often when the clients have left their nervous dogs the dog relax's slightly exp with a nice pre-med

of course with any lameness its best to have a nice slim dog,and if he likes swimming it can be beneficial too.

Aaaaaw thanks for the replies.

Its really comforting having some extra input from others. Its heart breaking seeing him hop around. He's a big build border collie. He's at a good weight so as he won't be exercising for a while i've cut his food down xx

handsome lad

i have a collie called Blue too,a blue merle lol

my boy is a big lad he is 21kg

id say by the pic(hard without hands on tho) that he is carrying a wee bit of extra and it all counts when they are older let alone lame slimming down can often help the problem and reduce drugs,and its free

Well Otis, my lab collie x ( who's nearly 11) started with lameness a couple of years ago. I then started him on Vetvits glucosamine and chondroitin. It worked great until a few months ago when we got Poppy (who's 2 and a lurcher!!) who Otis adores and runs around with. He started getting lame after walks again so I increased his Vetvits from 2 to 3 tablets a day and within a couple of weeks he was ok and still is. He still legs it around after 4 sighthounds but now doesn't get lame at all. Must be something in it...maybe worth a try.
It does take a few weeks to notice improvement at first so keep going

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defo agree about nutricuticles i like ......

http://www.trmpet.com/index.php/engl...us-liquid.html

but with persistant lameness a diagnosis should be sought (ie rads) imo.

He looks like he could do with losing a bit of weight but once you've put your hands on him you'll soon realise its all coat. You can feel his ribs nicely and the vet said he was just right.

I've cut his food down so hopefully he doesn't put weight on while he's resting

Joint aid consists of:

Chondroitin
Collagen
Curcumin
Glucosamine
Glutamine
Msm
Oatinol
Vitamin c

Does this cover enough to contribute to healthier joints and mobility?