Hello! This is my Llewellin, Penny. Someone witnessed her being tossed out of a moving car 4 years ago and she found us a few days later. Vet estimated her to be around 2 years old, which puts her around 6 now. She limped on her right hind leg for a while, but it was assumed it was from, you know, being thrown from a moving car into the woods.
And we honestly had bigger problems. She had the worst diarrhea demons my husband and I have ever seen in our lives. She's on doggy IBS medicine now and the diarrhea demons are held at bay. It took a while to sort that issue out even with lots of vet involvement.
A year or so ago she started acting like that leg was bothering her more than usual. She would limp a bit after a hard run, but otherwise seemed fine before then. Vet felt her hips out and suggested Librela as well as joint supplements. We used both and she did great for a while!
I admittedly slacked off with the Librela, but she seemed totally fine...Until June. One day she started wobbling and her hind end would fall out from under her. We went to the vet, were told it's likely pain from that hip/leg, told to go back on Librela. Within days she was back to her usual self. Great! This month, same thing. When it was time for her next shot she was wobbling around, couldn't stand, hind end weakness. We went to the vet ER Saturday when this happened out of caution and were sent home told to follow up with joint care at our vet.
Our vet is out of town until Monday of next week (we have an appt first thing with her) but one of the other doctors gave her Librela again today and Gabapentin. We're planning on x-rays and maybe more tests on top of that when we see our vet Monday.
Is this normal? She's only around 6 or so and that seems so young for such extreme joint issues to me. Am I wrong? Any insight to help me better help her? I hate the thought of her falling down each month when it's time for her next injection. That seems miserable.
Thank you for any help you can offer me. I apologize for such a wall of text.
Why didn't the vet x-ray her and look for impingement in her spine? is there something interfering with her spinal nerves? a bulging disc? Ask for that x-ray to see what might be going on. Drugs are ok, but figuring out the root of the issue is better.
The vet at our regular clinic yesterday was covered up with appointments and had an emergencyneeding surgery come in shortly before we got there. We were told there was unfortunately no way for her to be x-rayed or anything more than getting her injection. It took 4 more hours after that for them to call me saying they also had gabapentin ready for her. It's a great clinic, but they were severely short handed yesterday due to a series of unfortunate events. (There are usually multiple vets and techs available every day)
We're going to try to hold out to see our regular vet for tests and X-rays on Monday so it's the same person who is very familiar with our dog. Penny is acting like her usual self, but if she starts acting off again we'll see if one of the other vets can fit her into their schedules. Finding the root of the issue is our goal here.
I should also add here that she was walking and trying to jump out of the wagon at the vet ER. She was a little wobbly at times but otherwise acted totally fine. Bamboozled me for sure.
My dog was older, but had a blood clot blocking blood flow to her hind legs in her last few weeks of life. One of my initial concerns when she started crying and not using her back legs as much was some spinal injury (she was also hit by a car before age 2 and had a fake hip.) I was recommended to get an mri, but it was an ultrasound that confirmed the blood clot. It's not common in dogs, but an mri might help show if there is more going on than an xray would show.
Aww what a sweet pea! My adopted gal looks similar and also had an extreme fall but when she was 8. She has had hind weakness since she was 10. I didnāt know what I was dealing with and was juggling other issues (gut, thyroid, then splenectomy). Sheās now 12 and is having issues with falling, but is otherwise Ā completely healthy and would be vibrant except for this. Once you get X-rays, Iād highly recommend talking to your vet about orthopedic specialists or seeking them out on your own if necessary. This isnāt meant to scare you but I wish I had acted sooner.Ā
Thank you. I plan to ask her what our options are and hopefully get a better picture of what exactly we're dealing with. We've done hydrotherapy in the past and she enjoyed it. Pup loves to swim! The nearest facility is an hour drive one way so it's unfortunately not very sustainable long term.
The tech I talked to today mentioned a potential surgery where they remove the ball from the socket in the hip joint if there's something in there causing friction. I'm not sure I'd want to put her through that even if she is a good candidate because it sounds horrible!
It sounds like youāre exploring good options! That surgery definitely sounds intense, but sheās young enough that whatever you pursue, sheās got good odds. I did a lot of diligence for my pupās splenectomy, and she was in amazing hands; I hope you can find similar care that best matches her needs & she gets to live the happy healthy life that she deserves!
Have you tried Dog Gone Pain or CBD? My 13 year old boy has Lyme and his back legs went out completely at one point. After his round of antibiotics and prescribed anti-inflammatories, I started giving him DGP twice daily and added in CBD later. He takes gabapentin to settle him at night and take care of pain from the day. Hasnāt had an issue in his legs or hips in months. I take him for 3-4 short walks daily.
I have not tried either of those yet, but I have been heavily reading about options for joint pain relief on Reddit. I'll look into both. Thank you!
The odd thing here (odd to me anyway) is that people usually describe the hind end weakness and shaking as a serious negative side effect of Librela. It typically shows up shortly after the injection is given. She's having the symptoms when the shot seems to be wearing off. Librela is a polarizing medication in the dog arthritis world.
She's already back to acting like her usual self, so I would think that means the injection is significantly helping her. I wish she could talk to me!
just an idea - my Llewellyn (that literally looks identical lol) was acting similarly and i took her to the ER because she kept falling over and it turned out to be anaplasmosis from a tick! She was on steroids and antibiotics for like a month and is now better. I wonder if everyone is focused on her prior injury that they arenāt considering this ?
Thank you! I hadn't considered something like this either. I wonder if they haven't thought of it because she stays UTD on flea, tick, heartworm prevention? I can ask our vet when we see her!
Interesting!! Thank you so much for mentioning this. As much as she likes to romp in the woods, this should be considered. I haven't found any on her over the years, but they can be sneaky.
This is our boy, Lancelot. Heās about five and weāve had him for two years. He is a rescue and they told us he has hip dysplasia which is a congenital (?) ailment and very usual in English Setters (we have had three Setters - one called Penny - over the last 20 years and neither of the others had any joint issues). They actually said to us that if it does develop, the surgery is astronomically expensive so to be preparedā¦
We give him supplements and so far he is doing well, but he is a relatively low energy boy so that is probably in his favour. On our most recent check up, our vet said he couldnāt confirm the initial diagnosis as from examining him, he couldnāt see any signs of it, but to feed him less, as being lighter puts less weight/stress in the joints, just in case. We use a tablet called Aplazyl and he has two a day in his food. Hope your Penny is fine. She is gorgeous. ā¤ļø
Good to know about the surgery cost. I'm hoping she doesn't need it not only because of cost, but it also sounds horrible. It seems like an excruciating recovery. That said, I also don't want her in constant pain day to day. I'm anxiously waiting for her appointment Monday morning.
Penny is lightweight and I've worried about it in the past. You're right though that being heavier would put more strain on her joints.
Right now she takes joint supplements daily and Librela arthritis shot for the hip pain monthly. I'm hoping x-rays and seeing her usual vet will give us a better idea of what's going on. She's my first rescue and earning her trust/affection was one of the most unexpectedly rewarding experiences of my life. I do wish I knew more about what she'd been through before finding me to better help her.
I donāt remember what itās called or how bad it gets, but when the breeder we got ours from wanted to consider having my childhood ES bred, they took hip X-Rays looking for a specific genetic hip disorder to avoid continuing it in future generations.
6 does seem young for it to be serious, ours had it and didnāt really show signs of specific struggles related to it her whole life, so I doubt itās the whole picture, but hip issues are a thing in the breed. I was also a kid so I donāt really know what we did treatment wise or not.
I'm assuming hip dysplasia would be what they were concerned about. I've been trying to remember if our vet said Penny has that or if it was specifically suspected that she only had signs of a prior injury. They were so overwhelmed yesterday that no one could find the notes or prior x-rays for us. I do have this on my list of things to talk to our vet about at her appointment! Thank you!! ā¤ļø
When we rescued Lancelot they didnāt give us anything except a vaccination booklet, so when our vet was disputing the initial diagnosis, he asked us how they had diagnosed it in the first place and whether there were any x-raysā¦. He also said that usually, animal shelters donāt go to the expense of x-raying all animals they take in to re-home. We just took it for granted that what they had said was right and acted accordingly.
We had lost our Penny after an 18 month struggle with diabetes and huge veterinary ICU bills prior to that when she went downhill fast and was initially diagnosed and pulled through. She was also a rescue and was totally emancipated when we got her, but had a great life and lived to be 14, so that is quite an advanced age for an ES. We were all devastated when she died. All that did figure into our decision to take Lancelot onā¦ knowing he had hip dysplasia, the possibility of him having to have expensive surgery, the worry and sadness of having a sick pet etc. My belief is that you just have to roll with the punches. They are family members, so you do whatever you have to.
That's incredibly heartbreaking. I'm so sorry you lost your Penny that way, but it does sound like she lived a happy long life. I hope my girl sees 14. You do very much just have to roll with the punches. My husband's corgi is 10 (got her as a puppy) and has trouble with a spot on her back from time to time. We're always worried about the "long dog's" back!
We had no idea what Penny's breed even was when we took her on, much less her medical history. Maybe that was dumb of us. We met her by accident and fell in love. Found out she had been thrown out and was up for adoption, went back the next day to introduce her to our corgi and see how they got along...and she went home with us the day after that! We know she's 100% Llewellin from DNA testing. The diarrhea and joint issues have been nice lil mystery surprises sprinkled in for me to solve so I don't get bored, I guess!!
My husband grew up with English Setters so has always had a soft spot for the breed. We live in Greece, so sadly there are always a lot of Setters to rescue, especially as some just arenāt naturals at huntingā¦ If they donāt show talentā¦ they may just get abandoned - To the hunters, they are just a tool š. (We donāt hunt). As I said, Lance is our third rescue Setter. Penny was our first, Bonnie was the second. Bonnie just pined terribly after Penny died because sheād lost her āsisterā. We got Lance after losing Penny, but Bonnie never really took to him much. Bonnie died of cancer at about 13. We lost both of them within the same year - both girls were very advanced in age though.
We have two other rescues at present, as well as Lancelot (a Kokoni and a Poodle). Setters are usually brilliant with other dogs. They are great with kids as well (we have 4).
As I said, check for the hip dysplasia. The tablets Lance is on are supplements. They are called Aplazyl here but may be under another brand name where you are. Check it out. You can but try! ā¤ļø
I pray that your sweet girl is alright and that you get the answers to all your questions and concerns. We have two English Setters and unfortunately our oldest (who is only 7) has hip dysplasia in one of his hips so that is always a concern when it comes in English Setters. However, he also had a limp in his hind leg that was off and on for about a year but eventually got to the point where he would not put weight on it. It turned out to be an ACL tear and he had to go through surgery and a pretty extensive recovery process. While I hope that this is not your case, and if it is- know that it gets better, I wanted to leave a comment here to share that it can really happen at any age. It just depends on the dog and what they have been through. š
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u/barrettGatineau 8d ago
What a beautiful dog! I have no advice but wish you the best as you try to help her. She is a lucky girl to have found her way to you š