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My 6 year old wheaten hurt her right rear leg about 6 weeks ago. She has limped since. X rays said knee is OK, no broken bones, No arthritis. She seems to be lethargic or in pain. Acts like it hurts all of her limbs when she gets up. After walking a few yards she seems to move better like an old person with arthritis. She is not herself. She does not like to play as she did before. Can dogs get lime disease? Could it be something else?

Submitted: 475 days and 9 hours ago.

Category: Dog

Value: $9

Status: AWAITING CUSTOMER ACTION

Optional Information:
Age: 6; Female; Breed: Wheaten terrier

Already Tried:
Rest. Xray. Muscle relaxer. Herbal supplements

Posted by Dr. K 475 days and 9 hours ago.

Info Request

Hi XXXXXXXXXX,
Was your dog sedated for the X-rays or were they done awake?
Was her knee the only joint that they X-rayed, or was it the entire limb from hip to toe?
What is the name of the "muscle relaxer" that she is taking?

Dr. K

475 days and 8 hours ago.

Reply

Vet #1 gave her a cortisone shot in the shoulder and prescribed Rimadyl 100G 1 per day she took it for 8 days with no change.

Vet #2 gave Carprofen 100mg 1per day 14 days.

Vet #3 Did the x-ray.
She was not sedated for the xray. I helped hold her down as she is very strong. They did only Xray her knee. He prescribed White Crane formula Hip Guard:
Angelica root, Mastic, Myrrh, Corydalis tuber, Citrus, Curcuma root, pubescent angetica root, Cinnamon, Drynaria, Dipsacus, Morinda, Eucommia bark, Archyranthes, Lycopoduim, Eupolphaga, Dragons blood, Atrachylodes, White Peony, Jujube fruit, Dioscorea nipponica, astragalus, White atraclylodes rhizome, Aconite.

We are now giving her glucosamine condroiten 300mg per day as well.

Accepted Answer

It does not sound like your dog actually got a thorough orthopedic examination of her hind leg...and adequate X-rays were not done. Because of the length of time that she has been affected by this, a simple sprain is really no longer on the list of possibilites. It is more likely to be something more serious like:

Degenerative Joint Disease
Cranial Cruciate Ligament Rupture
Bone Tumor
Patellar Luxation
Hip Dysplasia
Fracture

She really shoudl have a thorough physical and orthopedic examination, and will also most likely need sedation for a manipulation test called a cranial drawer test (this is to look for signs of a ruptured cruciate ligament in the knee). While sedated, they will want to take X-rays of her entire limb, from hip joint to the end of her toes. This can reveal fractures, bone tumors, and dislocations (subluxations). The X-rays that were already taken of the knee may show that there are no breaks...but they cannot show if there is rupture of the cruciate ligament. This is one of the most common injuries to the hind limb in dogs, and is correctible with surgery.
I am attaching a client information handout that I use in my practice that discusses the causes of lameness in dogs in more detail, and another that specifically discusses cranial cruciate ligament rupture. I hope that you find them useful.

Click Here
Click Here 2

Because your dog has had pain in this limb for so long, with no resolution, I strongly recommend asking your vet for a referral to a specialist in orthopedic surgery. Most specialists are located at referral centers or colleges of veterinary medicine. The benefit of seeing a specialist in orthopedics, is that you are more likely to get a quick and accurate diagnosis of your animal's problem, and thus a faster resolution of the symptoms. It is also more likely that a specialist has seen this problem before and treated it successfully.
I hope that this information is of help to you, and that your dog feels better soon. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.

Dr. K

Expert:	Dr. K
Pos. Feedback:	99.6 %
Accepts:	2959
Answered:	7/21/2008

Veterinarian

9 years experience as Veterinarian

468 days and 21 hours ago.

Reply

Thank you for your response. I will probably be accepting your answer with a positive response.

I took her back to Vet #2 and asked the question; Could she have Lime Disease?

She does!....... and has been recovering due to antibiotic over the last 24 hours. We hope the leg injury is gone when she recovers fully from the lime disease. You never answered the question. Do dogs get lime disease? I don't feel you got it wrong. We were all fooled by the lime Disease hiding the leg injury recovery. (I hope)

And you may be right the leg may still be injured. (Vet #3 said he thought she might have a torn ACL.) More to come when I return from my trip next tuesday.

Bob

Posted by Dr. K 467 days and 22 hours ago.

Answer

Hi Bob,
I did not address the possibility of Lyme disease because your dog's history started with an injury. Because you began the history with the dog having an injury....Lyme disease would be alot less likely. Also, dogs with Lyme disease do not usually have one leg so severely affected. It is usually what is called a "shifting leg lameness", meaning that the limping switches from leg to leg each day. Many dog will test positive for Lyme disease, and this really only means that they were exposed to the Lyme disease causing agent (Borrelia) at some time. It does not mean that the limping you are seeing is necessarily due to the Lyme disease. In addition, of dogs that test positive for Lyme disease, only 5% of them are actually going to show any clinical signs. If your dog is on an appropriate antibiotic to combat Lyme disease now, then the limping should really be completely gone within about a week. The antibiotic must be given for longer than this period of time though...even if your dog feels completely fine.

I hope that your dog recovers soon. Please let me know how she progresses.

Dr. K

462 days and 13 hours ago.

Reply

Medications have really helped. She is taking it easy on most of the time on her own now. If she exerts herself she still limps on her left rear. We are keeping our fingers crossed that when she is completely over the Lyme Disease, her leg will be better as well. How long should we expect to keep her on antibiotics for the Lyme?

Posted by Dr. K 462 days and 12 hours ago.

Answer

I am glad to hear that she is doing better. Most dogs that are treated for Lyme disease remain on the antibiotic (most commonly Doxycycline) for one month.

Dr. K

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Optional Information: Age: 6; Female; Breed: Wheaten terrierAlready Tried: Rest. Xray. Muscle relaxer. Herbal supplements

Info Request

Hi XXXXXXXXXX, Was your dog sedated for the X-rays or were they done awake? Was her knee the only joint that they X-rayed, or was it the entire limb from hip to toe? What is the name of the "muscle relaxer" that she is taking?Dr. K

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I am glad to hear that she is doing better. Most dogs that are treated for Lyme disease remain on the antibiotic (most commonly Doxycycline) for one month.Dr. K

Related Dog Questions

Optional Information:
Age: 6; Female; Breed: Wheaten terrier

Already Tried:
Rest. Xray. Muscle relaxer. Herbal supplements

Hi XXXXXXXXXX,
Was your dog sedated for the X-rays or were they done awake?
Was her knee the only joint that they X-rayed, or was it the entire limb from hip to toe?
What is the name of the "muscle relaxer" that she is taking?

Dr. K

I am glad to hear that she is doing better. Most dogs that are treated for Lyme disease remain on the antibiotic (most commonly Doxycycline) for one month.

Dr. K