Wobbly back leg in 6month GSD

[jennifernikki]

We adopted a gsd pup last month. He's now 6 months old & the last few weeks i've noticed his back legs, especially his left, kind of wobble. Not every step, but maybe every 4th or so.
I was thinking he was just a clumsy dog, but now doing more research online this begins to worry be quite a bit.
His trainer said not to do anything until he turns 1, but I'm thinking probably sooner the better.
When we got him December 4th, he weighed about 30lbs, he was skin & bones. We weighed him this weekend & he was 53lbs. The trainer said maybe he's just growing so fast, his body needs time to catch up (or something like that!).


This makes my heart sick to think what it can be.
We're in the process of getting pet insurance, then we'll take him to the vet & go from there.

Ive attached a video. Let me know what you think.

Thanks for your input.

MVI_4630.AVI - YouTube

[BowWowMeow]

Thanks for adopting! He's very cute. I've adopted several dogs with joint problems and it looks like his hips are definitely a bit loose. It looks like he does some bunny hopping too. Of course I'm not a vet and you can't tell that much from a video so this is just a guess. X-rays would be the only definitive diagnosis.

Some of that may be because his muscles are underdeveloped. When I adopted Rafi he was recovering from being emaciated and malnourished and his hips were loose and his muscles around then underdeveloped.

What I did was build his muscles up through gentle exercise like lots and lots of walking, some hiking and some swimming (in the summer). We did play ball but I didn't let him do a lot of running and jumping at first.

I also put him on joint supplements. I used Ester C for him but since your dog is still quite young you should use regular buffered C. I also put him on a fish oil capsule and Springtime Inc. Joint Health.

It made a huge difference for him. He's about 5.5 years old now and I've thus far avoided surgery and he is still quite active (we walk 4 to 6 miles every day).

[jennifernikki]

thanks for all that info. He did have parvo, which is why his original owners gave him up. Maybe that has something to do w/ his muscles?
Yes, he does the bunny hopping too.
I'm glad to hear that your guy is doing great!

[grace23]

sorry to hear about your pup i'm sure he'll be okay. be careful of pet insurance though, they don't always cover everything especially if they consider it a 'pre-existing condition' even though it might not be. you might be safer with a vet discount plan. my sister has one and says it's much less of a hassle as you receive savings right up front. the one she uses is called 'Pet assure' and has worked well for her.

[jennifernikki]

Thanks for the tip. Ive heard of Pet Assure, received a booklet about it when we adopted Finley. I'll take a look at it. Thanks!

[ollie_leyna]

Does anyone have a video of a dog with mild HD? My dog was one of the bigger pups in his litter (which I've read can mean higher risk), so I'm paranoid. His gait just looks stiff to me. I don't know what the difference is between a "good" gait or a "bad" gait. What are the warning signs to look for?

I thought I knew what bunny hopping looked like, but I couldn't tell from the video. Can anyone point out the time where he looks like he's hopping?

[BR870]

Originally Posted by ollie_leyna

Does anyone have a video of a dog with mild HD? My dog was one of the bigger pups in his litter (which I've read can mean higher risk), so I'm paranoid. His gait just looks stiff to me. I don't know what the difference is between a "good" gait or a "bad" gait. What are the warning signs to look for?

I thought I knew what bunny hopping looked like, but I couldn't tell from the video. Can anyone point out the time where he looks like he's hopping?

I did not see bunny hopping in the video. A little wobbly sure, but still quite young and needing some muscle development. If he was underweight that is too be expected.

OP, I'm not seeing anything there that would overly concern me. The dog trots (albeit with a slight crabbing), and in my experience its the trot where you are really gonna see the gait problems. Thats why they want you to trot dogs in the show ring.

[llombardo]

Originally Posted by jennifernikki

thanks for all that info. He did have parvo, which is why his original owners gave him up. Maybe that has something to do w/ his muscles?
Yes, he does the bunny hopping too.
I'm glad to hear that your guy is doing great!

Parvo can take a lot out of a pup, so he could still be weak from that.

[jocoyn]

I did not see anything alarming other than poor muscle development. Given the winter time it really may be worth going to a doggie rehab place and getting him in on the water treadmill and talking with them about appropriate excercises to build muscle for his age....not matter what extra muscle back there will help.

[Gwenhwyfair]

There's an example of a dog bunny hopping in this video but that's not always how a dog presents symptoms of H.D.

My dog showed lameness, limping, right hind after getting up.

Really the only way to definatively diagnosis HD is with a trip to the vet.

How to Recognize Hip Dysplasia in Dogs Video ? 5min.com

Originally Posted by ollie_leyna

Does anyone have a video of a dog with mild HD? My dog was one of the bigger pups in his litter (which I've read can mean higher risk), so I'm paranoid. His gait just looks stiff to me. I don't know what the difference is between a "good" gait or a "bad" gait. What are the warning signs to look for?

I thought I knew what bunny hopping looked like, but I couldn't tell from the video. Can anyone point out the time where he looks like he's hopping?