Hip? Foot? - Need advice

[rustilldown]

Hey all - so Emma is just over two years old and has never shown any sign of pain in her feet, legs, hips....

I live in NYC and each weekend we take a walk into Brooklyn to Prospect park. Total walking distance is about 12.5 miles including walking in the park, but she probably runs/walks equivalent of 7-8 miles in the park, so total for her is 20+ miles.

Last week (Sunday) she was fine there and back, but after laying down at home, she got up with a BAD limp (back left)... She wouldn't even put her foot down for a bit. She started to shake it off and was getting around well by Monday. I did not walk her Monday or Tuesday, a short walk (>30 min) Wednesday/Thursday/Friday. Then Saturday, yesterday, took her on about a 4 mile walk in the morning, then a park thats close at night to test out running. She did well and showed no limp during running or after a few hours of laying down last night. That said, I took her on the long trek today.

After laying down today, she is not walking around with a limp, but is walking stiffly. If we go outside to go to the bathroom and she gets a little trot going, she looks fine, but I am a little nervous/curios. I don't think this matters, but she did jump in the lake last week in very cold water, maybe 40 degrees, and the temp outside was high 30's.... She was fine and even hopped in again, but then I kept her out. Again, I don't think this is relevant, but thought I would mention it.

I have a hard time telling if the problem is foot related, ligament related, or hip related. I did thoroughly look for cuts, rocks, splinters, and nothing. Any advice on what to watch for or look for moving forward?

[mego]

Maybe its just too much exercise, that sounds like a ton,, or maybe her muscles are sore or she pulled one somehow?

[rustilldown]

Thanks for the response!

I'm hard pressed to think it is too much exercise. We do the long 13+ mile walk every week, missing maybe 3 weeks out of the last 4 months!

Emma is also very lean, athletic, and energetic. She gets at least an 45-60 min of fetch, running, outside tug a day w/ at least a little walk if not a couple mile walk. Lots of time spent out, but help keep me sane

Anyone have thoughts on what to watch for or to help identify where the pain may be coming from?

[huntergreen]

possibly a sprain and needs to not do anything but go out for potty breaks. sounds like it is starting to heal and then re injures or strains and becomes sore again.

[jocoyn]

I would be inclined to take her in for x-rays only because this was a similar experience with Cyra who had hip dysplasia. Never any issues until she was 3 and she was a lean athletic dog, but it would be good to put your mind at ease or come up with a plan if there are issues.