Regardless what it is , fill a bucket with warm water and Epsom Salts , stick the sore leg in , and take a cloth and gently massage. Do this for several days , twice a day. If it is a muscle that will fix it.
If it does not fix it, likely you have a serious promlem, could be anything from a cruciate tear , to a joint issue, and needs Vet care.
It is her left rear leg. She was limping when she came in. We palpated her cruciate, toes, foot etc. Nothing is painful at all! She is one of those bitches who will stay out and retrieve and you won't know until you get her in! Bitch has drive!
If your girl is "toe touching" in the rear she may have ruptured her ACL either totally or partially. It is difficult to palpate a stifle on a well muscled large breed dog without some sedation in most cases. A trip to the Vet may be in order. Best of luck with your girl.
Regardless what it is , fill a bucket with warm water and Epsom Salts , stick the sore leg in , and take a cloth and gently massage. Do this for several days , twice a day. If it is a muscle that will fix it.
If it does not fix it, likely you have a serious promlem, could be anything from a cruciate tear , to a joint issue, and needs Vet care.
If this is a soft tissue injury, you would not apply heat for the first 48 hours. That would only increase bleeding and inflammation. Best to ask your vet and not rely on anon advice which could be contraindicated.
If she was out playing in the snow she may have pulled a groin muscle. I had one of my guys do this last week, went to turn and was holding the rear leg up, Ortho vet checked him out , not a cruciate just a muscle strain, rested for a few days, gave him an anti-inflammatory and a muscle relaxant for 4 days and back to normal after just 2. The ortho said they can present just like an ACL tear , but there's no swelling in the knee.
If she was out playing in the snow she may have pulled a groin muscle. I had one of my guys do this last week, went to turn and was holding the rear leg up, Ortho vet checked him out , not a cruciate just a muscle strain, rested for a few days, gave him an anti-inflammatory and a muscle relaxant for 4 days and back to normal after just 2. The ortho said they can present just like an ACL tear , but there's no swelling in the knee.
Yes, the exact same thing happened to my guy a few years back, but in his case the muscle was actually torn, not just strained (so much longer recovery) and it did present just like an ACL tear ... needed an ortho visit for proper diagnosis. He did his by putting his leg in groundhog hole while retrieving in the park.
I just wanted to thank everyone for there input, after cage resting her an leash walking she is doing much better and her gait seems normal for now? Heat worked great. Due to the ice and stuff we had here it could have caused it for sure!!