Gun Dog Forum

This started last October. Few days after the weekend hunt she would limp. Favor her right front leg a little. After each hunt she would limp a little. We hunt in cactus.??? why the limp. Nov 15 to December 15 I was down with Covid. Dog was allowed to rip up the wildlife in the back yard 2.5 acres. January I hunted about 8 hrs over 2 days. She put on 30 miles. Next 3 days limping. Jan 25th she was in our NSTRA regional. She was first out of 10 braces, then first out of 6 braces the next morning. Had a 2 hr break then ran the final and started to limp. I should have pulled her. I am 79 and wasn't doing to good either.
Vet said keep her down for 3 weeks. I didn't crate her and tried to keep her on a 20 ft lead when in the yard. Still limping. Vet x-rayed her and pretty sure it is a ligament problem in her shoulder. (Biceptital Tenosynovitis) is the scientific name of the problem as it came on slow. Orthopedic vet hasn't got back with his diagnosis yet.
??? What should I do? She is 6 1/2 and heck of a competitor. Loves to hunt. Starting 8 weeks of crate living now to see what happens.. If we operate, rehab will be 8-12 weeks in a crate with 75% success rate. She shows no pain what soever if I turn her loose in the desert to hunt.
Anyone have experience with this? I am sure her NSTRA days are over as she runs at 200% in that.

Keep watching for a thorn to show its point somewhere. Had a dog with a porcupine incident and wouldn't use her front leg for 6 months (She still passed 2 legs of her hunt test running on 3 legs) then one day I felt the tip of a quill and worked it out. 2 minutes later she was running on the leg and never looked back.

thanks but the vet (who also competes in NSTRA with her dogs) says the problem is up in her sholder. I was thinking of cactus quill at first also.

I think I would want a little better idea on what is wrong before doing the surgery. It kind of makes you wonder why it would come and go if it was
a torn ligament. See what the Orthopedic vet says......Cj

Cj, She is limping all the time now. I am starting a regime of NO strenuous exercise now. Walking outside only on a lead. Definitely getting a consult with the orthopedic vet. I shouldn't have used the term torn ligament. Our best guess is it is Bicipital tenosynovitis. Big word for damaged ligament.

Yeah. The whole thing sucks. It is on of the hazards of having a hard working dog. Or maybe any dog sometimes they hurt themselves. Good Luck....Cj

Cj, Thanks for your kind words. It is really hard to watch her while she is not able to do what she loves.

Took her to a well respected orthopedic surgery specialist that has several traveling clinic locations in southern CA. He said he would not do an MRI unless I had money to throw into the wind. Rather he suggested that I give her some heavier exercise and see what happens. At this point he thinks she may have created a limping habit. He could not get her to yelp with pain by any of his manipulations.

Rehabilitation --- renovation of tendons and post surgery --- is now a genuine area of specialization. If you have ever had orthopedic surgery yourself, you will know that they immediately turn you over to the rehab people in the aftermath of the surgery. Start doing research and find a veterinarian with the certifications of DVM, CCRT, CVA. If you were a genuine competition sports competitor. you would not just go to a general practitioner or orthopedic surgeon; would go to a the sports medicine practitioner. That's what the rehab veterinarians -- not just to check with the water treadmill -- are. Find one and go there. There are a lot of reasons why it is now a major specialty. No point going into it. But that's where you should go. They will also give you qualified referrals to good orthopedic surgeons if indicated.

Any way you can get your dog to a vet school? In my experience they are very thorough and tenacious about rooting out the problem.
Your regular vet might be able to get an appointment time sooner as a referral.

I've taken two dogs and my horse to OSU which is about 2 hours away. There is an attending vet and senior students on each case, so lots of brainwaves and perspectives available. The attending is a specialist in whatever department you're visiting. With all three of my animals, they got a thorough exam then that escalated step by step until the problem and treatment was established. At each step, the procedure, the whys and wherefores and the cost was explained so there were no surprises as to money or resources. There wasn't any pressure to go beyond our means financially or as to what type of home care would be necessary.

You can check the vet school's website for various ongoing studies. If you are lucky, there might be one that your dog qualifies for and get very low cost or free diagnostics and treatment in exchange for committing to follow ups.

Good luck going forward.

Good news. She ran in 4 NSTRA trials this weekend. She was not going full speed for the entire trial because it was to hot, but no sign of a limp.

That is excellent news.