# Question about Puppy's Odd Gait



## katG (Jun 27, 2011)

Hello, I have a 7 1/2 month old pitbull/american bulldog puppy named Trucker. He has always moved kind of odd, and doesn't seem to be growing out of it. When he walks his back legs seem stiff to me, and if you are watching him from behind his belly sways from side to side. When he trots his hind feet always land to the right of his front feet. He never seems to be in pain, always has a ton of energy, jumps, runs, etc. He doesn't seem to be weak or tire easily, it is just a consistently odd gait. I am friends with the owner of one of his littermates, and her puppy moves a lot more "normal" and even, and her puppy has considerable more muscle in her hind legs. I mentioned the odd walk to the vet a few months ago and she moved his hind legs and said his range of motion is normal, but did not watch him move (we were there for a quick vaccination appointment and it was more a passing comment, I didn't think much of it because he was still really young). I do notice that in the mornings he sometimes slips and slides on the hardwood floor after first waking up, only in the hind. 
The other odd thing about him is whenever he plays or exercises (long walks/swims, running free in the fenced yard for extended periods of time) he has to pee A LOT. He will pee immediately after the exercise, and has to go back out within minutes of going back inside, and this will continue for an hour or so after the exercise. If he is not taken out very frequently, sometimes he will start leaking urine as he is walking around the house (this is ONLY after play, if he is calm he has no problems with holding urine). There is a kiddie pool in his yard, and he does drink a lot while playing, but the urination seems excessive. I'm just wondering if anyone has had any experience with these problems before I run off to the vet and spend hundreds of dollars that I don't have! Thanks!


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

My dog has has bad hips since she was 8 weeks old and that is how she walks. 
I put her on a good joint supplement, better food, and her movement has improved, but hip surgery is really one of the few options to correct the problem, if a dog has bad hips very young and is having a really hard time moving.

She also had low muscle content in her back legs up until about a 8 months ago, she is 2 years old now, but she has been gaining more and more as she ages, and gets stronger. 

My vet had me do exercises with her to help her gain hind leg strength and balance. This included kneeling or standing next to her and lifting her up with my arms under her chest so she was having to use her back leg muscles. I also would lift different legs up so she learned to get good balance.

Swimming is also great exercise.

You can get them x-rayed at the vet, although it is a little costly.


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## Keechak (Aug 10, 2008)

If you feel something is not normal I would insist on an x-ray of the hips and including the knees. lack of muscle mass specifically in the theighs and no other area of the dog is a common symptom of a dog favoring it's rear even if the dog doesn't act like it's in discomfort, dogs are good at hiding it.


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

When dogs have pain in their rear, due to bad hips etc... they find ways around it and then it becomes a habit because they found a way to move comfortably. Usually, the funny looking gait comes from the dog walking with it's back paws landing close together(my dog), or however they feel comfortable. This causes the rib cage area or stomach to swing from side to side, and puts less weight on the back part of their body. If when your dog is standing, you can lift up one of their back feet, usually you will not feel as much resistance as when lifting up their front leg, because they are using their front part of their body to support most of their weight.


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## katG (Jun 27, 2011)

Thank you for the replies! I will probably have the vet take a look at him. I have read that some puppies move funny while they are growing due to their back legs growing faster than their front legs (if they don't move the hind to one side their hind paws will hit their front paws), but I don't know... I have horses so I am someone knowledgeable about gaits and lameness, however have not had much experience with problems in dogs. He has the same amount of muscle throughout his body... his littermate is more muscular overall, but I'm not sure if this is a definite indication of a problem as they are a mixed breed and aren't built the same at all (she is shorter and stockier, he is tall and lanky). I guess at the end of the day I can speculate all I want but the only way to get an answer is to go to the vet!

somewhat** knowledgeable


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## osdbmom (Feb 15, 2011)

It would be a good idea for you to get health insurance on your dog before you take him and he gets diagnosed with something. If he is dx'd wtih something before you have insurance, the ins will likely not cover it at all and if this is a lifelong condition, health insurance would really help you out with those costs. 
I hope nothing is terribly wrong with your puppy.


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## katG (Jun 27, 2011)

thank you for the advice! I don't think there is anything terribly wrong with him, but I am somewhat worried about his hips... I'm praying its just that he is still growing and awkward (I do tend to be a worrier). His range of motion does not seem to be off, he tracks forward fine at the trot, but his hind paws land to the right of his front paws. He looks normal at a run, can spin and turn on a dime. His walk is when his belly moves side to side.. I made an appointment for the vet tomorrow, I will let you guys know what they say!


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## dmickle1 (Jun 19, 2011)

It's good that you made a vet appointment are getting the issue checked out immediately. Awkward or funny movement, even at a young age, is quite often the indicator of hip/back end problems. My father's dog had a similar movement to the one you described, although (since you're a horse person, I can explain it like this), instead of tracking forward regularly at the trot, she moves as a pacer would, her entire right side moving forward and then her entire left side moving forward. This caused her belly to sway back and forth. As a puppy she seemed to have plenty of energy, moved well, could run and turn just fine. However, now, at a year and a half, she has been diagnosed with a malformed hip joint which is causing severe arthritis. 

I hope that your vet appointment goes well and it's good that you're looking into this early! It will give you a head start on treatment, if it's needed. Good luck and please let us know how it goes!


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## Pawzk9 (Jan 3, 2011)

osdbmom said:


> It would be a good idea for you to get health insurance on your dog before you take him and he gets diagnosed with something. If he is dx'd wtih something before you have insurance, the ins will likely not cover it at all and if this is a lifelong condition, health insurance would really help you out with those costs.
> I hope nothing is terribly wrong with your puppy.


This is true. But if it is something of a hereditary nature, the insurance probably won't pay for it anyway.


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

Yes, my dog also has a very good trot and run and can move wonderfully, but when she walks it is just off looking haha, she walks with a swagger ;D.


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## katG (Jun 27, 2011)

Hey everyone. I brought my puppy to the vet and had him checked out today. She watched him move, tested his range of motion, etc. She says she is pretty sure it is hip dysplasia... she said he is not in pain, and since there is nothing we can really for hip dysplasia, there is no rush to have him x-rayed immediately, but it would be a good idea to do at some point in the next year or so. I plan on getting the xrays once I get a job (the job market is HORRIBLE here, I'm having a tough time). She said to keep exercising him as normal, just no agility type moves, and when he is full grown we can figure out what supplements to put him on for his joints etc. Not very good news :-( At least he is not in pain yet. Thanks again everyone for the advice!


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## Shell (Oct 19, 2009)

Glucosamine is a joint supplement that is widely used in humans, dogs and horses. Personally, I would start him on that supplement now. You can buy the powdered equine version at many feed stores which is cheaper. Check with your vet but it is generally regarded as very safe and many people consider it quite effective. 

Some studies on humans think that the placebo effect accounts for the better joint motion and less pain but I've seen it used on horses and when it isn't being used on those same horses, I can see the change in their gait and the stiffness in their joints which then goes away again after about 2-3 weeks of being back on glucosamine. I noticed this when I DIDN'T know which horses were taking the supplement or not. Can't have a placebo effect on an animal if the observer doesn't know who is on the drug.


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## dmickle1 (Jun 19, 2011)

Instead of supplementing, and depending upon whether you like your current dog food, there are foods out there that contain glucosamine as an active ingredient, which may be cheaper than buying supplements 

Another thing I'd recommending is teaching your puppy *now* that jumping onto high things is not allowed. No jumping on and off the couch, the bed, etc. That way, if you do start having problems later, your pup won't make those problems worse by jumping. 

Lastly, the greatest exercise for dogs with hip problems is swimming. It's low impact and therefore won't do as much damage as walking/running on a hard surface. Does your dog like water? Is there a lake near you that you can take him to?


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## katG (Jun 27, 2011)

Thank you everyone for the advice! I know about Glucosamine from my horses (I had an ex jumper with horrible arthritis). Does anyone know is hyaluronic acid has been used for dogs at all? That really helped my horse. 
Yes he loves to swim thankfully! We have a creek near my house that we go to. I don't know how successful I'll be in preventing him from jumping on things... he is up and down from the couch, bed etc all the time! Maybe I'll get stairs for the bed lol. 
I'm trying to post a picture of him here.. we'll see if it works.
Thanks again everyone!


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## thawki (Aug 8, 2014)

Hi Kat, i have a 10 month old pit/boxer puppy who's displaying very similar traits and i was wondering how you are getting on with yours as this original post was 3 years ago?
Was there anything specific that you found really helped?
Tallulah is on really good food, has a joint supplement, gets pretty good exercise, is not over weight, and doesn't seem to show any side affects of having a very strange gait just yet.
thanks in advance for any thoughts.


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