Chance

Question
I recently inherited a 1 yr old german shorthair. he favors his left rear leg while standing still but it does not while running playing jumping or just plain frolicking. I looked at the underside of his rear paws and it looks to me like his nails are packed with dirt. i would almost bet they have never been trimmed.Could this be why he is favoring it? I also heard that this may be a sign of allergies in dogs, is this fact or fiction? I was asked if i had changed his food and i had. when i got him he came with diamonds lamb and rice formula and i changed him to iams lamb and rice.does this make any sense. Are hip problems coomon with these breeds ?

Answer
Congratulations on inheriting such a great dog!
First of all, if he has lived with you for a while, his nails shouldn't be packed with dirt. I don't know how that could even be as there isn't much room for any "dirt" under there.

If his nails need to be trimmed, then take him in and get them trimmed. Most of the time when a dog is favoring a leg while standing it's more in the hip than the foot. If you can send me a clear photo of them I can tell you whether or not they are too long.

They normally lift their foot and set it down tentatively when it's sore. But with a hip or knee problem it might manifest itself while standing then after he is warmed up a bit (frolicking) it might not hurt any more.

It is NOT a sign of allergies, unless the nails are deformed or twisted etc. There are many foot conditions that dogs can get but it doesn't sound like he has any of those.
That is one wives tale I haven't heard yet in almost 40 yrs of being in the business. :-)

Allergies in dogs manifest themselves most often as skin conditions; dermatitis, hot spots, itching, hair loss, redness, flakiness, thickening skin, etc.That's the normal presentation for allergies in dogs and cats, even inhalant allergens.

Lamb and rice is lamb and rice. Feeding one brand or the other means nothing as far as quality goes. None of the other foods on the market any more keep their formulations closed so that means they still add whatever is the cheapest when they buy food off of the docks. Hills is the only food so far that I know of that has closed formulations and doesn't buy ANYTHING from China or anywhere else except the USA.

So I really doubt if the food will make any difference. He needs his leg looked over by a vet- the hip, the knee and the foot.

Hip problems are not common in German Shorthairs, but they can always injure themselves and he might have been injured before you inherited him.

We had one for 15 yrs. a long time ago. They are one of the most wonderful breeds!!