leg injury to canine

Question
I have a 9 year old border collie mix. Today, I took her for a walk. I've walked her 1 in the last two weeks. We usually walk about 100 feet and then we sprint through a short cut to our route. The sprint is about 300 feet. After we did it, she was limping noticeably on her left front leg. I manipulated it and didn't find anything in the movement that bothers her. If I squeeze or manipulate behind the ankle/wrist, (carpus?) she did not like that. She currently is almost entirely non weight bearing. Any thoughts? I really need your help

Answer
Kevin,

Dogs, just like us, can sprain/strain, pull ligaments, fracture bones, even get splinters or cuts on their feet and ankles.  Since our dogs cant tell us what happened, we are left to figure it out for ourselves.  The first part of any good exam is looking at the pads and in between the pads for cuts or splinters.  After that, I perform an orthopedic exam which is the manipulation of the bones and joints looking for pain.  

Sometimes, I take radiographs and sometimes not, depending on the severity of the pain and what I suspect is causing it.  I will have to say, that occasionally, I can not figure out where the pain is.  In those cases I typically will treat with pain meds and exercise restriction for about 2 weeks.  

I commend you on knowing that the front wrist is called the carpus (the back hock is the tarsus).  BUT as veterinarian we go through 4 years of training to be able to determine the nuances of physical exam findings and possible problems associated with the joints and bones, among other things ;-).  Therefore, I recommend that if your dog is still limping, you take her to a veterinarian to help you figure out what is going on.

Good luck to you both