My dog .

Question
Hii ,
I have a golden retriever dog who is about 2 and a half years old .
We take her for a walk every morning, each walk is about 15 minutes long .
We usually take her for 2 walks a day .
We always refill her water, so she always has water, and we have just recently changed her food to Pro Plan Salmon and Rice formula (Thinking her behavior might be caused by the food.)
Her name is Rosy , and for the past couple of days, she's been acting a little strange ..
Rosy sleeps in a cage downstairs, but she is not locked in it . She is able to walk in and out of it when she desires, but she usually is quite happy with sleeping in it. My mom says that one night she was sleeping on the couch downstairs and Rosy came out of her cage, she said that every time she tried to walk, her legs collapsed on her and she had troubles .
The past couple of days, she was alright .
On Easter weekend my dad and I brought Rosy to my grandfather's house, which is 5 hours from here . She slept in her cage in the back for most of the ride .
We stayed there for 2 days and she met my cousin's new dog, who is an energetic 10 month old Labrador . Rosy is quite energetic, so they got along quite well, and played with eachother for a good 2 hours . That night, around 9:00, I was brushing Rosy and she was falling asleep .
When I thought she was asleep I stopped and watched a T.V show .. , and after 15 minutes she woke right up and repeatedly licked her lips until we thought that she needed to go outside for a bit . I offered her water, but she didn't take it . She kept licking her lips and she coughed a couple times, but then she stopped a good 10 minutes after.
According to my mom, she has done this before, constantly licking her lips, and she would have to let her outside (before the food change.)
About an hour after that, I was about to head back to sleep , and I went to give her a goodnight hug to find that she was shaking a little bit, I called my dad over and he found she was shaking too, so he told me to go to bed while she lied down, still shaking a bit .
He ended up going to bed, too . When we woke up, she was fine , and we had to leave right in the morning for the 5 hour ride back home .
I am worried about my dog, but I am wondering if it is just nerves or if she is spooked .
Please help.

Jessica

Answer
This is NOT BEHAVIORAL. Your dog needs IMMEDIATE examination by a veterinarian.  Full blood chemistry, complete orthopedic evaluation (including x-ray), base line neurological examination MUST be done.  The dog may have serious orthopedic issues and may require corrective surgery.  If this is the case, you need to find an orthopedic specialist; sometimes surgery doesn't work and it can cost a great deal of money.  There are supplements available to help dogs with severe hip problems and exercise must be carefully controlled.  GO TO THE VETERINARIAN.