limping

Question
I have a cairn terrier , about 8 years old and 16 lbs.  One day last week he started limping badly on his right front paw.  Vet had taken xrays, blood (lyme test) etc all negative.  They thought his nails might be too long and trimed them.  the next day he was also limping on the left front.  Now 5 days later he is putting wait back on the left front but still limping on the right front.  (I think the limping on the left front was from trimming the nails.  Any idea as to what would be causing the sudden limping on the right front and what we should do.  Note We have been unable to find any "hot" spot - tender to the touch etc in the paw, leg or shoulder.

Thanks
John

Answer
John -

Cairn !  great choice - LOL

Cairns are prone to having floating patellas or developing ACL tears, but those usually occur in the hind legs.  Honestly, other than perhaps a cut between the pads of the paw, or even a simple wrenching of her shoulder, I can't think of anything (and I'm NOT a vet).

You should, however, make sure he's not jumping onto or off of furniture or bounding up and down a lot of stairs while he's healing from whatever the cause is.

and while 8 is not "old" for a cairn, it's also the age where he's going to start showing some signs of aging and perhaps developing some arthritis.

I would keep him quiet for a week, and if it's no better go back to the vet, and make sure to ask if a glucosamine and chrondroitin supplement might not be a bad idea... and you can also call them and ask about giving him some kind of anti-inflammatory (I'm not remembering offhand which ones are OK for dogs - aspirin, tylenol or ibuprofen)

Best wishes

-Beth
www.cairnrescue.com