Why are my Golden Retriever's front legs giving out and weak?

Poor guy. He is a bit young to have muscle weakness, so this is a bit concerning. I would highly recommend taking him to your vet to have his legs examined first. He may have an underlying disorder that is causing this, such as myasthenia gravis, a muscle injury, or something else entirely. Once the vet is able to diagnose the problem (using testing such as bloodwork +/- radiographs), then we will know what Lucky needs for treatment of his conditon. Also make sure you aren’t giving any kind of supplements to him, such as calcium, which can potentially cause musculoskeletal disorders in pets. Also feeding him a high quality puppy food such as Royal Canin, Hill’s science diet, Evo, Eukanuba or Merrick is also ideal for proper bone and muscle growth. I hope are able to find the issue soon and get Lucky feeling better. Best wishes and take care.

Given your description, I would suspect intervertebral disc disease. It is similar to a slipped disc in humans, and can cause extreme pain and paralysis. These types of injuries are time sensitive, and prognosis goes down substantially after 48 hours. I am not trying to scare you, but you should bring him in right away to have him evaluated. Other possibilities include a torn ligament in his knee although the "dragging" does not fit. If he does have disc disease, paralysis and severe pain are good indications for surgery. If he has some function, and pain can be managed, then medical management with anti-inflammatories and pain medications is possible.

Muscular dystrophy is very rare but not impossible. I would recommend repeating the x-rays to determine if the shoulders or elbow structures have deteriorated as this would make developmental bone issues and arthritis more likely. A muscle biopsy could be taken under the same sedation if the x-rays do not show any significant changes explaining the ongoing lameness

It sounds like what you are describing is weakness. Did your pup have a neurologic exam? What we look for is evidence of pain (although this can sometimes be inconsistent in pets), loss of sensation to the feet (does he fail to flip his foot back over when the top of his foot is placed down?), and presence or absence of reflexes. The results of these tests can help to determine if it's neurologic in origin and what portion of the spinal cord may be affected. Although, it can sometimes be hard to differentiate orthopedic from neurologic disease. Plain xrays of the spine are helpful to rule out any bony abnormalities, and sometimes we can see evidence of narrow disc spaces, but ultimately we cannot see the spinal cord, nerves leaving the spinal cord, or the soft tissues. If a neurologic problem is suspected an MRI is often needed. But, there are also some other conditions that can cause weakness that are metabolic in origin (has your guy had any senior lab work recently?) or related to l

Hi there and thank you for using Boop by Petco to address your concern. Based on the information you have provided, I would recommend having Mighty examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I would have his blood tested and consider abdominal xrays / ultrasound as well. I hope this helps!

Thanks for using Boop by Petco! I am afraid that it is not possible to tell you how to cure her condition without being able to know what is exactly going on as therapy is targeted at the specific condition. Possibilities include an issue with her hips, disc herniation, arthritis or other orthopedic conditions. The main thing is that it could also be due to weakness secondary to dehydration just to give you an example. I highly recommend that you consider taking her to a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Your veterinarian would be able to examine her and determine what would be best to treat her with. Good luck!

Thanks for using Boop by Petco! This may be due to a neurologic condition such as a herniated disc. I recommend that you have him evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They would be able to check for this and treat him accordingly. Best of luck!

Hello, thank you for your question about Bentley. Based on the weakness and symptoms that you are describing it is possible that Bentley may be experiencing some mild pain from arthritis or could have strained a muscle/tendon. It is also possible that Bentley's back could be sore as this usually leads to signs of weakness in the hind limbs; however, this type of injury is much more common in smaller breed dogs. If Bentley's signs are more mild and he is otherwise acting ok I would recommend continuing to monitor him for the next 24-48 hours. If this weakness or soreness do not go away I would recommend having him seen by your veterinarian so that they can perform an examination and look for any sources of pain. They can then discuss the need for pain/anti-inflammatory medications if warranted. Hope this helps, good luck!

At his age and size, arthritis is almost certainly a factor. However he could also have a neurologic issue contributing to the walking changes you're seeing. I would recommend a vet visit for a general exam, to make sure more testing of Joe's neurologic system isn't needed, and then to get started on some antiinflammatory and pain medications to get him more comfortable moving around. It's also important to make sure Joe is an ideal weight (if he's not, decrease his food by 10% every month or two until he is) because that helps a lot with arthritis in big dogs as well. Good luck!

Hi there and thank you for using Boop by Petco to address your concern. With the intermittent nature of the symptom you are describing and that it happens every 2 or 3 months, this could be a neuromuscular disease, neurological condition, back problem or a heart condition. I would recommend having your veterinarian examine Storm so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.