My dog's leg bulged and she's limping after running. What's wrong?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Large (61lb +) | Female | 67 lbs
Our dog was running outside and squealed. She instantly favored one leg and sat down. I called her inside and she slowly walked in. When I looked at her, her one leg muscle was bulging. She was just at the vet last week so it’s not a mass. She was completely fine before going outside. Any idea what could be wrong?
2 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on January 7th, 2018
I am sorry this happened to Marley. That leg does look quite swollen and I would be concerned that she slipped and fell onto it, causing that swelling. Sometimes in older dogs they can fracture a bone much more easily then you would imagine if that bone is already diseased or just weakened. If you have any prescribed pain medications that are not expired for Marley, I would recommend that you give them to her (as prescribed directly on the label). If you can get her into a vet today because of the pain and swelling, I would highly recommend it for Marley. I am sure she is very uncomfortable.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
-
Published on April 27th, 2019
It sounds like Marley is painful if she is having trouble sitting up after she has been laying down. She could have injured her leg leading to the swelling, or it could be something more serious such as cancer. I'd take her into a vet immediately to get checked out.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Our black lab Marley has a swollen right leg and has trouble sitting up after she’s been laying down. She’s about 13 years old. What should we do? She has never had any issues before.
Hi! My yorkie, Marley, developed a limp on his back right leg. It looks like his paw is swollen and he won't put any pressure on it. I have carefully looked at his paw and between his nails and can't seem to see or find any thing that stands out. In
Our dog escaped from her crate while we were out and we believe her back leg was trapped at some point. When we returned home she was limping on it, and now today (the next day) it is swollen quite a lot and she is still limping on it. she doesn’t ac
My dog seems to have hurt his hind leg. He has muscle spasms and lots of shaking. He's usually very energetic.
My dog fell over while having a run earlier today and now has a hardish lump on her leg, she doesnt like me touching it and she is limping quite a bit
My dog (2-5 year old German shepard/Boxer mix) is acting different. She is currently laing in my closet (which she never does). She whined when she jumped off the couch, so I checked her legs and she seems fine. No issues touching her legs and paws.
My dog hurt her leg I'm not sure how though. She went out in our backyard that is fenced and came back in limping . It's really swollen and now she is laying down but doesn't want to move at all.
Our 195# English Mastiff, Hope, became very excited when we came home from an overnight trip and was jumping, lunging and circling around us. We noticed shortly after that she was limping on her hind right leg. She can put weight on it but favors it
Hello, my jack Russell is 8 and has jumped off the sofa and landed on her back leg , there doesn't seem to be swelling and all joints are moving but she can't put weight on it and is really fed up
My 12 year old lab fell down three stairs today and landed on his right rear leg and has been limping ever since. He does walk on his other 3 legs and has been moving around and will allow me to move his leg around and massage without whimper so it d
Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.
