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Why is my 10-year-old dog shaking, struggling to walk, and not eating?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My 10 year old dogs shaking, struggling to stand up and walk, wont lie down and his hackles goes up when he does try to walk. He doesn't want to eat. Any ideas that I can ask the vet if we take him tonight.

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Destini R. Holloway, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on February 28th, 2020

Poor guy. He certainly sounds like he may either be in pain or has some underyling neurological disorder going on here. Your vet should know where to start looking once a complete physical examination is done, because much more information can be gathered here. They will certainly want to start with some baseline bloodwork and possibly some x-rays if he seems to have any musculoskeletal issues as well. Some possible causes for these symptoms would be an underlying neurological disorder (i.e. IVDD), Addison's disease (disease of the adrenal gland), a toxin ingestion, or just pain from something internal. I do hope that your pet starts to feel better soon! Best of luck tonight at the vet. Take care.

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