What could be causing my dog to limp or lift the left rear leg after sitting down?

Original Question: My 8-month-old Border Collie has started to limp mainly after laying down for a while. She seems to be able to walk and run and jump with no issues however after laying down the limping (or lifting the left rear leg) happens again. After a while the limping subsides and she can walk and run normally. Paws have been checked and nails trimmed professionally although her nails were long for a while and scraping the ground. We are going on 1 week of this. No changes to diet environment or activity. Although we have been advised to limit activity for a week by our vet assistant to see if it helps. Any thoughts? - Lou

What could be causing my dog to limp or lift the left rear leg after sitting down? Jun 27, 2017

Hi Lou,

This could be a minor issue or indication of something larger potentially. A simple explanation could be similar to the tingly feeling you get when you sit on your foot or basically your “foot falling asleep” but since we can’t ask your dog, this is a broad assumption. Playing on the cautious side, it’s never a wrong idea to have her checked out by your veterinarian primarily for any bone defects or joint abnormalities such as a luxating patella which can be diagnosed in dogs of any age.

I hope this helps,

Dr. Ryan Llera

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