About Hind Limb Weakness

Hind Limb Weakness

A Trigger For An Immediate Visit To Your Veterinarian

There are a wide variety of causes that can result in hind limb weakness in your dog. It may be the result of a degenerative joint disease, natural or pathologic muscle loss or atrophy, neurologic disease or dysfunction, endocrine disease, as well as, orthopedic disease or injury. While hind limb weakness is found to be more prevalent in older dogs, it should not be considered “normal aging in a dog.”

Symptoms

Dogs affected with hind limb weakness can exhibit:

Muscle loss
Muscle atrophy
Wobbly sway
Cross-over
Knuckle over
Stumbling up curbs
Dragging their hind limbs
Difficulty standing and/or sitting
Difficulty going up or down stairs
Diminished proprioception
Decreased endurance

Videos of Hind Limb Weakness

Any of the above symptoms should trigger an immediate visit to your vet. Early and definitive diagnosis and treatment has shown to have the greatest benefit in outcome and quality of life for your dog.