hello all,
rex is a 13mth old west german gsd (a slow maturing 13mths fyi) and recently (over the past 2 weeks) he has been limping, first on his left front paw for about a week, and now on his right front paw (the left seems ok now).

at first i thought it was because we recently moved to a mountain area from a coastal area and his paws were just tender because of the rough ground, so i put some vaseline on his paws and made him wear booties for a few days.

but now that he has switched paws i m wondering if this is just pano? he hold his paw up and doesnt want to put weight on it, unless our other dog runs by and then he wants to jump on her and join in the fun. nothing visiblely wrong checking between the pads, no swelling and it not hot...last night i gave him some ibuprofen because of the pain-- he was groaning and moving around a bunch...our other gsd had pano bad and he eventually got over it, but this happened to the other one at around 7 months, not 13 months. any thoughts? right now i m keeping him in his crate to keep him inactive.
thank you for your help/thoughts

Hmm.. My husky mix (maverick) does this sometimes. Vet has never found a cause (then again, I'm 'shopping' for a new vet also...). Drives me crazy looking for stickers & checking for injuries, then it just switches/stops.

I'm anxious to see some of the answers!

Sounds like pano. When the limping changes limbs is one of the sympoms. You can only wait it out. No strenuous exercise and an ant inflamitory.

It is most common in large boned males. Two of my dogs littermates have had Pano. It can come and go for mnths which is the bad news but no lasting negative effects which is major good news.

I'd take the dog to a vet and get a confirmed diagnosis and treatment.

thanks for that, what would a vet do? i kind of thought there was no treatment if its pano?

I'd also mention that ibuprofen is not the best pain medication for dogs. Everything I've read about it says it is easy to give too much, leading to a toxic reaction.

If you do see your vet, you may want to ask about Metacam or Deramaxx for short-term use. They are better, safer medications, IMO.

thanks for the tip!

What Sarah said above is what I meant by treatment, if it's Pano, ie: which pain killers to give.

 Quote: keith tayman

..last night i gave him some ibuprofen because of the pain--

Ibuprofen (and many OTC painkillers for humans) is not a good choice without vet help. It has a VERY small window of safety for dogs and is a strong ulcer-causing agent.

I would absolutely get a diagnosis and, as recommended, ask about Deramaxx or Metacam if it's Pano. And ask for complete disclosure on whichever NSAID you get so that you understand the symptoms of side effects to watch for. (All NSAIDs are rougher on dogs than on people.)

I prefer Deramaxx and Metacam for their safety records, but they can definitely trigger gastric problems, including bleeding ulcers. Long-term use requires liver and kidney monitoring: values are taken at the beginning and the dog is re-checked regularly.

Short-term, I watch carefully for gastric distress or blood in the stool.

These are not frequent occurences, but IME vets are often extremely careless about explaining them to the owner.

Not to get OT, but, What IS a safe over-the-counter pain reliever for dogs?

Ibuprofen = bad
Tylenol = bad
Asprin = ??

I know sometimes a dog has a small issue that needs to be treated. Maybe enough to need something for pain, (At least the owner will think so) but not bad enough to rush off to the Emergency Vet at 2am or on a weekend/holiday.

ARE there any safe alternatives that can be kept in the cabinet??