My 9-10 month old GSD has some pain in his back right leg or hip. I noticed yesterday when he was running that he would kind of gallop with his back legs, never putting the right leg in front of the left. And when he was scratching his ear with his right leg, he yelped a couple of times.

When I got back from CA on friday, he was pretty excited, and he jumped and slipped on some leaves in the garage. He fell, and cracked the front "knee" part of his leg on the concrete. It make a loud thump, and he wouldn't walk on it for a couple of minutes.

Is this anything I should take him to the vet for? He seems fine otherwise, and he's not protective of that area if I try to touch it. It's just when he tries to run fast or when he scratches that I notice a problem.

My plan is to limit his activity until it gets better, but I wanted to throw this out there in case anyone thinks it would be beneficial to take him to the vet. I'm pretty sure it was from hitting the floor, but if I press on that area, I get no indication from him that it hurts.

It sounds like soreness that will heal as long as the symptoms dont change or get worse.

There's no visible swelling, right? You could always do an x-ray (many places have digital now) just to make sure.

Plus, at 9 - 10 months of age, they're still growing and their joints seem to be more prone to soreness. I think of it as growing pains.

So we're in day 3 now following that slip? Dogs can be pretty good about hiding pain. If it were my dog I'd take it in to be sure nothing was chipped, knee cap is properly in place, and no major tears.

Don't rule out a luxated patella, they can pop out and then pop right back in, making the dog appear normal again. It does happen once in a while to large breed dogs.

Rest is always good and can't hurt but I'm with Melissa on this one...I'd probably have the vet take a look just to be sure it's nothing more serious.

 Quote: Sarah Morris

Rest is always good and can't hurt but I'm with Melissa on this one...I'd probably have the vet take a look just to be sure it's nothing more serious.

At the very least, a trip to the vet would be reassuring - between the exam and possible x-rays, you could at least rule some things out. That said, if your pup sprained or bruised the knee joint when he fell on it, it could very well take over a week for the pain/limp to go away. Just because palping the leg doesn't elicit a response from him doesn't mean there isn't soreness INSIDE the joint, and sprained ligaments can take their sweet time healing. If you DON'T go to the vet just yet, make sure your dog is seriously resting that leg and allowing it to heal without a lot of activity.

~Natalya