Question:
Hi

My 7 month old Bernese Mountain Dog (Nooma) has been slightly limping for a little more than a week.

When it first started, I patted both his front legts to verify if one was different than the other. It turns out they are both identical, no swelling.

I then squeezed the whole legs from one end to the other, looking for a sensitive spot, but it turns out there are no sensitive spot. I even poked around in the shoulder area, same result.. no sensitive spot.

The limping is worse when Nooma has been lying down for an extended period of time (which he does a lot... this little bear sleeps about 14-19 hours a day), but once he starts moving around, the limping diminishes as muscles warm up.

My friend mentioned this to his veterenarian friend, and the vet friend said this is common in large breed dogs like mine... its body grows unevenly and can lead to some temporary painless limping.

Has anyone else see their large dog experience something similar during the growth period?

Thanks

Answer:
sounds like it could be Pano.... better to have your vet confirm this!

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Thread moved to Pet Health

Answer:
Having 2 Berners myself I would suggest you take your little one to the vet for a full check-up.

Not sure if you've have him neutered yet, but if not and depending on your funds, you may want to ask your vet to do a series of x-rays while he's under for his neuter to assess his hips and elbows.

We did this with our little guy as we didn't get him from a breeder and wanted to know what we were/could be dealing with in terms of hip/joint problems then and in the future.

Also, IMO, a good quality food (in the proper amounts) and moderate, consistent exercise is also important for the big guys while they are still growing and developing.

Hope you get some answers and I love Berners so please post pictures!

Answer:
my dog went through the same thing, we had her legs xrayed, put on antibiotics for inflammation and was told she could not be trained for agility till she was 18 months and her bones were done growing, we had to try to keep her from running up and down stairs, jumping on and off the bed in play etc. She was growing too fast, we switched her at 5 months to adult food also to help. She's a lab/shepherd mix.

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