# Limping - but not a luxating patella



## Fyr (Mar 5, 2013)

Hi,

We have a chihuahua, who is somewhere between 2-3 years old.
She has a persistent limp in that she will pick up her right rear leg.
We've had her X-rayed and it's definitely not a luxating patella so that's off the table.
She doesn't seem to be responding to anti-inflammatories so it's not looking like arthritis, which seems unlikely so young anyway.

But it's a persistent problem - she has always done it to a certain extent and it's getting more frequent recently. 

It doesn't seem painful; she is quite happy when it happens and she doesn't yelp or anything and she doesn't break her stride.
It does seem to be worse when it's cold, though we live in CA so it doesn't get very cold here.

We have heard anecdotal evidence that it's just 'a chihuahua thing' from a couple of people but google doesn't really seem to bear that out - all our internet searches keep coming back to luxating patella and it's very hard to find out what the problem is when that's NOT it.

Has anybody else seen this?


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## Lisa T (Sep 3, 2010)

Hi, I know your adamant its not LP but if the leg is X-Rayed whilst the patella is not luxated it would appear normal, has your vet manipulated the leg and confirmed that the patella is tight and hard to luxate ? Is your dog on any type of joint supplement ? If not you could introduce Glucosamine and Chondroitin into his diet, this is very good for joint health, also plenty of exercise and swimming is good for strengthening the ligaments and joints. Also do you keep his nails well trimmed ? Something as simple as a nail digging in a pad could cause a limp.


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## Angel1210 (Mar 14, 2011)

Poor baby. I thought the same thing as Lisa, just not showing up on the x-ray. Is there another test they could do?


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

Have him checked for legg calve perthes disease. (Avascular necrosis of the femoral head).


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## jan896 (Dec 9, 2009)

Brodysmom said:


> Have him checked for legg calve perthes disease. (Avascular necrosis of the femoral head).


I second that....... does he do the 'bunny hop" ? when running or walking??


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

Brodysmom said:


> Have him checked for legg calve perthes disease. (Avascular necrosis of the femoral head).


I was going to say this as well. Was also going to say the same thing as Lisa...if the knee isn't luxated during an xray it won't show up. Manual manipulation of the leg is the best way to Dx LP. I hope you get some answers soon. It is NOT just a "chi thing" either...something is obviously bothering your pup for him to be favoring the leg. Good luck & keep us posted!


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## Fyr (Mar 5, 2013)

Brodysmom said:


> Have him checked for legg calve perthes disease. (Avascular necrosis of the femoral head).


Thanks for the suggestion - new ideas are exactly why I asked here.
In this case, what you describe sounds very much like hip dysplasia.
The surgeon who examined and x-rayed Shandy was _very_ thorough and did also x-ray her hips and there was no dysplasia there - everything was normal.

Is there a difference between Legg-Calvé-Perthes and hip dysplasia?
Is there any way it wouldn't have shown up on the x-ray?


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## Fyr (Mar 5, 2013)

Lisa T said:


> Hi, I know your adamant its not LP but if the leg is X-Rayed whilst the patella is not luxated it would appear normal, has your vet manipulated the leg and confirmed that the patella is tight and hard to luxate ? Is your dog on any type of joint supplement ? If not you could introduce Glucosamine and Chondroitin into his diet, this is very good for joint health, also plenty of exercise and swimming is good for strengthening the ligaments and joints. Also do you keep his nails well trimmed ? Something as simple as a nail digging in a pad could cause a limp.


The surgeon was actually very thorough and took multiple x-rays of both her knees and hips, trying to manipulate her leg into a position where it would show.
As well as manual manipulation to try and cause the patella to move, which he was unable to get to happen. Our regular vet was also unable to cause it to happen.

So overall I think we have a very high level of confidence that it isn't a luxating patella.

We have been giving he glucosamine treats, though she is off them at present which we test the anti-inflammatory, but it hasn't been making a difference so far. 

Chondroitin is new to me, and I'll give that a try, thanks for the suggestion.

I'll also check her nails, though I think they are too short from all the walking she gets as part of our lives (and she does get a lot of walking  )


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