My small dog is recently and suddenly having trouble standing on his rear legs. I can find no apperant injury to either leg but he has real difficulty standing or walking on them, does anyone know why?

Would be great to know how old your little dog is. That would possibly help to think why and give a possible suggestion, direction, etc. My mind immediately goes to hip dysplasia but have never heard a small dog having this. What breed is he ?

The only animal I ever saw with distemper was a raccoon who was unable to use it's back legs. I was told that's a fairly common symptom. Best to let a vet look at your dog to make sure it's nothing serious.
Ber

I have seen a lot of distemper but only in young animals whose immune system is not wholly developed yet. That is why I asked the OP how old her dog is. Distemper is not pleasant to witness, starts with lack of motion in the hind quarters and then attacks the respiratory system, sneezing, mucus from the nostrils and eyes. Not a pretty site and usually there isn't enough time to get to a vet, the onset is swift and death is a result of suffocation.

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Originally Posted by tickle

would be great to know how old your little dog is. That would possibly help to think why and give a possible suggestion, direction, etc. My mind immediately goes to hip dysplasia but have never heard a small dog having this. What breed is he ?

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He is aprox 4 years old, a Tebetan spanial X and has had regular shots and boosters for at least two years (since Ive had him). We live in Cental British Columbia (western Canada) in summer and in south Texas in winter.

A friend of mine had a Tibetan Spaniel. Their most common problems have to do with their eyes. From what I learned they can also be prone to "elbow dysplaysia." The knee-like joint can often slip out of it's socket,--the same as the hip, and can cause lameness and arthitic type conditions, most often requires surgery.

I would take your dog to the vet to rule out any other condition. It could be so many things, other than the above. Has your dog been outside unsupervised? Or have you given him/her any foods that he doesn't normally have that could possibly be poisoness? Some foods can cause a dog to suddenly go lame in the back or front legs, and some are very toxic. Has your dog gotten into anything?

Edit:: Also, has your dog been out walking in the snow, slush or ice? I'm not sure where you live in BC, but with the temps being so weird this year, could he have gotten ice, gravel, or salt in the pads of his feet?

I forgot about this incident. Our Brittany Spaniel got into some aspirin many years ago. He chewed through my sisters gym bag and her purse then opened a large bottle of buffered aspirin and ate an unknown amount. The aspirin thinned his blood so much that he was unable to stand in the back end, the vet said it was due to bruising since his blood was so thin it was leaking into his muscles. They gave him a potassium shot and did some other things (I was fairly young so I don't know what). The vet said at least the dog had sense to eat buffered aspirin so it was easier on his stomach :)
Ber

Hi Ber Rabbit, good you put the racoon out of its misery. Distemper can be a very slow agonizing death from suffocation.