Dog has pain when laying down - anyone have any thoughts?

[Sarah_Rose]

My 6 year old German Shepherd has been having pain (crying out and whining) when laying down since yesterday. He was fine in the morning, then DS and I went out for a few hours in the morning, and when we came home, the dog was in pain. I immediately took him to the vet and they felt him all over and couldn't find any problems with his limbs, joints, back, or neck. The vet suggested a blood panel to check for internal problems, but his numbers all came back perfect.

The pain only seems to affect him when he lies down, and when he does get down, he seems to be lying with his legs more out to the side than normal. He's been walking around like normal, is playful, and is eating and drinking normally. The vet gave us pain medication and suggested that we give it until Monday to see if it resolves itself.... if he's still in pain at that point, we'll do x-rays and start exploring further.

Anyone experience anything like this? We're at a loss because we can't seem to pinpoint any one place where he is hurting, but it's just the one motion that causes him pain.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Hopefully he just overexerted himself playing or something simple like that.

 

[frostywolf]

My dog did that when he had excessive gas pain. He didn't react to the physical exam at all. So we did rads. Shelling out the $$ for x-rays only to be told "It's gas!" is no fun.

Hopefully it's something simple like that!

 

[kaligal]

I hope your dog just needs to fart or burp.

I don't think I can take another thread about a very sick dog. My heart will break.

 

[bas71873]

Growing up, this happened to our Doberman, but she was older (11 at the time) and it ended up being congestive heart failure and it just pained her to lay down because her heart was enlarged. Sad to say, but we had to put her down that day. She had the condition for about 8 months before it got to the point of her not being able to lay down and the vet said we could increase her meds AGAIN, but it would just become of a cycle of med increases. We made the decision to put her down and felt OK about it because that morning when we took her to the vet, it was a Saturday, she walked in all on her own. Any other time she had to go to the vet, we had to carry her inside. Yes, a big dobie had to be carried into the vet and then she would squeeze herself under the chairs to hide. We took that as a sign that she was ready. I haven't thought about her in years (I was about 19 when this happened) and it brings a smile to my face. I'm going to have to go dig up some pictures of Miss Maxine.

Good luck with your dog and I hope it's something WAY less concerning that this (sorry, I got carried away with a memory).

 

[Disney Doll]

Could he have strained/sprained something?
Be careful with pain med. It could mask the symptoms and make you think he's fine while something's brewing. I almost think I'd do some xrays just to make sure.

 

[bballmom56]

My dog did that when he had excessive gas pain.

That happens with our St. Bernard once in a while. She is obviously in some pain as she is panting and can't lie down. She tries to lie down and immediately goes back to a sitting position. Even though your dog is able to lie down, apparently it is not his normal position.

When this happens, DH gives her 2-4 Tums and it is amazing that within 10 minutes (usually less) she is much more comfortable and able to lie down quietly.

 

[TinkPirateMom]

German Shepherds are prone to hip problems. So maybe the position your dog usually lays in is now painful to his hips.

Oh we also gave our GS pepcid for belly issues. Does his tummy sound rumbly?

We had a German Shepherd that passed away last Christmas. I think we will have another one soon because we miss him so.

 

[2goofycampers]

Our dog had a similar problem. The Vet also could not find or feel anything wrong. Someone told us to try a vet chiropractor and he fixed her in 1 visit. I found him through this link. http://www.animalchiropractic.org/ Good luck, I hope your fur baby is well soon.

 

[JennyLynn73]

My 6 year old German Shepherd has been having pain (crying out and whining) when laying down since yesterday. He was fine in the morning, then DS and I went out for a few hours in the morning, and when we came home, the dog was in pain. I immediately took him to the vet and they felt him all over and couldn't find any problems with his limbs, joints, back, or neck. The vet suggested a blood panel to check for internal problems, but his numbers all came back perfect.

The pain only seems to affect him when he lies down, and when he does get down, he seems to be lying with his legs more out to the side than normal. He's been walking around like normal, is playful, and is eating and drinking normally. The vet gave us pain medication and suggested that we give it until Monday to see if it resolves itself.... if he's still in pain at that point, we'll do x-rays and start exploring further.

Anyone experience anything like this? We're at a loss because we can't seem to pinpoint any one place where he is hurting, but it's just the one motion that causes him pain.

I haven't found an update on your dog. How's he doing? Did you find out what was wrong?

 

[JennyLynn73]

I'm so glad I finally did a search and found this forum. I hesitated only because I thought he may have overexerted himself the last time he was playing with our other dogs and because we're having horrible financial issues. The only vets I know of in my area are very expensive so I was hoping he would be feeling better in a couple of days. He's not and so my worry keeps getting worse.

I have a dog that walks in tight circles every time he goes to lay down and when he poops. If one of the dogs have an accident in the house when we're not looking, all we gotta do is look and if the poo makes a circle or half circle, we know who did it! lol Anyway, the dog I'm worried about is over three years old and had never done this until now. Sometimes he grunts and whines a little as he's laying down and then sometimes he also wakes up in the middle of the night whining. It's never been loud so I don't think he's in a ton of pain but I think he might be in some. He also has intermittent episodes where it looks like he's shivering because he's cold, but he's inside with us. Even if we put a blanket on him, it doesn't seem to slow or stop. I don't think he has a fever. Lastly, he is missing fur from his tail (looks like a rat tail because most of it is gone) and has a small round patch missing on his side.

The first thing I thought it might be was ringworm. I also have suddenly (in the last couple of months) been dealing with a patch of hair missing along my forehead! It does and doesn't itch but it is aggravating. I've put athlete's foot cream on mine and his and nothing's changed. So, any idea what it could be?

 

[Ceila]

I'm so glad I finally did a search and found this forum. I hesitated only because I thought he may have overexerted himself the last time he was playing with our other dogs and because we're having horrible financial issues. The only vets I know of in my area are very expensive so I was hoping he would be feeling better in a couple of days. He's not and so my worry keeps getting worse.

I have a dog that walks in tight circles every time he goes to lay down and when he poops. If one of the dogs have an accident in the house when we're not looking, all we gotta do is look and if the poo makes a circle or half circle, we know who did it! lol Anyway, the dog I'm worried about is over three years old and had never done this until now. Sometimes he grunts and whines a little as he's laying down and then sometimes he also wakes up in the middle of the night whining. It's never been loud so I don't think he's in a ton of pain but I think he might be in some. He also has intermittent episodes where it looks like he's shivering because he's cold, but he's inside with us. Even if we put a blanket on him, it doesn't seem to slow or stop. I don't think he has a fever. Lastly, he is missing fur from his tail (looks like a rat tail because most of it is gone) and has a small round patch missing on his side.

The first thing I thought it might be was ringworm. I also have suddenly (in the last couple of months) been dealing with a patch of hair missing along my forehead! It does and doesn't itch but it is aggravating. I've put athlete's foot cream on mine and his and nothing's changed. So, any idea what it could be?

Your first two posts on a Disney-based forum bump a 2-year-old thread, are about medical issues your dog and you are having, and you mention financial difficulties? Odd.

 

[undertheradar]

Your first two posts on a Disney-based forum bump a 2-year-old thread, are about medical issues your dog and you are having, and you mention financial difficulties? Odd.

We did have a full moon last night!

 

[JennyLynn73]

What's odd about that?

 

[kaytieeldr]

Well, this forum you're glad you found is a general topic conversation forum, NOT a veterinary board. There are forums for that topic. There are veterinarians as well.

Nobody had posted in this thread - not forum, single thread - in over three years. Instead of a disingenuous "how's your dog?", finding a pet-centric forum might/will get better results.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I'm so glad I finally did a search and found this forum. I hesitated only because I thought he may have overexerted himself the last time he was playing with our other dogs and because we're having horrible financial issues. The only vets I know of in my area are very expensive so I was hoping he would be feeling better in a couple of days. He's not and so my worry keeps getting worse.

I have a dog that walks in tight circles every time he goes to lay down and when he poops. If one of the dogs have an accident in the house when we're not looking, all we gotta do is look and if the poo makes a circle or half circle, we know who did it! lol Anyway, the dog I'm worried about is over three years old and had never done this until now. Sometimes he grunts and whines a little as he's laying down and then sometimes he also wakes up in the middle of the night whining. It's never been loud so I don't think he's in a ton of pain but I think he might be in some. He also has intermittent episodes where it looks like he's shivering because he's cold, but he's inside with us. Even if we put a blanket on him, it doesn't seem to slow or stop. I don't think he has a fever. Lastly, he is missing fur from his tail (looks like a rat tail because most of it is gone) and has a small round patch missing on his side.

The first thing I thought it might be was ringworm. I also have suddenly (in the last couple of months) been dealing with a patch of hair missing along my forehead! It does and doesn't itch but it is aggravating. I've put athlete's foot cream on mine and his and nothing's changed. So, any idea what it could be?

I imagine you were doing a general search for your dog's problems and came across this thread. It sounds like you could have a couple of things going on with your dog, one more serious than the other if it's neurological. Seizures can start around age 3 in some dogs, so he should be evaluated. Good news is that the medicine for seizures is super inexpensive. When you have a pet one of the requirements of the law is proper medical care for it. Take him to a vet.

 

[JennyLynn73]

Well, this forum you're glad you found is a general topic conversation forum, NOT a veterinary board. There are forums for that topic. There are veterinarians as well.

Nobody had posted in this thread - not forum, single thread - in over three years. Instead of a disingenuous "how's your dog?", finding a pet-centric forum might/will get better results.

For someone on a Disney based board, you're awful judgmental and negative. I obviously did not notice how old the thread was and I most certainly have looked for the information elsewhere. For whatever reason, my Google search of his particular symptoms brought me to this thread first nor did I stop here.

So, you're saying that because I have a question about a medical issue with my dog I'm not allowed to post within a general topic forum? Not very general is it? Are you the moderator? And because I had a concern about my dog, I'm pet-centric? Wow.

I'll never forgive Google for bringing me here. lol

 

[HM]

I am so sorry you got that response. There are many people here who are very helpful.

I hope your dog's ailment is simple and non-threatening. Good luck!

 

[JennyLynn73]

I imagine you were doing a general search for your dog's problems and came across this thread. It sounds like you could have a couple of things going on with your dog, one more serious than the other if it's neurological. Seizures can start around age 3 in some dogs, so he should be evaluated. Good news is that the medicine for seizures is super inexpensive. When you have a pet one of the requirements of the law is proper medical care for it. Take him to a vet.

Thank you for responding to my post. Yeah, had I noticed it was so old, I wouldn't have commented. We've already taken him to the vet. He's fine. I wasn't trying to ignore my responsibility to him but there also didn't seem to be a need to take him to the vet in the middle of the night. I do have experience with animals and animal rights laws just not experienced with more than basic health issues. If he needed long term care we couldn't afford, we would find a way even if that meant finding a different home for him. But, only after we exhausted all resources.

Anyway, thank you. Thanks for not being a jerk.

 

[JennyLynn73]

I am so sorry you got that response. There are many people here who are very helpful.

I hope your dog's ailment is simple and non-threatening. Good luck!

Thank you! He's fine. It looks like he's a little stressed from our recent move and needs supplements. He had been accustomed to much warmer temperatures and no winter season. Vet says he'll adjust soon.