Pet Lovers

[Jackhound Mom]

Our little dashound/jack russell skips when she goes for a walk with us.  It's the cutest thing and I've never seen another dog do it.  Is this common? 

[Ideserveit]

Yes, I have a Minature Schnauzer that has skipped since the day he could walk. He only does it if the pace is fast, if I slow down he walks normal. I had him checked by the Vet and nothing is wrong, the Vet says it does happen. Everyone in our neighborhood really gets a chuckle from it.  

[PINKdogWOOD]

Skipping along on walks, that's funny and cute I'm sure!

My poodle Wallace doesn't skip but he does occasionally sort of trips over his big poddle feet.  I always tell hiim to "be careful puppy, you'll break a nail" !!!

[CamilleP]

That kind of gait deficiency can indicate several things.  The most common cause is luxating patellas.  The trochlear grooves at the bottom of the femur and the top of the tibia are not deep enough, and the kneecap slips off to either the inside or outside of the joint when the dog flexes the joint during walking or trotting.  It is easily diagnosed by a veterinarian, and graded in severity from 1 to 5, with 5 being the worst and usually requiring surgery.  Other causes are things like my first Scottie had, her front and rear angulation were not equal, causing her front half to move at a different speed than her rear, so she'd have to skip a half step now and again to catch up with herself.  My vet checked her patellas many times and could not cause a luxation, so we knew it wasn't that, just mediocre conformation.  There are also neurological deficiencies that can cause faulty locomotion, some progressive, some not, so those problems can very in severity and prognosis.

In order to know if your dog has a structural or neurological problem I would urge you to have your vet evaluate the dog, and if needed, refer you to a specialist.  What is "cute" now might very well be crippling or life-threatening in the future, better you find out now so you can do what needs to be done to ameliorate the situation.

[HappyDaze]

I completely agree with @CamilleP! My dog did this and although it did seem a bit cute, we knew it wasn't normal. Turns out he actually had a neurological issue. 

[Jackhound Mom]

Thank you all!  Now that you mention it our Vet here in Vail did say something about her one joint in her leg!  She did not seem concerned but the next time we go I will ask her again.  Her Vets in Lexington saw her alot when we first got her because she was very sick but they never mentioned anything about her leg or paw.

This is such an informative place to ask questions and I am grateful!

Cathy

[Lapdog]

My Beagle mix skips because her rear leg was broken in 12 places and to rescue her they casted it instead of surgical repair. 

She does not act like it hurts her but she does have some nerve deficit in her tail area which makes her stop and bite at it for a second.

I would have your pup checked.