Hindlimb weakness and loss of muscle bulk in the backend is one of the main reasons why dog owners seek out help from a dog physio. Hindlimb weakness may manifest in lots of different ways, way before you see the muscles starting to wither away. Your dog may struggle to jump onto the bed/couch or into the car. They may require frequent rests during a walk or have difficulty getting up from the ground. Or they may just feel like not moving at all. Sound familiar ? Then best to read on………..
What causes hindlimb weakness ?
Musculoskeletal disorders are extremely common and can cause chronic pain in the hindlimbs. This results in the dog limiting the use of their back legs which leads to muscle atrophy and weakness. Examples of this include ligament sprains (cranial cruciate ligament), tendon tears (achilles), muscle tears (gracilis) and joint erosion (arthritis).
Neurological disorders include intervertebral disc bulge/prolapse and age related disc degeneration. In addition to causing pain, neurological disorders can compromise nerve conduction so neural signals are not relayed to the muscle groups to tell them to contract. This can result in neurogenic atrophy in the hindlimb muscles and weakness.
How can a Pet Physio help
Contrary to popular belief, many owners come to an animal physio consultation expecting to be given a exercise program to strengthen their dog’s legs. However this will NOT work if pain is the cause of the muscle weakness and this needs to be addressed first, way before starting any therapeutic exercises. Your pet physio will firstly identify what areas have pain. The presence of pain will inhibit muscle contraction and this is the biggest contributor towards muscle atrophy. To manage pain, your dog physiotherapist may have a lengthy discussion with you about pain medication, explaining what role each type of medication plays in helping your dog’s pathology. Your physiotherapist will direct you to speak with your local vet.
Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES) is often used by dog physiotherapists to treat the muscle weakness. This is a fantastic electrotherapy tool used to facilitate the muscle fibers and essentially give them a “kick start” so they can contract effectively. Muscle contraction can be slow and sluggish if pain has been chronic. It can also be sluggish if nerve conduction is affected eg. disc compression. Think of NMES as a “SPEEDFIT” session for your dog.
Therapeutic Exercises can commence once pain is controlled. Exercises under the guidance of a pet physio can be very simple. These exercises can help to encourage weight shifting, balance and proprioception.
Slings can be used to assist your dog’s mobility, especially if the hindlimb weakness is severe and chronic. Your dog physio will provide the most suitable recommendation on what slings to purchase.
What you can do at home to help
Trim nails and paw pads that are super hairy as this can help to improve the dog’s ability to grip the ground. Add non slip flooring to surfaces that are tile or wood.
Hindlimb weakness can be scary to navigate on your own as a pet owner. Physio for Pets is your local pet physiotherapist and we are here to support you and your pets. So if your dog is struggling with backend weakness, please do reach out sooner rather than later as there are a lot of treatment options to offer.