# Muscle Cramps



## KittyKat (Feb 11, 2011)

So this past weekend i've taken my dog Piper to lure coursing for the first time (she came in 5th out of 24 dogs!). On her last run she got a muscle cramp in her back leg. I gave her leg a massage and threw a cool towel over her, but she's still gimping around a bit.

Does anyone have any suggestions of what we could do/give to her to help work out that cramp? She doesn't seem to be bothered by it, but if something could help with a speedy recovery that would be super.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

How do you know it's just a cramp? how much are you warming her up, and keeping her warm before the event? I know that just like a human dogs can pull muscles, and it can be attributed to poor warm ups.

I'm not absolutely positive that dogs can become dehydrated and cause the same symptoms that people may get, lack of power through the muscles, cramping etc...
Does she drink frequently at these events? if not you may try tempting her to by adding a little something to her water.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Yeah, this is yet another time I really wish dogs could talk. 
If it was a cramp, you'd need to keep walking her, very gently though, as the muscles need to be stretched so the blood can get flowing again. Massage definitely will help.
If it is a strain, a sprain or a pulled muscle, then you need to rest and ice it. 
Its just so frustrating because you have no idea what on earth is wrong.
Congratulations on your lure coursing results though, that's awesome, you must be really proud of her!


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## KittyKat (Feb 11, 2011)

Tobi said:


> How do you know it's just a cramp? how much are you warming her up, and keeping her warm before the event? I know that just like a human dogs can pull muscles, and it can be attributed to poor warm ups.
> 
> I'm not absolutely positive that dogs can become dehydrated and cause the same symptoms that people may get, lack of power through the muscles, cramping etc...
> Does she drink frequently at these events? if not you may try tempting her to by adding a little something to her water.


We did warm her up in the morning with a brisk walk/run and we tossed around a frisbee in the field adjacent to the trials. We seemed to be the odd ones out on that, most people kept their dogs kenneled the whole day. I'd gather its because they are sprinters and they didn't want to "tire them out" but I figured like you, that a warm up would be best. I got her panting and then let her drink/rest before heading out. 

She does drink (she's on raw, so i notice she doesn't tend to drink as much as other dogs do, but she did consume a decent amount of water compared to normal).

This was her second day of trials though, having done 3 yesterday and 3 today. Perhaps it was just a bit much for her. Or perhaps she just stepped oddly on the field and pulled a muscle. 



MollyWoppy said:


> Yeah, this is yet another time I really wish dogs could talk.
> If it was a cramp, you'd need to keep walking her, very gently though, as the muscles need to be stretched so the blood can get flowing again. Massage definitely will help.
> If it is a strain, a sprain or a pulled muscle, then you need to rest and ice it.
> Its just so frustrating because you have no idea what on earth is wrong.
> Congratulations on your lure coursing results though, that's awesome, you must be really proud of her!


We are proud! The lure operates said it looked like a cramp (i'm not sure you could tell between a pulled muscle and a cramp... aren't they really about the same thing?)... her movement is still pretty good, she does seem a bit tender in one spot though when massaging. We walked her around after and then let her rest while i massaged her legs. When we got home i gave another massage and checked to see how her flexibility is. It seemed normal. She seems a bit tender on the leg still, but much better compared to earlier.... i think now its only noticeable if you are looking for it, whereas before it was obvious.

I would think a sprain would be more serious, and wouldn't clear up as fast as this is? 

Either way, everyone's feeling the pain now. I got a sunburn and i'm sore all over. /lazes on couch


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

KittyKat said:


> We did warm her up in the morning with a brisk walk/run and we tossed around a frisbee in the field adjacent to the trials. We seemed to be the odd ones out on that, most people kept their dogs kenneled the whole day. I'd gather its because they are sprinters and they didn't want to "tire them out" but I figured like you, that a warm up would be best. I got her panting and then let her drink/rest before heading out.
> 
> She does drink (she's on raw, so i notice she doesn't tend to drink as much as other dogs do, but she did consume a decent amount of water compared to normal).
> 
> ...


I always look to nature on things like this... if you observe dogs in the wild, they never go from sleeping to hunting prey within 10 minutes, they are usually running for a good 15-20 minutes before finding anything they need to sprint after, and are constantly on the move. It's possible that she just moved completely wrong and pulled it... 

for instance, i know our anatomy is completely different but i severely sprained my wrist about 5 years ago just putting 2 pieces of pvc pipe together... with lubricant.. lol it was just a fluke.

I was asking about water because athletes often will cramp from lack of hydration, and then often times the muscles will just completely fail, but in general i can't imagine a raw fed dog being too dehydrated :lol:

Sounds like she did great though! I'm going to guess she pulled/strained something, we'll just never know if she stepped into a little dip or something and threw her off... poor girl. Here is the general idea of what both are, sprains are more serious.

A sprain is *joint *injury, and generally is the injury to the ligaments, usually caused by severe twisting and pulling (can even be a side injury to a break)or by using the joint incorrectly or too much in the wrong way.

A pulled muscle is also a "strain" which is kind of a tear in the *muscle *or, like when you overstretch a rubberband and it just stays stretched out for a bit. It's usually caused by too much, or wrong twisting etc.


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## KittyKat (Feb 11, 2011)

Tobi said:


> I always look to nature on things like this... if you observe dogs in the wild, they never go from sleeping to hunting prey within 10 minutes, they are usually running for a good 15-20 minutes before finding anything they need to sprint after, and are constantly on the move. It's possible that she just moved completely wrong and pulled it...
> 
> for instance, i know our anatomy is completely different but i severely sprained my wrist about 5 years ago just putting 2 pieces of pvc pipe together... with lubricant.. lol it was just a fluke.
> 
> ...


Ah, well I'm going to say she pulled a muscle. I watched her in the backyard this morning and she's not favouring any of her legs. Huzzuh!


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