Dogs affected by limber tail syndrome
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If your dog's tail turns suddenly limp consider this as a possibility
-Sasha, a four year old Golden Retriever has spent the day camping with her owner. Since the weather was mild, the owner allowed her to take a pleasant swim in the big park's pond. After a comfy night under the starry sky, Sasha wakes up with a flaccid tail. The owner, concerned she might have broken it, takes her to the veterinarian.
-Miller, a 7 year old English Pointer looked forward for hunting season to start. Finally, he is brought out and is happily chasing pheasant. He does a very good job and the owner is very proud of him. The day after, Miller's tail is oddly displayed. It extends horizontally and then drops deep down totally flaccid. Miller is unable to wag his tail as he usually does that morning. He is brought to the emergency room for a broken tail.
-Sonic is a 5 year old Beagle. After rolling in the mud he is granted a nice warm bath. He is dried with some towels but he is reluctant to stay stil so he reamins a bit humid. The owner thinks it's OK since it is spring and the weather is a bit milder, so she put him in his crate for the night. The following day he is unable to move his tail as usual. Upon palpation, he yowls in pain. The owner also notices that some of his hair at the tail base is raised up. He is brought to his vet, leaving his owner very puzzled.
Upon seeing the vet, Sasha, Miller and Sonic present a painful tail. Each respond to the pain elicited upon palpation. All three are sent for X-rays. The x-rays surprisingly show no fractures in all three cases. There is only some local muscle swelling. Puzzled, one vet decides to have some lab work done. In the meanwhile, the other two are sent home with pain medications.
When the lab work returns the results, an elevated muscle enzyme is shown. To be specific the lab work shows an increased level of a particular muscle enzyme called "creatine kinase" often abrevaited as "CK". This particular enzyme is associated with muscle damage. He calls the owner and tells him to pick up some anti-inflammatory drugs to relieve the pain.
All three dogs were exhibiting the typically odd symptoms of a condition known as "Limber tail". Also know as "cold water tail", "limp tail" or "broken wag", this conditions seems to most likely prefer dogs of a particular breed. Common breeds affected by this condition are:
Labradors
Golden Retrievers
Flat coat Retrievers
English Setters
English Pointers
Beagles
Foxhounds
The most common symptoms are as follows:
Limp tail
No wagging
Tail that extends horizontally for 3-4 inches and then suddenly drops flaccidly
Hair standing up at base of tail
Pain upon palpation
Local swelling
Causes are yet to be really understood, but they mostly follow a pattern. Most common causes seem to be:
Overexertion
Climate changes
Being crated for a long time
Inappropriate crate size
Exposure to cold weather
Warm or cold bath
Swimming
Overuse of tail
Excessive exercise without proper physical conditioning
Sporting dogs are particularly prone to this condition. It is vital that if you own a hunting dog or a sporting dog that you gradually introduce your dog to exercise. Sudden bouts of prolonged exercise especially after long periods of rest are potential triggers. Avoid crating your dog too long and ensure the crate is large enough to allow your dog to stretch and turn around. Avoid your dog's exposure to cold drafts especially if your dog is wet and do not allow contact with wet bedding.
Most owners are concerned upon settlement of symptoms. They cannot recall their dogs having any recent injuries. Once brought to the vet's attention, many veterinarians are not aware of this pretty rare condition (yet common among hunting/sporting dogs) and may submit various diagnostic tests.
Treatment luckily is pretty straight forward and will consist of:
Warm packs at the base of the tail
Anti-inflammatory drugs recommended by vets (NSAID's) some OTC NSAID's can be potentially toxic and fatal.
Rest
Most cases resolve pretty quickly. More often than not the pain seems to subside within 24 to 48 hours. Complete recovery is mostly seen within a couple of weeks. In some very rare cases the tail may never return to its normal position but again this is pretty unusual. Do not be alarmed if at a certain point during recovery the tail may seem to be kept a little to the side. This should resolve shortly.
Whether you call it limber tail, cold water tail, frozen tail or simply broken wag, rest assured that your dog's tail will very likely go back to normal and you will get to enjoy your dog's tail wagging once again and in no time!
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Good to know. Thanks so much!
thanks a million i was so worried about my little sophie
very interesting hub :D so glad I read it!
Does anyone know if faecal and urinary incontinence can be a result of limp tail symdrome? My Boxer appears to have had limp tail syndrome in the past after swimming. This time she did not swim much, but stood in the cold water for several minutes watching my son surf. This time, not only is her tail limp (5 days so far), but she has also become incontinent and she is only 3 years old! I just hope she recovers fully, and of course now wish I could turn back time and not allow her to stand in cold sea water.
Don't know if this helps at all. I'm not trained medically to comment, but our dog kept her tail tucked in and we realized her anal sacs needed to be treated by a vet to remove matter that naturally collects there. A few minutes with the vet solved our dog's 'limp tail' -- but I don't know if that's at all the same as what you're describing.
Thanks for your comments, iwasthinking.I'll check the anal sacs possibility with our vet. My dog's tail is still limp, but she is much happier within herself.
thankyou i never new this my dog is better now
i loved my dog until it died of limp tail it was a lab
i love u harley
my dog died of it to i miss my dog
Was searching for "Dogs affected by limber tail syndrome
", saw your Dogs affected by limber tail syndrome
in hubpage. Great info on dogs and their problems
thank you
DIED? from limber tail syndrome?
Are you sure it was the same syndrome? What exactly caused the deaths?
The only time I have heard of anything like this is a dog who BROKE his tail and ended up with a bone infection and died from the infection.
My adopted dog is I believe a terrier mix but she looks just like an Icelandic sheepdog.
I woke up this morning to find my girls tail looking as if she had been biting it all night long and yelping if I dared touch it at the base. The night before she was fine.
She has all the symptoms that are on this site. I am watching her carefully, hoping she has a speedy recovery. So glad I found this site!
ty so much for this site being here. my year and a half puppy Bazil was part beagle spent the day at my bf moms house playing in the pool with the kids and later that night i noticed his tail limp. i thought he'd broken it somehow, maybe someone closed the door on it or one of the kids might of pulled it but they reassured me nothing like that had happened and then i found this site and it all fit. i kept putting heating packs on his tail and had him rest and now its better. wagging and happy like he usually is
there are several reasons for a tail to look weird or being held in a strange way. symptoms should be watched carefully and if there's not an absolute clear reason why the dog could suffer of a "COLD TAIL SYNDROME" (like over exercising, cold water etc.) an anal sack infection, sliped discs, fracture of tail, nerve inflamation or muscular disease could be the reasons - in order to avoid chronic health problems it is advised not to wait for too long to consult an experienced vet in order to save a couple of $$$. besides that, homephatic globules of arnica act anti inflamatory and are always worth a try...
i have a 2 year old lab and he has woken up with this problem ! All systems are as you have said but worried now as a few people said that there poor dogs died of this ????? should i take him to the vets or see how he goes ....
I think seeing the vet is always the best option, at times this condition is painful and pain meds may be necessary. I have never heard death due to this condition,all I can think of are cases of ''death of the tissue and nerve damage'' as a complication or some other condition that may have mimicked limber tail but was something much worse..
This page saved me!! I am so guilty of taking my dog to the vet for everything and leaving with an "it'll heal on it's own" and a large bill. So when my dogs tail went limp, but everything else about him was fine I decided to google instead of rushing to the vet.This page describes my lab, and her issue, to a T and after a few days of letting it rest, he's already doing better,
Thank you!!!
omg these symptoms describe my Angus to a T I had a party at my house Sunday Angus was outside pretty much for 4 hrs straight playing with the kids, chasing the quad along the fence. Then yesterday woke up with a limp tail(which I didn't realize till lastnight), hard time sitting, didn't want me to touch his tail at all even yiped when I touched it. So glad I researched this, gonna try the heat packs tonight and try to keep him calm (that'll be a chore) he loves to play!!! Gonna keep my eye on it!!!
I came home from work last night to discover my poor pups tail looked like a noodle hanging off of her. Her tail normally stands strait up and she is constantly wagging it... :( You could tell she was trying to wag her tail last night, but not being very successful at it. I almost took her to the vet but found an article on Limber tail syndrom. It said an anti flammatory is usually helpful so I gave her a small dose of rimadyl and her tail is standing this morning and she is getting better at wagging it.... Thank goodness I found the article. The technician I spoke with was clueless as to what could be wrong with my baby girl.
Thank god for google, I would've wasted money taking my dog into the vet. I called 3 vet offices and no one had ever heard of it. Took her out hunting and it was 10 degrees out and I'm sure the swims in the river didn't help her cause! It's pretty hilarious having a retriever that is constantly wagging her tail and then it is just limp...she looks pretty pathetic without her weapon tail!
Thanks so much for this article. My dogs are like my children so I was super nervous when my dogs tail went limp within the hour. There was no excessive play, jumping or falling off anything so I was clueless. Just gave her a warm bath yesterday and of course she had to potty when she wasn't completely dry and its freezing! I am probably the reason this happened!! :*-(
This is the second time I have had a "limp tail." The first was after lake swimming and a year later after an outdoor bath in 50-degree weather. I am a 3-year-old lab and fairly active on a daily basis. Since this has happened twice and my breed is prone to this probem, what can I do to prevent reoccurance? Any suggestions?
I really feel for you.. being a lab you really must love swimming and how to resist jumping into a tempting lake? What can I say.. don't over do it.. if you have not been out for some time try to not over-exert yourself.. tell your owner to gradually work you and condition your body gradually before going on an outing...
Also tell your owner to very thoroughly dry the base of your tail AND the entire croup and upper thighs area after getting wet.This should help; You should also not be crated after getting wet. Best wishes and have fun!
Reference link:
This blog was very helpful. After returning home from an eight day trip and having a friend pick my dog up from the kennel prior to getting home I found my dogs tail looking funny. He is a pit mix (thinking with lab). He is a big, big tail wagger when excited. He greeted me with his tail sticking out about 3 inches and then hanging down. It seem a little swollen at the 3". The description of limber tail fit his symptoms. I think he over used it at the kennel with all the excitement of the other dogs or when my friend picked him up. I waited a week and sure enough it healed and curves back up again.
my dog rezzy an american Staffordshire aka (Pitt bull) just got limp tail for the second time in his life the first time was when we went hiking near the river and him being "aqua dog" couldn't resist diving in. it was chilly so i immediately i took him back to the car and dried him off... despite the effort he still got limp tail within a few hours. it scared the crap out of me. i googled it immediately and called a vet to double check. tonight in the middled of winer we visited a friend and rezzy played with his rotty friend for hours we brought them in every so often but they started to play in the house so we let them out again and now my poor rezzy is whining in pain with his tail clamped tight to his body. like before i felt around for anything that might be broken and found nothing. so from two times experience i can say a warm pack helps if you can keep you dog relaxed and laying down. with the pain lots of recoup time ( limit running, jumping and excessive playing) that does not mean you have to crate your dog up till it heals just try to get them to rest more. some anti inflammatory meds help a great deal if its painful for your dog. the first time his limp tail lasted for 3 days im hoping we will be as lucky this time too. im told it can last over 2 weeks. though google is great for getting info please for your dogs safety always atleast call and check with a vet to be sure your doing the right thing for your pet.
My basset hound, Twix, has had limber tail twice - both times while swimming, and both times after a day of lots of activity. Each time, it has first presented with a crooked tail where her tail goes sideways in the middle a bit (like a crimp) and then an hour or so later, it goes completely limp. Last time, it only took 2 or 3 days for it to heal. We're on day 3 this time and have seen little improvement, so I'm guessing we still have a few more days of a pathetic little pup on our hands.
Interesting, I had no idea this even existed. I love learning new things everyday. And being a big breed dog lover, I will now have this information just incase. Thanks...Useful
Thank You Soooo Much. I was so worried!!!
Interesting...Phoenix's tail went limp after a hot day hiking to the lake. Heat, more than usual excerise, water-although he is beagle/lab, he refuses to swim but will get in the water up to his belly. This has happened before, but I can't remember the cercumstances. He's feeling better now, glad it's nothing to serious.
Thank you sooooo much for taking the time to write this very useful article, I'm getting him a hot pack right now :)
Dogs do not die of limber tail ignore those two people who posted that....sadistic people who I'm sure do not and have not ever had a pet. Sheesh!
My Mom's had dog had it a couple years ago after a bath. You'd have thought the dog was dying the way Mom was acting when Missy "cried" trying to wag her tail. Cleared on up it's own after couple of days.
thank you for this website. this was very helpful and reassuring. my owners want my beautiful Golden Retriever tail back. I can't wait to knock drinks off the table again!
I washed my dog after a really big run. She swam in ditch water and smelled. I washed her and she got limp tail.
It looks a little better today she is lifting it up some.
But my vet recommended pure canned pumpkin to add fiber in her diet. Not the pumpkin pis mix but the 100% pure pumpkin. She does like it...
my jack russell tail just flopped last night,wont let anyone touch him,hes 8 yrs old,hasnt had bath or been swimming but my 13 year old son got back the night before after being away for a week,dogs tail wagged alot before this happened
Great information..
Took roxy, my 10month old lab tho the beach today, after a good swim, she seemed fine, but then started crying, and whimpering, I noticed the absence of tail movement, I'm sure she has limber tail..the water was cold, and I did let her over do it a bit.feeling a bit guilty now.
Thanks for the helpful information..was starting to worrie.
This site saved us a visit to the vet and a lot of money. After our beagle mix had a bath, her tail did this exactly to the "t". With a few days rest and some baby aspirin, she healed with 72 hours. Thanks!
Eternal Evolution Level 2 Commenter 2 years ago
Interesting, never knew about this problem.