Dog Shaking and Limping – What’s the Cause?

There is nothing better than having a pet dog. The shadowing worry that takes over your mind when something happens to your dog is relatable amongst all dog owners. In some cases, dogs display an unusual episode of shaking. There is no doubt that your concerns will amplify greatly when your dog begins to shiver. The tremors that run across the dog’s body leaves us thinking about all sorts of health concerns. However, there are many reasons why dogs undergo shivering, some severe, but most not so serious. So if you are looking for the answer to “why is my dog shivering and shaking?” then you should know that only a professional veterinarian can provide you with the exact answer. Nevertheless, you can still diagnose the severity of your dog’s illness by analyzing the other symptoms along with muscle tremors. A pup is more likely to shiver at a very young age. However, this does not mean that they are particularly unwell. The first thing that can come to your mind when you see your dog shivering is that they are cold. However, if providing your pet with warmth does not stop them from shivering, it indicates that there may be other problems such as generalized tremor syndrome or maybe an infection. 

Many reasons can contribute to a dog shaking or limping. Some are life-threatening and require intensive care, while others go away after a couple days of medication. 

Like humans, dogs are likely to shiver in the face of cold temperatures. Shivering or shaking allows their body to create movement as the body’s normal reaction to generate heat when feeling cold. Therefore, if your dog is shivering due of cold temperature, put a warm sweater or blanket on them to increase their body temperature.  

In contrast to shivering due to feeling cold, the dog can also shiver in response to a heat stroke. This occurs when your pet experiences extreme hot temperatures. Getting rid of a heat stroke often just requires you to hydrate your dog. Whether the dog shivers out of extreme hot or cold temperature, both these causes of shivering are less severe and adjusting your pet’s body temperature is the solution. 

Another reason why your furry companion may be shivering is fever, or hyperthermia. Fever causes a sudden increase in temperature for a dog, which can have them trembling and shivering.  The optimum temperature of a healthy dog ranges between 100 and 102 degrees Fahrenheit. Thus, if the rectal temperature of your dog is anything above that, then you may have to take your dog to the vet. A feverish reaction is a symptomatic outcome of an infection or a virus. The body’s natural response is to increase the temperature to kill the microbial invasion inside the dog’s body. Fevers typically need veterinarian’s attention for the diagnosis. If the shivering occurs due to a mild fever, the vet may prescribe the dog with some medication that you can give your dog yourself. 

Trembling or limping in dogs can also be caused by an injury. If your dog is healthy but begins to shiver all of a sudden, then you should see if they have an injury. Sometimes dogs will run into a hard object or wander off into the garden just to come back with a sharp object poked inside its feet. In this case, if the wound’s condition is severe, then you must visit the vet immediately. 

Sometimes dogs will shake or limp as they get older which is quite similar to old people. Tremors in hind legs are very common in old dogs. If your dog is aging, there is no cure to prevent the tremors, except for making sure that they do not run into the house furniture and injure themselves.

Shaking in dogs is also indicative of certain illness. Some illnesses can lead to hormonal imbalance, kidney failure or neurological disorders. Usually, shaking or tremors accompanied by other symptoms may be an indication of an illness. If you see such symptoms that point to the signs of a disease, take your dog to the vet immediately.  

Another cause that makes dogs shiver and shake is food poisoning. Dogs have a bad but instinctive habit to sniff around and chew on whatever items they find on the ground. This makes them susceptible to poisoning.  Dogs that are suffering from this will often shiver from excessive diarrhea and vomiting. Hence, if your canine pet shows  signs of diarrhea, muscle weakness, you must take them to a vet. The common treatments are medication and avoidance of certain kinds of edibles that are harmful for a canine’s stomach. Even though this is not an emergency situation, veterinarian attention and diagnosis is still necessary. If the symptoms worsen, then you may have to take your canine companion to the animal poison control center for treatment.  

Also known as shaker syndrome. This disorder has a negative impact on the central nervous system of a dog. Veterinarians perform treatment for generalized tremor syndrome by looking at it as an inflammation of the brain. This disorder is mostly common in small dogs. However, dogs of all sizes experience it as well.  No one knows the reasons as to why it is more common with smaller sized dogs. Many people confuse GTS with other disorders such as hypothermia and sickness. If you find your pet trembling without any specific causes, they may be suffering from GTS. Nonetheless, it is important that you take them to the vet to be certain. If the search for the causes ends up in the positive diagnosis of this condition, then the vet will likely prescribe your pet with corticosteroids to reduce inflammation. Other symptoms of tremor syndrome include:

Small breeds of dogs have a problem with low glucose level. Breeds like chihuahuas and pomeranians may experience trembling and stumble upon things because they are low on sugar level. Apart from trembling, there are more physical symptoms that a dog will face in when low on glucose levels. These include:

Low blood pressure is often a result of depriving your dog from a meal for a long period of time. Therefore, if you ever find yourself in a situation where you forget to feed your pet and they start to show these signs, then you must rush them to the vet. 

Dogs are highly excited pets, and even the smallest of things can raise their blood pressure in excitement. Adrenaline is a chemical that is released inside the body in the instances of either fear or adventure. A veterinarian will inform you to expect a trembling response from the dog whenever something excites them or scares them. The sign of trembling in these instances is normal, and there is no need to take them to the clinic. 

A canine distemper is a virus that is most common in small canine pets. It affects puppies the most. This virus is the most dangerous one for pups that does not get vaccinated.  So, make sure you get your small ones vaccinated–do not put their health in risk making them vulnerable to distemper. Early signs of canine distemper are evident in the form of shaking, lameness, fever, vomiting and more. 

If your dog is shaking excessively, then they may also be undergoing epilepsy, which also leads to intense seizures. Apparently, there are no causes of idiopathic epilepsy; hence, take your dog to the veterinarian if you think they are at a serious risk of the disease. 

Shaking is definitely a sign of pain in canines. In other words, you can say that shaking is a response to pain in dogs. Moreover, shaking can also be an indication of pain. If the dog’s legs are shaking, this means that they are facing discomfort in that particular area. 

Call the veterinarian  when you start seeing the emergence of other symptoms that begin to accompany the shaking. Facing multiple symptoms usually indicates something severe and you should not take it lightly. 

The diagnosis and treatment of your pets usually begin by checking their age, body weight and symptoms. Sometimes, part of the problem exists in the dog’s diet, hence the veterinarian suggesting a different meal plan for your furry-four legged friend. Other times, the diagnosis leads to a serious concern and more critical emergency problems such as shaker dog syndrome, nose discharge, arthritis, hip dysplasia and more. 

CBD is a chemical compound that you can find naturally inside a cannabis plant. The name CBD refers to (cannabidiol), which is a non-psychoactive phytocannabinoid.  In recent studies, CBD has shown impressive results in treating discomfort and other illnesses in dogs. For example, if your pet suffers from pain because of their hip dysplasia, or damage to the legs, daily drops of CBD oil will help immensely. 

If your primary concern is the limping discomfort that your furry companion suffers from, then you can provide them ailment in the shape of CBD. CBD can help make the discomfort better to an extent so that the dog does not have to face any trouble when walking short distances.  You can find numerous treats that can help with different types of discomfort. A limp comes from the existing leg discomfort usually, and you can possibly treat it using CBD. Of course before this, always contact your vet for approval.

Similarly, you can also use the calming properties of the holistic CBD to calm the canine. CBD treats for relaxation also exist, along with pain relievers.  

Despite its amazing reviews, CBD is not the answer to any illness, therefore you should not use it as a primary treatment. Instead, ask your veterinarian about any questions before adding the holistic treatment in your dog’s diet.  Hopefully, this article will help you better address the questions regarding tremors. 

Yes. Shaking or shivering can be a sign of pain or illness in dogs. These can also be symptoms of more serious ailments such as distemper or hypoglycemia.

Take your dog to the vet for limping when it is the result of injuries or if the limping is accompanied by other symptoms which may be the result of certain illnesses.

If there is no evident or superficial reason why your dog is trembling, it may be symptoms of something more serious like distemper, poisoning, or internal injuries.