Geriatric Yorkshire Terrier Limping: How Bad Could It Be?Have you seen your old Yorkie Terrier limping? If your pet just recently jumped from a bed or maybe off of the chair, that could be the reason for the limp. Hopefully, the injury is not as severe. Check carefully that there is nothing stuck between his toes or onto his pads – you should be able to determine if you need to seek a veterinarian’s assistance.

If nothing more seems to be the problem, does your geriatric Yorkie have a medical condition known as Luxating Patella- meaning his back leg kneecaps dislocate or slip? This happens because the groove in the femur needs to be deeper. The treatment for this in Yorkshire Terriers limping intermittently – if properly diagnosed – is surgery.

Slipping kneecaps or luxating patella is usually hereditary. A Yorkie can have badly slipping kneecaps and not manifest any signs of discomfort and pain when he is running, playing, walking, or jumping. If you suspect your Yorkie has this condition, better to observe and wait first, and see how he goes along before having surgery.

With slipping kneecaps, the knee would slip out and the Yorkie would be able to straighten it out himself, if not, you gently move it back into place. But there will come a time that your Yorkie will get up, but the difficulty lies in holding his back legs up. Sure, he will continue to walk on as usual, but no more jumping and running.

If your geriatric Yorkie appears to be bothered by any conditions that seriously require veterinary assistance, please be certain you listen carefully and observe how the vet and the assistants look after your pet. If you are the least bit uncomfortable with anything about the care of your Yorkie, keep looking for another vet.

It is commonly thought that slipping kneecaps can lead to arthritis if not surgically repaired. That may be true, as in the last months of his life, the Yorkie would lose his balance, as his back leg did not really support him anymore and then he would fall over, which would eventually lead to him howling in utter pain.

He would be on his side, very stiff and you would rush to pick him up. Then the pain would subside and he was normal again – like nothing happened. This will very well happen a few times times during the night – you can imagine the heart stopping panic Yorkie owners experienced, awakened by the sudden howling. They also did not know how and what to do to with their Yorkie that is suffering from luxating patella – especially if this condition is not diagnosed yet.

Of course, to be more certain, you should ask the vet about this. luxating patella can eventually lead to arthritis, and arthritis and there was nothing she could do for a geriatric Yorkshire terrier limping intermittently. Surgery cannot be done on the Yorkie because of old age.