# Puppy walks with a waddle...normal?



## Lucky's mom

tawny said:


> Hi,
> We just purchased a golden retriever puppy from a breeder...we've had her for about 3 weeks and she's around 10 weeks of age. We took her to the vet for a complete physical when picked her up. Doctor said she's doing great. We noticed she has a "waddle" to her walk. The vet says this is normal and she'll grow out of it when her hind legs get stronger. I've asked others who say puppies don't walk with some sort of a "waddle" and maybe she has hip problems. Can anyone comment if this is normal for a puppy?
> Thanks,
> Tom


Lucky was....and is to a much much lesser extent....a wobbler. When he was a puppy, it was a definate, all over the place wobble. He kinda walked like an "old man". Now he is a year and I haven't done Xrays yet. He has not had any limping in his hind legs. He seems to run, and cantor beautifully. 

It is easy to get paranoid. My vet was also unconcerned and basically said the same thing yours did. 

I saw an old thread regarding this and it seems that there are lots of Golden wobblers. Lots of healthy ones. So that did make me feel better.


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## Lucky's mom

By the way....welcome to the forum. Love to see pictures of your puppy.


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## LaurJen

Mine waddled too--I noticed it more when he was running, if I looked at him from behind. I think it's because at first they're wide with short legs, so they can't really help it... but as their legs grow and they get longer, their gait balances out more. At least that seems to be happening with Augie. He's about 11.5 weeks now, and his legs have really shot up overnight... and the waddle is disappearing.

I don't think you have anything to worry about, especially since the vet checked her out and thought she was fine.


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## RickGibbs

Lucky's mom said:


> By the way....welcome to the forum. Love to see pictures of your puppy.


I don't have much to add to Lucky's Mom's statement.....but I did want to say welcome, too.


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## Lynds0517

Dura does that too. She is 7.5 months now and she still runs funny. It is like she is running to one side all the time. She just can't run in a straight line. Is that a problem? It was worse when she was a younger.


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## Ninde'Gold

haha aww I remember when Tucker used to try and run when he was just 8 weeks old, his back end would swing out so it looked like he was running diagonally haha then he'd fall over...:

I'd say its a normal puppy thing  at almost 4 months, Tucker can run pretty good now... (and fast... I can't outrun him much anymore lol)


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## LaurJen

Lynds0517 said:


> Dura does that too. She is 7.5 months now and she still runs funny. It is like she is running to one side all the time. She just can't run in a straight line. Is that a problem? It was worse when she was a younger.



That would concern me at her age. It might be nothing, but maybe you should have her checked out just to be safe.


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## monomer

First of all, unlike horses and people, dogs are never born with hip dysplasia, ever! The soonest I've heard of it developing is around 5 months of age but often its later. This piece of knowledge is what offered me some comfort when Sid was a puppy. He had a pronounced waddle caused by his belly swaying from side-to-side when viewed from behind. Well even today, at 2-1/2 years of age, he often waddles when walking at a very slow pace (our previous dog, an American Eskimo, also waddled during slow walks)... I've come to think of it as a 'happy' walk. From all outwardly appearances he's always been rock solid in any athletic endeavors with no 'clicks' or 'bunny hops' or any looseness in the hip joints so I just think he must be thinking 'happy thoughts' whenever he starts to 'wiggle' on down the road.

However the 'diagonal running' remark is what's called crabbing in technical terms. Sidney does this too at certain speeds. Its caused by the front legs interfering with the hind legs on the same side during a trot gait (as opposed to pacing where the legs on the same side move in unison). By positioning himself diagonally he can prevent this interference by putting his diagonally opposite legs (just one pair) in a direct line with each other this results in a diagonal trotting. With young dogs (whose leg bones are still growing but at different rates and times) this can just be a temporary condition or it may become more exaggerated in the adult. Its nothing to be concerned about unless you are showing your dog... the judges frown upon a crabbing Golden, they believe its a sign of something other than perfect angulation of the front and back legs. Of course, I have my own interpretation of this but its too involved for a simple word explanation here. Bottom-line here is I'm not concerned with Sidney's crabbing in the least. Evidently, according to my reading, it is a very common gaiting 'fault' among Goldens but certainly nothing for the pet owner to worry about.


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## DanielleH

monomer said:


> First of all, unlike horses and people, dogs are never born with hip dysplasia, ever! The soonest I've heard of it developing is around 5 months of age but often its later. This piece of knowledge is what offered me some comfort when Sid was a puppy. He had a pronounced waddle caused by his belly swaying from side-to-side when viewed from behind. Well even today, at 2-1/2 years of age, he often waddles when walking at a very slow pace (our previous dog, an American Eskimo, also waddled during slow walks)... I've come to think of it as a 'happy' walk. From all outwardly appearances he's always been rock solid in any athletic endeavors with no 'clicks' or 'bunny hops' or any looseness in the hip joints so I just think he must be thinking 'happy thoughts' whenever he starts to 'wiggle' on down the road.
> 
> However the 'diagonal running' remark is what's called crabbing in technical terms. Sidney does this too at certain speeds. Its caused by the front legs interfering with the hind legs on the same side during a trot gait (as opposed to pacing where the legs on the same side move in unison). By positioning himself diagonally he can prevent this interference by putting his diagonally opposite legs (just one pair) in a direct line with each other this results in a diagonal trotting. With young dogs (whose leg bones are still growing but at different rates and times) this can just be a temporary condition or it may become more exaggerated in the adult. Its nothing to be concerned about unless you are showing your dog... the judges frown upon a crabbing Golden, they believe its a sign of something other than perfect angulation of the front and back legs. Of course, I have my own interpretation of this but its too involved for a simple word explanation here. Bottom-line here is I'm not concerned with Sidney's crabbing in the least. Evidently, according to my reading, it is a very common gaiting 'fault' among Goldens but certainly nothing for the pet owner to worry about.


Thank You Monomer,
I have learned some new things, from your post


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## monomer

DanielleH said:


> Thank You Monomer,
> I have learned some new things, from your post


Danielle.. So sorry I missed this...
You're very welcome. Does your dog crab or waddle, both or neither?


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## erinw

Oh, I was so thrilled to find this thread!!!!

I noticed this right away with our new Golden puppy... and I was concerned. My DH, on the other hand, said it was normal and that Comet would outgrow his "wobble" as he got bigger, stronger, less clumsy! 

Reading some of these posts makes me feel much better!!!!! Now I'll just laugh at the poor little guy, falling all over the place, lol. He's definitely NOT graceful!


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## tintallie

*Question for Monomer*



monomer said:


> First of all, unlike horses and people, dogs are never born with hip dysplasia, ever! The soonest I've heard of it developing is around 5 months of age but often its later. This piece of knowledge is what offered me some comfort when Sid was a puppy. He had a pronounced waddle caused by his belly swaying from side-to-side when viewed from behind. Well even today, at 2-1/2 years of age, he often waddles when walking at a very slow pace (our previous dog, an American Eskimo, also waddled during slow walks)... I've come to think of it as a 'happy' walk. From all outwardly appearances he's always been rock solid in any athletic endeavors with no 'clicks' or 'bunny hops' or any looseness in the hip joints so I just think he must be thinking 'happy thoughts' whenever he starts to 'wiggle' on down the road.
> 
> However the 'diagonal running' remark is what's called crabbing in technical terms. Sidney does this too at certain speeds. Its caused by the front legs interfering with the hind legs on the same side during a trot gait (as opposed to pacing where the legs on the same side move in unison). By positioning himself diagonally he can prevent this interference by putting his diagonally opposite legs (just one pair) in a direct line with each other this results in a diagonal trotting. With young dogs (whose leg bones are still growing but at different rates and times) this can just be a temporary condition or it may become more exaggerated in the adult. Its nothing to be concerned about unless you are showing your dog... the judges frown upon a crabbing Golden, they believe its a sign of something other than perfect angulation of the front and back legs. Of course, I have my own interpretation of this but its too involved for a simple word explanation here. Bottom-line here is I'm not concerned with Sidney's crabbing in the least. Evidently, according to my reading, it is a very common gaiting 'fault' among Goldens but certainly nothing for the pet owner to worry about.


My golden retriever puppy was recently in a show in the senior puppy class and the breeder was handling him. Wiggles was pacing for a good portion of the show  Monomer, do you know of anything that helps correct pacing when the legs are being used in unison? Wiggles has always waddled when walking as well since his rear legs are still longer than his front.


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## monomer

I'm not a gaiting expert... I just read a lot and have many books on many subjects... but I do observe dog movement and have tried to train my eye over the years. Though one of several natural gaiting possibilities for horses, I believe pacing is quite uncommon in dogs and I, myself, have rarely observed it in dogs... however, it is so unusual to see a dog pacing that its easy to spot if you are looking for this. Since I'm not real knowledgeable about all facets of gaiting in dogs, I'll have to go with what one 'expert' has written... its usually a sign of a dog who is tired... an example of this: its not unusual to see some dogs in a team of sled dogs near the end of a grueling race pacing... it is the easiest gait for a tired dog to maintain (I personally believe its because it uses some different sets of muscles). Remember this is not me talking... though not quite verbatim (although I could probably find those passages again if you really want me to) it comes from someone who claims to be an expert in gaiting.
Sorry I couldn't be more definitive than that.


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## King

monomer said:


> I've come to think of it as a 'happy' walk. From all outwardly appearances he's always been rock solid in any athletic endeavors with no 'clicks' or 'bunny hops' or any looseness in the hip joints so I just think he must be thinking 'happy thoughts' whenever he starts to 'wiggle' on down the road.


The 1st day we got ours I thought it was cute........ I know he will out grow it and I will just laugh or think something else is cute as he gets into things or is exploring. rolling right along :bowl:


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