September is Animal Pain Awareness month, and I am sharing the story of Lex, one of my working springer spaniels, and how pain affected his early life.

This blog discusses our journey from when the first signs of a problem started, through behaviour changes, diagnosis, treatment and recovery. There is no doubt in my mind that these events changed Lex’s life forever and I sometimes wonder what life would have been like if things had been different. Nevertheless, as I write this with him snoozing next to me, I feel great pride for the way we have navigated our struggles and come out the other side!

The Beginning of our Story

Lex came to us when he was 7 weeks old. He was a dream come true, I loved him deeply from the beginning. I wanted to train him to be a working gun dog. He was a perfect puppy, so sweet and loving and not overly crazy. He fitted in well, and got on with Bruce, our older springer from the get go.

He always liked to be close to someone, crate training wasn’t for him. The breeder told us that when she took his litter for their vet check up before leaving for their new homes, Lex was the one puppy that cried all the way there, and all the way back home. He was a sensitive little soul. Despite that, he was an engaging puppy and responded beautifully to training. Our bond developed from the beginning.

Something Isn’t Right

At the age of about six months, I began to notice subtle changes. He experienced intermittent lameness, it was very slight and I would look at him and think ‘Is he limping?’ Then it would disappear.

Initially there were no other signs. Suddenly around eight months it hit him like a tidal wave, there was a huge shift in his behaviour.

His arousal (activity) was off the scale, his movements were explosive, given the chance he would run laps around the garden, recall was gone. Calmness outside the house was impossible. I used to take him into the garden on a lead to prevent him from running laps, and so great were the combination of his strength and arousal, I would often find myself pulled over or slammed into a tree.

In the house, he would pace, he learned to open the back door and let himself in the garden. He was fixated on movement both in the home and outside, he would stare at shadows and lights and the movement of the trees in the garden. He was also vocal, whining and whimpering when left and he had huge fear of missing out and he needed to be involved in everything.

He had great difficulty resting and settling, and as he was so reluctant to go in a crate, spent long periods of time in the house, on a lead.

Management of the environment became very important in order to reduce Lex’s options to engage in behaviours which were not helpful for his mental and ohysical wellbeing.

All credit to this amazing dog, he didn’t once show any aggression. He was always sweet.

At the time, it didn’t occur to me that his behaviour was due to pain. I thought this was adolescence in a working dog. I interpreted the overarousal as poor impulse control or “just being excitable,” and something I needed to address with training, especially as I knew that in his pedigree there were a number of Field Trial Champion dogs.

Pain creates tension which can lead to overarousal; for dogs with high drive, like Lex, the tension spills out as frantic energy, barking, spinning, or even hyper-focus. It’s not misbehaviour, it’s a response to pain. Over time, overexcitement can become a coping mechanism, and a habit as the dog tries to release the pressure they’re feeling inside.

Diagnosis

We visited our local vet a couple of times about the intermittent lameness, as the symptoms were never present when Lex was seen, the vet wasn’t convinced there was anything wrong. On the second visit (we were now in lockdown due to the Covid pandemic) we had a very difficult consultation in the garden of the vet surgery. Lex was jumping around like a wild animal on the end of a lead, and this, combined with traffic noise, and a vet who did not have English as a first language, meant I couldn’t explain the situation properly nor understand the plan. Lex was prescribed a short course of Metacam, he had one dose and got the most awful upset tummy so I didn’t continue it.

I asked for an x-ray as the lameness was still happening. In June 2020, during the height of the Covid pandemic, veterinary services were stretched thin, and we waited a month for a result, it was an agonising delay because I didn’t know what was wrong with Lex, I couldn’t get him the care he needed and I was struggling to manage his difficult behaviour.

The x-ray showed an abnormality of Lex’s left shoulder. He was diagnosed with osteochondritis dissecans (OCD). This is an inflammatory orthopaedic condition which often presents around adolescence. OCD occurs when the cartilage on a joint surface is damaged, sometimes a cartilage flap can form which causes pain during movement. Sometimes, the flap separates from the joint surface causing further damage to the joint. In Lex’s case, the flap had separated but could not be found. OCD most commonly affects the shoulder (humeral head), in Lex’s case it was the left side and surgery was the only treatment option.

Treatment

The procedure involved removing the diseased fragment of bone and placing an implant over the affected area. This operation was recommended as it would reduce the risk of arthritis later. It was a daunting decision, made even harder by the long wait and the emotional toll of watching Lex struggle. There wasn’t a choice, it was a chance to give him comfort, restore him to fitness, and for me to pursue my dream of training him to be a gun dog.

Post Operative Complications

Initially the recovery went well, but at 14 days, Lex was lame again. He had developed a post-operative infection. During the time that followed, Lex had a prolonged course of antibiotics and pain killers and he became progressively more lame. He wasn’t weight bearing on his front left leg and had severe muscle wasting. It was heartbreaking. He needed a second surgery to remove the implant and clear the infection. This was major surgery, he was in hospital for 5 days.

Post Operative Recovery

Recovery took time. We followed a carefully managed rehabilitation plan, focusing on gentle movement, and controlled exercise. We were now in the second lockdown of 2020 and physiotherapy support was limited. We did what we could at home. I wish I could say that Lex’s behaviour settled rapidly after the surgery but that wasn’t the case. It took months.

I think after being in pain and discomfort for so long, it was difficult for Lex to adjust, he continued to experience periods of massive over arousal and hyperactivity especially outside the house. The healing process wasn’t just physical, it was emotional, too, and not just for Lex, for me as well.

Lex’s journey through pain, surgery, infection, and recovery has shaped not only his life, but mine. It taught me that behaviour is an indicator of how our dogs are feeling both physically and emotionally. What looked like overexcitement and naughtiness was, in truth, a dog in with pain and discomfort.

I have learned how deeply pain can affect a dog’s emotions and behaviour, and how vital it is for us, as owners and trainers, to ‘stay curious’, and ask ourselves why our animal’s behaviour has changed.

I hope Lex’s story encourages others to look a little closer. If your dog seems “off,” reactive, withdrawn, or just not themselves, consider the possibility of pain. Seek support from a professional, a vet or behaviourist, ask questions. Advocate for them.

Epilogue - Where are we now?

Lex is six. He has had one or two short episodes of lameness since his surgery but remains fit apart from that. We maintain a level plain of exercise to avoid stressing his shoulder. He has a good diet and remains lean. He takes a joint supplement daily.

We have worked consistently on our gun dog training and he loves it. He’s a keen hunter and retriever with bags of drive and enthusiasm. His favourite thing in the whole world is water training, sometimes we train at a beautiful lake, it’s his favourite place. I can’t guarantee steadiness around the lake but I’m pretty sure we’ll see an awesome retrieve or two.

I’m incredibly proud to say Lex has worked on the beating line, he hunts well and stays close and shares my sausage roll at Elevenses. The journey has been a roller coaster and the effort immense, but so worth it.

And Me?

I am now a professional dog trainer.

My experience with Lex has influenced my approach to training. Here’s some of the things I have learned;

Often life will take an unexpected turn and when that happens, we can reappraise and pick up where we left off, or start again.

Training takes time, breaking training down into small steps is the best way to achieve success.

Sometimes we have to revisit an aspect of training that we thought we had nailed! Sometimes we have to do this many times!

Every dog is different, and whilst it’s important to understand the science of dog training, we should remember that there is an art to dog training. And this allows us to be creative in our approach and think outside the box in order to bring out the best in a dog and human partnership.

If you would like to know more, fill in my contact form here.

For more perspective about pain in dogs, see this blog post from Pawfect K9 Walks.

Animal Pain Awareness Month - My Dog’s Journey with Osteochondritis Dissecans