Hi, I have a 7-yr. old vizsla female whose “ankle joint”, left back leg got swollen suddenly. A thumb-sized lump appeared on the joint, sometimes very hard, sometimes soft. She holds the leg in the air except when distracted on walks. This began 4 weeks agfo. We waited a week, in case it was caused by an injury and would heal itself. We saw a vet who had no idea what it was, suggested an antibiotic (in case it´s lyme disease) and an anti-inflammatory. neitehr had an efffect. Days after finishing the meds, she began to show hives, especially on the head and hind legs, now on the belly and not getting better. In addition she´s losing alot of hair. I suspect it was a reaction to the doxycycline or antiinflammatory. Anyway, it´s been over 4 weeks, the lump isn´t going away, the hives are not going away and I`m all out of ideas. She gets the same food as always, no other changes in her life, she´s still protecting the leg but acts otherwise normally and eats normally, stool is normal. I`d be grateful if you have any ideas. PS: This dogs lives in a dog pack of 4 big dogs, is chronically stressed and is living on cramped space, but this isn´t new.
Thanks, Elizabeth Sinnott (Germany)