# Spoo's back paws rub floor as he walks???



## Spencer (Oct 7, 2009)

When actually full out running, my grey, terrier x, and little poodle guy all run front legs/back legs. When just regularly walking or trotting, they do the normal movement.

As for the dragging, I'm not sure. I know that it CAN be a sign, but don't think it is a definitive one. This being said, I've never had a dysplasic dog, so I'm not sure. Occasionally, my grey as well as other hounds I have been around will drag a back foot during a walk, but it isn't an all the time occurrence like your boy seems to have.

Hope you get some answers!


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

My 6 month old puppies feet don't glide across the floor. She picks them up pretty high, actually, sort of prancy-like. She does not do the left/right like Spencer mentioned. Her gait is diagonal. When she picks up her front right, her rear left goes up at the same time and then the opposite diagonal goes. When she runs full speed she gallops kind of like a horse at first and then when she is really flying all four feet are off the ground and she's stretched out. All four feet are also off the ground for a split second when she is fast trotting. Her back feet are not together when she normally runs, but are when she is full power airborn. My husband took a video on his new smart phone today of her running at the dog park. Maybe I'll ask him to send it to me and upload it for you. (boy, that was hard to describe. I hope you got it!)

Some spoos do drag their back feet, which isn't desireable, but as far as I know it doesn't mean he has any physical disease, just that his legs are a bit long in the rear compared to the front ones or he doesn't naturally pick them up enough. 

It could VERY easily be his AGE. At 5 months old puppies grow a little lopsided, sometimes the front faster than the back and visa versa. Has he done it since he was little? If so, it may be a conformation issue. If it just started recently, I would wait a couple months. I may quickly correct itself. I did have a standard poodle with hip dysplasia and her rear legs did go weak eventually (starting at about 8 years old), but not at 5 months old. 

It could also be a bit of a neurological condition, but your vet should be able to rule that out. He or she can xray his hips if you are worried.


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## 2719 (Feb 8, 2011)

The structure of your spoo is probably what is causing this foot dragging phenomenon.

Straight shoulders, short back can all hinder the proper movement.

Also one of my late spoos could never pick up the knack of walking on hardwood. I think it was because she had tight feet. She couldn't spread them out to grip the floor ...maybe your spoo drags the feet to keep balance?

As for the kangaroo, jack rabbit movement? All my spoos have done this at one time or other...usually when they are just getting into a full out gait.


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## Carmen (Apr 27, 2011)

Maybe it is a growth thing. He hasn't done this since he was 8 weeks, but I have noticed it in the last few weeks. Maybe his back legs are longer and the front do just need to catch up.
I've had my obedience trainer take a look and she feels he's a awkward lanky puppy and will grow out of it. He didn't do it in class at all. Course it's not a flat smooth surface either. Class is outside in the grass and our hall and living area are hardwood. My vet has looked him over and thinks it's puppy awkwardness. She'd x-rayif I really requested.
he's not in pain, so I think I'm gonna continue to watch it to see if it improves.

Others, please feel free to chime in with you experiences and/or ideas.
thanks!

I've attached this pic of him at 19 weeks. The line of his body length does look to go up toward the rear, to me. I don't know if it's my eyes, pictue angle, or his line does go higher, maybe it's growth spurts instead of conformation? I hope anyway.
ideas?


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

Yes, his rear is higher than his front end and his rear feet are directly underneath his hips. I bet you anything that is what is accounting for it. It could easily be puppy awkwardness from growing unevenly. His front could grow in the next several months to catch up with the rear or else he is just built like that- no biggy. 

If you saw the parents of your puppy, that could give you a clue whether or not it is conformational or puppyhood. Did they have flat backs and stand with their rear legs slightly behind their hips? You should know by the time he is 8 months. I have never heard of this being an issue with hip dysplasia, a joint issue, but can be an issue with the angle of the hips and how they attach to the back, which is just conformational. 

For comparison, here is my pup at about 5 months old and how she naturally stands with her rear legs back behind her. She is a small spoo, though, and yours looks like he may be a much bigger dog (mine should top out at 22 inches or so), so he will have more growing pains and spurts in growth than mine does. Hope this helps.

He is a very pretty puppy! I wouldn't worry about it.


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## lushpuppy (Jul 31, 2011)

Is it a drag of the foot or a glide? My 14 year old GSD started to drag his feet, scuffing the tops of his nails, when he started having hip problems. I have, however noticed my 4 1/2 mo old spoo gliding his back feet. His hair on his feet had not been trimmed in 5 weeks, after I groomed him, the dragging stopped. I assume the hair on the bottom made it slippery (we have hardwood). Could this be the culprit?


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## Carmen (Apr 27, 2011)

Yes, they glide. He did it before and after his grooming before. We just got back from vacation yesterday, so I haven't been able to closely watch him lately to see if there is improvement. He was cared for at a family members house.

I got back a different dog. My boy had no boundaries obviously while we were away. Whew....what a crazy fella that I have to re-train. Funny weeks ahead.
 Where'd my sweet calm spoo go??? Got more work ahead of me.


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## onlypoodles4me (May 18, 2009)

I know exactly what your talking about! Many of my Sp's have done this. It's a little sliding sound, only on the back feet. You can hear the pad sliding along the smooth floor. I have seen it in many sp's and none of them had any hip problems. I think it's just a kind of a lazy shuffle. mine only do it when they are in the house, when were out and about or on pavement, no lazy walking.


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## vtomblin (Jul 18, 2010)

When Phoenix is wandering around the kitchen and being lazy he shuffles his back feet. I laugh because it sounds like an old man in slippers. But he gaits beautifully and is a champion. No hip issues etc. 99% of the time he picks up his feet. Only when he kinda wanders and is bored and lazy. The word 'walk?' cures the shuffles instantly!


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

All of mine do this back feet gliding thing walking on the hardwood. I think it is just easier. Also, when we go for a walk, all three of them are known to break into a pace occasionally due to laziness and tiredness. This is perfectly normal and pacing usually leads to back feet dragging.

Also, all 3 of my poodles, when full out running/galloping, keep their back legs pretty close together. This is normal in a gallop. What is not normal is when a dog chooses to keep their back feet together when they should be doing a normal gate.


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## sneakers012 (Jun 2, 2011)

Carmen, I am so glad you started a post on this when you did because my 4 month old just started "gliding", and my mom asked me if there was something wrong with him- if you hadn't posted, I probably would have thought there was something wrong, too! LoL But like yours, and others, he isn't in pain and only does it when he's just floating around the house, so... glide away!


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## Sookster (Apr 11, 2011)

Nova also glides her back feet on the hardwood (Sonya not so much). Nova has very tight feet and I, like others, think that it may just be an easier way to walk. 

On the subject of gait... I have been wondering about this for a while. When out in the yard, she gaits nicely in a diagonal "trot" and sort of prances around. But in the house, or if we are outside and she is being lazy or not in a hurry she "shuffles" instead of "trotting". By this I mean that instead of moving her legs together on the diagonal, she is moving both legs on the same side together at the same time, so it is sort of a "swinging" side to side gait. I hate it and think it is so ugly. Is there a way to work with her to correct this? Is it a sign of an issue somewhere? She moves really nicely when she gets in her diagonal stride and really gets moving.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

Does her rear swing back and forth when she is slowly walking? If it does it is probably conformational. Poodles prance, but sometimes they just want to slob around like the rest of us. On the other hand, there is a poodle at the dog park that doesn't prance and sort of clomps around, so not all of them prance I guess. He is really, really long legged. Maybe that is why? I am no expert, just an observation on that one nonprancing standard. I've never seen Bonnie slide her rear legs, but it sounds like many of them do? Of course, she is rarely in slow motion- LOL.


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## Sookster (Apr 11, 2011)

I feel like it is probably conformational and doesn't really matter. It's just ugly. It reminds me of how harness racing horses run. They don't gallop when they are racing, but it isn't a true trot either because the legs aren't moving on the diagonal. It's a side to side swinging motion.


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## Tina77 (Sep 17, 2021)

Carmen said:


> Maybe it is a growth thing. He hasn't done this since he was 8 weeks, but I have noticed it in the last few weeks. Maybe his back legs are longer and the front do just need to catch up.
> I've had my obedience trainer take a look and she feels he's a awkward lanky puppy and will grow out of it. He didn't do it in class at all. Course it's not a flat smooth surface either. Class is outside in the grass and our hall and living area are hardwood. My vet has looked him over and thinks it's puppy awkwardness. She'd x-rayif I really requested.
> he's not in pain, so I think I'm gonna continue to watch it to see if it improves.
> 
> ...





Carmen said:


> I am a new spoo owner. My fella is 5 months old. I'm not sure if this is a problem or this can be common in spoo growth. I'm a worried new mommy I guess.
> I've noticed that his back feet seem to glide across the floor. It's strange and weird to try to explain. But he can walk down the hall and I can tell it's him without seeing him. (Meaning I can tell which pooch it is that's coming my way).
> I've looked at his pads and toe nails, I'm not seeing any damage.
> The vet has previously looked him over and checked his hips and said they were fine.
> ...


Hi, I know this is years later since you posted, but I have a 6 month old Standard Poodle and he looks the same as the black pup. I found your post because I was searching for answers. I’m wondering if the dog leveled out on the top line or was there no change? I’m concerned as well. I hope you don’t mind me asking this question now.


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## twyla (Apr 28, 2010)

The original poster hasn't posted on the forum in 9 years, you might want to post you own thread.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Tina77 said:


> Hi, I know this is years later since you posted, but I have a 6 month old Standard Poodle and he looks the same as the black pup. I found your post because I was searching for answers. I’m wondering if the dog leveled out on the top line or was there no change? I’m concerned as well. I hope you don’t mind me asking this question now.


Welcome! You could try messaging them. That might trigger an email alert. Otherwise you’re unlikely to hear back.


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