Yelping when barely touched

[babygirl6152]

My schnauzer/ golden retr. Mix dog is happy, loving, playful, he plays with our smaller schnauzer and wrestles all day long.
Eating the same.
Sleeping and resting a bit more, lays on cold tile now for past month, rarely comes in the den with us now.
Every night he and I would cuddle on the couch, he won't jump up any more. I tried picking him up and he screamed like crazy, when I touched belly underside and another time under arms, another time supporting his hips while lifting him, screamed, helped loud every time. Even weirder going to pet him, barely touch his hair he yelps, his hips....so weird.  
My husband and I today both at different times checked every inch of his body, gently pressing joints, muscles, checked paws, claws, ears.... nothing!

All I can think of obviously is it is something we can't see. Toothache? Hemorrhoids, would worms do this?

If I were to describe in human terms, I would almost guarantee fibromyalgia, but he runs and wrestles all day long with his playmate

[Joodief]

Well, my  -in very good shape, almost nine years-old staffy/read heeler mix has been showing the same symptoms for a few years now. He is ball crazy and plays, runs  jumps all day long if you let him, but sometimes,  not always  the slightest touch at the lower end of his back and he screams in pain.
I asked the vet and he said it could be the onset of arthritis or a nerve sensitivity.  He also doesn't come on the bed or couch to cuddle as much anymore and I heard him yelp walking up the steps and ONCE when he got up on the couch.
I also thought arthritis,  but he is otherwise so active, it's so odd.

[Byedude]

It's a dog thing.. When people who are nice to them touch them, they get all extra sensitive, like "ooww you hurt mee I'm a babyy".

Whereas when people who are kinda rough to them touch them, they roughen up and are like "you don't hurt me I'm tough". My pitbull does this all the time. Dogs can be fake man. Smh

[Dani45640]

U may be right but my pit is also lethargic and in obvious pain won't even jump anymore and used to jump all the time she's only 3 but can't afford vet, def at a loss here and feel horrible.scared for her as well

[Drwinkles]

My beagle is 15 yrs old. Has some growths on her, etc. She started the yelping for no reason and walks stiff as well. Went to vet today, x-rays showed arthritis in her spine and blood work back normal. $256 for peace of mind and pain meds. Go to the vet and have them examined!

[fletchlives]

my mixed chilwauwa/rat terrier will be 16 years old in november and he loves to play and long walks and no problem picking him upi,however in the last couple months after he sleeps the night i get up early and go to barely rub him and he cries on his backside right hip,but after he gets up walks a little then it all goes away,seems to me he has arthritis i myself have artritis and i wake up my bones are stiff and hurt after i walk around a little it eases,anyone know any home remedies to treat a dog for arthritis pain and what over the counter things can we give a dog.im disabled and cant afford go to the vet anymore they want to do bloodwork and charge big bills id love take him just not possible. thank you and im sorry hear all our loving pets are in pain.

[harley1388]

I know this is an old post, but is your dog on lasix? My rat terrier has heart failure so hes on Lasix, among other meds. I've noticed after going a few days straight taking the Lasix he'll have a weird episode where he just start limping & whining out of nowhere (anytime of day/after any activity). It lasts about 2 mins & then he's back to normal. I think its associated to getting cramps from the Lasix, but I haven't been able to confirm it with the vet.

[bluestaff]

i am having the same problem with my 14 week blue staff ***** today and yesterday, she plays with the bigger dogs play fighting and not a peep the only thing i think it might be is she is sore? she went on a long walk with the older dogs and ran trying to keep up, when she got home she played with the kids not a peep was picking her up and still not a peep then she went to bed for a couple of hours then she cam to get on the couch and she started yelping in pain when i picked er up and been doing it since, Could this be muscle pain caused by going out to long with her being young? thanks

[bluestaff]

i am having the same problem with my 14 week blue staff ***** today and yesterday, she plays with the bigger dogs play fighting and not a peep the only thing i think it might be is she is sore? she went on a long walk with the older dogs and ran trying to keep up, when she got home she played with the kids not a peep was picking her up and still not a peep then she went to bed for a couple of hours then she came to get on the couch and she started yelping in pain when i picked her up and been doing it since, Could this be muscle pain caused by going out to long with her being young? thanks

[jeffiesgal]

Our 9wk puppies got into some garbage that was the fridge cleanout bag. They didn't eat yesterday and my husband gave them each a small squirt of pepto and today 3 of 9 were better.  The others wouldn't eat this morning and I gave them a few squirts of water to hydrate them.  They are very lethargic and obviously not feeling well.  Will try the honey water next, any other ideas?

[Mydogsarethebest]

I have a 10 almost 11 year old Beagle he is my buddy and long time pal. Over the past few years he has slowly gone down hill, here within the last year he has started yelping even if you go to brush up against him and dont even touch him, he will walk really slow up and down stairs he will stand and just stair into space like he forgot what he was doing or was going to do. I am worried even his body has gotten to be kind of taunt like a drum if you understand what I mean, you can rub a dog an your hand kind of sinks into their skin and stuff but on him it is like he has a football blown up inside him and your hand dont sink in anylonger. I realize his days are numbered on this planet but I really dont want it to end this soon, Is there a vet out there with any ideas?

[homecrafter]

Our recent experience, just to throw it out there.  So our 15 month old Dal experienced some strange neck/shoulder twitch incidents (lasting 20 min to 1 hour) since August.  We thought just a muscle/tendon strain in neck.  He would bounce back to what appeared to be completely normal after these bouts that happened the day or night after a play date with another dog.

Last Friday he woke up and deteriorated thruout the day.  We couldn't even touch him without him reacting. His back became arched, head down, 104 temp. and could hardly find a good position to lay and hold his head, or even walk.  Monday we saw a Neurologist , did MRI and Spinal tap.  Diagnosis, SRMA=steroidal responsive meningitis.  This means inflammation of the meninges which encases the spinal cord and brain.  It was extremely painful and very serious.  He is now on a 6 month course of steroids, which makes us sick to give him that long but after extensive research this is the only course of treatment.  The steroids taper thruout the 6 months, and there are options to add Cyclosporine part way thru (which I now need to research) to allow us to stop the steroids sooner.  Theory is that it's an autoimmune disease in our case, and shutting down the immune system and re-booting is the best course.
Anyways, don't want to scare anyone into thinking their pups have this same meningitis issue, but it is good to be aware of it to maybe throw it out there to your Vets as a possibility.
Best of luck.  Our dog is our life and we feel for all of you having to go thru these things.    

[jjgirl123]

My 4 year old chihuahua has been acting strange since the morning. I went to pet her and she screamed. She does not let me pick her up or let me give her a belly rub. But with my sister, she lets her give her belly rubs, carry her, and pet her. It could be nerve inflammation, intaverteble disk disease, or static electricity. But it is up to you to find out what is wrong with your dog. Good Luck!

[jjgirl123]

My 4 year old chihuahua has been acting strange since the morning. I went to pet her and she screamed. She does not let me pick her up or let me give her a belly rub. But with my sister, she lets her give her belly rubs, carry her, and pet her. It could be nerve inflammation, intaverteble disk disease, or static electricity. But it is up to you to find out what is wrong with your dog. Good Luck!

[TinyPaws]

I have a 3lb Yorkie.

This started about 3 weeks ago. He is 11 months old. My dog yelps when I barely touch his fur. Yelps when my roommate or myself picks him up. Yelps occasionally if he bends down to pick up a toy. Yelps when I bend down to open up his crate to be let out. Shakes and cowers at random times. Occasionally has difficulty going DOWN the stairs but never up. He used to love to be picked up and held upside down. Sits down funny now, instead of on his butt he is on his haunches, or the balls of his back feet. His poop seems off as well - almost as if he is constipated. Vets can't find anything worng with him and I have taken him to 3 different vets for observation. It's almost as if it is behavioral. He tucks his tail under and pins his ears back and hides under the kitchen table. Though he will play with the other dog in the house (Yorkie/Schnauzer mix) just fine and has energy. The other dog might play a bit rough and he will yelp once but they will continue to play like nothing happened. I am so stressed out as I cannot afford an MRI / CT scan. I don't know what to do.

[chimompdx]

My chihuahua has started similar behavior (screaming when I reach down to pick him up) but when I try to find the area of pain by petting and touching him he doesn't cry.  His front legs seem weak at times and then a few minutes later he'll run climb stairs.  Vet tomorrow and I hope he'll get some pain relief.  I'm just heartbroken when he cries.

[JanisM13]

From what you are saying it could be possible your dog
is having issues with her anal glads but this would just
be a guess.
IT IS POSSIBLE if the glands are the problem you DO
NEED TO GO TO YOUR VET as this could cause her
a lot of pain...THIS WILL NOT JUST GET BETTER on
it's own. SHE IS IN REAL PAIN and I would take her
into your vet AS SOON AS POSSIBLE...if not her anal
glands the vet will know how to help her...PLEASE GO
INTO YOUR VET DO NOT LET HER STAY IN THIS
KIND OF PAIN any longer!
Jan

[Gotdogprobs]

My dog is acting really strange today. I came home and she just started yelping. I checked for sore spots and she screamed when I barely touched the hair on the middle section of her tail. About 20 minutes later I started feeling her tail again but she didn't yelp until I touched the area where her tail connects with her back. This is the first time she has ever done this... This has gotten me very worried. Also just last night her anal gland started to squeeze some "butt juices" out... Could it be related to her being in so much pain? Please help, I'm crying so much... I don't want her to go through any sort of pain! It kills me to watch her suffer, I need to figure out what's wrong before it's too late...

[jrsdad]

I have had min pins for years. They all yelp randomly. Stop wasting your money on vets. They are just weird little dogs.

[Sarah483]

hi!
We are having the same problem with or dog but he has an ear infection. We give him these special drops in his ears but everytime  we pick him up he yelps. Even the slightest touch he still screams. He  only yelps though when we tough under his arm or where is rip cage is. This has been happening for a couple of days and we have already taken him to the vet. The vet touched every inch of him but he didn't yelp at all!  We think he might have another problem but we are not sure!

[DeedlesMom]

Keep us updated. My min pin yelp this morning when I went to pet him, but within mins he let me pick him up. It was odd. His behavior is like your dog.

[doglover1230]

My miniature pinscher is going through the same thing.  Tested for hypothyroidism, and the final definitive test came back negative.  She was on a maintenance dose of prednisone (1/4 tablet twice a week) until the end of April and was decently normal, other than avoiding touch.  Just this weekend, it started again. She'll yelp when I approach her crate to let her out after work.  She will yelp as I open the door.  She used to be my "cuddle bug." Couldn't get her away from me to get any work done!  But now, rolling onto her back doesn't happen.  Sometimes, laptime does occur, but not for extended periods of time.

Currently, she will often choose hard surfaces to lay down.  When my husband comes home, her tail wags and he pets her with no issue.  She will play with toys and chase things for extended periods of time.  She is eating and drinking normally, but has begun to turn her nose up at treats that used to be her favorite (not all treats, just some). We have a vet appointment on Thursday, but this has been an ongoing cycle since last June.  An X-ray simply revealed inflammation in the spinal column, but the vet didn't seem too concerned.

[Petfriend]

Dogs that suddenly have touch or behavior and obedience sensitivity may have dementia or mental dysfunction due to hormone and endocrine system issues.  As they get older, they will feel pain, especially if they are out of shape.  However, their reasoning cognitive mind begins to fail as they age.  Some dogs will think that the pain is coming from some external force - like you when you pick them up.  Or sometimes, they have forgotten how to understand basic cooperative training.  They perceive all of their discomfort as somehow attacking them from the outside and do not realize that their discomfort is coming from some internal factor.  Dogs cannot reason and say to themselves, "I think I am forgetting how to relate and behavior towards my human."  They simply respond with the most easiest and instinctive emotion available which is usually fear or some kind of unhappy response to actions around them or affecting them like touch.

One person may be able to play with the dog and touch the dog and another may not be able to at all without the dog falling apart at the seams.  This may be, but not always, due to some dementia or neuro dysfunction of the brain.  It may also be heart related.  Dogs have irregular heart beats which are supposed to be "normal" for dogs.  However, I believe that generations of poor breeding has left our dogs with dysfunctioning organs and erratic heart functions which also, as you know with people, can affect the mind.  Heart function is related to mind wellness and unfortunately, some dogs have over-heated rapid heart rates that tend to "burn" them up. This tends to create emotional instability as a dog ages.  

As they age, their organ functions, hormone systems, and endocrine systems can get out of wack long before their physical body shows any signs of breakdown.  Some dogs have strong bodies and some have strong healthy minds but not all dogs have it all.

Fear seems to come out in a dog as they age more.  Things they used to be totally fine with can become something dreadful later.   This is because normal hormone functions they used to have (or would have had if they were not fixed), would gradually see them into their old age.  But because the dogs do not have the hormone balance they would have if they were not fixed, they can fall apart more easily and degenerate quickly in mind or body - or both.  

[Margot49]

Ginger gave you good advice and it may be worth checking into.

When your partner plays with the dog, is there actual body contact or just playing with toys, etc?  

When you touch the dog, how do you do so and where, Ie, picking him up, touching his head, back, leg?  

Have you or your partner gone over the dog, slowly and thoroughly, to see if there are any tender spots?  I would start there.

Not making light of this but some small dogs can just be a bit overdramatic.  I have a Chihuahua mix here that can be that way.  Sometimes we will pick her up and she will yelp for no damn reason.  She is very foot sensitive and sometimes will yelp if you touch her foot, any foot.  So, I work on feet handling just to get her used to it and realize every time her foot is touched does not mean she is getting nails cut!  

So, do a little more observation and see if you can possibly determine a cause.

[ginger899]

Well, if you try touching the ground firmly before touching him. Touching the ground should discharge any static if it was that. If he still yelps then he needs to see a vet.
He couldn't be screaming when you touch him because he didn't see you coming? And it gives him a scare? In which case it might be a vision problem (peripheral vision)
But that's just a guess on my part. So it might be best to take him to be checked out.

[Anubis9999]

I am having the exact same issue with my Chihuahua .
The strange thing is, my partner plays with him all the time, and no yelping.
Then sometimes I'll go to barely touch him, and he screams

Is there a static Discharge we could be giving off that we don't feel, but is painful to our dogs ?

Please Someone help. this is very sad.

[Axelvejar24]

Me to its a mini chihuahua he starts screaming and yelping I went out for a run with my sister and he and when I came back I tried to pet  to Him and he started crying I've had him for a year and a half ever sincentives he was born and he was his tail and tries to cuddle but if we try to pet him he starts yelping and biting

[Axelvejar24]

Me to its a mini chihuahua he starts screaming and yelping I went out for a run with my sister and he and when I came back I tried to pet  to Him and he started crying I've had him for a year and a half ever sincentives he was born and he was his tail and tries to cuddle but if we try to pet him he starts yelping and biting

[Axelvejar24]

Sorry it posted it twice but also the thing that worry so me the most is that he comes to cuddle with me and my family but if we try to pet him it screams as if we hurt him he keeps wagging his tail but he bites us.

[babygirl6152]

Were thinking maybe his tail now, its a muscle I guess we found a scab on it also, it would explain him helping when we walk by him even barely touching him because he has to move out of the way so fast. Today, no crying. Will monitor one week. Thanks
:-)