not wagging tail!

[*MaryG*]

last night we noticed pepper had stopped wagging his tail, it is just always tucked in , very unike him...he is always wagging his tail! seems ok , bit subdued, eating and pooing ok! he was a bit frightened by the fireworks seemed reluctant to jump onto the sofa. could he have sprained his tail? any ideas, i am quite worried about him.

[Ben's mum]

Is he ok moving around in general? The times Ben has been as you have described he has been a bit stiff in his back and uncomfortable. But you can see when he moves that he is not 100% and he is not able to jump on a chair.

I usually put him on complete rest for a day or two and carry him up and down stairs.

Hope Pepper is back to normal soon.

[aliceandlouis]

Aww poor Pepper - hope he is back to normal fairly soon    It could be that he is just subdued because of the fireworks, or he has tweaked his back or, as in my Louis' case recently, he had rudder tail - which is a sort of sprain/cramp issue - http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=112813.msg1638436#msg1638436

If he isn't better by morning it might be worth seeing your vet 

Lots of cuddles called for 

[elaine.e]

Because he's reluctant to jump up on the sofa I wonder if it's his back hurting him?

I agree with aliceandlouis that if he's not a lot better by tomorrow morning a visit to the vet would be a good idea. In the meantime, please don't let him go up or down stairs, or jump on the sofa or in and out of the car in case he does some further damage.

Fingers crossed it's nothing more than a pulled muscle or something similar that resolves quickly

[Mudmagnets]

Hope it's nothing serious and he is feeling better soon 

[*MaryG*]

thanks so much for all the replies. i looked up the rudder tail stuff but his tail is very stright, between his legs a lot of the time . it also seemed a bit better this afternoon when w e were wlaking, he actually wagged it once or twice. thanks so much for caring.

[aliceandlouis]

So glad he seems a bit brighter 

When Louis had his rudder tail it went out about an inch from his bottom iyswim and then went straight down to his hocks and at times was tucked right up underneath him like a whippet's tail - I guess it all depends on where the cramp/sprain is?

Good luck with the recovery x

[*MaryG*]

that's interesting, he has been holding it just like a whippet. he seems to be doing it again a bit tonight, though happier jumping up onto the sofa. i will see how he is tomorrow, if he is still doing it we will go to the vet

[AndyB]

Some years ago my previous blue roan, Harvey had this problem.  We knew something was wrong because normally his tail never stopped wagging.  We took him to the vet and he had hurt his back,  (Harvey was a very exuberant cocker).   The vet said it would have been painful for him to wag his tail.   I would  contact your vet to be on the safe side. 

[*MaryG*]

Pepper seems much better today, he has been running around, wagging his tail. either he has bruised himself or maybe he was really frightened by the fireworks and it took time to recover. i will continue to keep an eye but i think he is ok, thanks for all the advice.