If your dog suddenly seems uncomfortable and hesitant to sit or is walking around with their tail drooping between their legs, you may be wondering, “Why is my dog’s tail down?” Other online resources you seek out may have you thinking your dog has a serious injury or is nervous or scared. But there’s another common explanation that many dog owners may not have heard of: swimmer’s tail.
What Is Swimmer’s Tail?
Swimmer’s tail is essentially a tail sprain that occurs when a dog overuses the muscles in their tail. This condition, known medically as acute caudal myopathy, is typically painful for dogs and can cause them to hold their tail down or keep it between their legs. If you’ve ever overdone it at the gym or pushed your body too hard doing housework and ended up with sore muscles the next day, you’ll have a pretty good idea of how a dog with swimmer’s tail feels. In addition to swimmer’s tail, this condition can be referred to by several other names, including:
- Limber tail syndrome
- Cold water tail
- Broken tail (though this name is misleading since no bones are broken)
- Dead tail
- Tail pull injury
- Broken wag
- Hunting dog tail
- Sprung tail
While the terminology may be different depending on who you ask, the hallmarks of the condition remain the same: sudden onset of a limp and flaccid tail. Dogs affected by swimmer’s tail will often show:
- A limp tail that hangs straight down or sticks out a few inches before drooping
- Pain or sensitivity when the tail is touched
- Difficulty sitting or finding a comfortable position
- Reduced tail wagging or signs of discomfort during movement
Though these signs may look alarming and have owners assuming their dog has a more serious injury, swimmer’s tail generally isn’t considered an emergency, and many dogs will recover quickly, with average recovery times between 2-14 days.
Common Causes of Swimmer’s Tail
While the name “swimmer’s tail” suggests that swimming is involved in developing the condition, that isn’t always the case. While overuse of the tail muscles during extended swimming sessions – especially in cold water – can contribute to a sprained dog tail, there are a number of other factors that can play a part in a dog developing swimmer’s tail. These can include:
- Swimming or prolonged activity, especially in cold water that the dog is not used to
- Sudden bursts of exercise after a period of rest
- General overuse of tail muscles from excitement, prolonged wagging, working, or hunting
- Crate confinement for long periods, limiting normal tail movement
- Exposure to cold temperatures without a proper warm-up
Symptoms of swimmer’s tail will typically be noticeable within a few hours of these activities, making the onset of swimmer’s tail in dogs rather quick. Your dog may seem fine after the initial activity, but will typically begin showing signs of pain or discomfort within the next 24 hours.
Cold water can exacerbate a sprained dog tail because cold water can constrict blood vessels and cause muscle fatigue, especially in the tail’s base. The combination of cold water and prolonged activity makes it more likely for the muscles to become strained or inflamed and for your dog to exhibit symptoms sooner. In some cases, even a cold bath, meant to cool a dog down in warmer temperatures, could cause symptoms of the swimmer's tail.
Breeds Prone to Swimmer’s Tail and Tail Sprains
Swimmer’s tail tends to occur more frequently in dogs that are physically active; this includes working or water-loving breeds, especially those with long and heavy tails.
- Labrador Retrievers
- Golden Retrievers
- Pointers
- Setters
- Beagles
- Foxhounds
- Vizslas
- Weimaraners
- Brittany Spaniels
- English Springer Spaniels
Retriever breeds and pointers top this list due to their energetic nature, love of water, and athletic predispositions. These dogs will spend hours swimming and playing in the water if you let them and all of that activity can take a toll on their tail muscles. When dogs swim, they’re not only using their tails to balance and maneuver their bodies through the water, but also to wag and shake off excess water from their coats. With all of that movement and the additional weight of a large, wet tail, it’s not surprising that a dog’s tail muscles can be quickly fatigued, causing inflammation that can last for a few days.
However, just because your dog’s breed isn’t on the list doesn’t mean you're in the clear and never have to worry about a sprained dog tail. While it’s most common for these breeds to develop swimmer’s tail, the reality is that any dog can suffer from this kind of tail sprain under the right conditions, so it’s important for owners to keep a close eye on their dog after strenuous activity, exposure to the cold, or prolonged confinement.
Don’t Get That Tail Twisted: Other Injuries That Share Symptoms with Swimmer’s Tail
Because swimmer’s tail can share so many symptoms with other more serious conditions, it’s important to get in touch with your family veterinarian right away if you notice that your dog’s tail has gone limp or if they are showing any concerning signs of pain or discomfort.
Fractures: Can a dog break their tail? Yes! But it’s important to know that a broken dog tail is very different from a tail sprain, like swimmer’s tail, because of the presence of an actual bone fracture, as opposed to muscle soreness and exhaustion. Both swimmer’s tail and a broken tail can cause pain and tail limpness, so it’s important to reach out to your veterinarian ASAP if you have any concerns about your dog’s tail.
Dislocations: Similarly, if your dog has a dislocated tail, they’re likely to show typical symptoms of pain and discomfort in the tail area. However, in many cases of tail dislocation, you’ll be able to visually notice a deformity on your dog’s tail where the dislocation has occurred. Pain will also be more localized and acute, primarily affecting the area of dislocation and not the tail as a whole.
Infections: Infections are another condition that can occur in the tail area and cause swelling and pain. Infections can very well be mistaken for swimmer’s tail if your dog has a cut or wound on their tail that was exposed to bacteria – something that could easily happen if your dog was swimming. Unlike swimmer’s tail, infections won’t resolve on their own, so it’s important to seek veterinary care if you spot any signs of any infection, like swelling, redness, or behavioral changes in your dog.
Neurological Issues: In some cases, damage to a dog’s nerve or brain can cause abnormalities in their tail function. If your dog has recently had a head injury or has been previously diagnosed with a neurological condition, be sure to bring your dog to the vet for a thorough examination before assuming swimmer’s tail is the main cause of your dog’s limp tail.
In order to properly diagnose swimmer’s tail – and rule out any other conditions – your veterinarian will start by asking for a history of your dog’s symptoms, asking questions like, “When did your dog’s tail pain start?” or “Has your dog been swimming, crated for a long period, or unusually active?” Knowing the circumstances in which your dog’s symptoms started can help conduct a more focused physical exam, which will include checking for swelling, heat, or tenderness in the lower back and base of the tail, noting if the tail is limp or causing the dog pain, and looking for general signs of discomfort, such as a guarded posture or irregular gait.
Depending on the findings of the physical examination, your veterinarian may also order x-rays to check for bone or joint issues or even bloodwork if your dog’s condition isn’t improving and they suspect a systemic illness instead of swimmer’s tail.
The Do’s and Don’ts of Treating Swimmer’s Tail
Once your dog has received a diagnosis of swimmer’s tail from your veterinarian, the next few days – and maybe even weeks, depending on the severity of the tail sprain – will be all about rest. Limiting your dog’s activity and the usage of their tail will be crucial in helping them recover quickly, as resting the tail muscles will allow inflammation to subside and pain to decrease.
In order to rest your dog’s tail properly, keep them from strenuous activities like swimming or work tasks, and try to keep your dog away from too much excitement. While excited tail wags are one of the cutest things about dogs, they can inhibit your dog’s recovery and keep the symptoms of swimmer’s tail around longer. If your dog seems especially uncomfortable during the recovery period, your veterinarian may prescribe NSAIDs to relieve pain and reduce swelling. However, it’s important to only use medications approved and prescribed by your veterinarian. Dogs cannot take human pain relievers and administering them to your dog will do more harm than good.
How To Prevent Swimmer's Tail In Dogs
While swimmer’s tail can make your dog seem a little sad or pathetic for a few days, the good news is that this type of dog tail injury is only temporary and won’t have any long-term side effects for your dog. A few of the most recommended tactics to prevent swimmer’s tail include:
- Ensuring your dog has breaks and ample time to rest during extended exercise sessions
- Avoiding cold water swimming if your dog is not conditioned for it
- Helping your dog warm up before work, exercise, or any other type of intense activity
- Drying them off quickly and keeping them warm after swimming, bathing, or being in the water for an extended period
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