Walking Sideways!

by Gene Sellers
(Dallas, Texasm USA)

Our cocker spaniel walks sideways - is this a common thing for cockers or should we be worried?

Plus, we put him on Blue Buffalo to bring down his weight but he has started passing gas and it's hard to stay in the same room with him!

Any ideas please?

Reply from Pauline (Webowner)

I know of a few cocker spaniels (and a working cocker in our village) who 'crab', ie walk 'sideways' and, no, I don't think it's a problem. In fact, if I watch Max from behind when he's trotting in front of me, he has a tendency to walk a little over to the side.

If you're really worried about this, why not speak to your vet and ask him about it?

If your current dog food is causing gas, you could consider changing it for another brand of dog food until you find something that works for him.

I've heard that charcoal in the diet can help with gas, but I think it's probably better to change his diet.

Are you certain no-one else is feeding him titbits?

You could try cutting back on treats or trying one of the 'lite' dog foods and giving him a little more exercise.

You could also check out our article on overweight cocker spaniels - you might find it useful in helping your cocker to lose weight.

Good luck!