What has a small town in Connecticut USA got to do with the reason a guide puppy did not complete its training and was returned to my wife and I as a 'reject'?  Read on; I will    explain the possible link.

When our pup was about 9 months old, he developed a strange spot on his stomach. It was an almost perfect bulls-eye shape, the     diameter of which expanded during the couple of weeks it was visible.  The vet wasn't sure what caused the spot, but treatment with        antibiotics appeared to clear the problem.

The next episode in the story took place at the training centre at Leamington, some 3 years ago, and is assembled from the dog's medical records and recollections of conversations my wife and I had with the dog's trainers and boarders at the time. The pup was progressing satisfactorily in training when suddenly he became lame.  Despite treatment with           anti-inflammatory tablets, regular periods of rest with his boarders, x-rays and examination of his joints under general anaesthetic, bouts of     lameness persisted.  The lameness and/or sore joints appeared to shift around the body.  There was no clear diagnosis but it was thought the problems were most likely caused by      panosteitis, described by some as 'growing pains'.  (Dogs usually make a complete recovery from this.)  There were other issues in what was now a prolonged training period and the dog was returned to us to become a pet and part-time fundraiser for Guide Dogs.

Nearly 3 years passed without any sign of lameness, until one Thursday in February 2009, the dog was nearing the end of a walk when he stumbled and became lame in his left foreleg.  There was no apparent reason for the lameness, which was more pronounced when the dog was on hard surfaces.  Sometimes it was hardly noticeable when he was on grass and mostly he was able to chase round the lawn with our current Guide Dog pup.  However, we did

notice that the ankle on the affected leg was warmer than the other one and when rest didn't improve the condition, off we went to vet.  After an initial consultation and a course of anti-inflammatory drugs, we were referred to a     veterinary orthopaedic specialist.  She had no immediate answer, so undertook a series of      x-rays on the joints, suspecting, we think, the onset of arthritis.  However, the x-rays revealed nothing untoward and the vet referred to our dog as a 'conundrum'.  The only good thing was that after the x-rays and the ensuing enforced rest of several weeks, the lameness disappeared,        although it did reappear very briefly in 2 of the other 3 legs.

I was both concerned and curious, so  resorted to 'Google' and an input of 'unexplained lameness in dogs' produced an avalanche of relevant information.  The most interesting site to be guided to was this one:
http://www.lab-retriever.net/board/mystery-foreleg-lameness-t7315601.html?s=9719119698cf36e8370b0bf8ead44dfb&amp

Essentially, it is Labrador forum and someone in Herefordshire in February 2009 had a 5-year old dog with lameness in the foreleg, the cause of which could not be diagnosed.  There was some online discussion including responses from the USA, which suggested it could be a tick borne disease, especially Lyme disease.