In an article written by Dr. Sherman Canapp for Clean Run magazine he states, “Traumatic incidents result in active eccentric muscle contraction, in which the muscle is activated during a stretch, such as slipping into a splay-legged position” (read the original article or a revisited article) In short, while the muscle is getting longer (from the movement during the slip) the dog contracts and tightens it in order to prevent continued slipping. The slip alone might cause a tear after the muscle has stretched beyond it’s normal range of motion. However, the contraction of the muscle while it’s lengthening almost guarantees the tear because the muscle is already over extended from the leg slipping.

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