Walking "funny" was one of the symptoms that sent me on a diagnosis chase, but I didn't start using a cane until a couple of years later, maybe a year or so after diagnosis. I still don't use one inside the house (over 10 years after first clinical symptoms). My dad, on the other hand, was diagnosed at 35 and didn't start using a cane until he was about 77--and then it was for issues unrelated to MS.