Pup With Bad Hips

[JessicaM]

When taking a dog to the vet for xrays don't forget a general vet won't know how to read them. you will need a specialist to read and diagnose, at 4months he would be going through his growing stage. wait until he is over 1 year old and if your still concerned take xrays and go to a specialist.

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[cavNrott]

When taking a dog to the vet for xrays don't forget a general vet won't know how to read them. you will need a specialist to read and diagnose, at 4months he would be going through his growing stage. wait until he is over 1 year old and if your still concerned take xrays and go to a specialist.

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Of course our local vets are quite capable of a general reading of xrays. It is when surgery is more than likely necessary that a specialist evaluation is required. If a vet feels that a specialist is required for a more conclusive reading of the xray they will refer you.

To say general vets don't know how read xrays would be like saying our GP's are not able to read our xrays and they are quite capable of doing so. They have a good idea if, based on their interpretation of the xray, that we need specialist advice.

Edited June 26, 2014 by cavNrott

[ish]

I completely disagree CnR - correctly positioning and then interpreting X-rays is a specialist task and very often not done correctly by the average vet

Edited June 26, 2014 by ish

[Staffyluv]

I completely disagree CnR - correctly positioning and then interpreting X-rays is a specialist task and very often not done correctly by the average vet

My vet took x-rays and you can see wear on Zig's right hip and to a lesser degree on his left hip. Zig is 3 years old now.

When I asked about scoring - I was told it is a specialist field and that these x-rays would probably need to be redone and sent to a specialist to get an accurate score.

We know there is wear on his hips, that is good enough for me - we will x-ray again on a regular basis to see if it gets worse and what further treatments may be needed over time.

I first noticed him carrying his right leg after hard exercise. It didn't slow him down at all but when he ran, he would carry his right back leg and not use it as much. We initially thought a knee injury (type and age of dog) but after the x-rays we realised it was actually his hips.

He would often stand leaning to the left, putting more weight on his left back leg than his right after exercise.

So we have moderated his exercise to a degree, added some supplements to his diet and he has pain meds but we never use them, to be honest - he just doesn't seem to have pain at this point).

Good luck with your pup - I hope it isn't HD.

[kamuzz]

It can also be a condition called oestio desecans which is a rapid growth issue causing pain and inflammation of the joints - not too uncommon it occures in many fast growing animal, large breed dogs, horses etc.

What about Panosteitis? Link here

[cavNrott]

I completely disagree CnR - correctly positioning and then interpreting X-rays is a specialist task and very often not done correctly by the average vet

Of course agree with you. I speak only of an initital vet visit as the first call when an owner suspects there's a problem...which is the case here according to the OP's post. Her local vet should be able to read an xray with sufficient skill to detect the possibility of a problem and refer on to a specialist. Local vets are not completely clueless at reading xrays.

My Rottweiler had what I suspected was a ruptured cruciate ligament. My vet did the initial xrays and agreed that we needed a specialists opinion. The specialist of course did further xrays and TPLO surgery was scheduled and performed. I would not have scheduled TPLO bone surgery only upon my vet's diagnosis and reading of the xrays.

I'm certainly aware that to have a dogs hips scored, the xrays can only be read by a specialist.

[ish]

Personally I think if you suspect HD, you're better off skipping the middle man (local vet) and going straight to someone experienced in taking and interpreting X-rays. A puppy that I bred was xrayed at the time of her desexing at 5 months (against my advice) and the vet not only diagnosed her with HD but booked her in for surgery that same week. I paid for the X-rays to be looked at by Ray Ferguson for a second opinion, as they looked fine to me and the pup was not lame, an he advised the hips were fine and the was no need for surgery. When I spoke to the local vet his response was that the surgery would not have done any harm and the pup may have had problems in the future.

[aliwake]

Personally I think if you suspect HD, you're better off skipping the middle man (local vet) and going straight to someone experienced in taking and interpreting X-rays. A puppy that I bred was xrayed at the time of her desexing at 5 months (against my advice) and the vet not only diagnosed her with HD but booked her in for surgery that same week. I paid for the X-rays to be looked at by Ray Ferguson for a second opinion, as they looked fine to me and the pup was not lame, an he advised the hips were fine and the was no need for surgery. When I spoke to the local vet his response was that the surgery would not have done any harm and the pup may have had problems in the future.

That is so disgusting

I'll bet you were irate!

[Salukifan]

Personally I think if you suspect HD, you're better off skipping the middle man (local vet) and going straight to someone experienced in taking and interpreting X-rays. A puppy that I bred was xrayed at the time of her desexing at 5 months (against my advice) and the vet not only diagnosed her with HD but booked her in for surgery that same week. I paid for the X-rays to be looked at by Ray Ferguson for a second opinion, as they looked fine to me and the pup was not lame, an he advised the hips were fine and the was no need for surgery. When I spoke to the local vet his response was that the surgery would not have done any harm and the pup may have had problems in the future.

There are a number of vet who a way to quick to go down the Juvenile Pubic Symphysiodesis route for my liking.

A gangly pup is not cause for panic. Keep them lean, feed them an appropriate diet and exercise them gently and just let them grow.

[Mystiqview]

There are other options IF it is HD. they can take the femoral head off and then the joint is supported by scar tissue, ligament and muscle. No later arthritis.

I suspect from reading through the posts it's just loose puppy joints. Even some medium dogs go through that sloppy joint phase and many pups will not rather than cannot sit straight and will sit like a frog. Mostly it is laziness.

A four month old pup is an ungainly thing. Generally it is a stage they go through. Some dogs are worse than others.

Like others have already said, if there is pain, limping etc. then see a vet.

As for X-rays now. There is another post here about HD in a German shepherd. Not much you are really going to see at 4 months. You could get an idea of how the joint sits within a socket. Then some vets can be very quick to call HD when it's not.

Look at doing muscle strengthening exercises. Stretches and swimming are both good and do not place excess strain on developing joints unlike running and long walks.

Some could also be soft tissue injuries. He has strained something is typical goofy puppy play and he is tight somewhere causing some of the symptoms you are seeing.

Edited June 26, 2014 by Mystiqview

[fabel]

yeah I've been reading that other thread about the GSD. Interesting. I have decided to wait and see with mine. Heaps of people have told me he seems fine and I'm being paranoid. Also heaps have said gangly is normal for his age n size. Other dogs sit like frogs too. I've noticed now since I have one that does. Will keep a close eye on him nevertheless. Thanks all

[cavNrott]

Personally I think if you suspect HD, you're better off skipping the middle man (local vet) and going straight to someone experienced in taking and interpreting X-rays. A puppy that I bred was xrayed at the time of her desexing at 5 months (against my advice) and the vet not only diagnosed her with HD but booked her in for surgery that same week. I paid for the X-rays to be looked at by Ray Ferguson for a second opinion, as they looked fine to me and the pup was not lame, an he advised the hips were fine and the was no need for surgery. When I spoke to the local vet his response was that the surgery would not have done any harm and the pup may have had problems in the future.

It sounds like you need a new vet. My vet would never take advantage of me by booking any of my dogs in for surgery without first discussing it at length with me. If he thought HD surgery was indicated he would refer us to a specialist.

I think we're getting ahead of ourselves with discussion about HD surgery for fabel's pup. She is not at all sure the pup has any problem with his hips.

[ish]

Not my vet CnR - the puppy buyers vet

[sandgrubber]

yeah I've been reading that other thread about the GSD. Interesting. I have decided to wait and see with mine. Heaps of people have told me he seems fine and I'm being paranoid. Also heaps have said gangly is normal for his age n size. Other dogs sit like frogs too. I've noticed now since I have one that does. Will keep a close eye on him nevertheless. Thanks all

If and when you decide to go for Xrays, look for someone who does Penn hip. This involves a more exacting specification of placement.. . .and placement can greatly affect the way the hips appear on Xrays. The Penn hip crew claim to get accurate predictions of hip quality at 16 weeks. See

http://info.antechimagingservices.com/pennhip/

[Katdogs]

Stevie is a Lab x Golden and I spent her first couple of years worrying about her hips because of her wiggly walk and waggily tail making the effect stronger. She's good. I've seen a Lab pup with bad hips and it's a totally different thing involving pain and limping.

Sounds like your pup is happy and growing. Isn't 4 months too early for X-rays to show anyway?

ETA Stevie still has the most voluptuous walk. I think they call it 'swag' this week :)

Edited June 26, 2014 by Comrade Catdogs

[LisaCC]

yeah I've been reading that other thread about the GSD. Interesting. I have decided to wait and see with mine. Heaps of people have told me he seems fine and I'm being paranoid. Also heaps have said gangly is normal for his age n size. Other dogs sit like frogs too. I've noticed now since I have one that does. Will keep a close eye on him nevertheless. Thanks all

If and when you decide to go for Xrays, look for someone who does Penn hip. This involves a more exacting specification of placement.. . .and placement can greatly affect the way the hips appear on Xrays. The Penn hip crew claim to get accurate predictions of hip quality at 16 weeks. See

http://info.antechim...es.com/pennhip/

I was just about to say this.

I've been quoted for Penn hip and a normal Elbow and including everything (anaesthesia, sending costs and readings/measurements), It was just over $400.

[bianca.a]

Fabel, not sure where in Vic you are but if you do decide to xray, Ray Fergerson (Monash) does pennhip scoring or Pete Laverty at Melbourne Specialist Clinic.