Hip Dysplasia

[TheEdgeOfTheAbyss]

We have a 1yr old husky/shepard mix that we adopted as a puppy. After noticing some issues with her limping a little randomly and having un-even feeling hips we took her to the vet. He diagnosed her with hip dysplasia. Full on one side, and not as bad on the other. We were told to "fix" it she would need her hip replaced, but since she is young and healthy that she should be fine with restricting exercise/play to soft surfaces like grass, and just generally being careful to avoid injuring her hips. They also gave us pain meds to give her on days she seems more uncomfortable or limps more.

Any other pet owners who have dogs with hip dysplasia? How does it tend to affect your pooches? How do you manage it/Have you gotten the surgery?

[Payton Leeroy]

My friend just had surgery on her dog's knees, even though he's only about 3. Very expensive, but if you're planning on doing a lot of exercising or activities with your dog it's probably for the best.

[SmoothSavage]

My dog does not have hip dysplasia (thankfully), but she has had two knee surgeries and both elbows have had surgery. She's a bit of an orthopedic train wreck. I would really, strongly urge you to consult a board certified orthopedic surgeon about your dog. They will be more expensive, but they can give you a much better idea of what exactly is wrong and how to proceed. If you do decide to do surgery, I cannot stress enough the importance of having an ortho surgeon do the operation. Regardless of how wonderful your regular vet is, they do not have the same level of skill and expertise an ortho vet does. My own super awesome vet is the one who urged me to see an ortho specialist in the first place, and I have been SO glad for Riddle's sake I did.

That said, there are a lot of options to help manage pain. Glucosamine supplements (my own personal favorite is InClover's Connectin) should be started right away. Physical therapy would also not be a bad idea, to help keep up good muscle mass to support the joint. Pentosan is an injectable that can help a LOT with joint issues, it has certainly made a difference for Riddle! Adequan is another, but honestly I've gotten the same results with Pentosan and it is much cheaper than Adequan.

Try to get your girl to swim during warmer months too. Swimming is excellent exercise and very low impact, so she can do a lot of it without hurting herself.

Other things you can do are purchase a ramp or stairs for the couch/bed, and teach her to use them instead of jumping up and down. Lift her in and out of the car or use another ramp/stairs. Drop a chunk of change on a really nice, orthopedic foam bed. Good, supportive bedding seriously makes a world of difference for joint issues.

[TheEdgeOfTheAbyss]

Savage Destiny

My dog does not have hip dysplasia (thankfully), but she has had two knee surgeries and both elbows have had surgery. She's a bit of an orthopedic train wreck. I would really, strongly urge you to consult a board certified orthopedic surgeon about your dog. They will be more expensive, but they can give you a much better idea of what exactly is wrong and how to proceed. If you do decide to do surgery, I cannot stress enough the importance of having an ortho surgeon do the operation. Regardless of how wonderful your regular vet is, they do not have the same level of skill and expertise an ortho vet does. My own super awesome vet is the one who urged me to see an ortho specialist in the first place, and I have been SO glad for Riddle's sake I did.

That said, there are a lot of options to help manage pain. Glucosamine supplements (my own personal favorite is InClover's Connectin) should be started right away. Physical therapy would also not be a bad idea, to help keep up good muscle mass to support the joint. Pentosan is an injectable that can help a LOT with joint issues, it has certainly made a difference for Riddle! Adequan is another, but honestly I've gotten the same results with Pentosan and it is much cheaper than Adequan.

Try to get your girl to swim during warmer months too. Swimming is excellent exercise and very low impact, so she can do a lot of it without hurting herself.

Other things you can do are purchase a ramp or stairs for the couch/bed, and teach her to use them instead of jumping up and down. Lift her in and out of the car or use another ramp/stairs. Drop a chunk of change on a really nice, orthopedic foam bed. Good, supportive bedding seriously makes a world of difference for joint issues.

Lots of great suggestions, thanks! I've heard of glucosamine before, but forgot all about it. She loves water but we are still working on getting her in deeper than her knees. I don't think she'd use the bed, but a ramp could help a lot.

[missfox22]

Hi there, I'm sure what I type here has probably been suggested already.

But my friend's Shepherd mix has hip displaysia, and she feeds her dog Royal Canin Joint Supplement food. And she also gives him hip massages.

She has also said her and her husband already have the money saved up for hip replacement surgery in the future.

When I go on walks with her, after about 30-45 minutes I notice her dog Jack starts walking slightly crooked, so you know that his hip starts to bother him.

Glucosamine supplements work well.

She also gave my dog hip massages when he was a puppy when she had him while I was at work. And now he pushes his butt into you, and loves the hip rubs.

[SmoothSavage]

missfox22

Hi there, I'm sure what I type here has probably been suggested already.

But my friend's Shepherd mix has hip displaysia, and she feeds her dog Royal Canin Joint Supplement food. And she also gives him hip massages.

She has also said her and her husband already have the money saved up for hip replacement surgery in the future.

When I go on walks with her, after about 30-45 minutes I notice her dog Jack starts walking slightly crooked, so you know that his hip starts to bother him.

Glucosamine supplements work well.

She also gave my dog hip massages when he was a puppy when she had him while I was at work. And now he pushes his butt into you, and loves the hip rubs.

Royal Canin is serious garbage. Much better to feed a decent food and supplement with joint support.

[Brodie Asturias]

Archie is 5 years, 9 months old.

He has bilateral hip dysplasia.

He also has bilateral elbow dysplasia.

And bilateral bursitis over his hocks.

If anything, the bursitis hurts him the most at the moment.

He has never had surgery. He never will have surgery. We have made that decision. Surgery on one joint will put too much strain on his other legs, and anyway, he'd just need all of them done. Because he also has EPI, which is already super expensive at the cost of $12 a day in medication, we've reached the decision that if he has a marked decrease in mobility and quality of life he will be put to sleep. We aren't going to be prolonging this dog's life after he ceases to enjoy it, no matter how much we love him.

That said, you'd never know there was anything wrong with him. The only pain relief Archie receives is in a three-monthly injection of Synovan from the vet. He went in for it this morning, didn't even notice he was being given it.

For his arthritis, he also has an oral glucosamine/chondroitin/Omega 3 supplement with his food.

I've heard green-lipped mussel supplements are also good for dogs with arthritis/hip/elbow dysplasia.