# please help! 6 month old with mild to severe hip dysplasia



## Maggies mom (Jan 6, 2006)

First I would stop running him. You shouldnt be running him till he is over 2 years of age. I would take him to the vet and let them x-ray him. There are plenty of dogs that have hip problems that live healthy lives without having to have surgery.


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## Rob's GRs (Feb 25, 2007)

I wanted to let you know I moved your post so as it can hopefully be seen more easily.

Hopefully others that have gone through this will have some advice for you.


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## CHAMP53 (May 4, 2009)

Thank you all very much! Im new on this site and was a little unsure on how to post things. You guys are great and u dont know how much your helping me!


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

It's possible he may have just been sore. Puppies are still growing and shouldn't have stress on their joints like running. 6 months is young to have signs of HD, but an xray is the only way to know for sure if that is the problem.


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## Capehank (Aug 3, 2005)

I use to take my two for a run on the ice rink before ice was on it. I noticed Izzy was limping. I took her to the vet, Doc said she pulled her ACL and to put her on joint strengthener. She was not to run on hard surfaces. So, that was like 2 years ago. I decided to take up jogging again and have the goldens run with me. Hmmm first of all, why in the world would I want to go jogging??? Anyhow, I did that one day for like a quarter mile, I know I know that is not very far. The next day I decided to go up to the ice rink once again. Here is the kicker, both surfaces were very hard. Izzy began limping again. No more running on hard surfaces for her. I told Doc about it and he totally agreed that the running acted up her ACL and eventually down the road, she may have to have surgery. 

That running, jogging episode was over 3 weeks ago, Izzy no longer limps. She goes for nice long walks and did go for a swim the other day. I just think Izzy will not be able to run on hard surfaces again. That is fine, walking is better for my knees anyhow. 

Bottom line, I would put your baby on the joint strengthener.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

Puppies that young are often lax in their hip joints. I would stop running him immediately, have his hips x-rayed, and put him on a good hip/joint supplement.

If you can't afford x-rays right now, stop running him and let him control his exercise-ie, let him run or exercise in an enclosed area (no hard surfaces) where he is safe and where he can stop and rest if need be. Save up the money for x-rays. There are some treatments that can only be done up until a certain age.

As long as the breeder isn't requiring the return of the puppy, I would take the money and use it towards x-rays and, if necessary, treatment.

Right now, you really don't know what is going on with your pup. He could have very severe hip dysplasia or he could have experienced pain due to over-exercise and joint laxity.

I have a friend who field trials Gordon Setters. She began biking her young boy at 6 months of age. He ended up with severe hip dysplasia. I don't think the roadwork alone caused this-his hips were among the worst the vet had ever seen-but it certainly contributed.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I think an x-ray to check the extent of the displacement would be a good start. Puppies get sore, they get pano, and they get a dozen other things that cause lameness that aren't as serious as true dysplasia. X-rays may set you back a few hundred dollars, but they'll give you a much more concrete idea of what you're in for.

Having also bought a dog long before I had the money for procedures like hip replacement, I'll recommend something that got me through some expensive procedures: make a dog emergency fund and start putting a fixed amount from your paycheck (or stipend or allowance or whatever) in there every month. Then, when the $3000 vet bill comes (as it inevitably will if you own dogs long enough), you have something to offset the financial blow.

I was lucky that my first dog was very healthy for six years and that my first multi-thousands vet bill happened after I climbed out of student debt and actually had some money put away.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I have a dog that was diagnosed with mild to moderate HD (by x-ray) at 6 months old in one hip only.
He's now 11-1/2. Never had surgery, and never had a problem with it until very recently he's started to show some weakness in his back end. Not even sure if that's the hip dysplasia, or just old age.
A couple things I didn't see mentioned by others...
VERY VERY important, keep your puppy slightly underweight his whole life! It makes a huge difference in the stress on the hip joints. 
Also, no impact on the hips by things like jumping to catch a frisbee or a tennis ball. Coming down on the hips is the worst thing he/she can do.
Do start the supplements. You can get some for a pretty reasonable price if you buy human supplements online. A good one is the glucosamine/chondroitin mix from Puritan's Pride (www.puritan.com), which has been tested for purity and strength and always passes the tests. I give my guys their product #41633, triple strength, one tablet twice a day. The frequently run specials, buy 2 get 3 free, and then you can get almost a year's supply for $85. Sounds like a lot, but compare it to the vet ones and you'll see it's really cheap for so many pills.
And as soon as you can, get the xrays done. Some breeders will refund 1/2 to all of your money, and allow you to keep the pup, if the pup has HD so talk to your breeder about it.
Finally, post pictures!


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

Frankly I don't trust a vet that flippantly throws out HD without xrays. According to my vet lax hips is common with puppyhood. You might consider building a relationship with another vet.


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## cprcheetah (Apr 26, 2009)

I would have the dog xrayed. I had a Great Dane who developed severe hip dysplasia by 8 months old, we had him on supplements and he did good, he bunny hopped and we were going to do surgery once he reached his full growth but he ended up passing away at 18 months from something else. I would definitely find a good Glucosamine/Chondroitin supplements as well as maybe Microlactin (natural anti-inflammatory properties). My Shellie has OCD (Osteochondritis) in her shoulders and will probably need surgery. Ask your vet about Adequan injections. Shellie's former owners couldn't afford surgery so put her up for adoption, but they had her on Adequan injections as well as a diet/supplement program for Joint Problems. http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/feed_program_for_orthopedic_problems.htm
I didn't see her before her supplements but she's been on them for about a month now and she doesn't seem to be limping as badly as even when I first got her 10 days ago. Her former owners felt like the supplements were helping some. Shellie gets 'controlled' exercise, I limit her to 3 short (5-10 minute) walks per day, I try to limit running/jumping but Shellie is still a puppy so does have a mind of her own


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## Finn's Fan (Dec 22, 2007)

Stop running the puppy and let him determine his amount of exercise. Also, swimming is a low impact activity that has the added bonus of building up muscle that will help keep his joints in the proper place if he does have HD. When your wallet can handle it, x-rays are in order. Good luck and remember it may simply be puppy growing pains.


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

First of all, deep breath! I too had a dog diagnosed at 9 months. I understand your financial concerns but your best investment to start is get xrays and KNOW for sure what you are dealing with. HD is NOT a death sentence. I agree your pup may just be playing too hard at this early age. They do not have the muscle or bone strength.

Getting your dog on glucosamine/chondroitin/MSM supplements can never hurt whether or not you pup has anything at all wrong with it. IF you do have xrays and it is HD, it can be managed depending on the dog without surgery. Often a young dog can be symptomatic at an early age for HD and grow out of it. That doesn't mean the HD goes away it just does not become an issue for the dog. My suggestion is (just in case he does have HD) keep your pup thin, extra weight on an HD dog is very hard, and since we have good weather in our future at this point, find a place for some heavy swimming instead of running, less impact on forming joints, good exercise and will help build strong hip muscles which is an asset for an HD dog. 

IF your dog does have HD another forum board I recommend, is the yahoo canine HD group. They are very nice people who can answer your questions from their experience. They were very helpful with me when I was going through it all with my Teddi. Some of the people there have just managed their dogs successfully with out surgery, some have had successful surgical stories, and some have not. You hear all sides which when making any decisisions you need to hear. However let me repeat, get an xray first it may not be HD at all. 

Hoping for the best :crossfing


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## susc (Sep 3, 2009)

*sammies mom*

I'm sorry for your puppy problems. My puppy started to click and pop in both hips at only 4 months. x-ray confirmed severe hip dysplasia. After multiple vets and orthopedic surgeons, we found the "right one". I'm sorry to say that we recieved very conflicting advise from what I considered good vets. Sammie was losing bone by the minute! Doing nothing would have left her lame!!We scheduled her for hip replacement and she has come through succesfully and is in the hospital recovering. Now, I AM NOT A POOR COLLEGE STUDENT!! This was so costly that I will always feel somewhat quilty about not feeding the poor instead. Our choice was put her down to eliminate suffering or do the surgery. Osteotomy is a far less expensive surgery than the hip replacement. You may find $$ help from a golden rescue. DO NOT EXERCISE your puppy!! Every pop and click is bone against bone and it hurts! and wears away more bone. I do not believe that supplements will do a thing, and never feed calcium suppliments to dogs unless there is no calcium in the food you are providing. Excess calcium can actually decrease done density in this case. Dods will do everything possible to not show pain, its instinctive, and doesnt mean that they are not in pain. Our puppy started to act like an old girl, so we did a trial of Rimadyl(pain med) just to see if her behavior changed and sure enough the puppy came out again. I wish I had some magic pill for you. Finding the right vet is key!! There are canine lemon laws in some states. I believe you should get more than the price of the dog from your breeder. You were sold damaged goods and they should assist in the care of this dog!! Are they still breeding the parents?? I negotiated to the price of the dog and one hip replacement! Look up the lemon laws!! Start asking everyone you know about vets and hip dysplasia,local shelters, police canine trainers,neighbors, the nurses at the local vet emergency hospital( they know everything!) I wish you and your puppy the very best!!


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