# Golden Retriever with east-west paws



## Eddy G. (Oct 8, 2017)

Hi. I bought a 3 month old golden retriever for my son and soon found out that its front paws were pointing (east-west). Took her to the vet and had her checked out. The vet put the pups's right paw in an aluminium cast and rapped it up. The next few days I noticed that her second paw had the same problem. I took her to the vet again and this time her second paw was also wrapped up like the first. The vet said that she had to stay like this for a good two weeks and then the casts would be removed. I am rather worried if this technique will improve the pump's condition. As a precaution, I have started giving her milk reinforced with calcium. Can anybody give me any feedback ? Thanks.


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

Many puppies are easty-westy when they are that age. I have never (and I am old and have been in dogs most of my life) ever heard of casting them. Can you post a photo so I can see if it is abnormally E/W? Once puppy's chest drops, it should straighten them out. I also wouldn't give milk- if you are concerned about bones, give a VitC/glucosamine chondroitin supplement..., but I am not sure that would even be warranted. E/W is not a condition that can be 'fixed' by fixing the orientation of the feet- which are connected to the legs, and they work w the chest/shoulders..my thought is that casting might make some other piece go wrong.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

Wow, I agree with Robin. I have never heard of casting a puppy for east west paws, and I have been in Goldens over 40 years. Was there any kind of diagnosis given? Without a diagnosis, I am concerned about a vet casting a simple east west issue.

And I would NOT be giving a puppy milk, especially with extra calcium in it, which can cause additional problems.

What does your breeder say? Was either parent easty westy?

I agree that pictures would be good.


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## Eddy G. (Oct 8, 2017)

This is Cookie today. As you can see both paws wrapped up. Unfortunately I dont have pics of her from before. Mind you her paws were going outwards only when she got up.Sitting on her belly, she looked fine.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

Did the vet give you a diagnosis? Elbow or growth plate problem? Were X-rays taken? I have just never heard of this before.

Do you have before pictures?


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## murphy1 (Jun 21, 2012)

Poor baby must be miserable. I hope it was an orthopedist that suggested this remedy. I'd be very afraid it would cause other issues.


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

Is this an orthopedic specialist veterinarian?
I would SO be leery of this being a good outcome- never heard of such and have seen plenty of EW puppies....
I'd even say it is probably a normal developmental thing unless really horrible...which we can't see. It's just that it's not as easy as it seems on the surface to straighten legs/feet and have everything that uses feet and legs turn out okay. 
everything is connected. Tomorrow, ask them to send you the radiographs by email- surely they did rads- I am every curi-
ous.


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## Kmullen (Feb 17, 2010)

This is a little crazy to me. Was she limping? How bad was the easty-westy? What did the breeder say? Was the pup like this at 8 weeks?


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## Eddy G. (Oct 8, 2017)

Hi again. Found out that our puppy has a condition called caporal varus.
I looked it up on the internet and wasn't too pleased with what I read.


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## Eddy G. (Oct 8, 2017)

The x-ray of Cookie's front paws


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

I could not find a single reference to a Golden Retriever having this disease. Dachshunds, yes- we've probably all seen a Dachshund with a degree of this. Maybe one of our vets will see this and post on VIM for whether there is some case somewhere anyone has seen.....
I see probably 300 rear leg radiographs for every one front leg radiograph so this is a completely novice opinion- references I did find said the condition you named is a standardly inherited recessive condition- so if that is so, it would mean that both parents carry the gene for it. It would also mean that (for this to be a known) this recessive gene is one in our population and common enough that random stud dog choice could lead to an affected offspring. That's assuming this puppy has this disease, and this puppy's breeding is not same owner sire and dam who are related to each other fairly closely. I dk.... I just am not sure that these radiographs look so abnormal. Did this puppy's joints 
luxate?
The carpal area doesn't look abnormal, which is a sign of this disease in Dachshunds, and the other piece that's odd to me is that the vet did not see an inward oriented foot on the left side until after casting the right side and nothing looks radically different to my eye l-r on the radiograph. It just seems to me that unless this is an orthopedic specialist I would be hesitant to leave my puppy in casts. Easty Westy orientation is very, very common. I'm not a vet but the lack of EW until the right was casted for the left seems an important piece. Plus, references I found all pointed to surgery being 
the only way to correct this condition and nothing about casting and here is what I found about normal angles-
the canine radius - normal procurvatum of about 25 degrees and is angled within the antebrachium in the frontal plane by about 2.7 degrees.
canine femur is similarly complex in shape, exhibiting a normal distal varus of about 4 to 8 degrees depending on breed.
The disorder occurs when the distal tibial (shinbone) growth plate closes prematurely, causing asymmetrical growth of the tibia (in Dachshunds) 

Here are a couple of articles that 'would' be interesting to read if only I could read them....
Tomlinson JL. Tibial and femoral angles in normal dogs, in Proceedings. Am Coll Vet Surg Vet Symp 2006;390-391.

4. Peruski AM, Kowaleski MP, Pozzi, et al. Treatment of medial patellar luxation and distal femoral varus by femoral wedge osteotomy in dogs: 30 cases (2000-2005), in Proceedings. 33rd Annu Vet Orthop Soc Meet, Keystone 2006;240.


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