hip dysplasia and early preventative treatment

[Jane&Andy]

My dog is at the vet's right now b/c it looks like he has something stuck in his small intestine (and may need surgery). The vet did xrays of his abdomen and got a good shot of his hips. His left hip joint looks flat, not round like the right one. So the vet says it looks like he will end up with hip dysplasia. He's only a year and a half old and has shown no signs of pain or discomfort yet. He's a golden retriever but he's a bit of a shrimp and only weighs 66lbs.

Is there anything I can do now to delay the onset of symptoms? Any activities he should avoid?

[kam]

A great product for this type of thing is glucosamine. It comes in powder and pill form. Piper has petellar luxation and it was highly recommended by our vet as an alternative therapy to prescription drugs (as they tend to affect the liver). It's supposed to be a healing as well as a prevention drug.

Piper prefers hers through powder form - just sprinkle some on the food. She loves it and actually licks the kernals clean and spits them out - it's like puppy crack!

[SingleWhiteFemale]

I'm so sorry to hear that you got so much bad news today :( Poor Butter :(

Here is more information for you at the Pet Arthritis Center (http://www.glucosamine-arthritis.org/arthritis-pets/index.html).

Bernie being so big and it being common to the breed, I wanted to prevent as much as I could (his hips were x-rayed when he had eye surgery, and they're in amazingly great shape).

I used to buy the supplements at Petsmart, but he didn't like them. I decided to switch to a super premium food and it has all the glucosimine/chondroition in it he needs. I have him on Avo Active Care dog food.This great tasting complete and balanced chicken and brown rice formula for puppies, adults and seniors contains high levels of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate to relieve discomfort and pain in the joints. Active Care Healthy Joint Chicken & Brown Rice Formula

* Maintains and May Help Repair Joints
* Contains Nutrients for Healthy Skin and a Beautiful Coat
* Naturally Formulated with Higher Levels of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate
* Formulated from Natural Cartilage; No Synthetic Compounds

[Jane&Andy]

thanks Kam and SWF. :) I do plan to talk to the vet about it some and see what she says but when I was there earlier I was too focused on his tummy issues to get more info on the hips. At this young age I don't want to start him on anything that will adversely affect his health, he's going to need that liver to function for many more years.

SWF - the vet was great, thanks for the recommendation. He's staying overnight and they're doing another xray in the morning to see if whatever is stuck in there has moved at all. We're hoping he can pass it on his own since he's not in immediate distress, otherwise he's going to need surgery.

[SingleWhiteFemale]

I'm glad she was able to help. Poor guy all alone without you overnight :( I really hope he passes it, surgery sounds like no fun.

I don't know which food you feed him, but she may recommend something from Crunchies (http://crunchies.com/). It's a natural food store in Crofton off Rt.3. They're a great bunch of people who will work with you until you find just what your pet likes (I have walked out of there with a grocery bag full each time, of dog samples then later cat samples). And pets are welcome in the store :)

[jesvet]

Here's some good info:
http://www.workingdogs.com/doc0090.htm

[Jane&Andy]

I picked up my dog today (he hasn't passed whatever is in there but its moved into his large intestine and should pass soon, he's feeling much better now). I forgot to ask the vet about his hips but I'll be back later this month with my two cats that need shots.

After paying the bill today, he has to eat up the bag of food (eukanuba) that I just bought him, but after that I'll look into shopping at Crunchies for a new diet for him.

thanks jesvet for that link. :)

[boilermaker]

Our 8 yr old golden has some hip problems and the glucosamine definitely helps. On the advice of our vet, we buy the pills in bulk from Sam's Club...the same ones my FIL takes for his arthritis :)

Two other things we have found to be really important is to keep his weight in check, ALWAYS!! If he gains about 10 pounds from where he is now, you can tell the difference. He definitely does better with regular exercise too.

Also, we try to prevent any major height jumping. We help him up into the Jeep, onto the bed, etc. It seems to make a difference.

[Jane&Andy]

Also, we try to prevent any major height jumping

and now the fun part is trying to keep a 1 1/2yr old golden from jumping on things. :p he's a bit of a nut. :)

I do keep an eye on his weight. I had a lot of overweight cats as a kid so I try to keep my animals as slim and trim as I can now.

[j*east]

Just bumping this because our dog, a rescued collie/chow/something yellow mix, was diagnosed with having hip dysplasia by the shelter vet when we adopted her almost 3 years ago. She's 3 1/2 now and starting to show occasional stiffness when she gets up after lying down for a while, or the day after a lot of running. As a border collie mix, she LOVES to run. She's about 40 pounds, so on the smaller side.

Is it usual to see symptoms this early? We have a good vet, but haven't gotten to ask him about this yet. Besides glucosamine, are there any other preventative measures we can take? Is it OK to start glucosamine without talking to the vet, or should we get her re-examined first? I presume she was diagnosed by x-ray when she was neutered; should we ask about another x-ray?

Thank you! :)

ETA: I did read the links posted in this thread, but couldn't find anything on my questions above.

[jesvet]

Not unusual, but not a great sign either. Definitely get her going on a good glucosamine/chondroitin sulfate supplement (Cosequin is great) and mention it at your next vet visit. It wouldn't hurt to do a vet visit before starting the cosequin, but it's over the counter and it is one of the few meds I'm comfortable saying go ahead and start either way.

[j*east]

Thanks, jesvet! She just had a check up (developed symptoms afterward), but we should be in for shots over the summer. I appreciate it!

[lady1297]

We give our lab a pill daily (cosequin). It's for dogs and my dog love his treat! That plus keeping him exercised and that joint as muscular as possible should help delay his hip issues according to the vet.