Posted: Mon Sep 03, 2007 2:40 pm Post subject: Whats the symptoms of hip displacia
Hi All,
Can someone give me an idea of what to look out for with hip problems.
I think i am being ultra cautious of Alfie because o know how bad this is.
His parents were both hip scored with very good scored, His diet has been fine and he was and is restricted excercise wise and has only just been allowed to start going up stairs at 6 months.
However his back legs seem to move slightly odd when he walks,, cant really explain it,, just looks a little weird.
Really lameness is the classic symptom. Some say if you hear a 'clicking noise' when they walk just after getting off the floor it can be bad, but I don't personally agree with that, heard it too many times from GOOD hips.
You might want to check your dog isn't whats called 'Pacing'. Many people panic because their dog 'paces' when he walks and its a very natural trait, if a silly way to move. Its usually more from a lazy dog OR one who is a little LONG in the body, either naturally or just going through a teenage growth stage...
Basically packing means that the dog is moving both legs on the same side of the body at the same time, so like a soldier, left right, left, right. And it makes their whole body swing in the middle as they do it...
Lamness is very easy to see, not so easy true enough in a hind leg as a front one but he will slightly skip a pace as the lame leg needs to take the weight...
Also a reluctance to rise when having laid down for a while, or moaning or whining AS he rises. Laying down in a gentle and deliberate manner, always chosing the same side to lay on *can* be a sign of pain the *other side* too...
But really, lameness.
Di
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He deffinatly not lame,, runs around like a typical 6 month old chap. No pain at all.
His belly certainly does go from side to side a fair bit,, normally when he walks as opposed to trots.
I guess the easiest way to explain would be that from dirrectly from behind, when he picks his back leg up, it almost swings out to the side a little and then back in, so sort of a little birt circular movement rather than in a nice straight line, but again this is only when walking,
Jet had chronic HD (knackered elbows and arthritis so this may not be the same for everyone) but when he got off the sofa, he'd get his front legs down then carefully slide the back end off. Bunny hopping, I'm told, is another symptom. He was also lame in both front legs after very short walks as he was throwing weight forward to compensate.
As I said, he had a lot of other problems too so these may not be common symptoms.
Looking back the first sign of Obi's hip problems was a yelp followed by a limp when he went up the steps from our front door in early June 2006. The Vet checked him out and after a few days rest the limp had gone. Obi gets very excited when he meets other dogs and on a couple of occasions he ended up yelping when playing energetically with a new friend. This usually led to a limp which rest seemed to solve.
We had assumed it was normal but Obi always seemed to get up like an old man. From time to time he did not seem to run "right" and was slower than other dogs. Sometimes both back legs hopped like a rabbit as he ran. When he stood it was not unusual for his back legs to cross. When he sat the joints in his back legs turned in against his body. He walked with a swagger. These must all have been early signs.
Obi loves his walks despite all this but at one point he was stopping to rest half way. He found going to the toilet difficult and hopped around as he tried to get comfortable. Finally it was clear he was uncomfortable after walks and would not attempt to get into the car if we had driven to the walk.
I've got to say this, DONT LOOK! Take reasonable care and the chances are you will never have a problem.
I must say, when we knew nothing about HD we were not bothered and never looked for signs. By and large we never had problems and simply enjoyed our dogs.
Nowadays things are different. Wherever we look there are stories about bad hips. How much of that is because people simply do not post to say "My dog does not have HD!"? It's like news papers, good news is not newsworthy. I know it's no consolation to those who's dogs have got bad hips, but the percentage of bad hips is very low. In the greater scheme of things, Labradors are one of the better breeds. Far better than Golden Retrievers, Newfoundlands, Gordon setters and Clumber Spaniels to name just 4 breeds!
Enjoy your pup and dont worry about what more than likely will never happen.
when he picks his back leg up, it almost swings out to the side a little and then back in, so sort of a little birt circular movement rather than in a nice straight line, but again this is only when walking,
Sounds a similar gait to Izzy...............her hip score is 5/6
In a young dog that is just "loose joints" The muscles have not yet fully developed to hold the limb steady. Something you see on young dogs, both shoulders and hips. Bunny hopping can again be a symptom of lack of muscle and nothing more. My Amy often bunny hopped when a baby and her hips are 5/4. It was just the movement which suited the speed that she was moving at.
I became obsessed with Moo's gait when he was about eight months old - he would walk very oddly at times with a real sway. When he went lame for three or four days after playing chase with a friend's boxer on wet grass my vet very helpfully convinced me he had mild HD in one hip on the basis of an xray that seemed not to show very much. He was given some outrageously expensive injections and put on an indefinite course of glucosamine tablets.
He's now nearly two and has never had any lameness or stiffness since. Our new vet thinks our previous vet is clueless and can't believe that a dog who will do four/five hour yomps rioting all the way with a pack of others, with no ill effects, has anything other than healthy hips. Sometimes he sways, other times he lifts his paws like a champion trotting racer. This evening at agility he got to the top of the A Frame in a single bound (less speed, more focus Moo!).
I think John is spot on - relax but be sensible, never do anything that your dog hasn't built up to. Morris does some very strenuous walks, swims and agility sessions but we have paced ourselves every inch of the way, building and building things up. His stamina and my confidence in him keeps growing, along with my irritation at our previous vet when I think about it.
If in later years he does show any further signs of lameness or discomfort than will have to slow back down, but in the meantime he's a bundle of energy and has to let it out!
Hello! Our nearly 7 month old choccy lab Brody has just been diagnosed with quite bad hip dysplasia and will need a total hip replacement (boh hips) when he is over 14 months.
We took him to the vets initially because he had been a little off colour, not quite his usual puppy self, sleeping alot, although had not been doing and yelping or whining, so we didn't think it would be joint related. He has always bunny hopped and been a little stiff to get up after a sleep. After the first vets visit we noticed he had begun to limp after a sleep, so we probably just hadn't noticed this before.
He was much better but then he seemed off colour again so we decided to get him x rayed so we could know for sure, and that's when we were told. We specifically got him from a kennel club registered breeder and his dad had a hip score of 3/4 and his mum of something very similar, so we are gutted to say the least. Our poor boy... we are now trying to raise the money as the insurance will only cover about a 3rd of the cost.
I'd see how he goes, he may have only strained himself, or it could be nothing, if you're worried get him x rayed, as that's the only way to know for sure. Good luck, I hope he's ok x x
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