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Diagnosed Hip Dysplasia

2K views 8 replies 6 participants last post by  JohnW 
#1 ·
hi, I'm new so I hope I haven't missed another post helping someone else with similar problems. my 8mth old lab has just been diagnosed with him dysplasia. on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being good n 10 being bad he is an 8! it's taken our breath away to know that he's this bad. but he's still my boy and he's getting the best of love. I am with direct line insurance and will claim for the Xrays but the vets have said they wouldn't operate yet. not only this I only took cover out to £4000 thinking it would be enough... (I know I'm a first puppy owner n didn't know what scrapes they can get into, especially this wee man). is there an insurance company that would take him on as lifetime insurance if he's ok and doesn't need any help over the next couple of years? (he's now getting the right exercise, swimming, physio & vitamins - glucosamine & turmeric tablets and he seems good on these. will anyone insure him for lifetime cover?
 
#2 ·
I’d hunt out Luna’s posts in Health issues if I were you

So sorry to hear that about your lad
We’ve recently acquired Cooper and I confess to worries about my little 7 month old nutter. I’m 1,000% paranoid after our Judy was diagnosed with ED about 3 years ago

Stay positive

Good luck
 
#3 ·
First Insurance. You have no choice now but to stick with your present insurance, because once diagnosed it becomes a "Pre-existing Condition" and would be specifically excluded from any new policy.

Most vets wont operate until a dog is fully grown, for the obvious reasons. But I've known several dogs with horrendous hips who have lived out full happy lives without operating. It's about slowly building up muscle. The muscle can then hold the joint in place. The important things are to build up the muscle slowly, by slowly increasing the exercise. A sudden long charity walk of double the usual distance would be very damaging because once the muscles have got tired they no longer hold the joint so the femoral head starts knocking around in the pelvic socket. Also restrict jumping and stairs. If you think about this, going up all the weight is on the hind legs and coming down it's all on the front. With care you might find an operation is not necessary.

Regards, John
 
#4 ·
So sorry to hear your pup has HD but don't despair, it's a condition that can be managed. John's advice is spot on.

I do have first hand experience having had a Weimaraner with severe bilateral HD which showed signs from 6mths. He did eventually have one hip replacement at 3 yrs old which was a complete success, and despite still having one awful hip he was medication free for the rest of his life.
 
#5 ·
thank you for replying. I fear that as I only took out 12 month insurance that they will say is hip dysplasia will be exempt when it comes to renewal. i have 2 older dogs but weve been lucky and never experienced any visits other than boosters before. ill never be so daft again not to get lifetime insurance. you just dont think that it could happen to you, I know it's the old cliche. I got him the orthopaedic bed with my old duvet for more comfort. what's the best lead for them? I have difficulty stopping him jumping up when he sees other dogs n wants to play, I can't blame him only being 8 months! I've heard of one called walk with love, is this any good?
 
#6 ·
I fear they could exempt the HD condition if it is only 12months cover. SO get vet to refer you to a hydrotherapist and a physiotherapist NOW while he's covered as the £4k could cover that. Get as much info from these experts on maintaining his muscle mass as possible. Do have a look for my previous posts on Luna around the forum.
She is 9 and a half now and it is swimming, careful exercise and physio, supplements and pain relief that have prevented the need for hip replacement - AND she would've had them replaced if necessary as she was covered for replacement.

Check out this website as although it is aimed at arthritis and older dogs, getting informed and putting 'little' things into place sooner rather than later has always helped Luna.
https://www.caninearthritis.co.uk/
 
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#7 ·
thank you so much. I haven't put the claim in yet for the Xrays so I will go back and speak to the vet about hydro through the winter as we would take him swimming in the spring n summer anyways. any tips is very much appreciated. xxx
 
#8 ·
Was he showing signs of lameness and was that why he had the X ray? Bare in mind that when they first started doing hip displasia scores back in the mists of time the worst score was about 50. 8 doesn't seem too bad, would not be good to breed from but I would have thought on a day to day basis not the end of the world, not all that long ago 16 was considered a problem it seems to have come down to 10? I wouldn't panic just yet unless the dog is in discomfort. Vets do have to make a living.
 
#9 ·
Ollie's companion, I think you have got hold of the wrong end of the stick. The OP was not talking about a score, rather they were simply stating degrees. Hips are scored between 0 being best possible and 63 the worst possible, but a vet would not talk scores because they are not qualified to score. The vet was just saying that it was almost as bad as it gets.
 
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