Hip Dysplasia or Ricketts (cow hocked??)... Need urgent help!

[sansprat]

Hi!

Dash is exactly a year old. Have taken care of all possible medication along with timely Calcium 'iv' injections with Vit D.

Still his hind legs seem to be a problem, hocks are too close to each other... Just kinda running out of options.

All the puppies out of the 'litter' have no problem at all.

Have attached a video for reference. Right now I am giving him one tablet of 'Pet Joint' a day.

Please let me know if something else needs to be done or would we grow out of it.

Thanks and Regards,
Abhy!

[msvette2u]

Why calcium injections? I've never heard of that? Where are you located?
What food does he eat? If a decent food you'd not need to add calcium.

[Emoore]

According to OP's previous posts he's in Bombay India and feeds the best foods he can find-- Eukanuba and Royal Canin.

I can't see the video but looking at the pictures it almost looks like a congenital deformity? I don't think it would be rickets, and hip dysplasia can only be diagnosed with X-ray.

[msvette2u]

Euk and RC won't cause a dog to grow badly though.
Both (although using some ingredients I don't care for, corn and gluten meals) are balanced nutrition.
If I had to choose between those and Ol' Roy or AttaBoy, I'd pick one of them.

[Doc]

the dog looks cow-hocked. Probably inherited from the parents or poor nutrition (deficient of Ca & P) as a young pup.

[carmspack]

agree - cow-hocked , which is not nutritional but a matter of conformation , a misalignment because of imbalance in bone proportions. To achieve a balance , when standing (rear) the "heels" come together, the knees and toes point out from centre. The dog may appear to have hip dysplasia because the push off or power from the rear will be compromised. Because trotting with endurance is such a large part of the dogs ability to perform (herding) well ,any dog with cow hock (as an adult) , with useless movement, should be disqualified. Saw lots of dogs that were cow hocked back in the day when American show dogs were inbreeding on Lance of Fran Jo, Zeus and Zeto Fran Jo and their progeny especially. Still see it because of the exaggerated length of upper to lower thigh with poor ligaments as an additional problem. Now we see it on German show lines too . When moving the dogs are said to knit and purl . Look to your dog's structure. Appears to have quite a roach which drops more weight onto his rear end.
If you are worried about hips then get an x ray.

Carmen
Carmspack Working German Shepherd Dogs

[sansprat]

Hi Guys,

Well... I am located in Bombay, India.

For some reason the video didnt upload. Sorry...

The vet recommended a weekly calcium shot for 8-12 weeks to make sure his bone structure stands up well. Along with it Vitamin D injections were also given.

@Doc: I have done a blood check up recently, the levels of Phosphorous and Calcium are standard in his body. After all the tests I would rule out nutritional imbalance. :-)

Would be taking him in for an XRay tomorrow. Would post the pictures for the same.
Initially I thought it could be genetic, but it is ruled out.

@Carmen, MsVette2u, Doc, Emoore : Any suggestions? Or should we wait until the XRay comes?

Thank you for your prompt replies.


You guys know the best, but I would like to share my success story for Mange. Dash had Mange sometime back. Was asked to apply a diluted solution of Ridd, and it worked wonder over 3-4 weeks. :-)
With the first application itself I could see the affected area drying out and scales coming off.

I am sorry, not a regular out here. But if you guys come across anyone from India, someone in the US or any other location asking about a cure for Mange... You guys can may be suggest RIDD or an alternative available in its composition.

Any suggestions whether I should switch to Hill's Pet Nutrition? (Hill's Pet Nutrition Home | Select a Location)

Thank you... :-)

Abhy!

[msvette2u]

What foods are available to you?
Eukanuba isn't the best but it's better than Science Diet by Hill's.
Even the Royal Canin would be better. I'd pick
1) Eukanuba
2) Royal Canin
3) Science Diet by Hill's
in that order, unless you have others available.

The only thing you can do is exercise the dog, on dirt/sand, not concrete if possible.
And within limits. If he limps or shows other signs of pain, don't do more, do less.

[carmspack]

the cow hocked IS genetic in that it is the conformation of the dog , how his body is put together . There is no cure because it is not a disease. I am saying this so that you don't get tricked into a lot of expensive stuff or treatment .

[Gwenhwyfair]

In my experience (a lot with horses when it comes to conformation/ortho issues) the misalignment (cow hocks) can also cause secondary stress to other joints. They compensate when attempting to move, run, jump and such thereby stressing other points in the muscles and skeletal structure. This can cause other long term problems such as arthritis.

IMO you can't go wrong with adding a good joint supplement to your dog's diet right now to help prevent some follow on problems.

Some of the joint supplements I've heard are good (hoping they can be obtained in India...) Dasuquin, Cosequin, Glyco Flex and Flex Pet.