Sitnews -Stories in the News - Ketchikan, Alaska

Pet Talk - Pet Health

Puppy Food and Hip Dysplasia, Part 2
by Dr. Fran Good, DVM
Ketchikan, Alaska

July 14, 2002
Sunday

Last week we talked about the basics of hip dysplasia. How bone is constantly remodeling. How a dysplastic joint is more lax than a normal one. How that laxity stimulates the formation of new

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Misty

Misty
Digital photo by Dan & Ruth Hart
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bone to stabilize the joint. And how we call that arthritis.

There are three parts in the formation of a dysplastic joint.

The first is genetics. We can't do anything about that in this puppy, except to have him checked early. The new, accurate way of assessing a dog for dysplasia is Penn hip certification, your local veterinarian is certified, and the certification can be performed at 16 weeks. Right about the time you should be considering neutering your animal.

It's a highly heritable disease, and the reason some breeds are almost 75-90% afflicted is because dysplastic dogs kept getting bred. A lot of that had to do with the fact that the old OFA certification didn't pick up a lot of affected, dogs - and embarrassingly enough, the positioning used may have actually covered up dysplasia to some degree - so owners bred animals they thought were dysplasia-free, when in fact they were dysplastic.

On behalf of the veterinary profession, I apologize. We were doing the best we could with what we had 15 years ago, is our only excuse. But we were part of the problem. We're not now. If Rover is diagnosed as having laxity in his hips, that's an automatic. Neuter him now.

The second part of the development of the disease has to do with exercise. A lax joint needs to be babied a little as it forms. No flat out running for long periods of time. No extraneous weight-bearing. No jumping. So, if this puppy is going to be a Search and Rescue dog, or an Agility dog, or an Assistance dog, the above limitations need to be worked into his training until his skeleton is fully formed. Until he's eighteen months of age, it's moderate, consistent exercise only.Which, by the way, is the way to treat an arthritic joint, but that's another story too.

So, next week I'll actually get to the third part of the hip dysplasia equation, the one I've been teasing you with for three weeks now, puppy diet.

Next week: Diet and the Prevention of Hip Dysplasia

E-mail Dr. Good your comments & pet questions.