Pet Tips Hip Dysplasia A big concern for dog owners – especially owners with medium to large dogs − is hip dysplasia. Normal hips are nice and tight, but the hips of a dysplastic dog aren’t tight – in fact, the lack of tightness determines how severe the problem is. Signs of subtle dysplasia are sore hips or a dog that has to work on getting the back end going in the morning. Some owners say their dog is shaky or does a back leg split when walking on slick floors. The cause of hip dysplasia is that these dogs inherited the hip dysplasia gene from their parents. The good news is there are excellent screening techniques to detect hip dysplasia before breeding, and it can even pick up hip dysplasia in small puppies. Medical and surgical options: Get with your vet to make sure the problem is hip dysplasia. My first treatment for dysplasia is to keep the dog’s weight in line with body size – extra weight means unnecessary stress on weak hips. Second, continue light exercise and walking as much as the dog can easily handle. This doesn’t mean leaping and flying over the place to catch the ball or jogging all over town – moderation in exercise, please. When hips stay sore, use anti-inflammatories like aspirin. There are surgical procedures that give good to complete correction, depending on the dog’s size and severity of dysplasia. Please check with your vet for more information on hip dysplasia.
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