[Silenn]

Hello Community

I am writing to you for help as my GPS was diagnosed today with hip dysplacia. I have done a lot of research on the internet about how I can help my beloved dog, but I would like to hear if any of you also had to care for a big dog with dysplacia and what you did to improve his life. I really love my dog, I would love to know all the opinions to give him the best quality of life. Here's a brief description:

1. German short pointer - 6 years
2. Was diagnosed last week, because i started to notice that he was running a little strange (I guess because of pain).
3. I don't feel that he is in a lot of pain, but I have noticed that he has a hard time getting up on his hind legs when he sleeps a lot or after exercise.
4. I used to run with him everyday for about 4km , then short walks across the park near our house
5. He weighs 38 kg, and eat twtice a day ( basically 40% protein, vegetable 40 and 20% carbs)



The vet told me that it was a moderate dysplacia (there is not so much pain) but still as a last resort I could operate him (something related to remove the nerve endings).
And well, I read you, I hope you can give me some advice.

(*) I attach some pictures of his x-rays for better understanding among veterinary friends here

Thank you very much!

 

[storyist]

The things I know you can do for a dog with HD short of surgery are - enough exercise to keep muscles strong in the back end; anti-arthritic supplements such as Cosequin. Talk to your vet, but that means so far as I know not exercise like throwing a ball and having the dog accelerate and decelerate to and from a hard run, but steady motion like long walks. There are supplements that help a lot of dogs. I had one of my Rottweilers on Cosequin and gave her Adequan shots sub-q every 2 weeks. She had moderate HD.

 

[Silenn]

The things I know you can do for a dog with HD short of surgery are - enough exercise to keep muscles strong in the back end; anti-arthritic supplements such as Cosequin. Talk to your vet, but that means so far as I know not exercise like throwing a ball and having the dog accelerate and decelerate to and from a hard run, but steady motion like long walks. There are supplements that help a lot of dogs. I had one of my Rottweilers on Cosequin and gave her Adequan shots sub-q every 2 weeks. She had moderate HD.

Thank you so much for the reply, the vet tell me that giving meds to my dog may complicate other parts of his body (such as developing gastritis). Anyway, I read in another forum that giving him Dasuquin can help him, do you think so too?

 

[storyist]

Thank you so much for the reply, the vet tell me that giving meds to my dog may complicate other parts of his body (such as developing gastritis). Anyway, I read in another forum that giving him Dasuquin can help him, do you think so too?

NSAIDs, which are anti-inflammatories such as Rimadyl, are the drugs that can help arthritis pain but which also run the risk of side effects such as gastritis. Anti-arthritic supplements such as Cosequin, green-lipped mussels, and yes, Dasuquin don't do that, at least for most dogs. My personal experience was that Dasuquin is more expensive than Cosequin, and it didn't give better results, but dogs (and humans) can react differently to joint supplements. Glucosamine and chondroitin (the ingredients in most of these supplements) worked wonders for me in a very short time. I have friends they did nothing at all for. So there's some try-and-see to them all.

That said, what worked best for my HD dog is Adequan, which I mentioned before. It's expensive, needs a prescription, and has to be given as an injection. My vet wrote me a prescription so I could order it from Valley Vet, and I gave it myself as a sub-q shot, which made it affordable. My vet thinks sub-q is the best way to give it. Other vets insist it should be a muscle shot.

In your shoes, I'd try some of the oral joint supplements, one at a time, and each for at least a month. That way you can find if any of them help your dog and not keep wasting money on those that don't. Good luck.