Article From SubmitYOURArticle.com: Dogs with Hip Dysplasia - Diagnosis and Treatment Options Availble

Over the years of dog breeding, certain diseases
have become associated with certain breeds of
dog. Dalmatians are associated with deafness,
certain terriers are more likely to develop
allergies. Breeders attempt to remove these
traits by not breeding animals that have
developed these conditions, but unfortunately,
the conditions often skip generations.

Hip dysplasia is a genetic condition that affects
some dogs worse than others. Before we can
discuss the nature of the disease, it would be
useful to take a look at the joint in question.
The hip joint comprise of two parts, namely the
"ball" and "socket" joint. The name is fairly
self explanatory: the first bone of the leg has
a ball shape on the top, which fits into a
socket, or cup shaped bone mass, attached to the
pelvis. When the legs are moving, the little
ball rotates around the socket and offers a wide
range of movement in most directions.

A dog with hip dysplasia has poorly formed joints
on the hip. The "socket" portion of the joint,
instead of being the rounded cup that it should
be, has a flattened side, such that the "ball"
end cannot sit properly in the joint. The result
is that such a dog has a weakened joint and its
legs may splay out as the ball of the joint
searches for somewhere it can rotate.

It is very common for dog owners to wonder why
this slight deformity is such a big issue. How
might it actually affect a dog? This condition
starts to develop in puppies from a young age and
some puppies have reported to be suffering from
pain since puppyhood. This is quite unusual, as
hip dysplasia conditions are commonly diagnosed
in the later stages of a dog's life, unless a
radiograph is taken.

When a dog walks or runs, it puts pressure on the
malformed joint, therefore the dog's body will
try to compensate the pressure by building bone
tissue in the joint. A dog will develop
arthritis over the years of walking on the joint.
This will be painful and he will experience
difficulty getting up and running as he ages.

If your dog breed is more genetically prone to
having hip dysplasia, your veterinarian can
perform some quick simple tests. Your dog may be
asked to walk around briefly to see if his gait
swivels slightly. The veterinarian may also
extend your dog's leg backwards, looking for
signs that this may be painful. Another test
would require your dog to lay on his back. The
veterinarian will gently pull your dog's paw away
from the body and, with a hand on the hip, will
feel and listen for a "pop" as the ball of the
joint slips back in to the socket.

If the veterinarian suspected the condition to be
hip dysplasia, he will recommend for radiographs
to be taken to confirm if the joint is malformed.
There are various treatments available whereby
your veterinarian can disclose to you. There are
a number of surgery options available depending
on the size and weight of your dog breed.
Examples of options range from removing the whole
ball joint and allowing the body to form a "false
joint" to a major hip replacement surgery. Non
surgical treatment simply seeks to manage and
reduce the pain experience by your dog. Non
steroidal anti-inflammatory medications and other
nutritional regimens and supplements may be
prescribed.

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Dogs are creatures of habit and routine. They
form expectations and schedules, including
feeding, potty and playing time. To learn more
about your canine, including topics such as
canine dog health and canine dog care, visit
CanineTouch.com:
http://www.caninetouch.com/category/health/
http://www.caninetouch.com/category/dog-care/

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