Just How Bad is Hip Dysplasia

Facts about Hip Dysplasia

Common br= eeds affected with hip dysplasia:=

1) E= nglish Bulldog     74% bad

2) P= ug       &nb= sp;            =      63% bad

3) <= span class=3DSpellE>Dogue de Bordeux 56%= bad

4) <= span class=3DSpellE>Neopolitan Mastiff 49% bad

5) <= st1:place w:st=3D"on">St. Bernard&nbs= p;            47% bad

6) C= ane Corso  =           40% bad

7) B= asset       &nb= sp;            = 36% bad

8) F= rench Bulldog     &n= bsp; 34% bad

9) A= merican Bulldog 33<= /span>% bad

10) = Newfoundland=      26% bad

For years this word has been passed around as something th= at

is seen occasionally in lar= ge breed dogs, but what is hip dysplasia and

what can be done to prevent it? Hip = dysplasia is literally arthritis of

the hip joints. Hip dysplasia= is considered to be an inherited disease

since hip conformation is p= assed down from the dam and sire to the

puppies. The hip joint is a ball and socket joint, so the more of the

ball that is covered by the= socket, the less likely the dog is to develop

hip dy= splasia. Evaluating hip joint conformation = is very difficult to

do without doing x-rays. Manual palpation of the hip joint = can

be done but many poorly con= formed hip joints may feel “tight” at

8-12 weeks of age.&nb= sp; There have been many discussions about the

hereditary aspect of hip dysplasia and if any other factors contribute to

hip dysplasia. Hip dysplasia= can be affected by the body condition

of the dog. Purina foods did a study with a li= tter of Labradors in which they split up a li= tter of puppies and kept ½ the litter in an obese condition (>5 body condition score) and the other ½ of the litter in good lean body condition (<5 body condition score).&nb= sp; This study showed that by keeping the dogs in a lean body condition, that it lessened or prevented the development of osteo= -arthritis (hip dysplasia). This same result has been proven in several published articles in the Journal of Veterinary Medicine. It is very important to understand that the dogs kept in “lean” bo= dy condition are not kept “skinny”. These dogs were just kept in the appropriate healthy body condition in which the ribs can easily be palpated (not seen!). This study is al= so not saying that hip dysplasia is strictly caused by= obesity, hip dysplasia is primarily a hereditary disease. So what can be done about preventing the hereditary part of hip dysplasia?

&nbs= p; The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals is a non-profit organization of board certified radiologist located in Columbia Missouri that will evaluate x-rays of the hip joints that are taken at your local veterinarian and give= you either certification that the hips joints are excellent, good, fair, or dysplastic (hip dysplasia= ). It is recommended to not breed dog= s with dysplastic hips. By having your dogs hips evaluated you can significantly decrease yo= ur rejects and claims for hip related problems. OFA offers certification of hips beginning at 24 months of age. They also offer preliminary x-rays at a very young age which can be very valuable when choosing breeding stock.

Many of the puppy distribut= ors will pay a bonus or premium for puppies that have come from an OFA certified sir= e or dam. Breeders selling their p= ets out the door or direct to the pet stores can also benefit from this value by having less claims on their puppies and by greater profit margins when the = OFA certification is properly marketed. I recommend evaluating your male dogs first to maximize the amount of pups from a certified parent. Once your males are done and you are familiar with the process of OFA, it is very advisable to certify your females as well.

Taking the x-ray of the ani= mal is a very simple procedure that does involve giving the dog a sedative then taki= ng the x-ray. The entire process= only takes appx. 15 minutes. The results typically take 8-12 we= eks to get back. Cost of evaluation = by OFA is $35 per evaluation or $15 per evaluation if you send in 5 or more at the same time. Pricing for the pr= ocedure (anesthesia/x-ray) will differ among vets, but we offer the procedure for $60.00 per animal.

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; Dr. Samuel L. Harkey

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; All About Pets Veterinary Clinic, Purdy, MO.

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; (417) 442-PETS (7387)