pasterns advise - Page 1

 Any recommendations for correcting the pasterns of a 13 month old male pup.
thanks
Bobby

Bobby999, weak pasterns was a big problem in showline GSDs. Years ago I owned showline gsds. I showed them and was able to achieve several AKC Chs.  I took the following advice from a very reputable and respected breeder and it worked for me...

That method was to put the food bowl on a level that the puppy has to reach up and stretch up as if he was standing on tippy toes. This will strengthen the ligaments in pasterns...This always worked for them, and for me as well. I have recommended this to several people since and it has worked for them also....Within a week there was a noticeable difference Also need to mention that no supplements were used and nothing added to food to aid in the process....  Good luck and keep us posted..

Hope this helps you....

 thanks a lot i will try this 

I too was involved in the American breed years ago. I live on the west coast and became a big fan of Ruth Schriefer of the Vom Schrief Kennels when I was in my very early 20's. I'm seventy now and still going strong. Ruth introduced me to guys like Bob Penny, Jimmy Moses and the Tank brothers to name a few. True gentleman of the sport. I can still see the looks in their eyes and faces as they raced around the ring intent on attracting the judge's glance. There was something very primorial about the whole scene at times. There were also stories and articles she shared about the old Rocky Reach and Longworth kennels. The foundation of what yet was to come. I miss those times and regret having to part ways with the breed here in America, doing so in the 1980's. It was then when I entered the world of the German--German shepherd.
Perhaps some day there will be a standard for our beloved breed and we can get the courage to repair the damage that has been done over the years.
We need one standard.

I never heard that one before Nona, good to know. I've never had this problem before, but from reading other advise on weak pasterns, apparently exercising a dog on sand or gravel will also build up strength. If your dog is in a run outside placing pea gravel on the floor/ground is another method I've seen recommended.

Feed well cooked chicken feet. Richest natural source of Glucosomine , Chondroitine, HA and MSM.
Prager Hans
http://www.alpinek9.com

I agree with all of the above advise about exercising in sand, swimming and Prager is right about the chicken feet.  I give them to Pharaoh just as a part of his diet.  I keep them frozen and every so often defrost a bunch and feed them raw.  I cut the tonails off because they are so sharp.  He loves them.

Feeding raw chicken, like chicken wings or drumsticks will help to bring him up on his pasterns instead of down.  I did that with my second GSD who had undiagnosed Giardia (long story, she kept passing fecal floats).  As a result, she had chronic malabsorbtion causing a loss of calcium in her bones. 

Good luck, this is a problem that can be helped.

Michele

"We need one standard."

We have one standard.

I am a hobby breeder and there is one thing I learned a hard way – weak pasterns happen because of two things:

1. Hopefully your puppy is heavy boned or overweight and kept in a crate (or confined to a small area) for extensive periods of time. In this case changing the way you feed your dog and exercise will help. For puppies fed with commercial foods changing to low protein diet and adding one packet of prepared unflavored gelatin twice a day will make a difference. It will take some time, but if you won’t see any improvement within two or three weeks - it means that the problem is somewhere else. I would be careful with supplements (especially calcium) as it may make the problem worse.

2. Condition is genetic and there is really nothing you can do. There are more and more puppies (both American and German lines) with this condition. It seems as if it became a regular thing. It is not very publicized as majority of puppies outgrow the condition and by the time they hit the show ring, the condition is not noticeable (or “acceptable”). The problem starts, when both parents come from lines carrying “weak pasterns” factor. In the same litter you will have various degrees of this condition. One may be “almost normal” with the condition affecting puppy mildly only during teething, correcting itself pretty quick. The other puppy may have “mild condition” – when he’s pasterns are fine in the morning or after the long rest and go down after some physical activity. And there may be a puppy with “severe condition” where he walks on his pasterns (his paws look like flippers). I personally believe that knowingly breeding dogs that had weak pasterns as puppies only because they are Champions is totally irresponsible. You may have just one dog in a pedigree with this condition and it will keep showing up in the future generation even from parents that didn’t have this condition.

Judging to see if puppy has or doesn’t have weak pasterns should be done on a firm, non-slippery surface, i.e. concrete driveway. Slippery floors like tile or wood will naturally make pasterns bend, and paws sprawl. The best way is to let him stand relaxed and take a picture from the side and see if the angle is more than required by the breed standard 25 degrees. Posing puppies often makes pasterns look worse than they are.

The good news is that the majorities of puppies outgrows this condition by the time they are about one year old and have normal lives. However I wouldn’t do agility with this kind of puppy because of higher risk of injury while jumping. In some cases pasterns can improve at different rate making puppy looks as if he's limping. I talked to many breeders in my area and common knowledge is that if the puppy’s pasterns are completely down on the ground (i.e. you cannot insert a pencil between the pastern and the floor) – there is only a small chance that it will correct itself. Some suggest keeping such puppy crated with almost no exercise for a year or two and see if it corrects itself and I haven’t heard of a successful surgery fix yet.