Hips: Opinion Poll - Page 1

I would like to know what people think about hip dysplasia and how weight and exercise can affect hips. Surely this post does not need to get out of hand. Thank you

Christina, past genetic predisposition for hip dysplasie, the diet and exercise level/type are believed to be the other significant factors. In other words, I believe that a puppy born with hips that are at the upper range of the quality scale is able to tolerate a diet and/or exercise type/level that is less than ideal, whereas a puppy whose hips are sound yet near the lower end of the quality scale probably cannot tolerate an ubringing that is less than ideal. The S.V. states that hip dyslasie is 30% genetic and 70% environmental. In my opinion this ratio is not accurate, but to some end I digress. I think their statement may be accurate for those puppies that are born with hips that have less than ideal quality, and perhaps the reverse is true for those who have superior (i.e. correct) hip quality. We do know certain things to be true. Very rapid growth due to overfeeding can cause joint problems, as the bones and the joint surfaces are still developing and cannot easily absorb the additional load. The same can be said about excessive running and jumping from high surfaces and hard surfaces. There are, no doubt, those puppies whose hips can withstand such abuse but in my opinion they are not the norm. Our dog was a wild animal until it was domesticated by man several thousand years ago, and before this event the "survival of the fittest" determined who would produce the next generations. Since our intervention, dogs have plenty to eat and mature to live a life that is not determined by genetic superiority. In one (1) sense, a puppy born in the wild would never have too much to eat and would grow slowly and naturally. Being a scavenger, it would not run and jump excessively unless it was after prey or fleeing for its life. And only the puppies with sound health would survive to produce the next generation. And this is no doubt why a dam has from four (4) to eight (8) puppies with each litter, as the survival rate determined by natural (not man's) selection must be very low. Just some philosophical points, I agree. I tend to be careful when raising puppies, and keep the image of the "wild dog" in the back of my mind. I do think that the quality of diet and exercise does effect the hip quality of many of our dogs. I cannot make a scientific statement and establish a ratio such as been done by the S.V., but I think there is definitely some relationship. Bob-O

Basically good genetics are a factor and i belive as with us all dogs will die with some form of dysplasia. just a constant wear and tear on moving parts softens sockets and chissel away at bones. Thats why at a year the hip x-ray would be the most crucial other thats when you can tell more or less that the malformities are more defects then enviormental say overweight poor feeding running on hard surfaces laxation etc. unfortunatly we here in america have some sort of radiological psycosis and we need to see x-ray after x-ray unfortunatly a radiological photograph is only good for a moment in time. the true test of hips etc. is to put the dog in motion see how every thing lines up a dog mill is perfect for this you can see front to rear paw tracking, sloppiness spine alignment swing etc. You also have to remember that when a dog is sedated there muscles are at rest so depending on you vets ability to x-ray for a certificate it is a crap shoot. when muscles are at rest thats were laxation comes in and the joints can show opened or stressed

Even humans get wear and tear on their bones. But in speaking of HD in early to mid age I believe it's caused by genetics. If you have a pup that's has HD and you allow to be overweight it will show up much sooner than if kept in good shape. I do believe keeping your dog in good lean shape will enhance it's overall quality of life and it's longevity.. But IMO trying to blame overweight and exercise is due to people breeding dogs with HD or a tendency to have HD in their offspring. Again, just my opinion.

ok I have have been raising pups for 9 years now. I will usually keep a couple pups and raise them to see if 1.) I like how they turn out, 2) If I want to repeat that breeding. So needless to say I have raised alot of puppies. I have only had 2 that had HD, and these were both very bad hips...so born with it..so I am just guessing here I have raised about 100 pups myself....and only 2 had HD. Now I do keep my pups in very good shape, nice running, but not for a long period of time. I had fed the BARF diet for many years and then decided to switch back to a dog food for the puppies so they would have such a hard time when they were sold...that is when the HD showed up. Of course I am back to the BARF diet.

good post het.

Indeed, but ALL the replys were excellent, I thought. I have only had a fraction of the puppies as Het, but I did the same thing with the raw diet, and for the same reason, and I feel the exact same way. I was just commenting this morning about it to my husband. Thank you for the excellent feedback, again.

What is a BARF diet? Thanks.

Bones and Raw Foods. Google it and you will get tons of information. Heather

IMO weight, diet and exercise does not cause HD, but it can make it worse in dogs already progammed to be dysplastic.