More hip xrays- 11 week old pup - Page 2

What are you doing x-raying an 11 week old pup? First of all, as someone else pointed out, the growth plates are all open. You certainly get nothing out of this except seeing the dog does not have something broken. Dogs, especially American lines, often have loose ligaments, underdeveloped muscles etc way beyond this age.

Leave the pup alone and wait until much later to look at such issues and then take the dog to a competent clinic where it can be properly evaluated. To suggest doing this at this age, unless to rule out a broken bone, was not the best idea and demonstrates a lack of experience, at the very least.

I always tell myself not to worry about any puppy's gait, but I always do anyway....they are born klutzes! They limp, stumble, bunny-hop, fall down, hock-walk, stand so cow hocked you want to wince when you look at them; then they knock each other down, step on each other, get stepped on, take flying leaps they should never attempt....turn your hair gray....& yet they turn out OK! Every other day their gait is weird.....love the puppy, life doesn't come with guarantees. You give your heart & hope for the best, whether with people, puppies, or whatever! jackie harris

Jackie, over the years the pups I owned with the most awkward gaits always had the best hips. One of my best movers as a puppy ended up severely dysplastic. At 5 months she was a moving fool,  won a best in specialty match by defeating about 50 other puppies. 3 weeks later she couldn't rise from a prone position.  I never pay any attention at all to the way puppies move behind unless they are visibly lame or  refusing to bear weight on one or both rear legs.

Terrible rays but to be expected on 11 natural X. Hips look good, I see minor dorsal thickening. Nothing to worry at this point. (Hips)

Knees look good. Femur looks good. Fibula GB 34 tendon looks to be underdeveloped for flex proportions. Nothing to worry about at this point. (Right)

I see possible mis disk @ first caudal vert .. can be remedied quick with a good swim in moving waters. Nothing really to worry about medically .. this is prolly the reason for the walk. DS(a1)R.

You can tell this dog was crated, pressurizing the right side. Deviating unnaturally.

JMO.

i'm with hodie on this one.  xrays on 11 wk old pup is really jumping the gun.  even if you were able to determine anything with the xrays, the pup is still a crap shoot at that age and will be for quite some time to come.  if someone wants a sure thing, they need to be looking at an older pup or young dog.  there are other things besides hips, you know.........like temperament, dtrives, etc.  pups just need time to be a pup, to play, grow up and bond with humans.  people who push too much too fast are nearly always disappointed because they are expecting more than is resonable.

pjp

bLITZEN:   YOU  took the words right out of my mouth...My Rosie has ofa EXCELLENT  rated certified hips and she walks and runs like she has a wad of something between her legs...very funny and I have always thought it so odd.

First off, I agree totally with Blitzen. American lines Shepherds often look crippled as pups, and frequently 'bunny hop' when moving.

Secondly, this is a PETLAND puppy! That means it has spent most of its short life IN A CAGE!  OF COURSE it's going to have weak, underdeveloped muscles!

To my eye, the x-ray doesn't look bad. The hip sockets are nice and deep, and the balls seem well-developed for the pup's age. Give it time, let it be a puppy, and I'll bet it turns out just fine!

I can only hope that the owner of this puppy has not been convinced to do something drastic based on the way the dog moves and these xrays.

Good point Blitzen.

If they do something drastic with this pup .... the rays don't support that decision. Actually the rays don't limit the dog to be a "pet" either .. so maybe there is more to the story of X @ 11 weeks. Who knows, so many people wanting money .. they do anything to prove a case. Good luck with your evaluation.