need advice on 5 mo. old GSD - Page 4

I highly doubt those people know of such a law; from what you said, this is ignorance, not malice. I'm the one who said what did you expect for $400. A normal black and red puppy is going to be between $1500-$4000ish from what I've seen (and I don't do black and reds, so I don't know much about them). My point was to take the money you saved and put it into this pup, if need be, chalk it up to a lesson learned, and help him have the best life with you that he can.

So, how is he?  Any x-rays yet?  Update please!
I've been thinking about him.

~Brandi~

Watched the video and apart from the pup being extremeley leggy (long upper and lower thigh combined with a long hock) having little to no muscle, loose as hell, and obviously growing like a weed!  i can't see a hip issue.

The pups been grown way too fast!

Ambii, I agree; he just looked LOOSE to me, which is why I asked about how he was raised/kept up until now.

Yep I'm with you Jenni - poor thing looks like its not learnt how to control those legs yet, if it wags it's tail it will fall over!  No wonder it doesn't want to run.

Be interesting to know what protein levels are being fed... I'd drop it right back onto around 20% and feed lamb breast (for fat) and beef heart (for pure protein).

How many people complain when vet's look at overly angulated pups and tell the owner they have bad hips? How many people say that they just love these vets with x-ray vision? This is no different. If he is concerned he should get the x-ray done with a vet that does alot of x-rays for breeders so that he has someone who knows about positioning. I hope he posts the outcome. Good luck.

Hi everyone,
I did get Baron's hips, elbows and spine xrayed. I'm working right now so in the next day or so I'll do my best to post the xray pics.
We did have it done by a vet how specializes on OFA certs. and I feel confident that he is correct.
He told us that all the bones,joints and palcements look fine. I made sure that the doc watched Baron walk prior to putting him under for the xrays. That's why he also took pics of the spine.
There is no hip dysp., the elbows look great as does the spine. He said he needs to 'muscle up' in the hindquarters. Non weightbearing exercise. Swimming, he said would be great, 2-3 times per week.
He did say that he's growing too fast. 've been free feeding him Diamond Large breed puppy food and giving him a raw chicken thigh (one per day).
I'll get those pics up here ASAP.
Thanks again for all you're concern and good wishes
toothfairy51

I'm so glad that there aren't any structural joint issues.

Check to see if there are any underwater treadmills available in your area. Its expensive, but will muscle up a dog in just a month and with low impact. If you live anywhere near a sandy area, walking pup through soft sand is also excellent therapy and much more affordable.

To reduce puppy's growth rate - nix the "puppy food" and go to an adult feed with lower protein.

Yay!!!

Not only do I love being right, but I love it when a puppy is healthy! That's great news!

Free feeding is a big no-no!!! Quit that; start feeding him in 2 separate meals, or 3 smaller ones if you want. Keep kibble and raw separate. Maybe a large breed puppy food (Wellness is a good one) would be a better choice for now (most are a hoax, but Wellness is one of the better balanced one for large pups).

Again, so happy he's just loose!

I've been feeding him Large breed Puppy Diamond brand. I do keep the raw and kibble separate and feed him, for the last week, only 2 meals per day. We took him to visit the breeder today, too and, he said he had never heard of 'cow hocked'. So I guess I taught him something. They really are very nice people, I was just very upset before and wanting to blame someone.
He was very concerned and said " it looks like he just needs to 'muscle up' in the backend a bit". Then he brought out Baron's mother to see him, and us, and I was so surprised, he is as big as she is. After we got home with him, the breeder called me and said that he had figured Baron's rate of growth at about 15lb. a month. Too much. So, I'm glad that I cut his food back.
I will be taking him to the beach and walking through the sand with him and swimming, too. We live very close to the Gulf of Mexico, Boca Ciega Bay and Tampa bay so, there's lots of sandy, doggy swimming places for us to go.
Thank you all again. I'll post some more pics to keep you all up to date on his progress.
He is such a sweet puppy and I only want to do the best I can for him. He is a love.
toothfairy51