Hip Dysplasia - Page 1

Can hip dysplasia cause a dog to go potty unexpectedly? My 2 yr old has been house trained since a young pup. She has severe hd. Just recently I've noticed that moderate exercise leaves her stiff and sore. Occasionally, I've found a "tinkle" trail across the floor. We do have 2 other dogs, a 13 yr old and a 3month old. I haven't caught anyone in the act. I was just wondering if hd could cause such problems? Thanks

I have an older male with HD and have never experienced that, I don't know what everyone else's experience is. You may just want to rule out a urinary tract infection if this just started recently and she had not done it prior. To manage her stiffness, if she is not on medication or supplements, I would definitely start. I have my older guy on Glucosamine with Chondrotin 1500mg daily, Vitamin C and Vitamin E daily. All purchased at the vitamin section of the store. There are also some new anti-inflammatorys out now that may also give her good relief. You should have your vet examine her and offer ideas. I don't know when you last had x-rays, but if it was awhile ago, your vet may want to re-xray and maybe check her spine if everything else is ruled out with her urinary problem. Spinal problems also could cause the incontinence too.

Thanks for the info.Her xrays were taken in june of last year when she turned 2. She does take vitamins as well as glucosamine. Perhaps it came from one of the other girls. I'll keep a closer eye on everyone to find out. Thanks again.

I lost a young bitch earlier this year because of her hips. She was not quite 4 years old. She never had any problems with incontinence, although she found it impossible to squat properly and would pee standing almost normally. If your puppy is a male I would suspect him!!! Dog puppies are good at leaving a trail, almost as if they forget they are peeing. And at three months he can be forgiven for getting caught short occasionally.

degenerative myelopathy can cause uncontrolled bladder and bowels. usually by the time that happens, though, the dog has already lost control of the back legs as well. very sad. we lost one of our old dogs because of this.

I would also worry about Caudia Aquina (sp?) It is a narrowing of the spine where the nerves lay and it pinches them off slowly over time. It is more common than one realizes and back xrays are becoming as common as hips now. It will easily cause loss of bladder control and motor function.

For the record-- Degenerative myelopathy and cauda equina would both be low on the list of possible issues in a 2 year old GSD. It's unlikely that severe HD would *cause* sporadic urinary incontinence in and of itself, but if your 2 yr old's HD-linked arthritis causes her to be too uncomfortable to hold a squatting position long enough to completely empty her bladder, bacteria can build up in the bladder and cause a urinary tract infection, which often causes urinary "leaking". Is this female spayed? It is also not uncommon for spayed females to experience some degree of urinary incontinence as a result of a loss of bladder sphincter tone secondary to the hormonal changes from spaying; this is fairly easily treated with an inexpensive medication you can obtain from your vet. It is also not unusual for female pups under 12 months of age to develop minor bacterial urinary tract infections; some pups are just prone to this sort of thing while they're young, and outgrow the problem once they've reached puberty. So the piddle trail culprit could also be the 3 month old, if she's got a low-grade bladder infection. The 13 year old could be the source of the urine, since minor urinary incontinance is not unusual in older dogs of both sexes; additionally, the aforementioned degenerative myelopathy and cauda equina syndrome would not be unheard of in a dog of this age, though one would expect to be seeing other signs of these disorders in addition to incontinance. Whenever a previously housebroken dog begins to leave 'piddle trails' in the house, etc., it's time to get a urine sample in to the vet and have it checked out. Hope this is of some help.

Thanks to everyone for all the information. :) All 3 are female. Yes the 13 and the 2 year old are spayed. I did catch the pup in the act. I relate it to a young child playing too hard and waiting too long before making a run for the door.(the pup that is). I got her outside fast and praised her for going. She is very smart and catches on quickly. Hopefull this will be a memory in no time. Thanks again. :)

Wish we saw more of your input Hexe