Is this Pano?? - Page 1

Good Afternoon all My 14 month old german shepherd male has started to move both his back legs together whilst running,like bunny hopping but at speed. He does not appear to be in any pain and appears fine when he is walking although even at walking speed he does tend to waddle a little on his back end.On one walk recently he appeared to trip with his back legs,it was over in a second but it seemed a strange thing to happen.He is otherwise fit and healthy and well exercised. I will be mentioning this to the vet next week as he is due a booster but just thought i would see if anyone could offer any advise in advance Many thanks Sarah

Bunny hopping could indicate - HD - not pano....  Pano is a limp....and usually start when they are alot younger - Pano is inflamation around joints when the pup is growing.....and  can last up to 2 yrs of age....

But that is just my thoughts.

YogieBear

Thank you YogieBear for your reply
Both his parents had good hip scores but i suppose this is no guarantee of being h.d free.
Does anyone know if h.d symptoms do rear their head at 14 months old and if they do does this mean it will be more severe for the dog as he ages.Will the vet suggest surgery for this while he is still a relatively young dog?

The vet will probably suggest x-rays first and then go from there. 

Xrays will surely let you know if your pup has HD............Hopefully not......But as far as HD - I don't think there is anything that really lets you know your pup might have it..........Just signs.....sitting funny - running funny..........at this point I would get xrays of your dog with a vet that is familiar with how to take xrays of GSD................  Sometimes just a dog walking or sitting funny would be a small sign........But he/she is old enough - I would suggest getting xrays to know what you are dealing with..........it isn't pano if it has just surfaced at 14 months.

Yogie

sitting on one side or bunny hop does not mean HD, i have seen many dogs have good hips that do that , the only way to know for sure  is to do the xrays. it does not sound like pano .

I agree with most of the posters.DOES NOT SOUND LIKE PANO.Also with pano.it usually moves from leg to leg.It also may not be HD either,only way to make sure is to X ray.In my 1st litter i retained 2 males,one was sound on his back end(H/S 5-3 uk)His brother appeared unsound (H/S 7-6 uk)so therefore would be accepted as a stud dog in uk.This brother had longish hock joints n one judge stated that he was UNCORODINATED.He bunny hopped as did others of mine at times.Carole Spelman.

Thanks all for your advice, i will speak with the vet about an xray and take it from there.Better to know what im dealing with now rather than later. Thanks again Sarah

My dog has severe HD and both her parents had low hipscores. However, a dog can inherit a recessive gene from many generations back and it can appear in a well bred dog. Had I researched more thoroughly the hipscores from previous progeny of the matings of both parents, I doubt very much whether I would have bought her, but that's all by the by.

I suspected something was wrong when she was 8 months old, her gait  changed and she began to slightly throw her left hind leg out, like a slight twist when she walked/trotted. This was so imperceptible and not obvious to a layman, even my husband couldn't grasp what I was pointing out to him... but having shown and bred horses for 20 + years I was able to pick out when a gait isn't 100% perfect, she bunny hopped but not all the time so I just put it down to growing and learning co-ordination.  Sadly, this was the only way she could run and still does and her gait is dreadful now, she is 8½ yrs old, but she enjoys life, her walks and playing with my other dog.

Xrays confirmed the HD and then 3 years later xrays showed the detoriation that had taken place. So like others have suggested, get him xray'd.
 
Is there any way you can check if his litter mates have been xray'd for hipscores yet?

Good luck... I hope it's just a hiccup for him

Doesnt sound like Pano, my 12 mth bitch has it.
Best to seek vets advice if you are worried.