I took him to the vet, and he has us scheduled for xrays this friday. Vet said something along the lines of a bone problem in the elbow. The dog is a German Shepard, 12 months old, and 70lbs. He limps on his right front leg, and his elbow is swollen. If you push on the elbow from the outside, it makes a crackling noise like my knee does when I get up from the floor. He's not showing any signs of pain when you press on his leg, elbow, or shoulder. But he's also not the type to show pain.
Obviously, I have to wait until friday for a prognosis from doc, but does anyone have any ideas for whats wrong?
2007-03-28 09:29:03 · 7 answers · asked by nokhada5 4 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Is there a chance he could have been injurred? If not, I would suspect severe elbow dysplasia, ununited aconeal process, or maybe severe panosteitis. I have provided information on each of them. Look at all of the links listed on the left of the first/second site as the other diseases are also a possibility. They may be useful to you and your vet. You may also want to join one of the GSD genetics lists. You can find several of them by searching yahoo groups. They can give you some help. I recommend the one I provided the link to. It is mainly composed of owners and breeders of white shepherds in particular but there are many people with shepherds of other colors there as we. They are by far the most friendly and useful of the GSD genetic lists.
BTW Elbow dysplasia and any other elbow (or hip) disease can be present in one or both of the legs. It is not uncommon at all for it to be present in only one joint. Also, I recommend asking for a copy of the x-rays to be sent to an othepedic specialist. Usually they can see things that our every day vets are not trained to look for. Good luck with your boy. I really hope he's gonna be okay.
2007-03-28 09:50:52 · answer #1 · answered by Erica Lynn 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It could be an injury, but as (like the previous poster!) I thought elbow dysplasia as soon as I read your dog was a shepherd. This is a breed that is at high risk of congenital hip/elbow dysplasia. In fact, GSD's that are to be used as working dogs (e.g. in the police) need to get their degree of dysplasia 'scored' before they can be allowed to train, by Kennel Club rules. A poor score means they have to high a chance of developing problems when they are older that will interfere with their work.
Don't panic too much if it is this, it's manageable, as your vet will discuss with you.
Chalice
2007-03-28 16:59:23 · answer #2 · answered by Chalice 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Young, large breed dogs are prone to a number of different bone-related diseases (thus the proliferation of "large-breed puppy" foods with regulated calcium levels).
Here are a couple of potentials you could google -- see if they fit:
Osteochondritis dissecans: "a defect of joint cartilage in a major joint, usually the shoulder, knee, elbow or "ankle" or between vertebrae.[...] the condition primarily affects young dogs."
Hypertrophic osteodystrophy: "an abnormal bone growth leading to pain at the ends of bones. Like osteochondritis dissecans, [...] a dog suffering from hypertrophic osteodystrophy is usually young. The dog may not want to walk much and may have visible swellings that are painful and/or warm to the touch."
Got this info from this link, although it doesn't discuss prognosis/treatment options:
http://newswire.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050412.133430&time=14+52+PDT&year=2005&public=0
Like I said, a Google search might give you more ideas.
Good luck!
2007-03-28 16:42:07 · answer #3 · answered by Loki Wolfchild 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Maybe elbow dysplasia ( a form of arthritis) , due to the swelling, limping and joint noise. . First appears in some larger dogs between the ages of 7-12 months, although it is usually in both elbows, not just one
2007-03-28 16:35:13 · answer #4 · answered by skip a heartbeat 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes, the same problem happens to ME! your dogs growth plate in his leg has not grown in completely. It's filled with a liquid called placsophoman. This liquid is in your body until you become an adult to keep your bones from bumping and to leave a space to grow.
When old people get old their bones are fully grown so there bones bump against each other causing arthritis. It will eventually go away
2007-03-28 16:37:38 · answer #5 · answered by Wesley A 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
as soon as I read german shepherd...one thing came to mind elbow dysplasia. GSD's are prone to this as well as hip dysplasia.
2007-03-28 16:53:08 · answer #6 · answered by julie's_GSD_kirby 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am not completely positive but I think you should wrap it (I think it is a fracture or a sprain) like with a wrap like we use for our knees
If u do not have one email me at haylea2006@yahoo.com plz
2007-03-28 16:35:33 · answer #7 · answered by haylea2006 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋