My 15 month old St. Bernard, may have hip dysplacia how much will surgery cost, whats the best option?

Question

Bear has always had issues with his hind quarters. It was only recently I noticed that he was slow getting up. He has always had a limp after running, but lately it has seemed to go away. Today on our walk, he was really slow and started somewhat limping. When he does run he does the whole "bunny hop" thing. I am so scared that he may have it. Bear is my life and I would do anything for him but as a military family, the cost of surgery would greatly hurt us. I was just wondering if anyone knew if the surgery could even be performed on a puppy over 1 year and if so, what are the best options and some cost estimates? Thanks

Answer 1

Yes, the surgery can be done on your dog.

The cost will depend on how bad the hips are. Hip Dysplasia can range from mild, which only requires special beds and pain meds to keep the dog comfortable, all the way up to complete hip replacement. (believe it or not)

It sounds (to me, without seeing the dog or knowing the entire case history) like you're pup has a mild to moderate case at this point. The problem is, he's a BIG dog. The problem will get worse as he gets older.

Go to the vet. Find out EXACTLY what's going on and exactly how much it will be to fix it. Plan from there. Some vets offer payment plans and some have special funds for people who need help in situations just like yours.
Military families are sometimes offered breaks, so ask.
Animal Control, Humane Societies, and the SPCA sometimes have funds to help, or offer care at lower prices.

At the very least, you need X-rays. It will run (depending on where you live) $250-$300. Maybe more if your pup needs to be sedated to get good films.

If you have any other questions. I've seen LOTS of hip dysplasia.

Good luck to you.

Answer 2

I do hope that the puppy came from a REPUTABLE breeder - someone who is a member of the Naional Breed CLub. If you did the breeder would have given you a health guarantee with respect to the hereditary health problems. Contact me - they will want to know. The reason that even breeders who do everything right - xraying and testing their dogs, not breeding dogs whose tests are poor or questionable - give that guarantee is because the genes for the defects are rescessive meaning a dog has to get a recessive gene for the bad trait from both parents for the condition to show up. Every trait has 2 genes - one from mom and one for dad. If they are not the same, the recessive bad gene is dominated by the good gene.. A dog can have the bad gene and never show signs, and pass the bad gene to its progeny but they never show signs because they get a good gene for ,say the hips, from the other parent. Then one day a dog whose family tree shows that all the generations passed the health tests is bred to another whose family tree shows the same thing, and then there puppies born who have the hereditary health problems. alanac certainly has some real problems and hatred towards breeders who show and not much knowledge about when HD can be detected. Even the best breeders can have puppies with HD turn up in the litter - and, yes they are going to be horrified and want to know and do everything to avoid that again. But no, they are not "snobs" - just very very concsentious with zero tolerance for backyard breeders who don't care and don't screen their dogs to even try. The odds of having it happen with a responsible show breeder are far far far less than with a backyard breeder or pet store but it can happen sooner or later. That is why RESPONSIBLE breeders give health guarantees. HD can not be diagnosed with 100% accuracy until the dog is 2 - unless the dog exhibits symptoms such as limping, pain etc. One can do the xrays before 2 but those will only show if the hips have currently developed so as to be dypslatic - not whether they will not be dysplastic in the future when the dog finishes growing. Seen 6 month old puppies xrayed for a preliminary check at 6 months - look great. At 2 years when the final xrays are done - mild dysplasia on one hip. Now depending upon how much pain the dog is in, the hip transplant may be the way to go. He is soo-o-o-o young and will be growing so much yet (and the artificial hip won't). which means replacing it down the road if down now, I would hesitate to do it at this time. It is an expensive procedure - $1000 to 1500 per hip as I recall. Now, back in the pre-transplant days, I had a Golden turn out to be SEVERELY dysplastic and the symptoms showed up at 8 months of age. He couldn't get up, could't walk without pain.. The procedure done was called a pectinotomy. It involves cutting the mucles near the socket which allows the head of the femur to drop and form a false socket. It is very successful in alleviating the pain and allowing the dog to move normally. Most walk out of the clinic after the surgery and move fine. Some may need exercise and "doggy" physical therapy to help the muscles and tendons create the false joint. Nothing fancy - take them to a body of water and make them swim - A LOT . Now, the older vets all know this procedure - but many of the younger ones aren't that familar with it having trained primarily in the more high-tech and intricate procedures. Its cost is a lot lower - $300-500. By the way, the Golden I mentioned had the severest possible case of dysplasia - xrays were horrendous - and if the attending vet had been anyone but my childhood vets who were the first to use anesthetic gas in small animals and the first to do opthamalic surgery on small animals and were willing to do whatever it took to save him (even recommending a hip tranpslant if the pectinotomy didn't work at a time when they were experimental and cost $20000) - the vet medical community would have recommeded he be destroyed. The pectinotomy worked and he went on to run miles and go backpacking with me and reguarly leap 3-4 foot straight up in the air playing.

Answer 3

Surgery is usually around $1500-$2000 a hip, yes it can and should be done as young as possible. Take him in for some hip xrays to see how bad the hips are and the vet will tell you if surgery will work or not. If you got him from a breeder call them too and see if they guarantee the hips or had the parents OFA Certified. If you went to a pet store then it sucks to be you. Pet store dogs come from puppy mills and this is what happens. If the vet says he needs surgery the start saving and have it done. He's going to be a big dog and will have trouble walking at all if he's really bad. Start at the vet and go from there.

Answer 4

There are a million things that could cause what you are describing and many of them are fixable. In any case, it is best to have the dog evaluated by a vet as they can at least help you make him more comfortable.
The cost for surgery is never cheap, but that is part of owning a dog. If the cost is a problem you can investigate other options, but don't avoid getting your dog checked out just because you are scared. What if it is totally fixable and your dog has been suffering this whole time??
Call a vet and get an appointment.

Answer 5

My puppy has hip dysplasia as well. The surgeries have to be done at a young age, but I don't remember how early. It does sound like Bear has hip dysplasia, but I can help a little bit on the subject though.

Indi is on an expensive dog food, but I find it's well worth the price ($50 for a 30 lb bag of food). It's Hill's Prescription Diet j/d. There are also other dog foods out there that are on the same guide lines, but I don't know of the price. Fish oils are used as the main help, it lubricates the joints. I opted not to do the surgery because of the cost, especially when you don't know if it's actually going to help. My vet said they could put him on a pain medication, but that only masks the pain.

The easiest thing to do (in my opinion) keep Bear active, special dog food, and a good bed. Some days will be good, some will be bad. Good days he will want to play, run, jump (which jumping is bad), and bad days he'll just want to lay around and probably sleep.

Answer 6

You can only tell if a dog has HD by means of X-Ray. You can suspect it and I confess that the signs that you're are describing tend to indicate that he has it.
There are four ways the Vet can go . Pectinial Resection (Pectinectomy) where the inside leg muscle is cut to allow the hip to be pulled back into it's socket.
A partial hip replacement where only one part is replaced (the acetabulum or the femoral head)
A full hip replacement. Extremely successful but also very expensive.
The fourth option is euthanasia.
I know that this does not answer your question about cost but Military Family...Veterinary corps. Are there not avenues you can try that way.
I really do wish you well and Bear too of course. Congratulations on a well thought out and written question. thank you

Answer 7

A hip replacement can cost somewhere in the neigborhood of $1,500 to $2,500 (most recent costs I've heard). If a university in your area has a vet school, you will probably find some of the cheapest prices and best care there. I do believe the surgery could be performed at this age if it is determined to be severe enough at this time. If he were a nine year old dog I would probably not suggest it, but as young as he is I would say go for it if possible. The quality it will add to his life is priceless as are the many years of love and loyalty that he will give you in return!

Answer 8

You will have to talk to your veterinarian for accurate information. They will probably suggest x-rays if you haven't already got those done. That way they will know if he actually does have hip displaysia, and how bad it is. Then they can talk to you about different options.

But I just want to tell you that my friend has a 10 year old saint bernard who is happy and healthy, besides her bad hip displaysia. It is to the point that she can't even walk outside to go to the bathroom. She is considering putting her to sleep due to the amount of pain she is in, even with the pain meds she is on. If the vet recommends surgery, I would go for it if you can afford to, if they think it will help him be more comfortable in the long run...

Answer 9

This is something you should have considered getting a breed known for this problem.
Only a vet can tell you it can actually be a number of things.
Most vets say that hip dispacia can't be diagnosed until 2 years old.
most breeders is any good should have something in their health guarantee, the breeder may be resposnsable for all or part of the bill.
You may also want to check teh laws in the state you got the dog some states have laws that the breeder be responsable for.
Good Luck

Answer 10

My first question would be if you had contacted Bear's breeder? If you purchased him from a responsible breeder, there would be some guarantees there regarding his overall health and an OFA history behind those in his pedigree.

With that said, it depends on the degree of dysplasia. There are many options other than surgery available, which can help manage the pain. It is best to consult with your veterinarian as they will be most able to inform you of your options and their costs.

Best of luck with Bear!