How do you know if your dog has hip dysplasia?

Question

My dog has been walking a little weird lately, i'm not sur eif its exactly a rolling gait, i don't know. But on our walk he kept sitting/lying down, and i don't know if he was in pain, or what. Also, he wouldn' climb the stairs halfway, even when i held out a milk-bone for him. I've looked online for symptoms of hip dysplasia, and it said some of his symptoms, but i'm still not sure. If anyone has any kind of insight or anything to help me, that would be great.

Answer 1

The only way to tell is to have him x - rayed at the vet.They have a lot of different medications and nutritional supplements to help with bad hips.You really should make an appointment;it could be something in the spine as well,as this will affect the rear legs.

Answer 2

my rotti had this problem. she was find until one day while running and playing with our other dog she started yelping and limping, i had a hard time getting her to walk home. she was about 120 lbs then and 5 yrs old. i took her to the vet the next day and after a good exam plus xrays, he hip showed the joint had seperated about an inch away from her joint which the vet stated was this awful disease. he said big dogs are prone to get this because of the weight and wear and tear on the joints. it was a very expensive surgery with no garanties that it would not come back. i ended up treating her myself with asperin, massage and vitiam b complex along with vit shots. she lived for another 2 yrs but i had her put down when she was 7. she could no longer walk or do stairs. if your dog has this, keep his weight down and do not let him run or put any pressure on his joints. just a slow walk around for short distances. give asa and try massageing the area gently but firmly. hopefully you will have caught it in time. best of luck.

Answer 3

taking the dog to the vet is a good idea. There are just too many possibilites, including arthritis. It depends on how old the dog is. My collie has hip problems, but she is 12 in people years. The vet took xrays and I have medicine to give her for it.

Answer 4

A vet will be the best to answer that, but your dog could also be suffering from a back injury/problem. Dogs can suffer from inflammation in their backs which can cause weakness in the rear end. An exam from a vet and xrays will give you a sure answer.

Answer 5

Hip displasia is a problem where the hip joint doesn't fit correctly. It usually shows up in younger dogs.

In contrast, arthritis is a general joint disease that usually shows up in older dogs. It is very difficult to tell the difference without X-rays.

Both displasia and arthritis may be relieved thru massage, Rimadyl, adn gentle exercise, if the disease is not advanced.

Bottomline is that the vet has to diagnosis, and then suggest remedies and options...

Answer 6

I would suggest you go to the vet to find out. Ted, my old dog recently was put down due to hip dysplacia. It could be that your dog has hip dysplacia. My dog spent most of his time whining in pain and laying down. He had a lot of trouble getting into the car, getting up and couldn't get up the stairs.
He really started to slow down as he got older, he died at the age of 13. I hope your dog does not have hip dysplacia, it's horrible to see a dog in so much pain, good luck with your dog!!!

Answer 7

also look up the breed of the dog to find out if it is common in that breed. You will also need to be diagnosed by a vet at some point. Maybe he is just tired?

Answer 8

I am not a vet or anything, but I owned an English Bull dog and my vet picked it up with an exam and xrays. hope this helps a little

Answer 9

Well nobody knows exactly how your dog is acting except for you so its hard to diagnose what your dog has. I would take him to the vet to check it out just in case.

Answer 10

take your dog to the vet so they can do some xrays , thats the only real way to tell . also is the breed prone to HD ? if so most breeders give a cert. of the parents that neither one of them have it.