Labrador Retriever Dogs Blog

Hip dysphasia is a crippling and painful disease seen most often in larger purebred dogs, such as Golden Retrievers, German Shepherd, St.Bernard's, and Labrador Retrievers. The occurrence in German Shepherds alone is almost 80%.

Classified as an arthritic condition, it is usually hereditary and presents itself in one or both hip joints. The cartilage lining of the hip joints wear down due to a partial and sometimes complete dislocation of the hip joints.

Signs of hip dysphasia may appear as early as 4 weeks of age, with most appearing around 8 to 12 months. Early warning signs are posterior pain, difficulty rising from a prone position, and a general hesitance to move or exercise. A definite diagnosis can only be made by an x-ray from you veterinarian.

Surgical techniques have been developed to help relieve the pain and lameness caused by the disease. In severe cases hip or joint reconstruction and or replacement has been done, with the best results seen in smaller, younger animals. Since hip dysphasia is an inherited disease, infected dogs should be neutered to prevent spreading to further generations.

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Some Labrador dogs are unfortunate enough to have been born with a disease. Surely you do not want to acquire disease even before you were born, am I right? But then, things happen whether we want it or not. We inherit things we sometimes don't want to have, things such as horrid characteristics and diseases.

Dogs, same with human will less likely choose to inherit diseases if only they have the opportunity and power to do it. But sad to say, these diseases are passed on from generations to generations and there's no way we can escape it when it's already running through the veins of our ancestors. As dog owners, it is your responsibility to know what these diseases are so that you could prevent it from coming before actually affecting your dog. A dog may suffer from what it seems to be a mild deafness to eye problem and may get as worst as dysplasia, luxating patella and hereditary myopathy. Read the rest of this entry »