Elbow Dysplasia

[ThierryHenryismyBoyfriend]

I have an 8 month old golden retriever puppy and he's been walking with a limp for the last week. We took him to the vet and they think he has a problem with one of his elbows.
They mentioned elbow dysplasia and a couple of other things I can't quite remember. He has to go back to the vet next week for a ga and for x rays to be carried out.

I am worried about him. Does anyone have any experience of this and what does it mean for his quality of life.......?

Have you got dog insurance Thierry? Because this is about to get verrrrrry expensive.

I have 2 labs - litter brother and sister. Parents both fully checked and scored etc, but one of mine (the dog) got the genetic short straw from somewhere and has elbow dysplasia and patella problems. Poor thing only has one good leg.

I noticed he was unsound at 12 weeks. It took a further 3 months to get a vet to agree.

These are some of the things we've done/continue to do:

Cod liver oil/chondroitin/glucosamine every day. We give him the human ones, wrapped in salami, a couple every evening.

An operation. Done at Willows in Solihull it was mahoosively expensive (8 years ago), but made a massive difference.

Metacam - a veterinary anti-inflammatory. I try not to use it too often - only when he is very stiff.

Short walks and often.

Swimming is much better for him than walking.

A super comfy bed - lots of padding - so that he's not putting pressure on it whilst he's asleep (which being 9 he thinks should be about 20 hours a day, preferably with my lap as a pillow).

I hate seeing him limp and it is much worse in damp weather, but he is a happy thing. Please make sure you get him neutered, I am sure you will, but it would be terrible for puppies to have a father that was unsound.

All in all, he's still your lovely dog. I wouldn't swap mine for all the tea in china.

Thanks for your experiences.
Luckily we have a policy which covers up to £7k every year so no restrictions on that amount per claim/incident. Hopefully this amount per year will cover any claims which we may need to put in.
We're already giving him cod liver oil tablets as he had dandruff as a puppy and I was told it helped with that, it worked and we carried on giving it to him.
He's a happy little chap and I hate to think of him suffering but hopefully we can manage whatever it is.
You're right re getting him neutered and luckily enough we had that done 3 weeks ago so no worries about him passing on any rogue genes to any puppies.
Fingers crossed it's not too bad but whatever he's part of the family so we'll deal with whatever comes along!.

Thanks again for your thoughts.

Ah, now, being neutered 3 weeks ago makes me wonder....

There isn't a chance that he's just still a bit bruised from the op is there? Goldies are lovely big dogs, I'd be wary that it's not just transferred pain (ie, walking tenderly, putting extra stress on another limb to compensate).

I you are getting his elbows xrayed it's worth paying the extre to have them scored by the BVA (you will need to check with your vet first that they can do this), at the BVA a panel of experts will look at tge xrays and come to an accurate opinion about the ED. I have heard a number of cases where a vet has diagnosed HD and then the xrays have been scored to find that the dogs hips score below their breed mean.

I'd also think about swapping the Cod liver oil capsules for Omega ones, slightly more expensive (I always look out for them on offer) but better i believe.

All the best!

Ah Mrs D you've given me a small sliver of hope so fingers crossed.

Mrs S I'll speak to the vet re this and see what they can do.

He's still limping and he's going stir crazy being kept in so fingers crossed they will give him the all clear on Monday :)

UnWiseDog has just had her second op for hip dysplasia. If it does turn out to be dysplasia, ask for a referral to a specialist to discuss all the options. They can do all sorts of things these days to help with joint problems. UWD's ops were very expensive - thank god for pet insurance!

The BVA do not accept dogs for hip or elbow scoring as part of the schemes until they are a year old - I've always been told it's because puppy joints are soft and ill defined by definition and therefore difficult to score.

I don't know if that reason is correct - but I do know they rigorously enforce the age limit.

One of my labs had growing pains which made her limp like crazy. We put her onto complete rest for 2 weeks - wees and stuff on a lead only. The limp was really, really worrying to see but has disappeared with no lasting problems. There are many explanations for limping in these fast growing. bigger dogs so fingers crossed it's not ED.

And don't be afraid to ask for a second opinion from a BVA expert if you need to.

Thery diagnosed my puppy with this and it was complete bollocks 14 mths now and her elbows have been scored by the BVA and she is fine!
You vet can xray...
I'd not bother with BVA as a score means nothing re diagnosis and treatment and in any case they will not score before 12 mths and that is just for breeding/screening generally speaking. Seeing as your boy is neutered... A good vet should be able to diagnose the early stages of Elbow dysplasia.

My 5yr old shihtzu has just been diagnosed with hip dysplasia and I am totally gutted. It is likely that he will need both replaced and I really am
Unsure of how long recovery, success etc is, does anyone have any similar experience to share that will help put my mind at rest? Visiting the vet on wed to discuss procedure.

You're right Daisy, I'd missed that the dog pup was only 8 months, yes they have to be over a year before BVA scoring. If it were my dog I'd want the x-rays scored even if that meant two lots of x-rays, certainly when it comes to hips some vets get it spectacularly wrong.

Bad news, my boy looks like he has elbow dysplasia so he's on complete bed rest, with only trips to the garden for the necessary things.

He's on painkillers and he's now been referred to the Royal Dick in Edinburgh so hopefully as he's going there they will be able to get to the bottom of it. I am still hoping against hope that they say it's not ED but the signs are not encouraging.

Piffle, I'm confused, am I reading your post correctly? Your dog was diagnosed with ED by your vet but then you got the x-rays scored and found that there was nothing wrong with his Elbows but you don't advise getting the BVA scores done as this is only for "breeding/screening" yet presumably if you hadn't got your boy's elbows scored then you would be medicating him, limiting his exercise, worrying about him etc as you would believe him to have ED?

Oh dear Thierry I had my fingers crossed it wouldn't be that.

He will be fine. It's not life limiting and he will have just as nice a life with you as you'd imagined/hoped for. Jack is now very nearly 9 and although a bit stiff some days he runs and splashes with the best of them.

I'll pop a picture of the two of them swimming on my profile to show you. Nil Desperandum.

To clarify :
My vet diagnosed my girl with ED at 4 mths based on intermittent limp and some tenderness on the right elbow. As she is large breed she was always on careful exercise regime and joint supplements.

I asked the vet to xray at 6 mths to clarify as the limp had gone pretty much.
Xray reviewed by ortho vet too and no ED found.

I had her scored at 12mths hips and elbows for the BVA scheme as we might like to have a litter one day and also for the breed health records. (We show - this is usual for the breed)

The BVA are not for diagnosing per se, a score is useless as it tells you nothing about the actual process of ED. And getting a high score does not mean you will get ED or HD either, it is not that straightforward.

So what you need are xrays and an ortho review...

I hope your pup is ok Thierry, there are excellent options available from what I recall, surgery, meds and lifestyle options.
keep us updated xx

Just seen your post Thierry, sorry it's not good news but sounds like he's going to the best place for treatment! Hope they can get things under control for you both quickly. An un Mumsnet (((hug))).

Thierry try not to panic. They can do so much now to help dogs with dysplasia - UnWiseDog is very happy, bouncy proof!

Piffle, that is true, I agree with you they are not for diagnosing but so many vets are not very good at reading the x rays and if a vet was ever to diagnose one of my dogs with HD or ED I would want a score as it is helpful to determine whether the vet is on the right track or not.

Yes I was lucky having a vet who was an orthopaedic specialist read my girls xrays.
Funny though a friend i know has a dog with low hip score yet she got HD and was unable to walk past the age of 5
And another with one of the highest hip scores you can get with no HD...
So it's not an exact science

Thanks for your kind words everyone, I'm trying to stay positive until we take him to the Dick.
We were worrying as the vet was saying he needed to lose a bit of weight but as he's not been able to exercise for 3 - 4 weeks we were worried what they would think. However the vet yesterday was amazing and helped reassure us that he'll be fine we just need to understand the limitations and learn to adapt to it.
Still don't like seeing my boy sad but fingers crossed he'll get back to exercise soon. Will keep everyone informed.
And who said The Doghouse isn't friendly! you've all been lovely. Thanks again.

Definitely Piffle, there are environmental factors to take into account too or just plain old bad luck. Sounds like you were very fortunate to have a vet experienced in the field.

Thierry, all the best, hoping for the very best outcome for your pup.

Well, it's been a crap day!
Zac was given painkillers by the vet which we started to give him last night. Forward to today with 4 lots of vomit, 5 lots of poo (all like water..... and with blood in) and an emergency dash to the vet........
Roll forward a few hours and one bathed dog and hacked off husband (he's been on dig sitting duties) and we're due to go back tomorrow.

When will it get better ?

Hope you have a better day tomorrow.

Poor little fellow all those drugs have obviously upset him :(
I hope things improve, it sounds like a really tough time xx

Is it Metacam?

It's often very hard on tummies.

Poor old Zac - he's having a rotten time of it at the moment.

But it will get better, I'm sure. I really hope it's not ED, but if it is there are lots of things around which can make his life easier.

Was it prednisalone? That can have a terrible effect on their tummies.

Poor Zac, and poor you. It's scary when they are under the weather.