Hello everyone,
I have a year old GSD named Rudy with HD. We've been to three different surgeons, three different opinions.
The last surgeon we saw did some manipulations on Rudy and Rudy didn't so much as turn around. Due to this, the surgeon said we have some time before we have to think about surgery. He also said that while his x rays are bad, almost dislocated, the only sign of his HD is getting into a car (he does the one leg, then the other routine). He will jump on his hind legs. He swims 2-3 times a week.
This surgeon thinks that when, and if, the time comes, he would like to go with a cementless hip replacement. He also said that if he gets in and can't perform the cementless, he would do a cemented.
Another surgeon said to skip the THR and just go for the FHO.
Rudy weighs 86 lbs (he's a mix).
Any experiences? I have joined several HD yahoo groups but it seems that the only people that post are the ones with bad experiences. You don't hear from the successful ones!
Thank you for any info you can give me to be confident in my decision.

Mary,

I know what you are going through. I have had 2 GSD's with HD. Don't know if you are aware that there are two yahoo groups one is for dogs with HD and the other one is called orthodogs. Many of the listmembers have experience with HD surgeries. I would recommend you only see an orthopedic vet and not let your regular vet do any ortho surgery on your dog. I made the mistake of letting my regular vet do an FHO on my GSD and to make a long story short I had an ortho vet fix it the best he could. She had a TPO (triple pelvic-ostomy) on the other hip and did great on that side. I am wondering why your vet didn't recommend that surgery as it is usually the first choice if your dog is young and showing very little to no arthritic changes. I know they do not recommend FHO's on dogs larger than 50 lbs. However, many of the listmembers mentioned above have large breeds that have had successful FHO's, but that is usually after a THR has failed. I also don't know about long term results of FHO's on larger breeds. I know my girl was in pain on the FHO side. Personally, if I were you, go to the best ortho vet you can find and if your dog isn't a candidate for a TPO I would do the total hip. Just my opinion. Feel free to pm me if you have any other questions, etc...
Chris

Thanks Chris, I PM'd you. I belong to both yahoo groups and the surgeon we are going with was recommended to me by everyone I spoke to. Trust me, I asked around. My regular vet told me to go straight to this orth surgeon, as well.
I would love to hear success stories of THR from boardmembers b/c all I seem to hear are the "things gone wrong" ones.
Thanks again.
Mary

Mary,

Where are you located?

We're in Annapolis, MD.

Mary. I tried to send you a PM, but got an error message. I live near Annapolis. Have you been to AAVEC for a consult? My previous GSD had a TPO there and they were perfect. Even when I had to put her down 8 years later (cancer), her hips were still perfect and without arthritis. I hold them in very high regard.

Stacie, I sent you a PM. Yes, I think this is the same place, Chesapeake Referral. It's located at the emergency clinic.
So sorry to hear about your loss. It's never easy.

Just got it and replied. Sorry for the duplication, but I didn't know if my PM went through.