So let the worrying begin! I have a 5 month GSD female that sometimes limps after resting for awhile and every once in a while a hear a slight pop. Kind of like a knuckle crack but very faint. I have already took her to the vet and she said it could be a mind bruise,pano or HD. So for now she is on buffered aspirin and rest for 10-14 days. She does jump on her back legs and she can jump on the couch. She runs like crazy when she is out but I dont think its a bunny hop but I will pay more attention to it in the future. Should I worry about this since she is only 5 months or am I overreacting? Thanks for the help.

Any age dog can have HD, it isn't exactly age related.

What were that parents' hip scores? Have you shared your concerns with your breeder?

VanCamp is correct. Do the X-rays...it can show this early...then you'll know what you have to deal with.

Remember too that dogs dont show pain or express it like humans. So jumping alot doesnt mean much.

I have yet to contact the breeder on this issue. I kind of wanted to get some info from other people first. Im not sure what the score was of the parents hips but I remember them being pretty good. I know that doesnt guarentee anything. Bad hips can come from good parents. I just really want her to be perfect so that I can do Shultzhund training with her but I may not be able to do that. I will have to wait and see.

Yes, a five month old can have CHD. Bad, horrid CHD even. Xrays might be useful- but usually can be done awake even with a puppy since at this point you're only looking for an idea of what the hips look like. You don't need the perfect shot unless it's going into surgery or to OFA.

The popping sound can be heard on dogs with lax hip joints. Sometimes with maturity the muscles become less lax and the joint is tighter. Usually noted in the massive breeds during growing stages. Too lax though and the bones pound against each other causing boney changes.

An Xray will answer some of your questions, but dogs don't read Xrays. How much poor joint structure will affect the individual is, well, individual :-) Mu receptors- that's the key to pain- you want lots of them. From experience- some dogs just "feel" pain more than others, need more pain meds, and are ouchier (technical term there) post op. Others- don't seem to feel a thing.

Side note- on people, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate meds may increase bleeding time. It's usually recommended that you stop them for a week or so before surgery. No studies have been done on dogs to see if the same is true- but I'd still recommending they be stopped if possible pre-op.

Anna Carson

Find aother vet. Your vet was wrong to not take xrays and get a definitive diagnosis when a pup is limping. Could be a lot of things, panno is only one possiblity. There is another inflammation of the growth plates themselves that I just learned about myself (the hard way).

You cannot get an OFA before 2 yrs, USA will rate a 1 yr but at 5 mos, you can get some idea of what's going on. And you sure can't rule out the many other possiblities w/out xrays.

The breeder isn't going to make an accurate diagnosis and hip scores mean zip at the moment. Find a good ortho vet who has a clue.

And one of my biggest pet peeves about the net is when folks get into diagnosing via keyboard, esp something as potentially serious as this.

Once she has an accurate diagnosis, we can all jump in and share experiences/advice.

Get some xrays.

I agree with Joy, look for an orthopedic specialist, not a general practitioner. There is a HUGE difference in training and knowledge. At this age, the extended hip plate may not show a problem since there has not been enough time for much remodeling yet, but if you also do a distracted view, you will have a much more complete picture of the hips' construction and just how loose the hips are.

And, it may not be hips at all. No way to tell w/out an xray. Even panno can't really be dx'd w/o an xray.

Yup, a good ortho vet is worth quite a lot.