Edie MacKenzie

Edie MacKenzie is a published author, traveler, dog lover, and tortoise enthusiast. Passionate about what she does, her books provide peopel a firm grounding in the dog breed and their unique characteristics with a nice touch of humor.

Hip Dysplasia And Golden Retrievers

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The Golden Retrievers Major Health Issue

Hip dysplasia is a poor formation of the hip joints, which is a common growing disease with younger dogs of virtually every breed including Golden Retrievers .  With larger breeds, unsteady hip joints are common, although hip dysplasia can be a serious problem that will limit the physical activity of your Golden.  Although many Golden Retriever owners don’t realize it, hip dysplasia is something that dogs inherit from their parents, and gets worse with age.

The signs and symptoms of hip dysplasia is nearly impossible to detect with Golden puppies, although it will start to show once the pup has reached the age of nine months.  Even though you may take your Golden to the vet to have him looked at, your vet will tell you that you need to wait to see if the symptoms are there, once the Golden Retriever has reached a certain age.

The symptoms and signs of hip dysplasia vary, although the most common include crippling or the inability to walk properly.  This disease can get better once the dog gets older though, due to the joints stabilizing, the inflammation going down, and the muscles in the hips getting stronger and more mature.  Keep in mind however, that Golden’s who have hip dysplasia when they are younger will more than likely develop arthritis when they get older.

Golden Retrievers that suffer from hip dysplasia aren’t fit for breeding, although they can still live a long and healthy life.  There are certain drugs that your vet can prescribe to your dog, which will help him control his weight and help control the disease.  These drugs can also cut down on the pain as well, helping your Golden enjoy himself as much as possible.

Some Golden Retrievers that have hip dysplasia won’t begin to show any signs at all until they get a few years old, once the muscles start to wear down and the damage to the hip muscles start to become more noticeable.  Although your dog may be active and healthy for most of his puppy years, dysplasia can slow everything down and make your dog look as if he is old and is suffering from the physical attributes of arthritis.

To eliminate the pain of hip dysplasia, there are surgery options available.  Golden Retrievers have a high threshold for pain, and won’t normally show any signs of being in pain, even though you know they are.  X-rays won’t show any signs of pain, although the limping or slow walking will tell you that your dog is hurting.  Golden Retriever’s who have this disease won’t know it – which is why you should help as much as possible.

If you do your part and help your dog seek relief – he will feel better than ever before – although like all Golden Retrievers, he won’t let you know he hurt any at all.

2 Items To Insist From Your Breeder When Buying A Puppy

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1. Written Guarantee: Good breeders provide written guarantees against genetic disease. It is essential to get a guarantee on the hips and eyes of your pup, given the epidemics of hip dysplasia and various forms of progressive blindness among the nation’s dogs. The guarantee entitles you to a refund of the price of the puppy or a replacement puppy should there be a problem. The guarantee should also allow you to take your new puppy to your own vet within a certain period of time in order to have its good health independently confirmed before the sale is considered final.

Beyond the guarantee of your pup, you want to see copies of the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) certificate on the hips of both parents, plus the Canine Eye Registration Foundation (GERF) certificate on the eyes of both parents. Do not take the breeder’s word that the parent animals are so registered. Good breeders will not be troubled by your request.

However, you must be prepared to run into the occasional breeder whom will not want to comply with your request. You are almost sure to run into “prominent” breeders who don’t believe in having their dogs’ hips and eyes checked, even if they are from seriously afflicted breeds.

Both in a personal quest for a dog and in researching this information I had this experience again and again. For instance, there is a dog breed about which Michele Lowell says in Your Purebred Puppy: A Buyer’s Guide, “He is susceptible to hip dysplasia and serious tumors.” She urges: “Buy only from OFA-registered parents.” A leading breeder of this breed, a person who sits on the national club’s breed standard committee, told me she didn’t have her animals OFA-certified because “I’ve never had any hip problems. If I ever start, I’ll have my dogs checked.” Even in the midst of a plague of canine hereditary disease, this ton-of-cure-is-worth-an-ounce-of-prevention attitude is still common. Be ready to decide for yourself if you find it acceptable.

2. Restricted Transfers: Responsible breeders are answering the distress call of America’s dogs by trying to minimize inappropriate breeding. One way to do this is with “restricted transfers.” These can involve a contract between the new owner and the breeder stipulating that the dog will not be bred until it is old enough to be tested for inherited disease and has been certified disease free. Some restricted transfers require that the animal be spayed or neutered at six months of age, with AKC papers not passing to the purchaser until this is done. You may not be interested in acquiring a pet under such conditions, but you can be sure that breeders imposing them are deeply committed to improving the quality of their breed.

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