Is an Ehmer sling a good treatment for my dog's hip dysplasia?

I'm so sorry to hear this happened. Dislocated hips rarely heal with closed reduction (a sling) although we always try it first. Surgery is usually the best option. Here is a link to an article with more information. ( https://www.marvistavet.com/hip-dislocation.pml )

Legally, I am not allowed to give you a diagnosis, but based on the x-rays you posted, I suspect that your vet told you that Sly has significant hip dysplasia and arthritis in both hips. I'm sure that came as a surprise to you since Sly is only showing some limping after resting. Dogs are very stoic and do not show us pain as we would expect. Since you have just started Sly on a glucosamine and chondoitin sulfate supplement, you certainly could wait and see how he does on that, but I suspect you will need to add some additional supplements or medications to resolve his limping, so don't be afraid to talk to your vet about those. We frequently use fish oil, MSM, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and many other drug combinations for arthritis. I also highly recommend physical rehabilitation and acupuncture. Although we expect our dogs to cry in pain, most dogs with arthritis pain act exactly like Sly and only limp after getting up. Our goal with treatment is to get them to the point that their pain is so well controlled that we don't notice them limp at all. I hope that helps! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hip dysplasia means that the dog has poor hip conformation, with the ball of the femur not tight into the hip joint. Due to the joint looseness arthritis usually develops as the dogs age. A hip joint fracture sounds more like it was from a specific injury. With rest a hip fracture should heal over six weeks but if the hip joint is involved then Jenny may get hip arthritis and pain in her hip. Heat will relax her muscles and increase the blood supply to heal the fracture so it is a good thing to do. Please keep her in a small area and take her out only to the bathroom for a month. That will give her the best chance of healing the fracture. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Jenny.

Its hard to know without seeing the X-rays... if the hip is fully dislocated, it would be unusual for him to be fully bearing weight and not showing a significant abnormality in his gait. If it is "sub-luxated," meaning the head of the femur--the "ball" part of the ball and socket joint--is not well seated into the acetabulum--the "socket" part of the ball and socket joint. When the acetabulum/"socket" is very shallow, the hip can be "sub-luxated," and these dogs can continue to seem to have a very normal gait/not show any limp or problem until arthritis becomes problematic with age. If it is fully dislocated (fully luxated), a surgery called an FHO (femoral head osteotomy) can be considered even weeks after the initial injury. In this surgery, the "ball" part of the ball and socket joint/the head of the femur, is removed surgically, removing the source of pain. The muscles in the area typically do a great job of compensating and allowing these guys to get around quite well. However, a true REPAIR of a dislocated hip would not be possible if its been weeks or months since the injury. (A true repair of hip dislocation is generally done through a surgery called a toggle pin. ) If a hip dislocation is diagnosed right away, sometimes (about 50% of the time), they can be successfully reduced (put back in place) and we can get them to stay without surgery. Here is some information out may find helpful. https://www.acvs.org/small-animal/hip-luxation Thanks for asking PetCoach!

Hip dysplasia means that Chuck's hips have poor conformation resulting in hip joint laxity. Over time this will result in arthritis and pain. Keeping Chuck thin and providing steady exercise such as walking will maintain the muscles that support the hips. This will reduce the development of arthritis. If he is already showing signs of pain please put him on medication so he can continue to be active and maintain his muscle mass. I like to give omega3 supplement in addition to a joint supplement. You may also want to discuss Adequan injections with your veterinarian. They help reduce the damage to the joint cartilage. It's best not to have Chuck do any jumping as this may make the discomfort worse. Absolutely work on getting him to a normal weight if he's heavy as the extra weight is hard on the joints. Many dogs live long active lives with hip dysplasia when their owners are proactive with their care. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Chuck.

Hello, sorry to hear about Shiro. He does indeed have hip dysplasia as is evident in his x-rays. This diseases does indeed require surgical correction, but only if Shiro seems to be in discomfort. Hip Dysplasia results in secondary osteoarthritis which in the long term can impact your pets ability to walk and overall comfort. There are two different procedures with regards to surgery, an FHNO were we remove the femoral head and neck or a total hip replacement were we replace the ball and joint with metal implants as they do in humans. Ultimately, the best contributor to decreasing osteoarthritis in dogs is by maintaining an overall low weight and lean body condition score. Obese pets with hip dysplasia tend to do worse. Now, with regards to surgery, it does not need to occur now, typically with either surgery, we want pets to be fully developed so that their bones are fully grown and they have developed all of the musculature. I would recommend asking your veterinarian to refer you to an orthopedic surgeon who may be able to better assist you with Shiro's hips dysplasia. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Those are two unrelated problems. So yes they can have both problems but they don’t get one from the other. Discospondylitis is an infection in the spine and is treated with antibiotics. It can resolve after a lengthy treatment and can cause permanent weakness in some dogs. Hip dysplasia is a result of joint laxity and instability in the hip joints that causes pain and arthritis. Hip dysplasia is present at a young age but may not be diagnosed until middle age when the hip joint cartilage is damaged and painful arthritis develops. It can be diagnosed by xrays and the pain is treated with anti inflammatory medication, weight loss if needed, joint supplements, and controlled exercise. It is a life long condition that needs medical management. You may be seeing signs of hip arthritis now that Ludo is middle aged but this probably would have developed regardless of having discospondylitis. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Ludo.