Understanding Canine Hip Dysplasia and Treatment Options for Your Dog

 When visiting the veterinarian, dogs lovers around the world dread hearing two words: hip dysplasia. But what exactly is hip dysplasia, and what are the options when our beloved canine companions receive the diagnosis of this unbearable joint pain?

Hip dysplasia is one of the most studied veterinary joint pain conditions in dogs and is the most common single cause of canine arthritis of the hips. Hip dysplasia results in pain and mobility difficulties. Because so many pets do encounter this, the team at EnduraPet wanted to find some way to provide relief to pets that develop hip dysplasia, and that’s where Mobility Plus joint supplement for dogs comes in.

The disorder is commonly caused by a genetic malformation of the hip socket, but may be triggered by early injury, excess weight or repetitive motion before a dog is fully developed (this is why early competition and jogging are ill-advised for pups under 18 months old). Ideally, the round head of your pet’s femur should sit snugly in a perfectly paired hip socket. Both the femur head (orossis femoris) and socket (acetabula) are cushioned nicely with cartilage, and your canine BFF should be able to shake those happy hips till the cows come home. (If you happen to have cows, that is...)

There are a few signs and symptoms of hip dysplasia that you are only noticeable with the help of x-rays and mobility tests, however, there are other forms of the joint pain that you may notice on your own. The following are some of the signs that you may see:

• Reluctance to go up and down stairs

• Rising slowly, and doing most of the work with the front legs

• Tiring quickly while exercising

• Standing with uneven weight distribution

• “Bunny hopping” (both back legs jumping together) while ascending stairs

 

The Mobility Plus dog joint supplement from EnduraPet can reduce these signs and symptoms in a quick amount of time, providing your pet some visible signs of relief from the joint pain of hip dysplasia. In the photo below, you’ll see what the normal hip of acanine should look like. When hip dysplasia is present, the head of the femur isn’t round, and can’t fit comfortably in the socket.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When the femur isn’t tight in the socket, your pet can experience the following issues:

• Uneven cartilage wear and tear, which necessitates constant regeneration of cartilage. Cartilage regeneration takes a long time; longer than wear and tear causes degeneration, so it becomes a never-ending battle.

• Change in motion. To compensate for the pain caused by hip dysplasia, dogs will change the way they move. This can cause secondary injuries, such as abnormal muscle development (or lack thereof), soft tissue injury or spine problems.

• Osteoarthritis, which adds pain and deterioration to the already compromised joint. To read more about arthritis, check out one of our previous blogs where we touched on arthritis and it’s affects on your pet. 

There are a range of ways to treat hip dysplasia: surgical, conservative non-surgical methods and natural methods. While surgical methods can prove to be successful, EnduraPet is a team of pet enthusiasts that fully believe in holistic approach on our methods of treatment. For that reason, we have designed products that are loaded with the natural ingredients that your pet can get the most from. The Mobility Plus joint supplement for dogs that we offer is great because it works for pets of all ages and can work hand in hand with any prescriptions that your pet has for severe joint pain. What separates this supplement from the prescription you’ll get from your vet, is that this isn’t intended to relieve the pain, it’s intended to work on eliminating it. Prescriptions are generally given to make the pain more bearable, we provide your pet with the ingredients and nutrition that help reduce the pain from your dog’s hip dysplasia.

If your dog or cat is experiencing hip dysplasia or any other type of health issue, EnduraPet offers a variety of supplements and vitamins that take a holistic approach to how your pet’s health is handled. Too often we take easy approaches but don’t look into what it is that we’re intaking. Don’t let your pet ingest chemicals and other ingredients that could pose more harm to their health, trust our natural pet vitamins and supplements. Browse the selection that we offer, and check back on our blog to learn more about common issues that pet’s have and how our natural pet vitamins and supplements can help!