Running "hop" - hips?

[johnnysinamerica]

Hello. I have recently noticed that my two-year-old Border Collie runs a little funny. He trots most of the time, but sometimes he has a little "hop" to his back legs. He'll do it mostly when he's stalking his ball, but it will also come out when we're out running trails together. It seems to be more pronounced when he is getting tired. I know that Border Collies have a couple of different types of running forms, but I'm nervous about hip dysplasia. I don't know anything about his history, as he is a rescue. He is otherwise fine - no problems moving around or getting up, no problems going up or down stairs, no popping sounds. His vet said that his hips felt great upon palpation, but I know that you can't always tell what's going on in there without x-rays.

 

I know it never hurts to get their hips checked out, especially when you don't know their history. But I'm nervous and was curious to hear your opinions and/or experiences while I wait for his appointment to come around.

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

I'd at least get an x-ray, just to see.

 

My boy almost lost his foot in a coyote trap and is now arthritic in that foot. Normally, you can't tell anything ever happened to him, but when he's in that gate between walk and run he has a noticeable limp. When he slows down, his gate is normal, when he's running full out his gate is also normal. When he is tired, he will also favour that foot a little.

[eclare]

I had a foster beagle that had a similar hop. Turns out he had a dislocated hip and severe arthritis in the opposite knee - likely from a car accident prior to his arriving in the shelter. He had to have been in extraordinary pain but he never ever showed it. Moral of the story - get it checked out. Better safe than sorry.

[fergmatt]

Jax does the same thing and we recently (within the last week) found from his first set of xrays that he does have a MILD case of HD. His hip joints were fine when palpated but he had the same bunny hop when running and a little clicking. Xrays cost $100 and well worth it! Probably not what you wanted to hear but we just went through it . HD is not the end of the world for dogs. They still have to be athletic and in shape so if it is the case, take it in strides. Jax still loves to play frisbee and chase his ball. he just cant jump for it!

[juliepoudrier]

I second what the others said. Get the X-rays for diagnosis or peace of mind. Bunny hopping (if that's what the funny gait is) is often a sign of HD. That said, several of my dogs (all related) have an odd little skip they do in the back, usually when switching "gears." I think it's just a family thing so I don't worry about it particularly.

 

If it is HD, keeping your dog fit and well-muscled can provide a lifetime of hip stability.

 

J.

[sluj]

I second what the others said. Get the X-rays for diagnosis or peace of mind. Bunny hopping (if that's what the funny gait is) is often a sign of HD. That said, several of my dogs (all related) have an odd little skip they do in the back, usually when switching "gears." I think it's just a family thing so I don't worry about it particularly.

 

If it is HD, keeping your dog fit and well-muscled can provide a lifetime of hip stability.

 

J.

 

I've had some concerns over bunny-hopping as well. The vet didn't find anything to concern her during the physical exam, so I've been considering x-rays. The real question is, once I get a diagnosis, what do I do with it? Supposing it's not severe enough to require surgery, is there anything I can do: give supplements, pursue or avoid various exercises, to prevent it from getting worse?

[fergmatt]

The worst thing you can do is to avoid excersise. Jumping is not something recomended but you need to keep your dog lean and fit which means as much excerside as possible! Its often suggested to give youe dog joint suppiment which can be bought through your vet or at a health store. You vet can advise what to give your dog. Bottom line, HD is not the end of the world.

[bc4ever]

Scooter does the "bunny hop" run sometimes. He was finally diagnosed with mild hip dysplasia (at about 5 years old). Sometimes he limps too, but since we put him on fish oil caps and a supplement called PhyCox with glucosamine, he's doing really well. Walking, swimming (if you're fortunate enough to have a water source available) are both good exercises. Scoots likes his Frisbee and he does run to get it, but we keep it low to the ground. Sometimes it's just not possible to keep him from running full tilt but it doesn't seem to affect him as long as it isn't that often. Generally, he can still do what he used to do. Now that we know what to look for, if he starts limping at all, we back down on the running but continue to walk him if he's not hurting too much. I agree with the weight too. Keeping a healthy weight will definitely help. Good luck!

[Alchemist]

I've had some concerns over bunny-hopping as well. The vet didn't find anything to concern her during the physical exam, so I've been considering x-rays. The real question is, once I get a diagnosis, what do I do with it? Supposing it's not severe enough to require surgery, is there anything I can do: give supplements, pursue or avoid various exercises, to prevent it from getting worse?

 

I'd recommend X-rays; if your vet offers them unsedated, consider going that route, as you may be able to save a bundle. (They won't suit for OFA certification but that's only relevant if you're considering breeding, which I assume you're not). It's virtually impossible to diagnose HD from physical exams (though if your vet hears subluxation - "popping" - it's a good clue that something may be awry). Many dogs with HD will have no symptoms. Some will have physical manifestations such as lameness. There doesn't seem to be a good correlation between clinical symptoms and degree of HD severity. Many dogs with severe HD are asymptomatic and pursue strenuous activities (agility, sheedog trialing, and so forth).

 

If it's not severe enough for surgery, there is still plenty you can do to promote a long, active, and pain-free life. Here's what our ortho vet recommends for HD:

 

1) as much exercise as your dog will tolerate. Muscle mass will help stabilize hips. If he or she limps, back up a bit. It's all a matter of trial and error, and as muscle mass develops, your dog may work up to being able to tolerate more. Certain types of activity are more likely to trigger injury and these should be avoided or curtailed. We no longer play "fetch"; instead we play "catch" (dog in a down-stay until ball is caught; ball then gets rolled back to us). We don't let him play with larger dogs whose favorite form of "play" is to wrestle or roll ours over. "Chase" games are, however, our dog's favorite form of dog play and these are fine. Lots of walks (on-leash or off-leash) are best. For our dog the activity the most likely to trigger lameness is chasing around in a stream - he'll limp after 6 minutes of vigorous racing around. So we give him five, as he loves it far too much for us to be able to deny it altogether. That seems to work to keep him from limping.

 

2) if you're lucky enough to have a vet near you with an underwater treadmill, this is great exercise. Our vet recommended it on a weekly basis; less frequent isn't enough benefit, more is overkill. The added resistance (water vs air) helps provide more exercise, while the buoyancy reduces stress on the joints. Compared to swimming (which my dog, at least, hates), it provides for a more natural range of motion (especially for those dogs that thrash around once there's no solid ground beneath their feet). A rough rule of thumb I've heard is 1 minute in the treadmill = 10 minutes of exercise on "dry land". Duration, depth, and speed can all be adjusted to provide the right amount of exercise. It's easy to see the extent to which each limb is being used equally (you can't build muscle mass if you're not using the limb).

 

3) medications: we give Rimadyl each day to provide pain relief; the idea is to encourage dogs to use their limbs equally. We only give the morning dose, and also give a milk thistle capsule to aid in liver support. As an NSAID, Rimadyl also relieves inflammation.

 

4) supplements: we give Dasuquin with MSM daily (the vet said this was the "gold standard" of joint supplements), as well as Adequan injections (monthly at present). These apparently provide some pain relief in addition to helping with joint support. We also give fish oil tablets daily. Originally we were doing this for his coat. More recently I have learned that a diet high in fish oils is good for HD and there is clinical evidence to prove this. I didn't like all the corn in the special fish oil kibble the vet offered, so we're going with supplements rather than a specific prescription diet.

 

5) Acupuncture: our dog loves this. Can't be sure whether it helps but I know enough humans who swear by it that I figured why not... At this point we do it monthly.

 

This may seem like a lot, and it may be more than your dog needs, but our dog has pretty bad bilateral HD (based on X-rays). He also was symptomatic, limping for several weeks starting at age ~ 7 months, then if he'd had too much exercise of the wrong sort. At this point it seems to be working; he almost never limps (unless I let him overdo it in the stream). We can take him for 2-hour off-leash walks (he runs, I walk) and he's fine. He seems to be enjoying life, and that's what matters. I'd rather avoid surgery as he's on the large side for an FHO, and total hip replacements are prohibitively expensive (not to mention scary to contemplate). And at this point we're still not even sure which hip is worse - another good reason to try to wait things out before rushing into surgery.

 

Good luck!!!

[Alchemist]

Forgot to mention: I agree with what other posters have said - weight control is the #1 best strategy in dealing with any joint problem. If your dog is at all overweight, ask your vet about a weight reduction program. Less mass to haul around = less stress on joints. We keep our dog on the thin side.

[sluj]

If it's not severe enough for surgery, there is still plenty you can do to promote a long, active, and pain-free life. Here's what our ortho vet recommends for HD:

 

Thanks for the info! I've ordered a bottle of Dasuquin, and upped her dose of fish oil from "occasionally" to daily. I'm not seeing any signs of pain, so we'll pass on Rimadyl and Adequan for now, but it sounds like the rest of the advice is good for a sound dog as well.