9 month old lab has elbow dysplasia?

Question

I got my poor boy xrayed 2day & found out he has elbow dysplasia. Has any one experienced this? The vet is sending off the xrays 2 be scored. What is going 2 happen? Can i still take him 2 obedience classes & do physical activities or is that a no no now? Should i be upset with the breeder i got him off? I wanted to use him 2 breed but now i cant :(

Answer 1

Elbow Dysplasia

Elbow dysplasia can cause lameness in young large-breed dogs and is commonly found in both elbows.

Elbow dysplasia is a generic term meaning arthritis in the elbow joint.

There are four developmental causes of elbow arthritis in dogs:

osteochondritis dessicans, ununited anconeal process, fragmented coronoid process, and elbow incongruency.

The photo below of a dog's elbow shows the three bones that make up the joint:  radius, ulna and humerus.  The humerus bone has been separated from the radius and the ulna bone in this photo to reveal the three problems within the joint.  The red painted regions on the specimen denote the location of osteochondritis dessicans of the lower part of the humerus bone (labeled OCD), fragmented coronoid process (labeled FCP) and an ununited anconeal process (UAP).  

Treatment

Arthroscopic surgery is used to treat OCD and fragmented coronoid processes. This technique allows us to treat the lesions more accurately and allows us to examine more of the joint. Because it is minimally invasive, the patients recover much quicker and have less pain.

Usually we can successfully remove the offending loose pieces from the joint using arthroscopic surgery, however if we are unsuccessful, a small incision is made on the inner side of the elbow. If your pet has an ununited anconeal process, arthroscopy of the joint is recommended to rule out a concurrent fragmented coronoid. Because an ununited anconeal process is fairly large, it is removed via a small incision made on the outer (lateral) side of the elbow joint.



Convalescence period

If arthroscopic surgery is done, most pets will be using the limb on the day of surgery.

By 2 weeks after surgery the lameness is mild.

By 2 to 3 months after surgery, your pet should be using the limb well.

Recovery can be somewhat variable from one pet to another.



Success rates

Most of the dogs with ununited anconeal process will be helped with surgery (about 60% return to normal function, 30% are improved, and 10% do not improve with surgery).

Approximately 75% of the dogs with having a fragmented coronoid process or OCD of the elbow will be helped with surgery. Unfortunately, surgery will not remove the arthritis that is already present in the joint. As a result, some pets may have some stiffness of the limb or lameness after very heavy exercise or during weather changes (cool damp conditions).

Dogs that have dramatically swollen elbows prior to surgery tend to be have a lower success rate.



Complications

Anesthetic death is an uncommon complication.

One complication is infection of the surgical site, but this complication is uncommon.

Unresolved lameness may be due to elbow arthritis.



Postop care

Monitor the stab incisions for signs of infection, which include signs of swelling, redness, pain, yellow or green discharge.

During the first 6 to 8 weeks after surgery, activity is restricted to short leash walks outside. Running, jumping, and rough play are forbidden.

After 8 weeks of rest, the activity can be gradually increased over the next two months.

http://www.vetsurgerycentral.com/elbow_d...

He can still do puppy school, trainning is essential-Like people with arthritis they need exercise but not too much streuous exercise, try & keep the running and jumping, and agility work to a minimum not until 18month old!! She may not be able to do agility competitions. But she still maybe able to

My dog had arthris since 2 1/2 in both her back legs, no she not on medication for it as she isn't too bad, she still runs around& yeah i still play fetch when she want & at now 10yr old she tell me, if she doesn't want to play, she won't-she does run a little weird, she runs like her backlegs are stuck together! & she got a slight joint deformation in both her front legs which causing her front legs to cross over as she jogs.

she just not possible to keep still! So yes you can do physically activities!

I would call the breeder, and tell her/him.

Answer 2

You should definitely be upset with the breeder.  Good breeders are supposed to check their breeding stock for genetic problems like this.  It's good that you found out now BEFORE you bred your dog.

Call the breeder and let him/her know; that's the most you can do.  Hopefully he/she will care enough to not breed those dogs anymore.

As long as he's not in any pain right now you should still be able to do all those things with him.  If it's bad enough in the future (which it probably will be, if you can already see HD at 9 months) he will require surgery.

Answer 3

I'm going to tell you a story...It doesn't answer your question exactly, but please pay attention...

I used to breed champion brittanies, for show and field trial..

I kept one very exceptional boy for show, he was gooorgeous..

When he was about 7 months old, we had him out for a very long day of hunting with his sire...Toward the end of the day, he began to limp..2 days later he was still limping so I took him to our vet (a good friend)...He did an xray and found that he had hip displasia...I was devistated...He had already won in the show ring...

My vet went on to drill me about his diet etc...I told him about the very high quality food that he ate and that I even gave him calcium supplement in his food once a day..

My vet explained to me that even the very highest quality dog foods don't include vit. C...seriously !

Without vit. C., calcium CANNOT get to where it's needed ! especially in a fast growing breed !

I did this...I started adding a little (about 200 mg.) vit. C. with his calcium powder once a day with his second meal...He got better..

About 3 months later, I took him back to my vet to be reevaluated...NO HIP DISPLASIA ! IT HAD CORRECTED ITSELF !!

I was overjoyed and so was my vet...At 2 years old, I had him evaluated for OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) and he came back OFA GOOD !

I "thought" I knew a lot about animal nutrition...How come I didn't know that most dog food  brands don't include vitamin C ? And what a vital role it has in growth ???

Not an answer to your question...But maybe a reason why.

ps...Both sire and dam of Red Dog were OFA'd...Sire excellent, dam good.

Answer 4

You should completely call out that breeder and demand that she stop breeding that line.  If she won't or if she claims no responsibilty for your dog's health problems, sue her in small claims court to recoup the medical bills for a dog that should be healthy as per your contract.

PLEASE tell me you have a contract?  An extended, conditional bill of sale?

Well.  Take your vet's advice on exercise for this dog.  Definitely neuter him.  And take your bad experience to a Labrador Breed Club where you will not only find unlimited advice on caring for your dog, but a puppy worth breeding in a few years once you've studied and are ready.

Best of luck-  look into Chondrotin and Glucosomine to help lube the joint and eliminate his pain.

Answer 5

did you buy the dog for show purposes, or to be a pet only?

yes, i would call the breeder, let him/her know this:ok to do obedience,but ask the vet, how bad is the elbow?

why did you x-ray the dog this early?you cant "certify" dogs before 2 years:hips elbows.

maybe do another x-ray after he turns 2?how about the hips, did they check that too?

Answer 6

Well not everything can  be prevented 100%  when breeding.Did you have a contract with the breeder that covers genetic issues?Contact the breeder and go from there.