Maizie has hip dysplasia

[Maizie's Mom]

We just got home from taking our Maizie (7 yo) to the vet. She has been limping on and off for the past couple of weeks and we started to notice our boy, Jack, is much more active than she has been lately despite he is probably about 10.

Long story short, the vet took x-rays and the results were not good. Her hip joints are not as developed as they should be and there is calcium deposits around the joint b/c of the joint banging bone against bone instead of functioning as a normal joint should.

Could you please share your experience with hip surgery/hip joint repair? We are going to go see a specialist in Tucson as soon as we can get in to discuss the options, but I would really appreciate any experiences with the pros/cons of the treatments out there so I can do some more research to figure out what is going to be the least invasive but give her the best quality of life. Medication at this point would only be a short term option b/c of the advancement of the damage.

Also, if you have had any of the surgeries, how old is/was your boxer? I'm scared because she is 7, but other than her hips, she has been in great health and is still pretty spunky despite probably being in some pain.

Also has anyone had a boxer treated in the Tucson or Phoenix area?

Thank you for any feedback.

Kelly
Boxer mom to Maizie, fawn, 7 yo
and Jack, white, rescued 10/2000

 

[vetstudent]

My Emma has bad hips as well and is only 1 year old. I looked into a few different types of surgeries for her. A TPO was not an option for her because she already had signs of arthritis in her hips. A specialist evaluated her x-rays and said that her hips were too small for a total hip replacement. That left me with the only option on an FHO (femoral head ostectomy). I was planning her surgery when she came down with demodex, so as soon as she finishes her treatment she will be scheduled for surgery. There have been several posts on here lately about hip problems and different surgeries. You may want to try doing a search. I know that when I posted about Emma's problems and surgery options I got a great response from people who had already been through the surgeries and had experience. Lots of people seem to have had a good experience with the FHO. I hope you find a solution that works for Maizie and that she gets better soon. (Maybe you could try a glucosamine supplement or anti-inflammatories in the meantime. This is what I am doing for Emma.)

 

[missysmama]

My Missy was just recently diagnosed with that. SInce they put her on Rimadyl and I have been giving her Glucosamine she seems to be doing much better for the time being. This gives me time to so some research. So far I have found several sites that say pretty much the same thing surgery, meds, that stuff but I am still looking.

 

[Maizie's Mom]

We have had her on glucosomine for about a month, I am going to stop to today and pick up a natural anti-inflam to give her for now. She is tolerating the pain well, she only limps after the dog park and if you didn't know her, you would think she is fine. So, no more dog park for awhile. I think her hips are going to be too small for a hip replacement, that was one of the things the vet pointed out first. The femoral head ostectomy is probably what we'll be looking into. Thanks for your posts. I was so upset when we left the vet clinic yesterday I couldn't even remember all the lingo I needed to research.

Kelly

Boxer mom to Maizie, 7 yo fawn
and Jack, white, rescue, 10/2000