Question:
Our husky/German shepherd mix has trouble getting up from the hips. I noticed it when he was about 2 years old; he is now 3. He loves to run, but he pays for it, seeming stiff and sometimes limping on his right hip for a few minutes. We had the vet X-ray for hip dysplasia, and the results were negative. We thought maybe his anal glands were full, but that wasn't the problem. We put him on two rounds of anti-inflammatory, which helped as long as he was on it. He has seizures controlled with phenobarbital. Do you have any suggestions? He's a big dog who weighs 115 pounds, but he is not overweight.
D.D., Granbury, TX Jul 04, 2010
Answer:
Aside from the fact that your poor young dog belongs to the breed with the most hereditary diseases, (the German shepherd), he may have compromised immune, inflammatory, skeletal, neurological or other functions. The anti-seizure and anti-inflammatory medications are likely to damage his liver with long-term use.
Many shepherds suffer from severe allergies, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, hip and elbow dysplasia, epilepsy and other conditions listed on my website from a review by the now-defunct American Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights. Above all, avoid giving your dog vaccinations without blood titer and real-need (exposure-risk) determinations. Give your dog wholesome home-prepared food or one of the better brands of manufactured dog food, as per the list on my website, which includes Natura's Evo and Karma, PetGuard, Evanger's and other companies with organically certified products that contain no genetically modified corn or soybeans.
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