Difficult to prevent and treat, canine hip dysplasia is among the most studied -- and the most frustrating -- diseases in veterinary medicine. Canine hip dysplasia is a developmental orthopedic disease in which an abnormal formation of the hip leads to looseness in the hip joints, causing cartilage damage. Progressive arthritis can result, and when it does, it can be crippling. Hip dysplasia is not the same thing as arthritis in the hips -- rather, it is the most common cause of arthritis in the hips.
Some dogs will show clear signs of hip dysplasia at a very young age, before the arthritis sets in. For them, a commonly used surgical method is available to prevent its onset. But for many canines, the symptoms will not be obvious until severe, crippling arthritis has developed. At this point, the options for treatment are limited and complex.
Because hip dysplasia is passed on genetically, there is perhaps an even graver consequence of the disease remaining undiscovered: if two dogs with undetected dysplasia are bred together, the painful disease will be perpetuated in the gene pool.
Hip dysplasia is most common among larger breeds of dogs, especially German shepherds, rotweillers, Labrador retrievers, golden retrievers, mastiffs, and Saint Bernards. It can also be seen in smaller breeds such as the cocker spaniel and the springer spaniel; mixed breeds may suffer from it as well.
