# Cow Hocked... Questions



## hethir

I am sooo bummed. I've been noticing that Clutch, my 7 month old GSD's back legs point in quite a bit. I did some research yesterday and came across a condition called being "cow hocked" that seems to describe him. My parents in law have his littermate and he has normal appearing back legs. My Father in law took all our dogs out to play today and pointed out to me that he noticed not only this, but also that his back end seems weak. Also that he isn't keeping up with the pack like he used to a month ago.

I thought I did all the research I could do before choosing a breeder to purchase from. I realllllly wanted a dog that would prove breedable but I guess buying any puppy really is a gamble. Do you think this could be a breeding issue? Could I have possibly done something to cause this? Our contract from the breeder said that we purchased a "breeding quality" dog. Generally speaking, would this cow hocked-ness be considered a breach of contract in anyway? Serisously, though, I paid 3K for the BEST possible dog from the best possible breeder I could find in this area. I emailed my breeder to let him know and to ask if he could possibly take a look and see what he thinks. I'm definitely NOT an expert. Any opinions/advice? Thank you guys!!!


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## zyppi

Do you have a photo?

Could be a puppy stage..


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## hethir

I really do need a photo! I will try to post one later tonight or tomorrow!


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## Alto

If his back end seems week, I'd check that out - being cow-hocked should not be a reason for not keeping up with the pack: one of the fastest dogs I know is a cow-hocked BC (mix or just poor breeding).


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## MaggieRoseLee

Be nice if you had some photos, or even a bit of a video of him walking away from you (most digital cameras can take at least 30 sec of video).

Talk to your breeder! I know some AKC showlines have a stage where they are very wobbly and cow hocked and I'm told if you can muscle them up with exercise, they lift up and get more solid...

Clearly you can also get to a vet, but I'd go with your breeder first to get their input....


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## Liesje

Is the dog west German show lines? If so, unless he's terribly cow hocked, it probably won't matter. He might straighten a bit with age, but even if not, lots of highlines are a bit cow hocked. I asked my breeder about this b/c I really don't care for it at all, but she said they just don't really care, and in fact many people believe it makes the dog more agile and better at quick turns.


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## hethir

OK, I will work on getting pix later today... I wrote my breeder and here is what he said:

Don’t sweat the "cow hocked", what it means is two things; 1-genetics-that is the way these blood lines are, it is the length of the rear leg, we see it all the time, which brings me to point #2-development-because his rear legs are so long he has to get bigger & stronger in order to put them where they belong, I'll bet that when he trots he moves perfectly straight from the rear. The best thing you can do when it is warmer is to swim him, it is the best exercise.

Does this seem right? In my email to him I asked if he could take a look and tell me what he sees. He never even mentions this. I will send him a pic and video, too. As far as being west german show lines... I'm not sure!! I know I should know this but I could have sworn the breeder told me he is from working lines. Maybe you can discern from these pix of his parents:

Mom:
http://www.vonwaldberggermanshepherds.co...y&animalID=1499

Dad:
http://www.vonwaldberggermanshepherds.co...y&animalID=1741


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## Chris Wild

West German show lines. Not working lines.


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## Liesje

Those are west German show lines.

If the cow hocking is severe, that might mean something, but a lot of west German dogs have it, especially as pups when they are gangly and leggy and haven't developed a lot of muscle yet.

I'm trying to find an example without unintentionally offending anyone so I will offer my own west German dog about a month ago, you can see he is cow hocked. I don't like it either but I guess it's just not a priority in these lines of breeding. He is usually not as bad as the bottom pic but it shows a good example. Generally, when he is alerted to something and stacks on his own, he is straight and looks a lot better. When he is doing a lot of physical activity and starts to wear out, or is pulling forward on something he's much more cow hocked.

















One of my favorite things about the conformation of my working line female is that she is not cowhocked at all. I love watching her from the rear.


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## hethir

Show lines, huh? What is a good example of working lines??? Just curious


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## gagsd

A friend has a pup from W German showlines and she is quite cow-hocked as well. You do see it in all lines, but in my limited experience, it seems more prevalent in WG show.
Here is an example of a working-line dog.....
http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/133344.html


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## Liesje

Click on the Wildhaus Kennels link in Chris' signature (post above mine). Those are working line dogs. German show lines are the typical/classic black and red dogs, with the black saddle (not that working lines can't have this, but 99.9% of German show lines are this look). The SV requires dogs to have certain titles in order to have registered breedings or to achieve V or VA ratings at shows, but just having the SchH titles does not mean the dog is from working lines and the breeder should not be advertising them as such.


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## MaggieRoseLee

German Working lines - see the flat back? no arch? and taller in the rear also.

2000 BSP Ernst vom Weinbergblick
SchH3, FH, KKl2a


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## hethir

Ok, Here are some pix. I didn't know what the best ones would be so I included lots! Also, I have links to the videos at the bottom (they're kind of hiding, though!):

My dog is on the Left. Bro on the right.






















































OK, Videos... I hope I have some half way decent ones, here:
http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll207/hethir/Dogs/?action=view&current=dogs227041.flv

http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll207/hethir/Dogs/?action=view&current=dogs227040.flv

http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll207/hethir/Dogs/?action=view&current=dogs227055.flv


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## MaggieRoseLee

If the breeder isn't worried and says it common in his lines, then at least it's nice to know it's normal for his dogs. None of the video looked like he was in pain or anything.

I would make sure to exercise and muscle him up though. 

Did the breeder see the videos?


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## hethir

Ok, I guess that's a good thing! What's the best way to exercise and muscle him up? I haven't sent them to him. I just sent him the photos. Maybe I will, now that you mention it....


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## hethir

OH, thank you for taking the time to look at the pix and watch my video


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