# weak pasterns or carpal subluxation please help me



## richardsknl (Apr 28, 2011)

my 5 months old female gsd is suffering from weak pasterns, i am very much worried about it. i am trying calcium and vitamin injections, feeding with pedigree professional with milk 3 times and 4 eggs a day. please advice me the medicines and food.


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## KZoppa (Aug 14, 2010)

i hope someone chimes in with some info for you. I've personally never dealt with that before. Sad welcome to the board.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

What's pedigree professional? Anything pedigree is junk, at least the formulas that I've seen. I would definitely look into a better quality diet.

Here's a few good reads you may want to check out if you haven't already:

http://www.grunfeldshepherds.com/articles/lanting/pdfs/carpal.PDF

CARPAL SUBLUXATION SYNDROME (CSS OR DOWN PASTERNS)

From my understanding, it's a mix of genetics and diet. I do believe that through the right supplements and proper diet, it can be managed and improved.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Is a veterianarian invovlved.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

In general, unless the dog has been severely malnurished, this is a genetic problem. I would not be giving calcium injections or giving milk, this is a soft tissue problem, not a bone problem, so by giving extra calcium you may be causing other problems for your dog.

The best thing you can do is feed the highest quality dog food you can find that your dog does well on, allow as much low impact exercise as she can tolerate to try and build muscle and tighten up the tendons and ligaments without overstressing them, and cross your fingers. 

What do her parents look like? This is a common problem in american lines and many of them to straighten up to some degree as they get a little older. By looking at her parents, you might get a better idea of how much she might improve.


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## richardsknl (Apr 28, 2011)

Dear sir, Thanks a lot for your reply and concern. The Major problem is my pup was sick for almost a month and didn't eat a a thing nor had milk at the age of 3 months, and it was on drip. so it lost almost all the weight suffering from Parvo Virus, so what i think is it is in lack of calcium and proteins, its weight was 10 Kgs ( 22 Lbs ) at the age of 4 months. It was just with Skin and bones, so the vet told me to feed well with calcium and proteins to gain the weight. Now its 15 Kgs ( 33 Lbs ). can i feed her SCIENCE PLAN dog food discarding the milk and eggs? please advice.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

So, your dog is malnurished; that is actually better than being born this way as it should resolve better with increased nutrition. Normal puppies aren't getting any milk once they are weaned before 8 weeks of age so the fact that your puppy wasn't getting any milk at 3 months is normal.

After being so sick with parvo, your pup's digestive tract is a mess and you need to be very careful with it. I would be feeding 3-4 times a day of the best kibble your dog will eat without vomiting or diarrhea until she's back to a good weight. If you can get some probiotics, I would give those to your dog so long as she doesn't get diarrhea from them. Nothing wrong with adding an egg if you want, but I would not be giving extra calcium in any form as there's more than enough in kibble.

Are you talking about Science Diet dog food? I haven't heard of Science Plan. There are much better dog foods out there than that, but the most important thing is that your dog tolerates it.

Still keep up the low impact exercise to build muscle until things start to tighten up which will straighten the joints.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Richard, where do you live? 

Elaine gave good advice. Glad your puppy is doing better. What your pup needs is very good quality food. Adding an egg, raw or cooked, will be fine too, but German Shepherds should not get any extra calcium supplementation - it can make their bones grow too fast and cause skeletal and joint problems. 

Get your puppy out walking and playing on natural soft surfaces like dirt, sand, grass to help strenghten his pasterns, only as much as he can do, and let him rest if he gets tired. 

If you can't get probiotics, add a bit of yogurt to his food. 

Is this the food you are feeding?
Hills Science Plan Healthy Development Puppy Food with Lamb and Rice 3kg | Pets at Home

Looks like the same thing that in North America is called "Science Diet" - not really considered to be a top quality food (despite the name, and that vets will sell it), but you can do worse. What other brands of dog food is available for you?


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## punch (Apr 30, 2011)

Aside from good nourishment, I think you also need to give supplements to support the development of bones and joints. Your dog is still too young, and if it's not really a genetic thing then there is still hope that your pet will be well and develop strong pasterns.


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## richardsknl (Apr 28, 2011)

Hi Lucia, I am from India and i live in a Town ( not a city ), and yes that is the ( Hills Science Plan ) best food i can get in my place and in India most of the dog owners feed with Pedigree Dog Food. I am scared to take her for a walk seeing her legs, i tried many medicines and a good diet with calcium tonics but of no use. It was very cute when she was a pup. You can see her in my profile. is there any diet or medicine which i can give, please advice.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Getting these pasterns up will take time. You won't see any dramatic improvement overnight, and they may always be a bit week. 

Don't worry about calcium supplementation - this isn't a problem with the bone growth, but with the ligaments and tendons. Adding Calcium won't help the pasterns, and can actually cause other problems with his growth. 

Is there a yard or park area that you can take your puppy and let him play? For leash walks start out very short distance to get him used to it, but watch that he does not get too tired. Sometimes just walking by two or three houses, then turning around and going home is a good start. 

Science Plan is definitely better than Pedigree if those are your only two choices! But since you don't have that much choice, have you considered supplementing with a raw diet, or feeding raw? 

There is a whole section here on this forum about feeding raw, if you scroll down a bit from the main forum index. It is also refered to as the BARF diet, short for Biologically Appropriate Raw Food diet.
B.A.R.F./Raw Feeding - German Shepherd Dog Forums

My two dogs are on a BARF diet - they are doing well and are healthy and active.


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## punch (Apr 30, 2011)

A combination of the best dog food around plus supplements with glucosamine and chondroitin plus low-impact exercise can do wonders for your dog.

Swimming is the best exercise for your dog right now.


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