# Hips?



## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

I have a 4 1/2-5 month old male GSD who is growing in leaps and bounds. Is it common for GSD's to have a "unusual gait" at this age; specifically in the hind quarters? When we walk at a slow/medium pace I notice his hocks tend to sway outwards instead of just staying in line with the rest of his body. When we move at a faster pace there seems to be no issue and he trots very fluid. I am hoping maybe it is just muscle development or just getting used to his frame. I dread the idea that he had bad hips? Is it too early to tell? He goes to get his last set of puppy shots in about a week so maybe the vet would be able to give a clearer picture. I am going to try and post a video for a visual shortly.


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## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

Here is a link to a video that I took on my phone while walking this evening:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PftPEYRurN0


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## foader (Dec 19, 2008)

Up until he was about 10 months when ever he ran Chewy always looked like his back end was trying to pass his front end. But he straightened and can run like the wind now. But when i first saw him run like that I had the vet take a look at his hind end to see if there was anything wrong with his hips just to be on the safe side. Always better to play it safe with your fur kids.


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## Caledon (Nov 10, 2008)

Saw your video and have to say that my puppy never walked like that.


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## BlackGSD (Jan 4, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: MaryWSaw your video and have to say that my puppy never walked like that.


Mine either. BUT, pups/dogs from different lines are built quite differently and develop at different rates. My youngest is DDR and Czech breeding so it really isn't "fair" to compare her to a WG show line. Like comparing "apples to oranges" as far as build and movement.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

My W German show line never moved like that either, BUT he has always been praised by judges for not being "loose" or "wet" as a puppy (think wet/loose like a wet noodle, compared to a young puppy who moves dryer/tigher/more like an adult).


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

My Shepherd puppies have never moved like that either.

I have 1 Canadian Showline girl who is 12 years old now and has never had that problem and 1 East German Working/East German Showline male who has never moved like that either.

Personally, I would be concerned and get this checked out immediately.

Hope all is well, and please keep us updated.


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## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

Vet saw the video and thinks that it could very well be related to growth spurt, but at this point it is hard to tell. She also is going to have another specialist take a look for another opinion. Something to do with ligiments, bone growth, etc. I just pray that he will be ok. I am going to monitor things and like I said before he is schedualed to go in for a visit in about a week. I will shoot another vid in a couple of days.


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

I hope it is just related to his growth spurt.

It's always hard to tell by videos especially with a puppy this young.

I am sending good vibes your way.. Please keep us updated.


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## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

We went to the vet the other day and I have decided to get a specialists opinion on Diesels hind quarters. He really hasn't iimproved even though at times I see him walk normal. We went socializing last night and I couldn't relax because I was afraid that his activity might not be for the best if in fact there is an issue. My stomach is in knots just thinking of what "might" be in store. Has anybody had experience with a pup having work done on them? This whole experience has really become such a nightmare.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

What is the specialist going to do? Has he done x-rays?


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## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

Charge and arm and a leg all jokes aside. I was thinking of having the vet do the x-ray unless the cost is in the same ball park which it usually isn't.


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## BlackGSD (Jan 4, 2005)

There is no way to know for sure what is going on,(Meaning is there something wrong with his hips of not.) without x-rays.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: BlackGSDThere is no way to know for sure what is going on,(Meaning is there something wrong with his hips of not.) without x-rays.


Exactly, that's why I was wondering exactly what this specialist is going to do. It's a little early for official OFA prelims, but an x-ray may still be useful and I can't think of anything else that would tell you much of anything at this point.


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

I had my first gsd, Massie, x-rayed at under a year old--maybe 10 months? She was bunny hopping, falling down the stairs and something was clearly wrong. In her case she did have severe bilateral HD but she lived to be almost 12 years old! I had two surgeries done and she enjoyed daily long walks, hikes, backpacking trips, swimming and playing with other dog so even if there is a problem it is NOT a death sentence! 

I hope it's just a growth thing though.


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## honda_tuner (Apr 12, 2009)

My puppy had a kinda weird walk like that too when he was that age. It also seemed to go away the faster we moved. It worried me, but I saw no bunny hopping, problems with stairs, or pain while getting up. So I put it off to new puppy legs. Hes now 7 months and he's walking a whole lot more normal and he runs like the wind. I will eventually get xrays done, but at this time everything seems normal.


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## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

I wanted to give an update on Diesel's hips. So we had x-rays about a month ago and his hips didn't show anything too concerning. The Dr. was concerned about how clumsey he was and his bunny hop, but said for his age it wasn't that abnormal and recommended we do a follow up when he is 6-7 months old to see if there was any progression. Well he will be 6 months on the 29th of Oct. and he still is holding on to his bunny hop when running. I wanted to post another video of him playing and see what people thought. I don't notice any sense of pain, but he could be hiding it being so young and all. Either way I am open to your thoughts and prayers for our pup. Thank you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78idtJ8ssAQ


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## honda_tuner (Apr 12, 2009)

That is pretty weird. Mine never had the bunny hop but, still looks like his hind legs aren't that strong yet. He's about to be 8 months.


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## Kaykohl Land (Dec 23, 2000)

I looked at both videos. The first video of the puppy is obviously very well put together to be able to trot at a walking pace. The angle of the video is poor, but it looks typical of a puppy that age with that amount of angulation and the tension on the lead. 

The second video the dog looks very heavy and not conditioned. He is lacking a proper type and amount of exercise, and/or he is not getting the balanced nutrients he needs in his diet to build proper muscle tone. My guess would be too much protein (or possibly too many carbs, but I doubt that).

I personally have watched HUNDREDS of German Shepherds develop, and he looks totally fine to me in regard to being put together orthopedically. Nothing funny going on. Many GSD pups his age "bunny hop" all over the place just as he is in the video. 

Many "pet" people (and vets who see more BYB dogs than anything) are not familiar with angulation and how it develops. This looks like it is going to be an extremely nice show quality puppy when he grows into himself.

What does your breeder say? What are you feeding? What type of exercise is he getting? How long a day is he in a crate or contained to where he cannot fully extend his muscles to run at full speed? 

SWIMMING would be a wonderful form of low impact exercise to help build better tone and firm him up a bit. I would invest in that versus continuing to pay your vet to search for problems that probably aren't even there.


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## Hagar (Jun 15, 2009)

Thank you for everyones feedback. Kaykohl Land, I have started wondering if he was getting a bit on the thick side. I had been concerned when he was younger of his weight and being too thin and now you mention it he looks a bit too healthy







I am feeding him Solid Gold Wolf Cub currently. We had him on Oijen, but decided to change because of runny stool. I feed him two cups in the AM and four cups at night. Some evenings he doesn't finish his dinner which is removed and re-issued for breakfast. I agree about the excercise and think he could definatly use more. I currently walk him twice daily (15-20 min AM and 30-40 min PM). He likes to sleep and laze around durring the day which he spends much of out in the yard or in our house. If in the house for rest he hangs out in an x-pen (no more than an hour-two at a time exepct at night when asleep). I have really noticed just recently that his noodlely hind is starting to come together which is a HUGE stress relief! I would love to get him into the water. I grew up in Alaska (much like your neck of the woods) and there is a lot to be said about wide open spaces


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

That is a LOT of food! Wolf Cub is 375 Kcals per cup, so he's getting 2250 calories per day. Orijen LBP is 450 kcals per cup, so that would be equivalent to 5 cups of Orijen. I feed the Orijen to Halo and she's NEVER had more than 4 cups a day, and usually it's more like 3 to 3-1/2 cups.


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## Kaykohl Land (Dec 23, 2000)

6 cups of SG Wolf Cub food a day is A LOT. It also does not have the fat content that I prefer in a puppy food and it has a lot of carbs making up those calories.

Without getting my hands on him I cannot say if he is truly over weight, or just very loose and "wet" looking (meaning not firm). Proper diet and exercise are going to affect those two things more than anything. 

The quickest way for an owner to create an orthopedic problem is to overfeed, feed a food not designed for puppies, to not properly exercise or condition their dog, or to OVER condition. There is a happy medium with all of those things.

Does he like to retrieve the ball? I personally wouldn't add any time to your walks, but add that to his daily routine so he can really stretch his legs fully if swimming is not available. The lower impact you can give him the better, so walking in grass or softer surfaces will be best. 

Just by his overall appearance I am assuming he came from a good genetic foundation, and probably a quality breeder who obviously produced a good puppy. I am a breeder's advocate and will always recommend people talking to the person they got their dog from first. No one else will know how their particular lines grow and develop better.


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