Joint issues

Small Dog Knee Injury: Junior Stops Bearing Weight on his Hind Leg

Ruptured cruciate ligaments are a common injury in large breed dogs but small dogs can hurt their knee too. In small dogs, the injury can sometimes resolve with conservative management–rest and medication. Junior’s story Junior is an active, nimble senior dog–a little rocket. Age didn’t slow him down much. During one winter,t though, he suddenly stopped using his left hind…

by Jana Rade

Canine Femoral Head Osteotomy: Great (Or Not So Great) Expectations with (FHO)

Femoral head osteotomy (FHO) is the surgical removal of the ball and neck of the femur, in the hip joint. It is used in cases of advanced hip dysplasia where the hip joint has also become arthritic in complex fractures cases of avascular necrosis (lack of blood supply to the bone–a genetic condition called Legg Calve-Perthes, seen mostly in toy…

by Susan E. Davis PT

Dog Knee Injuries: Why The Second CCL Often Goes Too

Have you ever wondered about the impact of improper use of an injured limb on the rest of the body and how other areas are affected? Dog knee injuries are no exception. The canine knee or “stifle” is the most problematic joint in the dog. Source: The Dog Health Handbook The stifle is a complex joint starting with the rounded…

by Susan E. Davis PT

Dog CCL Injury Grading: Cruciate Tears “All or None, or Partial?”

Cruciate ligament tears are a topic of prime concern with any canine species-at-risk. In some cases, despite efforts to prevent tears, they still occur. Injury mechanism Unlike in a human knee, in dogs, the cruciate ligament tends to tear gradually. As humans are bipedal, upright walkers, the knee’s anterior cruciate ligament is situated horizontally in relation to the ground. This…

by Susan E. Davis PT

CCL/ACL Injury in a Rottweiler: How The Odyssey Started—Jasmine’s ACL Injury

Rottweilers, like other large-breed dogs, have increased predisposition to CCL/ACL injuries. Morpheus: What happened, happened and couldn’t have happened any other way.Neo: How do you know?Morpheus: We are still alive. The Matrix Reloaded Jasmine’s story When Jasmine started limping that summer, we didn’t think too much of it. It wasn’t the first time it happened. Jasmine had injured her hind…

by Jana Rade

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of American and an award-winning author. Jasmine, the Rottweiler of my life, was the largest female from her litter. We thought we were getting a healthy dog. Getting a puppy from a backyard breeder was our first mistake. Endless veterinary visits without a diagnosis or useful treatment later, I realized that I had to take Jasmine's health care in my own hands. I learned the hard way that simply seeing a vet is not always enough. There is more to finding a good vet than finding the closest clinic down the street. And, sadly, there is more to advocating for your dog's health than visiting a veterinarian. It should be enough but it often is not. With Jasmine, it took five years to finally get a diagnosis for her initial issue. Unfortunately, other problems had snowballed for that in the meantime. Jasmine's health challenges became a crash course in understanding dog health issues and how to go about getting a proper diagnosis and treatment. I had to learn and I had to learn fast. Helping others through my challenges and experience has become my mission and Jasmine's legacy. I now try to help people how to recognize and understand signs of illness in their dogs, how to work with their veterinarian and when to seek a second opinion. My goal is to save others the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way as I did. That is the mission behind my blog and behind my writing. That is why I wrote Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog, which has turned out being an award-winning guide to dog owners . What I'm trying to share encompasses 20 years of experience.

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