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Thursday, August 31, 2006

Reyna's Hips

For the last two months or so, I’ve noticed that Reyna has been having trouble getting in the truck and that she’s been limping occasionally. She even yelped once when she crouched to potty. When I asked the vet about it, he said it was probably just a pulled muscle, because she was acting fine otherwise. I didn’t particularly agree with that, but hey, what do I know? I’m no vet, I’m just the person that lives with the dog every day.

This past weekend, the issue finally came to a head. Reyna fell out of the truck twice because she couldn’t get in far enough. She was having trouble getting off the floor, and moving very stiffly (although it would smooth out after she’d been up for a bit). Marie noticed her limping, too. When she was running circles in the yard – one of her favorite activities – she would occasionally fall down, because her back leg would give out. She was also favoring whichever leg was inside the circle, and she was bunny hopping. So, Monday I called the vet and managed to squeeze in an afternoon appointment.

When we got to the vet’s office, she was just as excited and crazy as always. The exam, though, put a quick end to that. He extended her left back leg first, and she immediately started crying, whining, and trying to get away. When he extended her right leg, she lost it, yelping and crying and struggling. When he messed with her back, though, she just stood there, looking around the room. The vet said he felt some crackling in her hips, which was a potential sign of arthritis. He said he needed to get x-rays, and would need her on her back. I pointed out he’d need to sedate her for that, so we scheduled the x-rays for Tuesday morning. Before we left, he said it could be a back injury (doubtful), or just arthritis (also doubtful).

Tuesday morning, the x-rays showed just how bad the hip dysplasia really is. The right hip is severe, the left is moderate. The bones of her right hip have already become deformed; the ball is flattened (mushroomed) out somewhat, the socket has flattened instead of curving around the ball, and there are several arthritic spurs. Her left hip isn’t quite as bad yet, with fewer spurs and less deformation. Neither hip has any cartilage left, though, and both balls are wedged into the sockets, so she’s running around rubbing bone on bone.

According to the vet, the level of treatment we provide now depends on Reyna. We’re starting with Glucosamine for a month, in hopes that it will rebuild some of the missing cartilage. He doesn’t want to put her on pain killers just yet, because she’ll be on them forever, just at different levels. I think I’m going to over-ride that decision today, because she’s so clearly in pain. When my tough, stoic girl limps and yelps, there’s a lot of pain involved. Depending on how quickly the dysplasia progresses, its very likely that she’ll need a hip replacement – we just don’t know when. So, to help offset the cost, I’ve started a savings account specifically for that. For now, we’re having to restrict some of our more strenuous activities, which are, of course, her favorites. I guess it’s a good thing that its hot and we don’t live near any really tough hiking trails, since that’s something we both enjoy. She’ll never be able to be part of a SAR team, because her hips won’t tolerate that type of activity – long hours and generally rough terrain. I’m checking a couple of places this weekend to see about swimming, since that’s the best exercise for her. With luck, we’ll be able to find the right level of treatment to keep her pain free for as long as possible.

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