Mrok and dysplasia

If you have a medium or large breed dog, there is a good chance that sooner or later you will hear the word “dysplasia”. Mrok is exactly that kind of dog, so the subject concerns us too.

This is Mrok. He has mild hip dysplasia, and he jumps, runs, and swims just like any dog of his breed. Movement like this, on natural ground and in water, is also what helps build the muscles that support his joints.

What is dysplasia?

If you put the word “dysplasia” into simpler language, it would just mean an abnormal structure.

Hip dysplasia (this is the joint it is most often linked to) means that the parts that form the joint do not fit together as well as they should.

A dog’s hip joint is made of two main parts:

• the socket, which sits in the pelvis,

• the head of the thigh bone.

In a healthy joint the head of the thigh bone sits deep in the socket and stays stable during movement.

If you took a model of such a joint and held the thigh bone with one hand and the hip with the socket in the other, it would be almost impossible to feel any play between these two parts.

In dysplasia the fit is worse. The socket can be too shallow, the head of the bone can have the wrong shape, or both problems can happen at the same time.

The illustrations below were prepared to explain the topic.

Healthy joint, read the description below the photo.

This is a healthy hip joint. It is made of two parts. The round head sits on top of the thigh bone, on the left. The socket is the hollow in the pelvis, on the right. The smooth white surface between them is the cartilage that covers both parts and lets them move without friction. You can see that the head sits deep in the socket and is covered almost all the way around. There is no gap and no space for the head to slide out. The fit is tight, so the joint stays stable during movement. This is what a correctly built hip joint looks like.

Socket too shallow, read the description below the photo.

This is a hip joint with a socket that is too shallow. The parts are the same as before. The round head on the thigh bone, on the left, and the socket in the pelvis, on the right. Here the socket is flat and low, so it does not hold the head. The head sits on the edge instead of deep inside, and you can see the space above it where it can move and slide. The fit is loose, so the joint is not stable during movement. This is one of the forms of dysplasia.

Head of the bone with the wrong shape, read the description below the photo.

This is a hip joint where the head of the bone has the wrong shape. The parts are the same as before. The head on the thigh bone, on the left, and the socket in the pelvis, on the right. Here the head is not round and even. It is flattened and does not fill the socket the way it should. Because the shapes do not match, the head does not sit evenly and the contact between the two parts is uneven. The fit is poor, so the load is not spread the way it is in a healthy joint. This is another form of dysplasia.

The bigger the play in the joint, the bigger the load on the cartilage that covers both the head of the bone and the socket, and on the other parts of the joint. For some time the body can deal with this, but over the years degenerative changes and pain can appear.

It is worth remembering that dysplasia is not the same as joint degeneration.

Dysplasia describes the abnormal structure of the joint.

Degeneration is one of the possible results of this abnormal structure.

Soft, natural ground like this is perfect. Mrok can run freely, and every such run quietly builds the muscles that hold his joints in place.

How does dysplasia develop?

People most often say that dysplasia is a genetic disease.

That is true, but only in part.

Genetics can raise the risk of the problem, but it does not automatically mean that the dog will get sick. In the same way, healthy parents are no hundred percent guarantee that the problem will never appear.

Other things also matter:

• the dog’s growth rate,

• body weight,

• the way it is fed,

• the type of activity during the growth period,

• the development of the muscles that stabilise the joints.

The first year of the dog’s life deserves the most attention, and especially the period between 3 and 12 months of age. This is when the movement system develops most intensively.

If a young dog has a genetic tendency towards dysplasia, this is exactly the moment when it is easiest to “help” the problem develop.

A young dog gives us a lot of joy. The games with the cats were funny and good for his socialisation, but looking back we could have protected the floor better.

What can raise the risk?

Owners often focus on good food and supplements, and at the same time pay no attention to the everyday overloading of the joints.

Examples?

• jumping for a frisbee every day,

• repeated jumps for a ball, fast and dynamic retrieves,

• sudden starts and stops during play, for example with other dogs,

• repeated slips on the floor, for example on panels or tiles,

• a young dog jumping out of the car or down high stairs,

• being overweight,

• forcing long runs next to a bicycle.

Jumping over obstacles is not a problem in itself. The key is for the dog to start with the smallest ones and to build his muscles through calm activity, not through activity based only on jumping.

It is not about one slip or one frisbee throw.

The problem appears when such overloads are repeated hundreds or thousands of times during the period when the joints are developing.

If a young dog slips on the floor panels every day, makes sudden turns for a ball, jumps for a frisbee several times a day, goes out of the house and climbs many stairs, this is not the best way to build a healthy movement system.

Dogs almost always retrieve. To us it looks like they are bringing back a ball, but often they set off in chase as if hunting. They give it their all. A sharp start, fast braking, and sometimes sharp turns, this is what we should avoid to protect our dog's joints.

How to develop a dog without unnecessary risk?

A young dog needs movement.

A lack of movement is not a solution either.

The goal is not to raise a dog kept under a glass dome, but to develop the muscles that stabilise the joints without unnecessary overloads.

Long walks and varied ground, time spent together, safely. Dysplasia found early does not mean the dog cannot walk. The opposite is true. Building a strong muscle corset the right way is very good protection. You do not have to give up the activities you do together.

These work very well:

• long walks in the forest,

• walking on natural, uneven ground,

• calmly going over small hills,

• walks on sand,

• swimming, which, as with people, is one of the safest forms of activity, as long as the dog really swims regularly,

• free exploration of the area.

Such activities develop the muscles responsible for stabilising the joints.

Strong muscles will not remove dysplasia, but they can support the joint very effectively for the dog’s whole life.

Water is one of the safest ways to stay fit. The joints work without taking the full weight of the body, and the dog still gets a real workout.

How to check whether my dog has dysplasia?

If you want to know what condition your dog’s hips are in, book an appointment with a vet who works in orthopaedics.

The basis of the assessment is an X-ray taken with the dog in the right position.

Only on the basis of the images can the structure of the joints and the degree of the changes be assessed.

Many dogs show no clear symptoms for a long time. They can run, jump and behave completely normally, even though the changes are already visible on the images.

It was the same with Mrok.

The first three X-rays, taken from around the sixth month of his life, looked very good. The next examination, done after he turned two, already showed small changes that needed further monitoring and decisions about preventive treatment.

This is why preventive examinations make sense even when the dog seems completely healthy.

This may look unusual, but it is a completely safe way to check a dog's joints. For the X-ray Mrok was lightly sedated, so he stays still and his muscles are relaxed. A good, stable position is the key here, because the joints can only be assessed correctly when the dog is laid out the right way for the picture.

What to do if my dog has dysplasia?

First of all, get a reliable diagnosis.

Dysplasia is not a single disease and there is no single way to treat it.

The things that matter include:

• the dog’s age,

• the degree of the changes,

• the presence of pain,

• the dog’s activity,

• the general condition of the joints.

Depending on the situation, the vet may recommend rehabilitation, a change of activity, medication, procedures that support the work of the joint, or surgery.

There is no single solution that fits every case.

Mrok resting after the procedure. The small shaved patch on the upper part of his thigh is the only trace left after the injection into the joint of a slow-release agent that supports the surfaces of the head and the socket. The hair will grow back soon and no mark will be left.

In Mrok’s case we decided to act right after the diagnosis that showed the first changes. The vet proposed a procedure matched to his age and the degree of the changes, an injection into the joints of a long-release agent that supports the work of the joint surfaces. Thanks to this we are not limited to watching the problem, we try to influence how his joints will work in several, and in more than ten, years from now.

Doctor Piotr Kowalczyk and the whole team of the Morskie Oko clinic deserve a separate thank you here.

We first heard about him a few years ago, as a doctor for whom time is measured not in working hours, but in the health of his patients.

Since he has been caring for our cats, and for more than two years for Mrok as well, we have been able to see this for ourselves.

We especially value his ability to explain complicated medical matters in a way an ordinary owner can understand. For a doctor this is not always an everyday thing. For the owner of a dog or cat such an approach can be decisive in making the right decisions about the health of a family member.

Together with his team he creates a place that is something more than a veterinary clinic. He gives owners peace of mind and the certainty that the members of their families, usually moving around on four paws, have ended up in truly good hands.

Dysplasia, why is it worth knowing about it earlier?

Because the earlier the problem is found, the more options for action we usually have.

It is easier to protect the joint from getting worse than to try to reverse the effects of many years of degenerative changes.

That is why, even if the dog looks completely healthy, it is worth knowing what is happening in its hips.

Especially when it belongs to a breed in which dysplasia appears more often than average.

Knowing about the problem does not mean stopping. It means making good choices, so days like this stay part of his life.

Our Mrok has mild dysplasia.

We are not changing his activity.

He still walks with us in the forest, travels, swims, tracks and does everything that dogs of this breed like to do, he is just missing cows 😉

The difference is that we know about the problem and we can make decisions consciously. In short

1. You usually cannot tell from the outside whether your dog has dysplasia. Book an appointment and have the hips checked, even if the dog seems completely healthy.
   

2. If there is a problem, choose the best way to protect the joint and prevent pain together with your vet. There is no single solution for every dog.
   

3. Be consistent. Strong muscles and a dog without excess weight help enormously. Calm, regular, low impact movement does more than occasional bursts of effort.
   

   

   We cannot undo dysplasia, but we can do a lot. The right care, sensible movement, and a good vet mean that Mrok can run, swim, and travel with us for years, without pain. That is worth every effort.