Are 'large Breed ' Puppies Different?

[Jakeysmum]

Of the two little gsd x pups who arrived here last week one went to rescue today and the other has been adopted by my parents. He is a big boy and has twice seen a vet who pronounces him fit and healthy, but he seems to have joint pain. Is this normal? The vet says his back legs are weak because of the neglect and now he is eating properly it will rectify itself but his sister had none of these symptons, though he is larger. He was 8.3 kilos on last friday and now 8 days later is over ten. Any advice appreciated x

[jacqui d]

id go with the vet, if the pup has been malnourished, it will take time for any muscle wastage to build back up.

 

keep him to short, soft ground walks, a staple diet and monitor if he continues to have problems with his joints, if he struggles to stand after lying down in a few months, id ask for x rays to check for HD

[Fiona711]

Large breed puppies do need more care taken as they are more prone to HD and other joint problems , Green lipped muscle and glucosamine are both really good suppliments for large breed puppies

 

Fiona xx

[Jakeysmum]

He cries when walking down steps or flopping down or being picked up. The vet manipulated his joints and heard him cry but says he is ok.

I mentioned glucosamine and will tell them about green lipped muscle and I have advised they give him a 'large breed' puppy food. He does not run around or climb on the sofa like his sister did whilst she was here. x

[Lainey]

Gentle to the pup

Burns do a large breed puppy food called 'high energy lamb' it is very good but i had trouble getting supplies as most stockists dont actually stock that particular one. I now feed mine on Berrimans which has additional supplements for the joints such as Glucosamine, condroitin Sulphate and MSM. It also has Bio-probiotics (VETOXAN), DHA for brain development and Omega 3 & 6. It is also wheat gluten free, hypo-allergenic and has no colours,additives,preservatives or genetically modified ingredients. They were really helpful when i emailed them with a query and phoned me up, they also phoned me about 7 weeks after starting the food to see how they had adjusted to it

Good luck and i hope the pup soon starts to improve

[redditchlady]

I would definitely go back to the vets.

 

There is something pups can get called Panostiitis(sp)

 

It is where they grow really quickly and it causes pain. I am pretty sure the pup is too young for that at the moment though.

 

I do hope they can get to the bottom of what is causing the pain,

 

Kazz xx

[Red Rotties]

Check the protien levels in large breed puppy food, to high and it can make them grow too quickly without putting enough "bone down" Sterillized bone meal added to their food is reccommend to help bones grow strong, you can get this at good pet shops. Short walks and no stairs is also reccommended.

 

Hope he recovers well, and photos would be nice!!

[ReikiAnge]

I tried to reply to this thread last night but our internet connection decided to take the rest of the night off.

 

Short walks and no stairs is also reccommended.

 

I was going to say that while I don't have GSD experience, I know with labs for example, who are prone to joint troubles, they are not meant to use stairs while young (up to around a year old I believe) and they are meant to be on restricted lead walking exercise.

 

I don't know if there's a similar guide for GSD types, but for labs the guide is 5 minutes of on-lead walking per month of pup's age, per day - so 10 minutes of on-lead walking per day at 2 months, 15 minutes at 3 months etc. This doesn't include play-times and off-lead stuff where they can stop and rest if they want to (though I think you would need to still be careful they don't over do this).

[Jakeysmum]

The steps are one into and out of house and I think two or three up to the garden. His lead walks have been in the garden as he hasn't had his second jab yet. When he was here he went in the garden with the other four and was happy pottering about. He doesnt do stair as we dont let dogs upstairs here or at mums. He is between 13 and 17 weeks old.

My parents rang this morning to say they were going to phone the vet this morning.

[phoenix]

we had this with maxwell he is a large GSD the vet said he had had a growth spurt and it was common in the breed, he was a bit older though, he was given metacalm and bed rest for two weeks, not easy for a pup i know but he was fine after that,

[celeste]

Whats his activity level like ? does he run about and play or does he tend to sit out on games ? when he runs does he "bunnyhop" with his back legs ?

I'd be concerned about Hip Dysplasia, although it would be unusual for such a young pup to have pain from it yet, normally they are about 5/6 months before they show signs of pain, it would worry me that his back legs were weak, is there any possibility he could have recieved an injury to his pelvis ? also as mentioned before Panosteitis could be the cause.

[ranirottie]

I had GSD's for many years and I recommend that you give glaucosomine /chondroitin tablets daily (apparantly they dont work efficiently without each other) and a good quality diet with a sprinkle of bone meal. If he hasnt had a good diet his bones are probably weak and he needs extra calciun.A cod liver oil capsule a day is probably a good idea too to help his joints. Gentle walking is good to lay down bone as well.I do hope he recovers quickly. x

[tracey.s]

I would definitely go back to the vets.

 

There is something pups can get called Panostiitis(sp)

 

It is where they grow really quickly and it causes pain. I am pretty sure the pup is too young for that at the moment though.

 

Kazz xx

 

 

This is what Ozzy has. At 8 weeks old he weighed 10 kilo's. He's not a year old yet and now weighs 53 kilo's. He's huge. He had an intermittent limp and yelping. He had x rays which my vet referred to an ortho specialist as he had 'concerns'. (scared us to death after Ice) The ortho has put it down to growing pains. They wanted to x ray his hips as well but, after Ice, i don't want to know. I'm listening to Ozzy. I know when he's had enough or too little.

I haven't let any of my shepherds up and down the stairs. They don't need to be up there. The only time Ozzy goes upstairs is for a bath. So, he now refuses to go up them at all. No amount of bribery gets him up there now as he know what's coming.

He's too big to get on the sofa anyway but, i wouldn't let him jump up or down. He's been on restricted exercise 2x15 minute on lead walks a day and to be honest he could do to loose a few kilo's but, until i get the all clear from the vet, his exercise will stay as it is. He does get an offlead run once a week though. Hydrothrapy is good too. Ozzy has pilchard's or sardines in his meal twice a day. Oily fish is good for them. He also has glucosamine and chondroitin capsules. I get them from the chemist they're so much cheaper. I just split them and sprinkle the powder on his food. He also has a cod liver oil capsule as well.

My thoughts are if i do this now, it may stand him in good stead for his later years.

I'm under no illusions with him though, with his weight and size we're definately in for trouble with his joints as he gets older but, hopefully we'll get a bit longer with him than we did Ice.

I hope you can get something sorted for your little man. I would definately be back at the vets with any concerns though.

[celeste]

Can I just give peeps a wee "heads up" on joint supplements...........if your giving glucosamine to your dog it must be glucosamine HCL, dogs are incapable of absorbing the normal type often found in cheaper brands and you'll just be wasting money, these brands may seem to work but it will be the other ingredients that are working ,the glucosamine will just be going in one end and out the other.

[Jakeysmum]

this is Dexter