It's a cold and blustery day here in Northwestern Ontario, and as I look over at one of the dogs stretched out on the floor by my sofa, I can tell it is going to be bad one. Bad hip day, that is. As Raider shifts around to get comfortable, I can see his rear legs starting to stiffen up already. The blustery days, with damp air bother him the most. On these kinds of days I have a very unhappy puppy.
When the winds start to howl and rain is imminent, the best thing I do for Raider is set up the hot water bottle in between a couple of towels on the couch. The heat helps soothe the ache and Raider will spend almost the entire day there.
On his good days, Raider is just as good as any other dog. He runs, he jumps, and he climbs stairs. Although he does walk strange, almost a "bunny-hop" kind of motion, and I do have to lift him onto anything higher than 18 inches, he is still very active. With good exersize and glucosamine supplements, Raider should pull through his hip surgery just fine.
In a short time, Raider will go into the veterinarian's office, and have his worst hip operated on. This particular procedure is called Femoral Head Ostectomy, and it will remove the femoral head that typically sits inside the hip socket. The ball and the neck will be sawed off with a bone saw, and filed down for smoothness. The sharp and roughened edges of the hip socket will also be filed to a smooth surface. After the completed operation, the joint will "float" on a cushion of scar tissue, muscles and tendons. While he may never have the range of movements that my other two dogs have, he should at least be pain-free.