97 Tips for Raising Labs
Following are approximately 97 questions readers of BigYellowDog.com submitted in recent years. They were answered by a licensed veterinarian on the site as a general service to all Lab owners. This information is for general reference only. Always consult your veterinarian for any questions about your Lab's health. We hope this information is somewhat helpful. At this time, we are not accepting any more questions.
Question
Editor's Note: We received two questions about hip dysplasia recently. Just a reminder, as with all questions to our Ask A Vet, we are just offering some advice from our own experiences, and it is highly recommended that you consult your own veterinarian who can see your Lab first hand and make the proper diagnosis.
Answer
Question 1:
My nearly 10-year-old Lab has hip dysplasia that is treated with Ascriptin tabs two times daily. She seems to have some gastric disturbance a lot lately (burping, vomiting) and I am wondering if she could be developing an ulcer from the medication. Any suggestions for me? Many thanks.
Answer 1:
Even though Ascriptin is the safest non prescription anti-inflammatory to use on dogs with hip dysplasia, there are two new prescription drugs that are much safer and can be purchased through your regular veterinarain.
- One is Rimadyl, which is given twice daily and comes in tablet or chewable form. It is a Pfizer product.
- The other is Etogesic which is a Fort Dodge product and is convenient due to its once daily dosage.
Question 2: Thank you for this great service. My 6-month-old lab, Colby, has been diagnosed with hip dysplasia. We were hoping it was panasteitis, but radiographs revealed moderate to severe dysplasia.
My husband and I are considering TPO or femoral head removal surgery or even medication. What do you know about these?
Our family (mom-in-law and cousin) are convinced that Euthanasia is the main option for Colby. Their argument is that after we put our money and Colby's suffering into surgery, chances are still good that something will go wrong.
I need to know, honestly, how promising these surgeries are. Do most dogs recover and live full lives, or do they suffer only for problems to recur later in their lives? What would you do if it was your sweet young lab?
Thank you for your honest opinion. (I wish I could post his x-rays for you to see.)
Answer 2: It is always hard to say what one should do without being directly involved in this dog's medical case and without having all the information right at hand. But if you have gone to a specialist, and he has recommended the TPO surgical procedure for your dog, then it is likely that he believes your precentages are high for his recovery. We have sent several of our clients to a board certified orthopedic veterinarian who has recommended this procedure and the results have been very positive.
Whatever your veterinarian or you decide is medically right for your puppy, I believe that euthanasia should be the furthest option. With today's advancements in the veterianary medical field today, there are many other things that can be done instead.
