Vet Chat Episode 2- Limping and Hip Pain in Your Dog

My dog Gonzo injured himself again. Recently he presented with a significant limp in his right hind. He will occasionally overdo it and strain a muscle. Last July, he pulled both hips out of alignment requiring anti-inflammatories, chiropractic work, and acupuncture. Well, he did it again.

* This posts contains affiliate links. If you click the link I may receive a small commission at no cost to you, to help keep my pups in dog treats. All opinions are my own.

Luckily my friend and colleague Dr. Kendra Pope was there to help! Gonzo loves the vet. My dogs are the opposite of afraid, and so I brought him to the veterinarians office for an evaluation.

I love Dr. Pope’s office. It’s warm and inviting, and since I see clients there as well, it’s very familiar. Gonzo made himself right at home, greeting everyone and inspecting the place. Nothing changes his good attitude, even pain.

Gonzo had a full physical exam, and he definitely showed pain in the hind right. Because he has shown signs of arthritis, he’s on an anti-inflammatory diet, so we opted for acupuncture to see how he responded. I wish I took photos. He looked like a porcupine and kept backing up to sit on me, which was obviously not ideal. So vet tech, Alex, came in to give him a little head rub and distract him while Dr. Pope worked on him.

He did yelp when she accessed his right hip, but we were able to take things slow and complete the process. By the end of the session, he was half asleep on the floor.

Within a few days, Gonzo was feeling back to himself. He is on the following natural anti-inflammatories:

Green-lipped mussel
Glucosomine and chondroitin
Boswellia
Turmeric

There are some amazing therapies on the market for your pet’s arthritis, which I write about here. He’ll receive follow up session of acupuncture, and then we’ll see how he does. We’re keeping a close eye on him for now. But if he worsens we will need a scan done, and possible be able to use stem cells to help him.

As a result of Gonzo’s injury, I thought I’d chat with Dr. Pope about limping and hip pain on our next episode of Vet Chat. Watch it now:

Do you have a question regarding limping or hip pain?

0 Comments

fashionbeyondforty

April 4, 2018 at 4:02 PM Reply

I wish we had a vet like her locally! I mean I love our vet but we do not have any vets in our area that are more toward holistic healing! She amazes me – and so do you! Love this series! Please keep them coming!

Heather Wallace

April 4, 2018 at 8:52 PM Reply

Happy to do so! I’m blessed to be able to work so closely with Dr. Pope and we have a lot of important information to share.
- fashionbeyondforty
  
  April 5, 2018 at 2:58 AM Reply
  
  Can’t wait to see what’s next !! 🙂

Tenacious Little Terrier

April 4, 2018 at 7:33 PM Reply

Which Glucosomine and chondroitin supplements do you like? Mr. N isn’t showing any issues but I’ve been giving him joint supplements as a preventative measure and we’re almost out of this one.

Tenacious Little Terrier

April 4, 2018 at 7:33 PM Reply

Glad Gonzo is feeling better!
- Heather Wallace
  
  April 4, 2018 at 8:54 PM Reply
  
  Thank you! He was quite spunky at the vet today so he’s definitely feeling more himself!
Heather Wallace

April 4, 2018 at 8:54 PM Reply

Two supplements I like are GNC Pets Large Breed Joint Health and NutraPro. I am all about prevention and give Beau supplements as well. I definitely recommend keeping up the good work! Most animals will show symptoms of arthritis by the time they are 7 or 8.

Happy-Go-Doodle

April 4, 2018 at 7:58 PM Reply

Your vet chat video and blog post is a great concept and you have a natural camera presence! Also, congratulations on being a BlogPaws Pet Blogging and Social Media Awards finalist! What an honor! I look forward to chatting with you at BlogPaws!

Heather Wallace

April 4, 2018 at 8:56 PM Reply

Thank you Jenise! I’m looking forward to chatting with you as well, last year we didn’t really have the opportunity. Thank you so much for your support. I love working with Dr. Pope and am so glad to have strong, smart women and pet lovers to work with!

DearMishu

April 4, 2018 at 9:33 PM Reply

sounds like a wonderful vet. I sometimes strain a muscle from jumping and running in the woods – i’ve never thourght to try accupuncture for it though!

Heather Wallace

April 4, 2018 at 9:53 PM Reply

I’m sorry to hear that Mishu, but it is common. You should seek out a canine massage therapist to help you with that. Acupuncture helps also.

Enviro_Dog

April 4, 2018 at 11:29 PM Reply

Good post and video. My vet is also pretty good at diagnosing limping, even when I can’t really tell. She doesn’t do acupuncture, but I did have treatments done to a dog that was paralyzed. It helped her a lot.

Heather Wallace

April 5, 2018 at 4:25 AM Reply

Wow I would love to hear more about how acupuncture helped your paralytic dog. Glad you liked the video!

AmeliaAJohnson

April 5, 2018 at 12:41 PM Reply

I will be following you with interest if you get into stem cell therapy. My dentist used that for me with my root canals so that I wouldn’t end up with dry sockets. I applaud vets that use Eastern medicine also and travel over 3 hours one way to make sure Gusto gets the best veterinary care.

Heather Wallace

April 5, 2018 at 4:11 PM Reply

We were thinking about dedicating vet chat to stem cells. I’ll note it down! Wow, 3 hours is a long way to travel. But well worth it I imagine!

Lola The Rescued Cat

April 5, 2018 at 12:56 PM Reply

This is such a great feature on your blog. I also wish she was local because I’m between vets right now. Can’t wait to see you Caturday!

Heather Wallace

April 5, 2018 at 4:12 PM Reply

Thank you! I’m excited about it as well. LMK when you’re coming! I promised to help out at The Brodie Fund table Saturday from 12-3 so I’ll definitely be there then.