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Healing & Alternative Health
Dr. Carson's Holistic Animal Care:
Alternative Treatments
for Hip Dysplasia
by Kathleen M. Carson, D.V.M |
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Last month I discussed the conventional treatment of hip dysplasia (HD), which consists of drugs and/or surgery. This month I’m going to discuss alternative treatments. I prefer these gentler methods, but for any patient with severe symptoms who doesn’t respond well enough to them, I won’t hesitate to add drugs or surgery to the treatment regimen.
First of all, weight control is crucial. Any extra pounds place extra strain on the dysplastic hips. Unfortunately, a dysplastic dog or cat’s activity level decreases as pain and discomfort increases, but his/her appetite doesn’t decrease at the same time. In fact, with the boredom of inactivity, appetite sometimes increases. The resulting weight gain exacerbates the condition, which worsens this vicious circle.
Second is exercise. There is an old saying, “Exercise is the enemy of arthritis.” As stated above, this can be tricky in an animal suffering from pain and stiffness. However, also as alluded to above, exercise prevents or corrects weight gains. It also keeps the joints more limber and the muscles more toned (and less likely to atrophy). How does one solve this dilemma??
The ideal answer is hydrotherapy, which means either swimming or the use of an underwater treadmill (at least for dogs - cats don’t take to water nearly so easily as dogs!). When a dysplastic animal’s body is supported by water the pressure of gravity is substantially lessened, and movement is significantly easier.
A swimming pool used for humans can be used (ideally indoors and heated). It’s a good idea to use a canine life jacket for your dog, especially if he/she is especially weak or stiff.
There also are an increasing number of canine rehabilitation centers opening up in which a pool and/or underwater treadmill is/are available.
When starting hydrotherapy, initial sessions are short. As time goes by, the time can be lengthened. Always consult your veterinarian before starting hydrotherapy for your dysplastic dog, especially if he/she has a heart or lung condition or other serious medical condition.
If hydrotherapy is impossible for your dog, then regularly exercise him or her with gentle, slow exercises such as walking. Your dog will let you know his/her limits by sitting down or not wanting to go on at a certain point. With time you may be able to slowly increase time and distance.
If your dog has always been very active and is finding it hard to accept limitations, you will need to monitor your dog’s level of stiffness, lameness, and/or pain following exercise and increase or decrease the time, distance, and level of exertion accordingly.
Your veterinarian can give you helpful suggestions regarding exercise for your dysplastic dog. You should always consult your veterinarian before starting an exercise program for your dysplatic dog.
A third alternative treatment for HD is the category of supplements called glycoaminoglycosides, or GAGs. These have gained increasing popularity in recent years, and for good reason. GAGs can reduce much of the stiffness and pain associated with hip dysplasia. They cause far fewer side effects than NSAIDs or corticosteroids [an occasional animal will go off his/her feed or develop diarrhea. GAGs also can interfere with clotting (although not to the extent of NSAIDs like aspirin), so consult with your veterinarian if your animal is on GAGs and you are considering surgery for him/her.] Also, GAGs help heal the arthritic joint, unlike drugs, which can break the joint down further, especially with long-term use.
Examples of GAGs are glucosamine, chondroitin, and perna. They can come in oral forms or injectable. It can take a few weeks to notice improvement with GAGs, so don’t stop giving them if you don’t notice immediate improvement. However, many patients respond within a few days.
The efficacy of GAGs is pretty well established by now, so many non-holistic, conventional veterinarians use them for their HD patients. However, if your regular veterinarian doesn’t have any, consult a holistic veterinarian in your area. You can also purchase them yourself in many pet stores, grooming salons, and/or online. Be forewarned, however: if your animal is already on a NSAID, adding a GAG could increase chances of digestive upsets or bleeding, so consult your veterinarian if this is the case before giving.
Acupuncture also can be very effective in helping a patient with HD. As discussed in another column, it is known that acupuncture relieves muscle spasm, increases blood circulation, and also causes the release of endorphins (for decreasing pain) and cortisol (for reducing inflammation).
From a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) point of view, interruption in the normal flow of energy throughout the body leads to degenerativeconditions like HD and arthritis. The stimulation of various points on the channels (called meridians) along which the body’s energy flows helps to restore this interrupted flow of energy . The return of a more natural energy flow helps to reverse some of the degenerative processes so that more normal function can return and pain can be relieved.
Fine needles are most commonly used to stimulate the acupuncturepoints, but pressure, laser or other high-intensity light, electrical stimulation, and a healing herb treatment called moxibustion can also be used. Most patients don’t mind acupuncture; in fact, as time goes by and they realize the treatments make them feel good, they even look forward to them!
HD responds very well to acupuncture; in my experience, 80-90% of the patients with HD improve with acupuncture. Another wonderful thing about acupuncture is that it utilizes the body’s own healing forces. It doesn’t have the serious side effects sometimes seen with drugs and surgery. Animals receiving acupuncture seem to generally feel better and have more overall energy and interest in life.
Chiropractic treatments can also help patients with HD. When a dog or cat has Hip Dysplasia, the pain and abnormal anatomy of these conditions changes the way the animal moves, stands, sits, and lies. This causes an adverse effect in the rest of the skeletal/muscular/nerve structure since they’re all connected to each other in the body. Sooner or later there are associated problems in the back, neck, the shoulders/front legs, as well as other joints in the hind legs. The spine is thrown out of alignment; muscles go into spasm. Nerves are impinged on, causing sometimes excruciating pain.
Chiropractic adjustments of the bones serves to put these back intotheir proper places so more normal function can be restored and painreduced. When the bony adjustments are combined with chiropractic work on muscles to reduce spasm, softening and lengthening the muscle fibers, the positive results are even more enhanced, and improvement is more likely to be maintained.
When acupuncture is combined with chiropractic, the results aresynergistic; that is, they each enhance the other treatment.
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Dr. Kathleen Carson, DVM
Veterinarian & Author
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Dr. Carson received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of California at Davis in 1968. She's been a small animal practitioner (dogs and cats ) for all the years since, except for a short stint at the San Diego Zoo when she first graduated.
She belongs to the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association.
Since 1974 she's lived and practiced in the South Bay Area near Los Angeles. She started the area's first house call practice in 1976 and the first pet crisis/loss group in 1989. The human-animal bond is of special interest to her.
She started exploring complementary veterinary medicine in 1987. Her practice became 100% holistic in 1996. She utilizes acupuncture, herbs, supplements, Bach Flower Remedies, homeopathic remedies, nutrition and medications for her patients in her practice.
She's currently taking a leave of absence from her house call practice due to health reasons but continues to do phone consultations and to write.
E-mail:
Critterhlr@aol.com
website:
http://www.holistic
vetconsult.com
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