Canine Hip Dysplasia and Clumber Spaniels
Canine hip dysplasia is a polygenic, multifactorial disease. It is an orthopedic condition that involves shallow hip sockets, and femoral heads that do not fit snugly into those sockets. In many breeds, hip dysplasia leads to crippling lamenesses and severe arthritic changes. These problems can occur in Clumber spaniels, although sometimes the heavier musculature of the Clumber seems to modify the clinical signs of the disease.
Hip dysplasia is an inherited problem that can be selected against. Proper nutrition and environmental conditions in which pups are raised can also help to minimize expression of the genetic defect. It is important that Clumber spaniels (and other large breed dogs) be raised on diets that do not overemphasize protein, fat and caloric levels. Slow, sustained growth is important, and has been demonstrated to help minimize development of bad hips.
What Is A Good Hip?
The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) has developed a set of guidelines intended to help serve as a guide for breeders interested in improving the hip health status of their dogs. In countries where close attention has been paid to intentionally trying to breed for improvement in hip scores, the incidence of dysplasia has gone down (Sweden, for example). In a breed as numerically limited as the Clumbers, it is not always possible to breed two OFA certified dogs for each mating. It IS possible to use OFA scores as part of a conscientious breeding program to try to improve the overall health and well-being of our breed.
OFA films are evaluated by three Board certified veterinary radiologists, and are scored on a number of areas. The depth of the acetabulae (hip sockets), the amount of apparent laxity present, the conformation and smoothness of the femoral head, and evidence of degenerative joint changes are some of the areas considered. A deep socket, smooth congruence of a well-rounded femoral head, and lack of any evidence of degenerative joint disease are considered signs of a good hip.
Is A Good Clumber Hip a Typical Good Hip?
There are breed variations in what a "normal" hip looks like. Many of the chondrodystrophic (dwarf) breeds, have significantly different hip conformation than "regular" breeds. These include Clumbers, Basset hounds and other short legged breeds. Most veterinarians are trained to evaluate hip films based on average breeds of dogs, such as retrievers, rottweilers, and shepherds.
Clumber spaniels typically have a significantly shallower acetabulum. This is not abnormal FOR THE BREED, but can frequently lead to misinterpretation of films by practicing veterinarians. This does not mean your vet doesn't know what s/he is doing - simply that they weren't trained to read films from less common breeds of dogs. The goal of this website is to provide a good variety of typical clumber films for comparison and education purposes. We have included OFA passing films (Excellent, Good and Fair) as well as films that would not pass OFA (in varying degrees of severity). We have included films representing young pups (from 4-6 months of age) and older dogs, as well as males and females. We hope you will find it useful. |
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