Saved from the scalpel

Natural Health, Jan-Feb, 1998 by Lisa Turner

Three years ago, when Michele Tessler Berlowitz, a real estate agent in Florida, got her Chesapeake Bay retriever, Earvin, he seemed in perfect health. Earvin would run for hours on the beach, swim in the ocean, and play with the neighborhood kids on the boardwalk.

But after a few months he began to slow down. He started favoring his back right leg and developed a slight limp. He appeared to be in pain. Berlowitz took Earvin to a veterinarian, who diagnosed the 10-month-old puppy with hip dysplasia and told Berlowitz and her husband it was too far gone to correct without surgery. They agreed to have Earvin undergo a $2,500 procedure that would rotate his hip back into place.

Earvin's recovery was a slow and trying ordeal. Berlowitz had to move out of her apartment for a month after the surgery because Earvin couldn't climb the three flights of stairs to her apartment. He couldn't sit or lie down after the surgery, and he often slept standing up.

Now, almost two years after the surgery, Earvin still isn't 100 percent back to normal: He gets up slowly, needs to be helped into the car, and tires a little faster after exercise. Berlowitz concedes that his hips aren't perfect and his back legs are a little thinner than the front; however, she believes the procedure was well worth the trouble and money.

"When they told us his condition would just get worse, we didn't see a choice," she says. "We didn't want him to grow up with pain."

Berlowitz may not have had a choice with Earvin -- sometimes surgery is the only option if the disease is severe. However, for the owners of the thousands of other dogs that have this joint disorder there are alternatives. In fact, there are three natural options -- diet, chiropractic, and acupuncture -- all of which can have the same beneficial effect as Earvin's surgery. And most of these treatments cost much less, are less invasive and, in some cases, are more effective than surgery.

First Alternative -- A New Doggie Bag

Not every dog will respond the same to natural -- or even conventional -- treatments. You may have to experiment with different approaches before you find the one that is the most effective. The best place to start is with the least expensive treatment and go on from there. And with hip dysplasia, nutrition is the first step.

Stephen Tobin, D.V.M., from Meriden, Connecticut, stands by his natural diet as protection against joint dysfunction. Tobin recommends combining one part of raw meat with two parts cooked grain such as brown rice, oatmeal, millet or bulgur. (The meat varies depending on your dog: if your dog is fat, feed him leaner meats such as skinless turkey and chicken. If your dog's weight isn't an issue, Tobin says beef organ meats -- liver, kidney -- are the best. Whatever the meat, it should be raw because raw meat has more enzymes than cooked meat and is easier to digest.) To this mix, Tobin adds between one teaspoon and one tablespoon of bone meal, and the same amount of brewer's yeast. And Tobin advises blending in a touch of garlic.

Tobin also uses a variety of supplements to treat hip dysplasia. Calcarea fluorica, a homeopathic remedy, helps tighten the joint and pull the bone back into the hip socket. Glycoflex, a supplement made from New Zealand green-lipped mussels, stimulates cartilage production, as do glucosamine sulfate and Ester-C. And a package of plain old gelatin, added to a dog's food every day, will strengthen cartilage and connective tissue.

According to Tobin, his nutritional plan supplies the necessary elements to keep joints healthy, and both prevent hip dysplasia from occurring in the first place and help treat a dog that has the problem. "On a natural food diet, I see amazing things happen with hip dysplasia," says Tobin.

Helen Kancler of Columbia, Connecticut, knows just how well Tobin's formula works. She saw real, tangible improvements in her dog, Chuck, after putting him on Tobin's natural diet.

Kancler first went to a conventional vet, who said Chuck's right hip was already completely out of the socket and that the left side showed deterioration. The vet claimed Chuck wouldn't live another six months if he didn't have $5,000 worth of surgery. There was no guarantee the costly procedure would be effective.

Kancler looked for a better option. She consulted Tobin, who told her about the success he's had with his plan. She decided to start Chuck on the diet right away.

Within two weeks, Chuck was in noticeably less pain. He was no longer constantly licking the area as he had before, and he could stand up much easier and quicker. "He still stretches," says Kancler, "But he'll take off running for four or five hours in the woods. I figure we have another 13 years with him."

The treatment costs a mere $5 a month.

The Next Step-Bodywork for Pain-Free Bones

If the healthy diet doesn't clear up the problem, holistic vets next recommend trying chiropractic or bodywork. Because hip dysplasia is essentially a joint and bone problem, the disorder responds well to natural treatments that address the structure and function of the dog's body. Massage and other forms of bodywork can also relieve the muscle stiffness and soreness of hip dysplasia.