Meet Umo who's limping!

[Annemarie]

Hi!

So this is Umo, my almost 6 month old 88lb puppy!

We went out this weekend, took him to the pet store to cut his nails and pick up some things. I should say "more things" as he is a bit spoiled.



Umo is no not feeling to great, he is limping. As you can see in this pic he even lifted his leg because it was hurting him.



He's a bit depressed too.



Even depressed he's still a cutie.



I was hoping to get some help with questions I have regarding his food and limping.

He is eating Nutro Max Large Breed Puppy food which is what the breeder had him on and said he could stay on for a year. He's eating 2 cups 3 times a day. I have read that this might not be too great of a choice. Also, that he should be eating 2x a day, not 3x!
Is there a better food that I could switch him to which I can buy at Petsmart for example? I don't want to only have an online source. I rather have a food which I can pick-up at a store. Should I switch him to eat 2x a day?

Now for the most important question, his limping. Could he have "Pano"? Would the diet alone help cure him? Are there additional things which you suggest that I give him that could help?

Appreciate the advice!

Annemarie

[Dom12]

Well about the food there are tons of threads on here that talk about brands, or raw. I personally use TOTW, no it's not at petco and I have to go to a feed store but my guy is worth it. If we could afford Orejin or even raw he'd be on that instead. Limping.. Probably a vet issue but I could be wrong. How long has he been limping for?

[Annemarie]

He limped last month for a day when I was on vacation. The person who was watching him called me to let me know. I thought he had slept wrong or something since he loves folding his paws in when he sleeps.
This time around it started on Monday morning. He is still limping.

TOTW = Taste of the Wild, correct? I can get this at Pet Supermarket here in Miami, which would be good as my husband says he doesn't want to relay on a little shop or online food source.

What is the difference between TOTW and Orejin?

Am I not supposed to be feeding him Puppy food and just a regular adult food? What about the 2x vs 3x a day thing?

[KaileeO]

More experienced DOl'ers may chime in but I will tell you that most people recommend 3x a day until 6 months but depending on your schedule you can switch to 2x a day or whatever your dog prefers. Both TOTW and Orijen are high quality foods and are good for most dogs but if you suspect a growth issue I would figure that out first and pick a food from there.

Also welcome to DOL and your baby is adorable

[lisacp75]

He limped last month for a day when I was on vacation. The person who was watching him called me to let me know. I thought he had slept wrong or something since he loves folding his paws in when he sleeps.
This time around it started on Monday morning. He is still limping.

TOTW = Taste of the Wild, correct? I can get this at Pet Supermarket here in Miami, which would be good as my husband says he doesn't want to relay on a little shop or online food source.

What is the difference between TOTW and Orejin?

Am I not supposed to be feeding him Puppy food and just a regular adult food? What about the 2x vs 3x a day thing?

I still feed Zoomer three times per day, and he is nine months. I do recommend it - I think we did that for our previous female Dane until she was at least one. As far as the type of food to feed you should check out the kibble forum. So much has changed since I first bought my first Dane 12 1/2 years ago. We have Zoomer on adult food - Holistic Select (lamb) kibble plus a bit of home-cooked food mixed in as he is transitioning slowly from previous gastrointestinal issues.

I know that there are still some puppy foods that are okay for great Dane puppies. I believe the thinking these days is that you need to look at the calcium and phosphorus balance. And maybe the source of the protein and quality. As far as Orijen I know it's probably one of the most expensive kibbles you can get. I know this because we have a $75 bag that remains unopened because Zoomer couldn't tolerate it, ha ha. (it is a puppy formula - large breed I think - purple bag)

It is a high-quality food but I have heard others here on Danes online state that it is too rich for their Great Dane. Not sure if that was the case with Zoomer or if he is allergic or has some kind of sensitivity. At any rate I am just happy to be picking up mostly solid poops these days!

Forgot to add - I would go to the vet for the limping - it could be food related but if it is off and on, the vet may want to examine and maybe get some X-rays...

[Annemarie]

Thanks to all for responding.

I will read through and post up of the kibble section.

I am going to take Umo to the vet on Thursday. Lets see what they say.

Thanks again

[AshMPWrites]

Hi there! Sorry I'm a little late to this party, but I'll respond anyway...

So, about the food. We feed Neah Nutrisource, large breed puppy chicken and rice. It's what our breeder recommended and she is thriving on it. She gets 1.5 cups three times daily. A bag lasts her about three weeks, give or take. We're planning on feeding her this until she's no less than one year old. We get our at Menards, not kidding -- a local home improvement store with a very thin grocery section. It's the only place around us that carries it.

The limping I have no advice on but I'm happy to see you're taking him to the vet tomorrow. Please let us know how it goes!

[Annemarie]

So just got back from the vet and they basically are clueless.
They referred me to an orthopedic vet as they say Great Danes are prone to tons of bone issues and also hip dysplasia. They also mentioned that looked for symmetry in his legs and that they definitely think his knuckles (they called it something else) don't look the same. I guess will call the orthopedic vet and see.

The vet also said that she didn't think TOTW was that good of a food. This I found really strange because from what I have read in all the forums there seems to be a lot of Dane owners that use TOTW.

[dukers]

Your pup is a CUTIE!!!

I wonder if they twisted his paw funny when they were trimming his nails That is my first thought, or they let him jump off the table (which I asked that they didn't allow the first time I took duke, but well)... we had that experience once with duke and he leg splayed, needless to say they felt my wrath.

It could be food related, I would see the ortho vet.

TOTW, pacific stream adult, my pup didn't like and someone on here recently had the same experience with their pup on the puppy version, but that doesn't mean much, as others seem to feed it with great success.

In his pic he doesn't seem to be knuckling, but it isn't the best view to say so.

If Pano adding some more vitamin C and E should help. Ask your vet about aspirin for the pain.

And lastly if it is pano, get off the puppy food, and look at your pups body condition, giant breed puppies you should always be able to easily see their last two ribs. If he has extra weight, even a little, can stress the growing bones.
I am no expert, but try to not take walks on hard surfaces, like the road or sidewalk that will prolly only cause more inflammation.

[Annemarie]

Your pup is a CUTIE!!!

I wonder if they twisted his paw funny when they were trimming his nails That is my first thought, or they let him jump off the table (which I asked that they didn't allow the first time I took duke, but well)... we had that experience once with duke and he leg splayed, needless to say they felt my wrath.

It could be food related, I would see the ortho vet.

That is just what my husband says, that maybe they twisted his leg when doing his nails.

Luckily I called the hospital and they are open 24hrs and they had a cancellation with the vet and they gave me an appointment for tomorrow at 9am!

TOTW, pacific stream adult, my pup didn't like and someone on here recently had the same experience with their pup on the puppy version, but that doesn't mean much, as others seem to feed it with great success.

In his pic he doesn't seem to be knuckling, but it isn't the best view to say so.

If Pano adding some more vitamin C and E should help. Ask your vet about aspirin for the pain.

And lastly if it is pano, get off the puppy food, and look at your pups body condition, giant breed puppies you should always be able to easily see their last two ribs. If he has extra weight, even a little, can stress the growing bones.
I am no expert, but try to not take walks on hard surfaces, like the road or sidewalk that will prolly only cause more inflammation.

I will ask the vet tomorrow about everything that I can do. I will most probably take him off the puppy food this weekend. I just need to decide on what food to give to him.

I will try to get a couple more pictures of Umo, but he is mopping around and doesn't really want to get up so it is difficult.

[dukers]

We went with Nutrisource for kibble before going raw, but there are a lot of good kibbles out there.

I would encourage dear hubby to get over the online thing... chewy is really great about delivery and once you find a food you like... you can do auto ship and get a discount and not think about it!!! Plus add in some bully sticks and treats if you wish ;-)

GreatDaneLady has some decent analysis of food brands, even if you choose to buy locally there might be something on her sight to get you started. Not sure that there is the ONE grandiose awesome kibble out there. Different pups need/like different things.

[Annemarie]

So it didnt go good at the orthopedic vet. She said that she at first thought it could be pano but doesnt think so. She mentioned HOD, OCD (I think that is the abbreviation she mentioned) but more than likely she thinks it could be Elbow and Hip dysplasia!!!!

After the initial shock of a$2K estimate for x-rays (12) and my husband almost in tears as he is devistated, I called her back in and asked if all had the same treatment options and if so, if we could treat without spending the $2K. She said no and after speaking some more she said she could try to make a determination by taking less x-rays, combining the x-ray shots, and I was able to get it down to $1K. I am at this pointing praying that it is HOD as I know that is treatable.

She mentioned that hip dysplasia was manageble. My husband says that with the kids he sees hip dysplasia as a great risk as if the dog is hurt he could easily bite the kids. That even though he is not like that, that its their natural reaction if they are in pain.

I really dont know what to do anymore. I am just hoping its HOD and that I will have an answer today. Lets see.

[Maximus' Mom]

Many on this site know how you are feeling.

My boy Max was just diagnosed with wobbler's. Was $1800 just for his MRI, and that didnt include the x-rays, bloodwork, and neurologist consult. Its heartbreaking....but you just take it day by day.

Finger's crossed it will be the lesser of 2 evils.....and is treatable. Hang in there....the support on this site is great! I'm hoping for the best!

[Annemarie]

You wont believe this...there is NOTHING wrong with Umo!

I am ecstatic that there is nothing wrong with Umo! What I can not believe is that I just spent $1K for them to tell me its just a little inflamation!

I know my husband feels like kicking himself as I had mentioned why dont we just take him home, do the food change and some supplement thing I had read on the Great Dane Lady site and wait a week.

I think they said they will give him some medicine, lets see what, and told me to definitely change his food.

What a roller coaster of emotions!

[dukers]

Woo-hoo. Those supplements from great dane lady are what we use.