Dog Bone

Puppies are stepped on, dropped from people's arms, fall down stairs,and are otherwise stressed, usually with no skeletal damage done, butbones can fracture and joints can be sprained. Injury is the number onecause of hone problems. Fortunately, growing puppies' bones heal rapidly and since their bones are not brittle as those of adult dogs they maybend and straighten rather than snap. The greenstick fracture often heals without human intervention.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Dog bone with cuts made during skinning."][/caption]

There is no doubt in our minds that the majority of bone problems in growing puppies other than those due to injury are caused by their owners feeding them improperly. This of course is because of an innocence or lack of knowledge, even indulgence, on the owners' part. Theyare not aware of the proper nutrition puppies require or whether or notthe commercially available foods have the necessary ingredients foradequate nutrition.

For the healthy development of the skeletons, the ratio of calcium tophosphorus is critical. The National Academy of Science recommends.6 percent calcium and 0.4 percent phosphorus in the diet. And thepresence of the proper amounts of vitamins A and D are necessary forthe bones to develop properly. So when owners want "big bones" intheir dogs and add a handful of bonemeal to the daily ration the resultsmay be more unfortunate than the constipation it causes. It is better toput the bonemeal around the roses in your garden.

By the same token, excess phosphorus is dangerous, but fortunatelygrowing puppies can exist on improper diets and still do fairly well.

One problem in rapidly growing larger breeds is called panosteitis,which is the inflammation of every part of a bone. Changes in theshafts of the long bones of the forelegs cause lameness, which maymove from one leg to another. For a few days or weeks one foreleg willbe lame and suddenly the puppy favors the other one. Perhaps this issimilar to the condition in children called growing pains. X-ray diagno-sis and rest is advised for this self-limiting problem. The X-ray diagnosisis important to rule out joint problems or injuries that may need agres-sive treatment.

An excess of meat in a diet can affect the parathyroid glands, stimu-lating them into overactivity, perhaps from the low calcium to phos-phorus ratio. The result is a demineralization of the bones, the exactopposite of the normal process. If this condition is extreme, a puppycan fracture a leg just playing with a littermatc.

Dwarfism has been reported and is due to a pituitary defect. OneGerman Shepherd Puppy with it reached a top weight of sixteenpounds and died at five years of age.

Other endocrine gland problems cause skeletal defects, for example,excess estrogens results in stunted adults. Among the damage that cor-tisone and other steroids can cause, such as Cushing's disease, they can and do inhibit the absorption of calcium from the intestines. The result is osteoporosis (a condition thatcauses weakened, brittle bones) observed in the long bones and spine.At the points where the ribs and the cartilaginous extensions of thebreastbone meet, one sometimes finds enlargements that may persistthroughout an dog's life. These enlargements may be normal, or anindication of disease, or evidence that the pet was inadequately fed or develop when it suffers broken bones. If a veterinarian isnear, you should call him or her immediately. The dog should bekept warm while being transported to the veterinarian for the necessarytreatment.

Dislocations must be "reduced" slipped hack into placeand this,too, is better left to the veterinarian. Breaks of almost any bone can beset. Some, like broken jaws, may need wiring; some may require compli-cated pins, plates, or joining by grafting. The methods require consider-able study and a great deal of experience. So does the decision whetherto use intramedulary pins, wire, plates screwed in position, splints andwhat kind of splint, Stader or Thomas or plaster casts interspersedwith cloth, with or without windows, and no forth if the fracture iscompound. The dog's character must also be considered. Some dogswill try to chew almost anything off; others will cooperate as goodpatients should.

Every fracture case should he monitored by your veterinarian once aweek or as often as recommended, so that the apposition, the healing,the straightness can be observed, and so the splint or cast or other was sick for a considerable part of its growing period. In conjunctionwith these one generally finds abnormal enlargements on the lower endof the radius, a large bone of the forearm, where it joins the wrist(carpal) joint. The spongy end may be so abnormal that it turns the leg,making it crooked (bandy leg) or weak, so that the leg from the wristdown bends out sideways. Some dogs arc born with hereditary "bench"legs, which are characterized by the front feet turning out sideways, acondition not due to rickets or other dietary deficiencies.

The process of bone healing is most interesting, and it is worthwhile to understand it in case you have to manage a pet withone or more fractured bones.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="dog bone"][/caption]

Let us suppose that a fairly simple break occurs in the bones of theforeleg of a dog. When the dog returns home after an accident, thebroken leg is obviously shorter than the others. The dog holds it up,crying with pain. The veterinarian waits until the dog has recoveredfrom shock then sets the leg. The ends of the bone are brought to-gether, "in apposition," as the veterinarian calls it. Then the ends ofthe bone must "knit." Here is where it is worthwhile for the owner toknow exactly what happens so that he or she cass give the pet all theattention and care required.

For several days the body decalcifies, or withdraws calcium and otherminerals from the bone ends. Gradually they become soft, like carti-lage. At this stage it doesn't snake much difference if the bosses are notperfectly matched at the break. The second step, after the softeningprocess, is the growth from each end of connective fibers that join thebone ends together. These shrink, pulling the ends closer. This processis completed in fourteen or fifteen days. During this period it isn't asimportant how straight the bone is kept, as long as the ends are inapposition. At any time during this interval it is possible, but not desir-able, to bend it at the break.