Neville's Orthopedic Assessment

Nov 23, 2015

Well, this could certainly explain why Neville reacted the way he did...



This week Neville went through an orthopedic assessment with Dr. David Allman, DACVS from Mobile Veterinary Specialist.

During the examination it was found that Neville is painful in his left elbow as well as his hips. His left elbow has moderate arthritis and his right elbow has very mild arthritis. Neville's right hip has slightly decreased extension and the left hip has full range of motion but his hips show moderate arthritis bilaterally on radiographs.

Based on how well Neville can walk and trot, surgery of the hips or elbows is not indicated as necessary and it is very unlikely he will ever need surgical intervention. It has been recommended that Neville be given joint supplements and medication to reduce pain and inflammation. Dr. Allman also recommended that Neville's new owner should reduce high impact activities, such as jumping down or rough housing, that may cause the arthritic pain in Neville's elbows to flare up.

Dr. Jefferson, of Austin Pets Alive!, says that dogs can exhibit pain in many ways. Sometimes they can have a super high tolerance for pain and not show any symptoms at all even though radiographically, the look like they should be in pain. Other times, they can be extremely painful acting but the radiographs don't reveal a big enough problem to warrant the behavior. Neville is a bit in between. Most of the time he seems to be fairly comfortable, even without any anti-inflammatories, while other times he will over react to being touched in the wrong place. He almost seems to anticipate pain to come from being touched by strangers yet will tolerate the same touching by people he knows well. Overall we think his condition is very manageable especially now that we have all the pieces of the puzzle figured out. We know he should be in pain in certain areas, even if he is acting like he is not, so we can avoid those areas.