Limp due to diet?

    • Bronze

    Limp due to diet?

    Ok so my Mini Bull terrier (6 months), has a slight limp.  His last checkup came up good on his knees, the breeder says he may have too much protein in his diet causing him to have "Growing pains" .  She says the remedy is to take is his diet down to a lower protein food.  anyone have any experience with this?  I thought a puppy would need lot's of protein to stimulate growth?
    • Gold Top Dog
    The problem is too much protein or too much calcium will stimulate growth too much. The puppy grows too fast. This is usually a problem in large breeds, although its possible in smaller dogs too. What are you currently feeding?
    • Gold Top Dog
    Ask your vet to examine your pup to determine if he has Pano....and I'm sorry I can never remember the full name.  Pano is very much like growing pains....it happens when the pup grows too quickly for the long bones to keep up with the rest of him.  I have a foster pup who came back to me suffering from Pano......my vet blames it on the Pedigree that owner fed.  He'd been growing at a slow and steady pace in MY home and shot up like a weed in hers.  THEN she started complaining that I'd placed a defective pup with her since he had trouble walking on her wet ceramic tile floor.  Now you can find a number of views on pano, food that is too high in protein, food that is too low in protein and food that's full of crap that feeds rapid growth but doesn't provide the proper calcium/phosperous ratio to ensure that those bones grow straight and strong.
     
    My german shepherds are all fed Innova, and my pups are weaned to gruel made with the regular Innova.  I also homecook for them so that the ratio is carefully monitored.  What are you feeding now and what does the protein % look like?
    • Bronze
    Until i got him he was on some sort of sams club brand that helped him with some runiness problems,   Right now switching him to Eukanuba Adult.  Any suggestions for a lower protein that could help with stool too?
    • Gold Top Dog
    Well, let's just say....I found the subject line interesting enough that I read the thread.  [;)]
    • Gold Top Dog
    I honestly wouldn't lower the protein levels, but I would switch to a better quality food.  I personally feed Innova and swear by it, however there are a number of other good foods....canidae, wellness, eagle pack (holistic), etc.
    • Gold Top Dog
    It's not the protein per se that causes pano. It's too many calories promoting too-rapid growth. The dog is being over-fed and is growing too fast. An adolescent dog should be skinny. Really skinny. As in ribs almost visible. Rolly-polly puppies are unhealthy puppies.
    But I'd question the diagnosis-- pano is almost non-existant in small/medium sized dogs.
    Eukabana is not a very good food and won't help with Pano, since it's chock-full of sugars that will continue to promote rapid growth. Go for an adult super-premium food: Timberwolf Organics, Innova, California Natural, Solid Gold, Eaglepack. And make sure you are adding an omega-3 supplement. Puppies who do not get sufficient Omega-3 fatty acids (it's unstable and breaks down in kibble) do not develop properly.
    • Gold Top Dog
    But, see, that's a big part of the problem....there hasn't BEEN a diagnosis...this is the BREEDER saying it's probably pano.  Poor Tyler must have been going through a CRAP load of Pedigree to grow too fast!  STILL kicking myself for making such an enormous mistake! [:@]
    • Bronze
    Allright, I just got back from the vet.  She checked joints muscles tendons and all that good stuff.  She says could be slight growing pains, not a bone problem or anything.  She also recomended that I put him on a qaulity large breed puppy food.  It's seem to me the main thing is quality food.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Glad that you had her checked, and yeah "growing pains" are pano.  An excellent quality food is the key to everything.  Innova makes a great large breed puppy formula
    • Bronze
    Hopefully he shouldnt have anymore limping issues. They found a small patch of Mange(dexo) so he is getting his dip treatment too  [:(]
    • Gold Top Dog
    If in fact this IS pano, and it sounds like the vet wasn't certain, the limping episodes will come and go until he's full grown...until everything "catches up".  It's certainly uncomfortable for them, but not life threatening.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Just a thought, but why would you feed this guy large breed puppy formula, if hes a mini bull terrier?
    • Bronze
    She suggested Large breed puppy, becuase growing pains are more common in larger breeds, but it can happen smaller breeds.  I guess so he can get the puppy nutrients of puppy formula with the more controlled growth of large breed?  everyone including the vet has their own opinion of the best food.  I do think i will go with at least a high quality puppy food...........