I received this from a puppy owner yesterday. No other info, but I am waiting on some more info. Ever heard of this test?


"I got some distressing news yesterday about Brinkley. I took him to his vet for his 12-week visit and vaccines. She suggested doing an Ortolani test on him to see whether he might be predisposed to hip dysplasia. Unfortunately the test results were positive. She found laxity in both hip joints, one much more than the other but I can't remember which hip was which. She recommended surgery, a JPS procedure, in which the lower growth plate of the pubic bone is cauterized to prevent further growth and the upper one is allowed to continue to grow. She said the upper part of the bone grows sufficiently to stabilize the femurs in the pelvic sockets and thus prevent the development of serious joint damage in later life."

I think the vet sees $$$ and just wants to cut a poor puppy. Don't do it!!!

OMG - at 12 weeks!!! Tell these puppy owners to RUN!!! JMHO

Yes, I agree, they either want to cut a poor puppy or at the very least, sell them some outrageously priced food that they happen to sell, as a preventative.

Geesh.........

By all means, do NOT let this puppy have this done.

I had a puppy buyer go through the same thing. The "traveling ortho doc" scared the hell out of them. I told them that this did not need to be done and to wait and see how he grows up. Well, they listened to me and when he was neutered at 15 months they shot hip xrays and his hips were rated Excellent.

I think that vet has upcoming college tuition bills or wants to buy a weekend home and sees this as a great way to fund them!

Oh boy, I hope these folks trust you as their breeder and will listen to you. Good Luck! I think this is one of the biggest scam on Earth

Never heard that term before so I had to look it up:

"Ortolani's sign
a test of hip laxity, used in dogs to diagnose hip dysplasia. A positive sign is a snap as the head of the femur moves back into the acetabulum after being moved to the rim of the acetabulum."

So basically it it's palpation/manipulation of the joint, I thought I was going to hear about some newly devised test/screening for a definitive diagnosis. As others have said, I wouldn't let them cut and be finding a different vet. If there's clinical signs at 6 - 7 months, then I'd have xrays before thinking about anything.

Please read this older thread on JPS. I agree with the above posters on the $$ incentive for the vet to do this. http://pub12.bravenet.com/forum/static/show.php?usernum=976632990&frmid=4&msgid=802679&cmd=show

Same scenario, that test and a popping sound and let's freak the puppy person out!! Ended up doing penn hip at 5 months with great results and prelimmed and finaled Excellant. Worried the puppy owner for Nothing!!!!!!! Not to mention the aggravation!

No,no, no, tell them not to do it. That new test is out and Vets are seeing it as a way to add on money at the poor pups expense. Some Vets. All pups have loose hips at that age and for months. Let the person read these replys. What a mistake that would be.

Had this happen to me about 4 years ago .... So I did some checking ... the procedure is being marketed ... but the devil is in the details ....
The vet who recommended it to my puppy buyers ... didn't even do an exam ... they were recommending it to every Lab that walked in the door. He didn't look at the parents clearances that I had sent .... both parents were OFA good with 60th percentile Pennhips.

In researching ...clearly stated by the original developers of the procedure is that the puppy should have a Pennhip performed to determine laxity .... They also mandate spaying or neutering at the same time ... since the procedure significantly changes pelvic structure ....inadvertent prenancies would be very bad ....
Also of note ...on the Pennhip web site ... they advise extreme caution on the wholesale recommendation of this procedure due to lack of scientific studies http://research.vet.upenn.edu/Default.aspx?TabId=3234
Thankfully in my case ... my puppy owners said ... no thanks to the vet.

With all other posts.

I have a clause in my contract that buyer will not allow this procedure.

And they will not allow vet to pull and manipulate joints on a pup to try to determine dysplasia.

I pray your buyer will listen to you and find another vet.

Sounds like a nightmare! What part of the country, can you tell us? I believe if it were in my area, I would tell buyers to stay away from this Vet! Was the puppy limping or anything? Did the puppy appear troubled when he left at 8 weeks? Believe if it were perfectly healthy pup leaving my house at 8 weeks and 4 weeks later hear this, I would be firm in this situation.

"In our case, I took the pup for a routine visit - no problems at all. The puppy had no symptoms whatsoever, (and still doesn't) and the pressure to have a JPS done "to prevent future hip dysplasia" was just awful. And of course, spay at the same time....The vet was literally SCREAMING at me because I wouldn't give consent. She had an estimate she shoved at me ($900+ including the spay!) and consent papers and everything. She wanted me to leave the puppy with her right then and there! I had never heard of such a thing, and it would have helped me had I had some knowledge of what the heck this was.
A second opinion by a vet at a different practice confirmed normal puppy hips at the time.
I did quite a bit of research on JPS after that.
The thing is the procedure must be done between 16-20 weeks, and spay/neuter is mandatory at the same time. On a boy pup, the "plumbing" is moved while the growth plates on the spine are cauterized, and then everything is "put back."
Just thought it might be a good idea to include information about this procedure for puppy buyers if some vets are routinely recommending and pusshing this. My former vet sure thought all big breed pups should have it done."

The link to the thread Susan posted is my pup. Who did not have the procedure, who never returned to that vet or that practice. Who is still intact. And who also prelimed OFA excellent at 15 months. Still thanking God for our breeder who has supported us every step of the way since I brought my puppy home.

Tell those puppy owners to run, run, run from that vet and that practice. And thank you to you, the breeder, for supporting them.

I had a puppy buyer tell me this. I told her that if she even thought of doing this, I would take the puppy back BEFORE the surgery was done. They listened to me. The same vet proceeded to convince them to get the dog neutered at 6 months, because it was humping their 9 year old son. Contract VOID!
I discussed both issues at length before the took the puppy home.
Personally, I think the vets do more harm than good when they manipulate their hip joints and they cry out, but people that are not dog savy don't know they are being taken advantage of.
This vet was down state NY.

Was puppy limping or favoring back legs or anything like that. Was he coming up lame?

My puppy had no symptoms whatsoever and was at the vet to get a microchip. The vet took it upon herself to examine the puppy and declared her to be dysplastic and in need of this surgery.....

Tell them to find another vet.....better an older one who hasn't had the marketing angle drilled into them like the ones just out of vet school.

Unbelieveable, do vets not take an oath like doctors, ( first do no harm) if not they should. Why are these vets not being charged with animal cruelty, I cannot believe any sane vet would put a 12 week old puppy through major surgery for no valid reason. I know vet school is expensive, but I would have thought you train to be a vet because of your love of animals !! Perhaps someone needs to do a study on how many large breed puppies ( not just Labradors) are now being butchered, also look at the ones where the surgery was recomemnded but refused by the owners and how these dogs went on to score with OFA.Tell your puppy people to run for the hills and report the vet for animal abuse !!! Because that is what I would do.

I've tried everything. Including sending the puppy owner a link to this forum.

They say they won't do anything on 1 vets opinion, but will take Brinkley to NC State for evaluation.

I am glad they are getting a second opinion, but many vets are recommending this as a routine surgery for all large breed puppies...They need to do research themselves...At least they are keeping you in the loop.

This also happened to one of my puppy buyers. They neutered their pup (early -5 months - despite my asking them to wait), and while the pup was under sedation the vet did an unsolicited Ortolani test to check for laxity, and it came back positive. There was no sign of dysplasia however. I said if they were that concerned, when the puppy was older they should do a PennHIP evaluation and if there was an issue then we would find a resolution. Three years later, 5 puppies in this litter either have good or excellent hips (the rest are untested) and the untested puppies are just fine.