Total Hip Replacement
A Pet Parent's Guide to Restoring Pain-Free Mobility
Watching your dog struggle to stand up, hesitate to jump into the car, or lose their desire to play is heartbreaking. Whether caused by genetics, old age, or injury, severe arthritis and hip dysplasia can slowly rob a dog of their active lifestyle.
While medications and joint supplements can help mask the symptoms in the early stages, they cannot fix the underlying mechanical problem. The good news? Just like in human medicine, veterinary orthopaedics can offer a complete "reset" for a painful hip. A Total Hip Replacement (THR) is the only procedure that can take a dog from struggling to walk to running pain-free in the park.
How the Surgery Works
Your dog's hip is a classic "ball and socket" joint. In a healthy hip, the ball glides smoothly inside the socket on a thick cushion of cartilage. In a dog with hip dysplasia or severe arthritis, that cartilage wears completely away. The result is rough bone grinding painfully against rough bone with every single step.
During a Total Hip Replacement, we completely remove the diseased, arthritic ball and prepare the damaged socket. We replace them with a state-of-the-art prosthetic joint made from aerospace-grade titanium and highly specialized, low-friction medical plastics. Because there are no pain nerves in titanium and plastic, the grinding joint pain is eliminated instantly.
The Magic of "Biologic Fixation"
One of the most common questions we get is, "How does the new metal hip stay in place?"
For most of our active patients, we use a "cementless" or biologic implant. The titanium stem that goes into your dog's leg has a highly specialized, porous coating that looks a bit like a metal sponge. During the first few weeks of recovery, your dog's own living bone actually grows into these microscopic pores. Once this process is complete, the implant becomes a permanent, living part of your dog's skeleton!
THR vs. FHO (The "Salvage" Procedure)
If you are researching hip surgeries, you will likely come across a procedure called an FHO. It is crucial to understand the vast difference between the two:
The FHO Surgery
Femoral Head Ostectomy
An FHO is a "salvage" procedure. The surgeon cuts off the painful ball of the hip, but does not replace it. Over time, the body forms a scar-tissue "false joint" where the bone used to be. While it stops the bone-on-bone pain, the leg is left permanently shorter, the mechanics of the leg are altered, and the dog will rarely regain 100% normal athletic function.
The THR Surgery
Total Hip Replacement
Because we are installing a brand new, perfectly engineered ball and socket, the anatomy of the leg remains exactly the same. The center of rotation is perfectly preserved. Dogs that undergo a successful THR can return to their previous, highly athletic lifestyles—including running, jumping, and swimming—completely pain-free.
Is my dog a candidate?
We generally wait until a dog is fully grown (usually around 10-12 months) so their bones have reached their final size. There is no upper age limit! As long as a senior dog is healthy enough for anaesthesia, they can benefit immensely from a pain-free hip.
Implants come in an incredible range of sizes. We can perform total hip replacements on dogs as small as 2 kilograms (like Pomeranians) all the way up to giant breeds weighing 80 kilograms (like Mastiffs).
The "Bad Knee vs. Bad Hip" Mix-Up
Interestingly, up to 30% of dogs referred to orthopaedic surgeons for "hip dysplasia" are actually suffering from a torn ligament in their knee (a cruciate tear). Dogs with bad knees shift their weight awkwardly, which makes it look exactly like their hips hurt! Before any surgery, we take detailed digital x-rays and perform a thorough physical exam to ensure we are operating on the correct joint. If your dog happens to have both a bad knee and a bad hip, we will almost always fix the knee first.
What is the recovery timeline?
Because we are relying on that "Biologic Fixation" (the bone growing into the implant), the recovery rules at home are incredibly strict, but the long-term payoff is a lifetime of pain-free running.
- 1 The First 2 Weeks: Strict Rest
Strict crate rest is mandatory. The implant is only held in by a tight "press fit" and slipping on a hard floor could dislodge it. Your dog will only go outside for short bathroom breaks on a short leash. They will be on a comprehensive pain management plan to keep them very comfortable and sleepy.
- 2 Weeks 3 to 6: The Danger Zone
This is often the hardest part for pet parents because your dog will feel great. The arthritis pain is gone, and they will want to run and play! However, the bone is still actively growing into the implant. You must remain strict: absolutely no running, jumping, stairs, or playing with other dogs. We will slowly start increasing the length of their controlled leash walks.
- 3 8 to 12 Weeks: Freedom
We will take a final set of x-rays to confirm the bone has perfectly fused with the titanium. Once cleared by the surgeon, your dog is slowly allowed to return to normal, off-leash activities and enjoy their brand new hip!