Our Rottweiler Kodiak’s Story

… lessons learned on hip-dysplasia, cruciate ruptures, and buying from breeders on Kijiji

by Nikole
(Ontario, Canada)

Kodi at 2 months

Kodi at 2 months

Kodi at 2 months

Kodi at 10 months

Kodi at 1 year

My husband is a dog person; he grew up with dogs and could not wait to get a dog once we had settled down. I, on the other hand, had never owned a dog or really been around dogs, so when he told me that he wanted a Rottweiler I was a little hesitant.

I started to research Rottweilers and quickly realized that they were nothing like I had been led to believe and I found myself becoming more attracted to the breed the more I read about them. I inevitably gave in and we started looking for a local Rottweiler breeder in April of 2011.

We were looking for a cheaper puppy, as we had the misconception that expensive, registered puppies were for show, and we just wanted a nice family dog, so we didn???t think twice about whether the parents were registered or not. We found a breeder about an hour from where we lived who had a litter of Rottweiler puppies born on March 30th, so we went up to visit them.

The breeders consisted of a couple who had no children, but instead had three adult Rottweilers (two females and a male). We were able to meet the male dog, who was incredibly large and friendly (my first encounter with a Rottweiler) and he was also registered, however he had not yet had his hips checked (that was booked for the summer), while the females were unregistered. The breeders were very friendly and willing to answer any of our questions. They insisted that they had never had any health issues with any of the dogs they had bred, and that they treated and cared for the puppies as if they were their own children.

Their place looked quite nice (tidy, lots of land/room for the dogs) and they seemed very sincere so we put a deposit on a female puppy. On May 18th we drove up to the breeders and picked up our little baby girl, whom we named Kodiak (Kodi for short).

Kodi was a great puppy and a very quick learner. We moved to a different city midway through the summer and she had no issues with adapting. During the summer we took her for walks and went rollerblading with her; she seemed to have boundless energy. In October 2011 we stopped by one of the parks along our walking route and there was another woman there with her dogs playing fetch. Kodi got to join in the fun, and ran around for close to an hour. That night, Kodi made some whimpering noises whenever she got up from a lying position. We figured she was sore from all of the running and we just let her rest.

Over the next few weeks she continued to whimper at night whenever she had a lot of exercise during the day; a long walk or puppy class. Eventually it got to the point where she would whimper whenever she would get up from lying down, regardless of exercise or time of day, and she even started to drag her left hind leg in her puppy class. Our puppy trainer began to get concerned for her and recommended we take her to the vet. She recommended her vet, as we were still fairly new to the city and had not had much luck with the first vet we had gone to.

We went to see this new vet (who is absolutely amazing) and he was immediately concerned with just the look of her hind end; she has a very narrow stance in the back and her legs seem to come down to a point. He took some x-rays of Kodi and they confirmed that she had hip-dysplasia at 8 months of age.

Our vet booked us an appointment with a local orthopedic surgeon to learn what our options were. The surgeon confirmed that she had severe hip-dysplasia with 10% coverage in her left hip and 30% in her right; however she was not a candidate for surgery. He talked to us about the various procedures that are performed on dogs with hip-dysplasia, such as a triple pelvic osteotomy and hip replacements, and explained that Kodi???s hips were too degraded for a TPO and she was too young (not fully grown) for a hip replacement. He suggested that we give her some medication for the pain, increase her glucosamine supplements, and just let her grow. He explained that with any luck, she will develop more with age and the additional tissue and muscles will help keep her hips together.

Over the next few months we switched her to a special joint dog food for extra supplements and she seemed to be greatly improving. She rarely cried and she was even sitting with her hind legs properly under her, whereas before she would immediately move her legs out to the side while sitting. Once the weather warmed up we were even able to take her on walks again without her being in pain later and she loved it!

We had a warm spell here in March which allowed us to take Kodi out every day for a walk during which she would get to chase some birds or sticks in a quiet park just off our walking path. On the third day of stick chasing, she was running after a stick and midway to the stick she just started to cry and limp. We immediately ran to her and my husband ended up carrying her home; not an easy feat given that she is about 70lbs and does not like being carried. We gave her some medication and kept her under observation.

She wouldn???t put any weight on her left leg, even after a few days, so back to the vets we went. Our vet asked us what had happened and when we said that it seemed to occur mid stride, she didn???t seem to slip or fall, he went immediately for her knees, and sure enough she did not like that. He believed that she had ruptured her cruciate ligament and wanted to do another round of x-rays to make sure that nothing else was hurt. Her x-rays were frightening; her left hip socket was basically gone. It had eroded away and her right hip socket was not looking so great either. Our vet suggested we go to Toronto (a 2 hour drive) to meet with a different orthopedic surgeon (our local surgeon did not do hip replacements) as they might recommend we fix her hip and knee at the same time.

We met with the surgeon in Toronto who confirmed that she had ruptured her cruciate, but once again told us that she wasn???t a candidate for hip surgery. Firstly, they would not fix both at once even if she was a candidate as the longer she is under anesthetic the greater the risk of infection. Secondly she was still too young to really consider a hip replacement. The surgeon told us that she was probably not in as much pain now since there was less bone in her left hip joint to rub against and it was actually her right hip that seemed to be bothering her more as she had ruptured her left cruciate causing her to put more weight on her right leg. He suggested we once again wait and see, as there was still a chance that she may not need a hip replacement and that she???ll develop muscles around her hips. Furthermore, hip replacements in dogs are typically only good for 10 years so he suggested that if we could wait, we should. He said that if Kodi seemed to be having discomfort with her hips once her knee was fixed, and it didn???t seem to be getting better, then surgery would be back on the table.

The surgeon then went on to explain how they fix cruciate ruptures and gave us an estimate of the costs. Later that day we contacted our local vet, who also fixes cruciate ruptures, and after talking to him and giving it some thought we decided to book Kodi in with our local vet as we would only be 10 minutes away if something happened, rather than two hours. She is currently booked in for May 4th and we???re hoping that she will have a speedy recovery.

Since we first found out that Kodi has hip-dysplasia we have been trying to get in contact with her breeders to let them know about the disease, since it is genetic. We have tried to email and call them numerous times without any success. Unfortunately we are now 6 hours away from the breeders so we have not been able to visit them in person. Their outright refusal to return our messages and acknowledge the hip-dysplasia has been upsetting and frustrating.

We love Kodi so much, and she is the sweetest, biggest suck of a dog I have ever met, and I am very glad that we have been able to take care of her. I sincerely hope that, despite their lack of communication, the breeders have discontinued breeding the dogs as I hate to imagine more puppies in pain that may not be as fortunate as Kodi.

I cannot stress how important it is to really research the breeders you are planning to buy from. It is so easy to fall into a trap, especially when the breeders seem nice and the price is tempting. It breaks my heart every time Kodi cries or whimpers and I hate having to try and restrain her from running around or playing hard like a puppy should. She has been through so much in her first year of life and I am truly grateful for everyone who has supported us and helped us.

She is an awesome dog and a cherished member of our family and I just want her to be happy.

To anyone out there considering buying a puppy, please do your research and I would also recommend buying pet insurance, because if any health issues arise, it is not cheap.

I hope that Kodi???s story is helpful and educational. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask.

Hi Nikole. Thanks so much for taking the time to share Kodi’s story here!

There are SO MANY prospective puppy owners who don’t yet realize the importance of health checks for breeding dogs.

I hope she recovers well from her knee surgery and that her hips are eventually ‘fixed’ one way or another.

Please keep us posted as to her progress. She’s a lovely girl and obviously much loved. I’ll say a little prayer for her.

For more information on hip dysplasia check out this page… Hip Dysplasia In Dogs

This page may also be useful.. Choosing A Rottweiler Breeder

Thanks again – Sue

Comments for Our Rottweiler Kodiak’s Story

… lessons learned on hip-dysplasia, cruciate ruptures, and buying from breeders on Kijiji

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Aug 06, 2013

Angel Lee NEW
by: Anonymous

Hi Angel Lee
I’m so sorry to hear about Keeper! When we took Kodi to a specialist they told us there was nothing they could do until she was fully grown. They said they don’t operate before they reach their full size as their bones are still growing and also artificial hips only last about 8-10 years so you want to wait a bit. The specialist also told us that when dogs are diagnosed so young there’s a 50/50 chance thay they will develop arthritis and it will help to keep their hips together and they might not even need surgery. The hardest part for us was when she was first diagnosed because she was growing. Once her bones had stopped growing, her pain and discomfort almost disappeared. She turned 2 on march 30th and she only ever cries now when she’s over exerted herself (like when we have visitors and she gets excited) but even that seems to only be a slight discomfort. What we found that really helps is glucosamine. We buy the capsules from Costco (I think its west coast naturals brand) and open two capsules over her food each day. She’s also on royal canin joint and coat which has glucosamine and other supplements. Between the two she seems to be doing great and has even filled out a bit 🙂 We did notice this winter that she would suddenly develop a limp on her back leg when she would go for a walk. We think it might have been her hip popping out as you could pick up her back end, wiggle it and then would be fine (you could sometimes feel it pop). Unfortunately she has recently started to limp on her front leg and the vet was able to find some discomfort in her elbow. He thinks she may have elbow dysplasia but there’s nothing to be done for it. I hope this helps. Just try to keep your little rotti as calm as can be in crazy siuations (I know its impossible with puppies!). Also make sure to watch his weight. He should be fine for now but when he gets bigger you don’t want any extra stress. I’m sending good thoughts to you and Keeper


Aug 06, 2013

hoping for an update on Kodi NEW
by: Angel Lee

Hi, Not sure if you will see my response; I see the last one was over a year ago.
We just found out today that our 9 month old Rottie (Keeper) has hip dysplasia. We actually did buy from a reputable breeder and both parents were OFA certified. I guess you never know. We are quite devastated! We have an appointment with the orthopedic vet on Thursday. I would love any advice. I would also like to know how Kodi is doing now. I am hoping he is doing well!


Jun 02, 2012

That’s great news! NEW
by: Sue from a-love-of-rottweilers.com

I’m so happy to hear that Kodi is making such a great recovery 🙂

Congrats to you all!


May 26, 2012

Congratulations! NEW
by: Christopher Bayhi

So glad to hear Kodi is doing well. Such a cute happy puppy in that first pic. Should be happy puppy pic of the year! Good luck to you and your family and Kodi.


May 26, 2012

Knee Surgery Update NEW
by: Nikole

Hi again,

Thank you all for the kind thoughts and comments. Kodi had her knee surgery on May 4th, and everything went smoothly. She has been back for 3 check-ups and the vet is extremely happy with her progress. She had her sutures removed yesterday and she no longer has to wear a cone. She is walking fantastically and we are starting to take her on little walks. We couldn’t be happier with how the surgery went and how her recovery is going. I hope everyone is having a good spring and best wishes!


May 01, 2012

Prayers for Kodi NEW
by: Christopher Bayhi

What a cute puppy. Kodi has developed into a beautiful Rottie. Your circumstance is unfortunate. What???s more unfortunate is how the breeder is treating you. Any “breeder” can buy registered dogs and start breeding almost at will. The difference is how the breeder takes care of the client and their pups after the sale. One of the problems in my area is that there are no license requirements for a breeder with 19 mating females or less and 20 litters or less per year. Unfortunately, even with all of your research, even if the sire and dam are registered, even if both have OFA and other health certifications, and even if everything else checks out, genetic defects can and do happen. At that point a breeder???s health and genetic guarantee (and their willingness to back it up) separates the COE breeders from the trash breeders.

If it were one of our pups, this situation would have fallen under our two year genetic defect guarantee. We would have paid your vet bills up to the price of the pup, offered your money back, or offered you a different pup from a different Sire and Dam. If you got to the point where you could not afford the vet bills, we would have accepted a voluntary surrender of the pup, and taken care of her at our facility and at our cost with no further financial obligation from you. We recently took take care of a pup that contracted CPV2c because the client did not have the pup vaccinated on time according to the schedule in the contract. We didn???t have to, but that was OUR puppy that we took care of for 8 weeks. It was OUR decision to sell the pup to these people. So we felt it was OUR obligation to help even though we could have turned our back on the client for breach of contract. It???s about the breed, not the money.

Good luck getting in touch with your breeder. Even if you manage to do so, I highly doubt these people will offer any help. But your focus is in the right direction???Kodi???s care and quality of life. It seems that she has wonderful people to protect her and care for her. It breaks my heart to hear about such a noble breed and such good people having to go through something like HD and a blown CL because of questionable ethics on the part of the breeder. Acupuncture, if available in your area, may help with pain relief. I???ve never tried it myself but I have spoken to others who have with mixed results. It may be worth a try. It depends on Kodi and how she would react. Prayers go out to you, your family and especially Kodi. Good luck to you and please keep us informed of this beautiful girl???s progress!


Apr 30, 2012

Tank- 13 months NEW
by: Jerri

Niclole,
I felt like I was reading our ‘Tank’s’ story. He was born in March 2011 to registered AKC Rotti parents to a much researched breeder. He is the best dog I’ve ever seen or heard of, a huge baby and important part of our family. He started being ‘whiny’ very early on. Our one and only time to the dog park, Tank could not even get up that night after 1 hour of play. Was diagnosed with severe hip dyslasia at 7 months. 3 different surgeons told us the same as you were: too young for hip replacement. Our experience with all 3 surgeons said they were sorry, Tank was growing/gaining weight so fast we started physical therapy, JD dogfood (very expensive for joint) glucosomine supplements. We found a vet 2 hours away from us that wanted to try the FHO (femoral head osteotomy) Tank had 0% coverage of his left hip/femoral head and less than 10% in the right. We did surgery on his left. It has been a long recovery. He hiked his (surgery) leg yesterday for the very first time ever and I amlost cried. He is getting better. We will have to do surgery on the right femor very soon as he is in pain, but puts more pressure on his left leg now. He is so loving and never been grumpy because of his pain. Thank you so much for sharing. Tank now has a following on my facebook page. I would like to stay in touch. Sincerely, Jerri Berry (KY-USA)


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About The Rotty lover 2159 Articles
My name is Dr. Winnie. I earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Duke University, a Masters of Science in Biology from St Georges University, and graduated from the University of Pretoria Veterinary School in South Africa. I have been an animal lover and owners all my life having owned a Rottweiler named Duke, a Pekingese named Athena and now a Bull Mastiff named George, also known as big G! I'm also an amateur equestrian and love working with horses. I'm a full-time Veterinarian in South Africa specializing in internal medicine for large breed dogs. I enjoy spending time with my husband, 2 kids and Big G in my free time. Author and Contribturor at SeniorTailWaggers, A Love of Rottweilers, DogsCatsPets and TheDogsBone