Dachshund & Scottish Terrier tibial torsion

As per a previous blog, our new Scottie Kara unfortunately acquired a genetic condition loosely and variously labelled as Dachshund type tibial torsion, chondrodysplasia, pes varus deformity etc.

Essentially, she has an unusual bilateral hind limb gait in which she throws her right limb inwards as she walks, which we all hope is of a mechanical nature rather than a painful one…although with Scotties you can’t easily tell.  Standard Xrays have not shown precisely where the tibia is twisted.

Current thinking among the experts is that we wait and see how the condition progresses as she develops and then perhaps have a CT (computed tomographic) scan of both hind limbs carried out.

Our concern is not so much the cosmetic appearance of the disability, but whether the condition may be a future arthritic nasty for her and in that situation we would have to look at the possibility of surgery to straighten the tibia.

In the meantime there’s no one who likes going for walks more than Kara, & her true Scottie –  mile a minute dashes around the confines of Le Petit Hotel,  have us wondering when the inevitable crash is going to happen. She must have heard about Maggie’s big shoes, because she has developed very respectable terrier paws, assisted no doubt by the furious digging which sometimes takes place in the hotel car park.

Kara is one super lovable scottie, a real character with quite a vocabulary.

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