On occasion a dog or cat will dislocate its hip. This x-ray is of a dog with a dislocated hip. It is a poodle mix that fell while running, and is now completely lame on its rear leg. The diagnosis in this case is made with x-rays after an examination. The exam gives us clues that this pain is because of a dislocation because when we gently extend the rear legs (depending on the type of dislocation) the dislocated leg appears shorter than the normal leg.
The ball of the left femur is completely out of the socket. Ligaments and the joint capsule have been torn for this to occur.
Some pets with dislocated hips can be corrected without the need of surgery. Whether or not this occurs depends on the extent of the damage, especially to the ligaments, tendons, and joint capsule.
This pet was anesthetized and the head of the femur was gently placed back into the socket. It was securely taped so that the femur was held firmly in the socket. A special type of sling was applied to keep the head of the femur (the ball) pushed back into me socket. This method is not always successful, but it is worth trying to prevent surgery. 
A radiograph is taken immediately after application of the splint to be certain the femoral head is still in the socket. One week later we repeated the x-ray to be certain it was still in place. This splint stayed on for 3 weeks, and it eventually healed completely.
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