Dislocation of hip in animals

Dislocation of the hip, or coxofemoral luxation, is a not-rare condition in domestic animals, usually affecting only one side, that occurs mainly in cattle and dogs. In cattle it commonly follows calving, when forced fetal traction during a difficult delivery, slipping on a barn floor, or poor nutrient intake late in gestation weakens the hip joint; inadequate nutrition can cause osteoporosis, a shallow acetabulum, and joint laxity, and ketonemia around calving is also a contributing factor, together allowing the femoral head to displace during delivery. Dogs most often dislocate a hip through trauma or as a complication of hip dysplasia, with the femoral head typically displacing upward and forward, producing a visibly shortened limb and a prominent greater trochanter; cattle can show either a craniodorsal or caudoventral displacement with a similar shortened limb and protruding trochanter. Attempts to reduce the dislocation in cattle usually fail, but affected animals can still survive long term once a false joint, or pseudojoint, forms at the site. Dogs with a one-sided dislocation generally survive if the other leg stays sound, though the affected thigh muscle wastes over time while the shoulder muscles compensate. Human medicine recognizes an equivalent hip dislocation injury.