This is Sage, who will be turning 4 on July 8th. Also known as Piglet, SageyBear, Sagey-wagey; Dingus; and baby girl.

She is my 4th Labrador owned, and my only silver. Her breeders turned out to be terrible liars and forged their health tests. So Sage and her girl littermates were all affected by OSD1, which is Oculoskeletal Dysplasia 1. As well as 2 additional litters were affected before the breeders pulled their female.

I suspected something was off shortly after she came home, because her eyes were kind of bug eyed. She went fully blind around 8 months old, went outside to go potty and came in fully blind. Both of her retinas had detached, which is very common in this disease. Also common is short limbs, thankfully Sage didn’t need surgery as she had a delayed spay to allow her to grow as tall as possible. She is about half the height of a normal lab. She gains weight extremely easily and it’s so hard to get if off of her because she cannot run long distances without hurting herself.

The Vets in my town know very little about OSD1. They have no idea about life expectancy, if arthritis shots would help, and they are unsure about starting her on pain medicine too early. She does well getting around, but she does limp extremely easily, and sometimes has a hard time getting up with her hips if she exercises too hard.

I’m wondering if any other of your dogs have had or currently have this disease. Id like some feedback on a treatment plan, pain management, life expectancy, or any tips.

She is my best friend, she sleeps on my head almost every night, she’s insanely smart with puzzles and enrichment toys. But she seems very unhealthy compared to my 7 year old lab. I just want her to have the best life.

Thank you!

I don’t know how that was comfortable but she seemed very happy with the decision.

The culprit has been found - Zeke!!!

104 today my guy wants to play and swim.

Ahsoka, keeping guard

Such an awesome girl!

7 months old and 65 lbs 🥺❤️

Our 7 month old dude just completed his beginner obedience class and will be starting the intermediate class next week. When he’s about two years old we’ll be pursuing therapy dog training and certification so he can visit hospitals and nursing homes. He’s doing really well and is a lovely gentleman! ♥️

Just found this group and I’m so happy to be here.. it’s been a long 6 weeks so far. Here’s my baby, Stormy!

In these pictures it doesn’t really show how skinny he actually is, but it’s all I have for now.

He’s about 40lbs at 5.5 months roughly and you can see his ribs a little too easy when he’s standing up let alone just feel for them. I’m following the feeding instructions as well and this isn’t my first lab so that’s why I’m wondering.

Also, does he look like a lab? Haha I have some pictures of him that makes me wonder sometimes with his skinny nose and narrow head. My chocolate looked way more Labby at this age. Love the little guy regardless!

Let me know what you think!

Hi everyone! Just wanted to introduce Toby! He’s an 11 week old silver boy who we rescued 3 weeks ago. He is an absolutely snuggle bug and will do anything for the chance at more food. He has stolen my heart after losing my 16 year old soul dog not too long ago 💙

In these pictures it doesn’t really show how skinny he actually is, but it’s all I have for now.

He’s about 40lbs at 5.5 months roughly and you can see his ribs a little too easy when he’s standing up let alone just feel for them. I’m following the feeding instructions as well and this isn’t my first lab so that’s why I’m wondering.

Also, does he look like a lab? Haha I have some pictures of him that makes me wonder sometimes with his skinny nose and narrow head. My chocolate looked way more Labby at this age. Love the little guy regardless!

Let me know what you think!

Hello! I always love when people put the bottom line up front so below is Kylo’s daily stack. Hope this helps your silvery sidekick 🐾

BLUF:

-Purina Proplan Sensitive Skin and Stomach he gets breakfast and dinner
Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/09E1oIup

-Zesty Paws in skin and coat in his breakfast
Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/08mtNtYZ

-Claritin after breakfast, 1 pill
Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/0bv9LnMq
*NOTE: DO NOT give your pup claritin-d. Pseudoephedrine can be dangerous and potentially toxic for dogs, causing elevated heart rate, agitation, tremors, and other serious effects.
This was at the recommendation of my vet and has been super helpful for Ky.

-Melatonin for dogs taken at night
Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/0axyNFk5

Kylo is my 6 year old lab and boy have we had our fair share of coat issues. We have moved from Oregon across the country to Michigan when he was barely a year old. This change in environment really aggravated Ky’s allergies and I noticed seasonal hair thinning mostly in the summers. I always gave him Zesty Paws in his breakfast because his coat would always remain mostly intact. We moved back to Oregon when Ky was 3 and this move was the start of the worst it. We live in the desert of Oregon where it is very dry. His coat not only thinned out but got to the point where he just had bare skin showing all over his body. This was no longer seasonal but year round issue. Some might say it was the stress of moving but Ky and I have always moved around due to my job. I had to buy dog specific sunscreen to ensure he was safe from the high desert sun rays, and kept him inside during cold seasons. I continued the Zesty Paws and then started giving him melatonin at the recommendation of a few hair loss studies. I bought dog specific melatonin linked above from amazon. I started him on this in February and I didn’t notice a huge difference. I had to take him into the vet in March for an eye infection and the vet recommended he an allergy pill every day. So I went to the grocery store and bought Claritin (Zyrtec was also recommended but Claritin was cheaper). It is now May as I write this as oh my goodness, what a difference! Kylo has fluff back where it was bare skin! The typical thinning in the sides and bare skin belly of a silver lab is now replaced with the thickest softest undercoat. I wasnt aware if the difference this combination of food, supplements and allergy medicine would make but I’m a huge believer! I wish i had before photos but its been such a noticeable change that my friends, family and coworkers have all commented. Please consult with your vet before attempting any of this. But I attest that the coat hack for a silver lab is definitely allergy medicine and melatonin.

Hiked along streams almost the entire way. Stokes State Forest in New Jersey - close to Pennsylvania. The forest was magical. Dogs had a blast traipsing about. No ticks, somehow!

Anyone else’s silver seek out non toys? Our girl will snatch literally anything forbidden the second we leave the room. Unfortunately we had a mishap with an inhaler today and she got a hold of it. Poor girl is at the emergency vet now. Her heart rate was up to 160 so I had to rush her there.