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Hip dysplasia is a condition that rarely announces itself dramatically. It develops slowly, often silently, as the ball and socket joint fails to form correctly and the resulting laxity begins to reshape bone, stretch ligaments, and inflame the surrounding tissue. By the time a dog is showing obvious lameness, secondary osteoarthritis is frequently already present. Florence de Radigues opens her thesis with precisely this anatomical grounding. The detailed review of the coxo-femoral joint — its osteology, arthrology, and the powerful muscle groups that surround it — is not academic indulgence. It is the foundation for understanding why the joint fails and how osteopathy can intervene meaningfully. The pathological progression is traced clearly: from initial joint laxity and excess synovial fluid through to capsular distension, subchondral micro-fractures, and eventually full osteoarthritic change. The biomechanical consequences are equally important — as the femoral head subluxates, forces that should be distributed across the whole acetabular surface become concentrated, accelerating cartilage abrasion in a self-reinforcing cycle. The osteopathic section of the thesis is where the work becomes most practically useful. De Radigues distinguishes between intervention in unoperated dogs — where the focus is on reducing pain, freeing compensatory restrictions in the lumbar and pelvis, and improving the quality of synovial fluid through gentle decoaptation — and post-surgical rehabilitation, where scar tissue management and progressive mobilisation become central. The common osteopathic dysfunctions found in dysplastic dogs are identified with precision: sacroiliac attachment restrictions, pelvic imbalance, L5–L6 locking, and lumbosacral junction limitation all feature consistently. The thesis makes a strong case for early monitoring — ideally from two to six months of age in at-risk breeds — and for osteopathy as a sustained, regular component of long-term management.
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