Growing Pains in Larger Doodles: Understanding Panosteitis
Growing Pains in Doodles: Understanding Panosteitis
If your doodle puppy suddenly slows down, starts limping, or just seems off, one possibility, especially in our larger lines, is panosteitis. Most people call it "pano" or "growing pains."
It can be alarming the first time you see it. The reassuring part is that pano is usually self-limiting. In most dogs it resolves with time, without lasting joint damage.
This guide covers what pano is, how it is diagnosed, how to support your puppy through it, and what we know about growth and feeding during the growth window.
What Pano Is
Panosteitis is an inflammation inside the long bones of the legs during active growth. It causes lameness that can appear suddenly and shift from one leg to another over days or weeks.
It is seen most often between about 5 and 18 months of age, though signs can begin earlier, at a few months old, and episodes can recur until a dog reaches skeletal maturity. Each episode commonly lasts two to three weeks.
Pano is most common in large, fast-growing breeds, including the Golden Retriever. Doodles with Golden Retriever or Bernese Mountain Dog ancestry grow quickly through adolescence, which is part of why we see it occasionally in our larger lines.
What Causes It
The exact cause is not established. Veterinary sources describe it as multifactorial: genetics, rapid growth, and possibly nutrition all appear to play a role, and there may be a familial component in some dogs.
What the research does support is that growth rate matters. Studies in large-breed puppies have found that feeding more calories than a puppy needs speeds growth, and that excess calcium during growth is harmful to the developing skeleton. That is why feeding during the growth window gets so much attention below.
What We Do at Stokeshire
We manage the variables we can influence before a puppy goes home: breed-appropriate health screening of every parent dog, careful pairing decisions, and controlled nutrition and care during the first weeks of life.
Pano occasionally appears in our larger, fast-growing lines. When a family tells us their puppy has been diagnosed, we record it and track it across our program, including within a dam's offspring. That record informs future pairing decisions.
Tell Us Early
If your puppy starts limping, slows down, or seems sore, let us know right away, the same day you call your veterinarian. Please do not wait for a diagnosis.
The earlier we hear from you, the more we can help. We can review your puppy's records, share what we know about the litter and family line, and talk directly with your veterinarian. Early contact also gives us accurate information to track across our program, which helps every family that comes after you.
Nutrition During Growth
Every Stokeshire puppy goes home on the food we feed across our program, Diamond Naturals Skin & Coat Real Salmon & Potato Formula. Its AAFCO statement covers all life stages including growth of large size dogs (70 lb or more as an adult), which means it meets the calcium limits set for large growing puppies. We recommend staying on it through the growth window.
What matters most during growth is less the brand and more how much a puppy eats and how calorie-dense the food is. Feeding charts on the bag tend to run high for many puppies, so feed to body condition instead: ribs easy to feel under light pressure, and a visible waist from above.
Do not add calcium, vitamin D, or other bone-health or growth supplements unless your veterinarian recommends them.
Before You Change Foods
Once your puppy is home, what they eat, how much, and how quickly they grow are managed in your home rather than ours. We can speak to what we fed and observed while your puppy was in our care; after that, we rely on you to tell us what has changed.
That is why we ask families to talk with us before changing food, and why your purchase agreement asks that food and treats stay marine-protein for the first 90 days unless we approve a change in writing.
If you do change foods, choose one whose AAFCO statement includes growth of large size dogs, and keep a simple record:
The exact formula
The date you switched
The daily amount
Your puppy's weight
Any treats, chews, vitamins, or supplements
If a concern ever comes up, your veterinarian will want this record, and so will we.
Symptoms of Panosteitis
If your puppy is growing and you notice any of the following, pano is one possibility worth raising with your veterinarian:
Limping that shifts from leg to leg over days or weeks
Pain when the legs are pressed, especially along the long bones
Decreased activity, or reluctance to walk or play
Reduced appetite or changes in behavior
Seeking more comfort or closeness than usual
Signs often come and go, which is part of what makes pano confusing for owners and veterinarians alike. Keep notes on which leg, when, and how severe, and bring them to the appointment.
Because some signs of discomfort are subtle, understanding behaviors that indicate pain in dogs can help you notice changes earlier.
Diagnosis
Your veterinarian may:
Perform a physical exam to locate the source of pain
Take X-rays of the affected legs
Rule out other conditions, such as elbow or hip problems, OCD lesions, or injury
Recommend bloodwork to rule out other causes of lameness
The changes pano produces on X-rays can lag behind the limping by a week or more, so early films can look normal in a painful puppy. If your veterinarian still suspects pano, repeat X-rays a couple of weeks later may confirm it.
Pano is sometimes a diagnosis reached after other conditions are ruled out. That is appropriate, and we always recommend following your veterinarian's diagnostic plan.
Treatment
There is no cure, but managing pain and limiting activity during flare-ups makes a real difference:
Pain relief. Your veterinarian may prescribe an anti-inflammatory such as carprofen or meloxicam during active flare-ups, and sometimes additional pain medication if needed.
Rest. Keep activity gentle and controlled. Short leash outings are fine; avoid running, jumping, rough play, long walks, and repeated stairs until your veterinarian is comfortable increasing activity.
Comfort. A supportive bed and rugs or runners on slippery floors make getting up easier.
Nutrition. Give your veterinarian the exact formula, the daily amount, your puppy's current weight, roughly when any food change happened, and a list of treats, chews, vitamins, or supplements, so they can check whether calories and body condition are where they should be. Do not add calcium, vitamin D, or other growth supplements unless your veterinarian recommends them.
Weeks of limping can lead to noticeable muscle loss in the affected legs. Ask your veterinarian how and when to rebuild strength once the pain settles.
Lowering the Risk
Pano is not entirely preventable, but these steps support steady, healthy growth:
Stay on a food whose AAFCO statement includes growth of large size dogs, through the growth window.
Feed to body condition, not the bag chart, and keep your puppy lean.
Avoid calcium and bone-health supplements, including bone meal, eggshell powder, and calcium-containing multivitamins.
Keep treats to a small share of daily calories.
During growth, favor self-paced, low-impact activity and avoid forced distance running, repeated high-impact jumping, and other strenuous repetitive exercise. Skeletal maturity varies by dog and size, so work with your veterinarian before beginning sustained running or other high-impact activities.
Keep up with veterinary checkups so any concern is caught early.
Pano and the Stokeshire Health Guarantee
Our 3-Year Health and Wellness Partnership is designed to support families through qualifying genetic conditions that materially impair quality of life. Panosteitis is a self-limiting developmental condition that typically resolves without lasting joint damage or impact on life expectancy, so it is not eligible for refund or replacement.
Not covered does not mean not supported. When a family reaches out about pano, we help interpret records, talk with your veterinarian if that helps, and stay involved until your puppy is through it.
Your signed agreement makes following our nutrition guidance during growth a condition of coverage for orthopedic concerns in the first 18 months. That guidance includes a growth-appropriate food, a lean body condition, no overfeeding, and no calcium or other supplements unless your veterinarian directs them in writing. A feeding record makes any review simple.
The specific terms are defined in your signed agreement. This guide explains the reasoning; your signed agreement is the controlling document.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is panosteitis genetic? There appears to be a genetic predisposition, and it is more common in large, fast-growing breeds. The exact cause is not established. Current understanding is that predisposition, growth rate, and nutrition interact. No DNA test can currently rule pano in or out.
Will my puppy recover? In most cases, yes. Pano is usually self-limiting and resolves as the skeleton matures, without lasting joint damage or effect on life expectancy. Episodes may recur before then. Follow your veterinarian's treatment plan, and contact them if lameness lasts longer than expected.
What food do you recommend? We send every puppy home on Diamond Naturals Skin & Coat Real Salmon & Potato Formula and recommend staying on it through the growth window. If you change foods, choose one whose AAFCO statement includes growth of large size dogs, and talk with us and your veterinarian first.
Did a food change cause my puppy's pano? Pano has no single known cause, so no one food change can be named as the reason. Feeding does affect how fast a puppy grows, though, which is why we ask families to talk with us before switching and to keep a record when they do. Share the exact food, daily amount, timing of any change, and any treats or supplements with your veterinarian and with us.
We already switched foods. What should we do? Tell us, and write down what you can: the formula, roughly when you switched, the daily amount, and your puppy's current weight. If the new food's AAFCO statement does not include growth of large size dogs, ask your veterinarian whether to change back. Do not change foods again while your puppy is sore without your veterinarian's input.
Is pano covered under the Stokeshire Health Guarantee? No. Pano is self-limiting and does not materially affect a dog's long-term quality of life, so it falls outside the guarantee. We still want to hear from you, and we will help you work through it with your veterinarian.
Further Reading
Conclusion
Pano can be a hard season, for your puppy and for you, but it is usually temporary. With rest, steady lean growth, pain control from your veterinarian, and time, most puppies move through it into a healthy adulthood.
If you are thinking about changing food, or you notice any sign of discomfort during growth, please reach out right away. We would always rather have that conversation early than try to sort it out later.
Warmly, James & Katie Stokeshire Designer Doodles