In Adelaide, expect the national range of $3,500 to $16,000 for hip replacement and dysplasia surgery. Adelaide is a smaller market with a solid middle: experienced general practices doing orthopaedics, a specialist tier, and less of the fixed price competition that drags Melbourne's prices down. Quotes cluster in the middle of the national range.
| Option | Typical Australian range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Elbow arthroscopy | $4,000 to $5,000 | Diagnosis and treatment in one procedure |
| Femoral head ostectomy (FHO) | $3,500 to $5,500 | Best in lighter, muscular dogs |
| Total hip replacement | $10,000 to $16,000 per hip | One Sydney centre publishes $14,000 fixed |
Nationally, dysplasia surgery spans femoral head ostectomy at $3,500 to $5,500 through to total hip replacement at $10,000 to $16,000 per hip, with elbow arthroscopy around $4,000 to $5,000.
Adelaide owners with a straightforward case and a big quote sometimes save real money in Melbourne's fixed price clinics; it is an eight hour drive and people genuinely do it for a $2,000 to $3,000 difference.
Have the surgeon read the case and the quote before you book. From $250.
No, it is normal. THR is concentrated in a small number of specialist hands nationally, and low provider counts are expected outside Sydney and Melbourne. The useful questions are the surgeon's annual THR volume, their complication rate, and their revision policy. A single provider with strong answers to those beats a choice of three without them.
In the right dog, a real alternative: light, muscular dogs routinely get excellent comfort from FHO at a third of THR money. In heavy dogs the compromise is real. Where your dog sits on that line is readable from the x-rays and the dog in front of you, which makes it a cheap question to put to an independent surgeon and an expensive one to guess.
Sydney · Melbourne · Brisbane · Perth · Canberra · Gold Coast · Hobart · Australia wide guide
An independent written opinion on the diagnosis, the technique and the price. From $250.