Should I give my old dog more 'treats'?

[StuntNun]

My 11-year-old lab cross has injured all four of her legs over the years and is now at the point where she can only potter out to the garden to do her business, even a short walk is beyond her. We are managing her condition and keeping her pain free as much as possible but it clearly only a matter of time before she is unable to walk at all and will have to be put down.

Being of lab stock she has always had a tendency to be overweight so we don't give her table scraps and she is fed a controlled amount of dog food and treats to keep her weight under control. I'm wondering if, now that her life expectancy is months rather than years, we should relax a bit and allow her to have some waste food. My kids aren't great eaters so we would have left over meat and fish quite often. It wouldn't be huge quantities as we wouldn't want her to put on a lot of weight, but I'm wondering if it would make her life more enjoyable.

[Lonecatwithkitten]

If she gets overweight the arthritis will rapidly become harder to control.

[StuntNun]

Yes I think we would have to keep a close eye on her. I'm just wondering about brightening up her last few months with some 'human' food but food that's suitable for dogs, not biscuits and things.

[hmc]

This is my gut reaction and may not be sage advice, but given that you know she is time limited, yep I'd go for spoiling her

[SpicyPear]

You could give her some human food for variety and enjoyment but cut back her regular meals a bit to stop her getting too porky and exacerbating the arthritis.

[StuntNun]

That's a good point, I could use a smaller cup for dishing out her food. I gave her a sardine yesterday and it didn't touch the sides on the way down! She's a lovely dog, currently kipping on the sofa next to me. I feel bad that she's struggling to get about now.

[MitchellMummy]

Poor love! Have you tried hydrotherapy? Non weight bearing - and hopefully fun! My 10 year old has severe arthritis but she's on Yumove which keeps it at bay. But if you're convinced that the end is near then I'd spoil her with treats. Wishing her well.

[StuntNun]

There's no hydrotherapy place near us but it's a real struggle getting her in and out of the car anyway. She's happy enough I think, she is an old dog and she lazes about all day and wuffs at passersby and the postie!

[EvansOvalPiesYumYum]

Aaw, poor girl!
If she's almost reached the end of her days, what have either of you to gain by keeping her to her strict diet?

I wish I'd done it with my very elderly cat. I kept her on her special diet, hoping to prolong her life, but it didn't, and had to have her put down anyway. Diet didn't help at all. I so wish I'd spoiled her more in her final weeks.

StuntNun - go with your gut instinct, and whatever happens, be sure in the knowledge that you have done your very best for her.