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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Dog with arthritis

35 replies

procrastinationstations · 24/02/2022 17:31

Just taken ddog, 10 for boosters and vet thinks she has back pain, probably arthritis Sad. Trialling painkillers.

Is there anything else I can do to help her?? Or to avoid? I give her YuMove and vet said to carry on with it as it will help.

My poor little doggy.

OP posts:
Susu49 · 24/02/2022 17:34

Some people rate turmeric supplements, if they can be taken with existing meds/conditions.

Otherwise, keeping up gentle exercise- it's tricky to find the right balance between needed rest for the joints and enough exercise to prevent boredom/weight gain/muscle atrophy.

You can get orthopedic dog beds which are made either memory foam, although a genuine sheepskin rug is just as good and some dogs prefer it.

The medications will help!

Lonecatwithkitten · 24/02/2022 18:50

Consistent exercise is the key, the dogs who struggle most are the one who do very little during the week and then hike at the weekend.
Weight loss if needed, if overweight for a large number of dogs getting to the ideal weight can dramatically decrease the amount of drugs required.
Hydrotherapy and physiotherapy once they are not painful can help build muscle and protect joints.
Giving the medication as prescribed - you would be astounded by the number of people who randomly reduce the dose or frequency.

Hoppinggreen · 24/02/2022 19:20

My vet friend says something called Librela (sp?) is amazing

timestheyarechanging · 24/02/2022 19:23

Blueberry powder, yumove and acupuncture seems to keep our 15yr old well x

timestheyarechanging · 24/02/2022 19:25

.... and regular exercise. She can't manage a long walk now but 10 mins twice a day helps her.

Suzi888 · 24/02/2022 19:29

@Hoppinggreen

My vet friend says something called Librela (sp?) is amazing
^Yes, it is but quite pricey. I think it’s injections rather than tablets I could be wrong. Asked my vet about it but forgot to ask what it actually was….but for now mine is fine on his current meds. DDog age 11 takes beef flavour Galliprant tablets - it’s easy on the kidneys. 100mg is £60 a month- I have a lab. The smaller the dog the less expensive the tablets. Yumove is good if your dog can tolerate it tummy wise. (Mine can’t). If you claim benefit you may be entitled to free vet treatment in exchange for a donation at the PDSA. Weight loss, short walks- mine has three ten minute walks a day. No jumping, no steps, no trotting on wooden floors.
Lonecatwithkitten · 24/02/2022 19:43

@Hoppinggreen

My vet friend says something called Librela (sp?) is amazing
Currently very limited supply only enough to treat patients who were on it prior to supply problems. Most likely no new patients till June this year.
Susu49 · 24/02/2022 22:21

Vet recommended librella for my dad's dog, it costs about £70 a time for the monthly injections though and, gut-wrenchingly, it's currently out of price range Sad

Takingabreakagain · 24/02/2022 22:33

I give my dogs golden paste which is basically turmeric supplement along with the yumove. It takes a little while to see results but it has made a difference.

Original poster
procrastinationstations · 26/02/2022 11:32

Thanks for all the replies - I will look into them.

I'm wondering if we stop her jumping into sofa and walking upstairs?

Will pulling on the lead make it worse? She is a terrible puller and won't be able to stop her doing it all the time but is it going to make the arthritis worse or just cause pain?

OP posts:
PearlyGirls · 26/02/2022 11:56

My old dog had this and it was terrible to watch. Nothing worked very well for him sadly. Definitely stop all jumping and stairs and if you have wooden floors put rugs down to stop them skidding. As PP said the website CAMS is excellent. One thing that did seem to help was sessions with a qualified dog physio. She did laser treatment on him and it seemed to bring some relief.

longtompot · 26/02/2022 12:20

My dog (9, 10 this year) takes YuMOVE plus and she also had golden paste when she injured her cruiciate ligament. I really feel both helped her as she didn't need an op and can run about like a puppy for short bursts.

Darklane · 26/02/2022 22:37

*Hoppinggreen
My vet friend says something called Librela (sp?) is amazing

Vet recommended librella for my dad's dog, it costs about £70 a time for the monthly injections though and, gut-wrenchingly, it's currently out of price range*

Yes, it is good. My 15 year old is on monthly injections but I don’t pay anywhere near as much as your dad was charged. I pay £50 just once every three months, for three months worth of the injections.
Prior to starting on these she was just in painkillers, it has made her much more mobile.

Susu49 · 28/02/2022 12:55

@darklane that's much more affordable, can I ask which part of the country you are?
I'm wondering if it's a location thing.

Somanysocks · 28/02/2022 13:03

I gave my medium sized dog half a glucozamine a day on her dinner when she was struggling to get up off her bed, it worked wonders, I was amazed.

magicstar1 · 28/02/2022 13:06

Vet's Kitchen glucosamine liquid is amazing. It's a chicken gravy that you can put on their food. Our dog has dodgy back legs and stretches a lot. After a couple of days on this she's completely normal. I've also recommended it to friends who can't believe the difference in their dogs.

DuaLeaper · 28/02/2022 13:18

Hydrotherapy and therapy massage seemed to help our arthritic dog, as did keeping his weight constant and on the low side.

biggreenhouse · 28/02/2022 13:20

CBD oil (specifically for dogs) Gave my elderly dog an extra couple of better years

littlegingerone · 28/02/2022 13:26

My dog is 10 too and has recently started painkillers for arthritis. I saw on here to look on a website called canine arthritis management, and that had lots of tips on what you could do. Our dog has been given loxicom and that definitely seems to have helped him, he couldn't have it for a few days after he'd had some anaesthetic for a procedure and he really suffered from not having it. We pared his walks right back and have been very slowly increasing them, but easing off again if he seems to have a flare up. We bought a runner for our kitchen floor as it is laminate, and we are going to get a stair gate so he doesn't go up and downsatirs all day. He sleeps upstairs so it's tricky to just stop him altogether, but he will follow us up and down if we're running around doing stuff and I read that stairs are really bad for him. I think i saw the website reccommends keeping them warm so buying a coat for walks and keeeping them warm at night etc. We were already giving him supplements from Riaflex - green lipped mussel and a joint supplement which i do think also help. We also lift him in and out of the car instead of letting him jump up (we bought him a ramp but he won't use it!) and the vet said weight really makes a big difference, he is at an ideal weight but they were saying it's the first thing they'd advise otherwise. We have been looking at hydrotherapy for him to see if that can help build him up again a bit too as that was reccommended by the vets.

BoodleBug51 · 28/02/2022 13:31

Mine is nearly 9 and showing signs. He doesn't tolerate painkillers at all (Metacam gives him colitis) so I've had him on Yumove for about 3 years.

I've just moved him onto Riaflex after advice about supplements on a spaniel forum, and even after just 2 weeks I've seen a huge change in him. He's more bouncy, and less curled up in a ball. It was around £50 for a huge tub and he has 2 tiny scoops a day.

He's got a Tuffies bed so it's really supportive too and we've got stair gates to stop him following me everywhere.

Darklane · 28/02/2022 20:05

[quote Susu49]@darklane that's much more affordable, can I ask which part of the country you are?
I'm wondering if it's a location thing.[/quote]
North Lancashire

WhiteXmas21 · 28/02/2022 20:31

My 11 year old recently diagnosed. Is on Librela monthly at £50 (Lab) . We also do physio , massage and hydrotherapy. He has been on Yumove for a few years. He’s very lively and still manages 2 decent walks per day and is not overweight.
He has a car ramp and lots of mats on the wood floors. We try to avoid jumping down but he still climbs the stairs . I try to ensure he’s careful co,ing back down 🙄

muddyford · 01/03/2022 15:54

Jointsure has the same ingredients as Yumove and with the three for two offer on Amazon it works out about half the price.

sleepymum50 · 01/03/2022 16:07

My lovely labradoodle died five years ago at age 14. She was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (at age 10), and then subsequently arthritis.

She was on metacam, calcium tablets and tramadol(on and off). Years before, I had taken a Swedish massage course, so adapted that to massage her knees, hips and back daily. She loved a knee massage!

I think all old dogs love a massage/rub.

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