Mini dachshund now 11 years old - how do I keep him as fit and healthy as possible?

[loveyouradvice]

Just that really - he's a happy wee fella, but has noticeably slowed down these last couple of years.

How do we keep him healthy and happy for as long as possible?

He's been on a raw food diet for the last 5 years, and that really perked him up when we started. He sees an osteopath about once a year, as his back is a bit weak (he has steps up to sofas and we carry him up the stairs). And we walk him 30-60 mins a day, usually once, occasionally twice. He's quite slim, which also helps.

His teeth is one area we've not been very good at - we aim to give him a bone once a week, but often forget. And have only very erratically brushed his teeth.

Anything else that you think is worth doing with your older dogs that we could be thinking about?

Supplements!

A lot of people wait until their dog is showing signs of pain to use them but they’re great at preventing issues.

A good joint supplement to help any stiffness or arthritis. Dorwest do a good one that’s reasonably priced. At his age I would get the MoveWellia which is advanced joint care.

For teeth there are supplements that help breakdown the plaque - have a google, there are a few options (powder, liquid etc) so that when you give bones, it remove it easier. A

Great advice @Coffee93 . Thank you. I'm going to look into these

What do others think?

I remember my vet telling me that I should always carry my dachshund DOWN the stairs to prevent back issues, but that he should walk up, as it's good for strengthening his legs and hips. But it was years ago, so maybe the advice has changed.
I second (good, veterinary quality) supplements for his joints.

Does he let you brush his teeth? There are lots of ways to do it nowadays, but mechanical is always best. Bones aren't really the best idea when they get older (their teeth can get a little brittle and crack - but make sure to supplement calcium if you remove them from his diet), but something like buffalo ears, as they are not too hard but have to be chewed a lot, should help. There is also this enzyme gel from Beaphar, it helps to soften the plaque (and it seems to taste really good, my dog loves it).

You should probably have his raw portions re-calculated now that he's older, they need more calcium and zinc, less calories, and their ability to produce some aminoacids decreases with age. It you are using a good full supplement - great, just switch to one for seniors. If you are supplementing yourself, have someone recalculate the doses. Increasing Omega 3 acids is also a good idea, do you give him fish oil?

You need to brush his teeth every day. Bad teeth affect the heart.
And look at supplements for joints, mine was on YuMove but they changed the formula and he won’t eat them now, so we are on Riaflex green lipped mussel powder.

As well as supplements and keeping my old boy moving and happy, I also like to keep his brain active. I don't know if it helps stave off dog dementia or not but it doesn't do any harm and also helps keep him occupied as walks get shorter. So we play find games, go to interesting places for walks with lots of good sniffs and still do training.

this is all such good advice. Thank you.

Off to research everything you have suggested and will be brushing his teeth from today. He's a very happy dog so I suspect this will be fine. That enzyme gel sounds like a very good bet

Interesting about eating bones... Thank you

Keeping him slim so many issues come from being overweight.

Yes - he is ... if anything a tad underweight, but our osteopath says that's a good idea