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old dog owners, arthritus and where to sleep

melanie
June 7th, 2005, 02:34 AM
hi guys. well poor old charlie is not having a good time this week. she woke up on sunday and could not walk (i wrote a psot on sunday but the stupid thing disapeared b4 posting). firstly she does not have displaysia, she is a cross, her mum did not have it, i have had the vet check her out, she is a big time trotter, nice bum shape, sits like a pup and had a very good diet all her life etc and all that. any way its her muscles in the hip and back, they are jsut getting so tight, more than usual she has always had tight muscles here. on sunday the poor baby could not walk, it was strange. we massaged her for 2 hours (we do massage with her alot anyway) and used the wheat packs and after 2hrs she was up and at em again, but of course taking it easy. well we have kept up the massage since and she has not had a repeat episode. she was not in pain though, i know her in pain and she was not, just freaked out more i would say..

first Q- what do your old dogs sleep on, she is a big girl and GSDx??

she always slept on the couch and her thick bed, well i have stopped her sleepin on the couch, its too soft and i dont like the way she bends on it...

i ahve fixed up her soft bed on the floor, its about 10cm thick and soft and warm, she seems happy to stay there and it doesn ot make her body warp when she lies down...

but i would like to get her a new bed that is warm and comfy, but quite hard if you know what i mean. i was thinking a new mat, there are lots at the stores, what do you use??

now the hips, we wil call it a type of arthritus for now for descriptive purposes. the vet wants to use quartazone, i dont want to and he understands. charlie is a natural girl and i dont like chemical medications like that, i odnt want to shorten her life or give her toxic products (please dont judge me hard on this decision, i have thought long and hard over it and discussed it with the vet).

i have heard of lots of things, like shark cartalidge and such.. do you use any natural alternatives that you fidn work?? i am going to see a naturopath this week to have achat. a friend years ago had a pup with displaysia, she had a natural herbal product for humans that she said worked miricles on him, any one know of such types of product??

i am trying to track her down but am not having much luck......

i will be taking her to bowen therapy (very gentle but effective) soon, its jsut hard ot find somone with exp in animals, they are all willing to help her but i want that background before treaqtment, i have seen crippled dogs move like pups after bowen therapy its truly magical.. i am going to start bowne therapy course myself so i can treat her here, jsut so it is on hand when she likes it. i just need to find a good course....

so thats my babies problems, all advice will be great. :pawprint:

poor baby, its so hard when they begin to get old, but she does love having her doggy mum and dad massage her for 2 hours on a sunday morning (then spend the rest of the day cuddling and getting way too much attention), she feels very special indeed, and thats all i want, is for her to feel love and special.... :love:

the vet is not concerned at all, he knows her well but she will be going back ext week jsut for another check up....

Crazy Hippie
June 7th, 2005, 09:22 AM
I had a dog with terrible arthritis and for him we used to give glucosamine sulfate with chrondroitin, and also evening primrose oil. Glucosamine is supposed to help rebuild joint tissue and the oil helps lubricate the joints. I think you're smart for going the natural route...I wouldn't use the cortisone either. I've also heard that acupuncture can work wonders on dogs (and people) with arthritis. As far as a bed, my dog wouldn't sleep on one he'd only sleep on the hard floor, I think it was because anything soft was too hard to get up from, I tried so many different beds with him and he didn't like any of them so I'm not sure what to suggest to you. Your dog doesn't sound like he has this problem though. :)

Beaglemom
June 7th, 2005, 09:39 AM
My beagle suffers from osteoarthritis of the hips and knees. It got so bad one day that she couldn't even jump up to greet me. It was very difficult for her to get up after lying down. We put her on Sasha's Blend which is all natural and comes in a powder form that you just sprinkle onto their food. She loves it and has been doing very well on it. It has been a year now that she has been on it and we haven't had to give her any other medications for her arthritis. Here is the website if you would like to read up more on it. http://www.sashasblend.com/

As for her sleeping arrangements. She has a wicker basket that she absolutely adores. She has her own blanket that she will drag from her bed to where ever else she wants to sleep. She will sleep on the floor when she feels too hot in her bed. She also likes the couch.

I think the natural way is the best way to go when treating arthritis. There are many products out there.

As Crazy Hippie suggested, acupuncture is also supposed to be very good. I haven't tried it as of yet.

kandy
June 7th, 2005, 12:37 PM
Along with the glucosamine or chondtriton (sp?) you might try a heated dog bed - here is a link to one that you can put either warm or cold water in depending on whether you want a warm or cool bed. I have heard that warmth works well for arthritis. The description on this says that cool works better for joint problems, so who knows? I can't find the other site that talks about filling it with warm water, but the one I have doesn't fill up, you just soak it in water - cool if you want cool and warm if you want the pad to be warm.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=12470&N=2001+22732

This site also has lots of orthopedic beds that you might look at. Good Luck!

happycats
June 7th, 2005, 12:47 PM
My BIL Akita has arthritis, and goes to the vet for shots every 3 to 4 weeks.
He has hardwood floors throughout and felt bad for the dog, so I suggested he take my sons crib mattress and crib sheets (for easy cleaning). The crib mattress is working out great (he keeps it on the floor so Chase doesn't have to jump up, and Chase really loves it :)

melanie
June 7th, 2005, 04:40 PM
you ghuys are jsut wonderful, thansk for taking the time to post, i like to get all the infor i can before i do anything, so you are all very helpful...

chondriton rings many bells here, i am sure that is what she used, andi just remembered the vettelling me to use it if nec, he also uses it on himself (but he uses the horse brand, he says its cheaper for him :rolleyes: he is an odd vet)

i was thinking about a heat pad for her bed, i have been putting in the hot water bottle for her before she goes to bed and take it out when she goes there, she seems to really like it........

happy cat great minds think alike dont they, it was only yesterday i had that thought, a baby matress would be great.... my neice has jsut moved into a bed from crib so i will try and gethers.....

charlie did have a great bed till last month, we went to visit friends and her dogs saw it and tore it to pieces while i was inside, little s$#@$, charlie was quite upset by it, she had that bed for years..... so time for a new one....


again thank you so much, you have helped me so much, i really appreciate the advice and assisstance.

i will let you all know what works for her..... :grouphug: :fingerscr