Good arthritis meds and treatment for dogs?
 

Hey guys, I need some advice about arthritic dogs since I've never dealt with it before.

Ever since it's gotten cold about week ago Shasta's hips and elbows seem to be acting up. She had trouble getting up this morning and her joints were stiff. I feel really bad for her and I have arthritis myself, so I know how bad she must feel :sad:.I need to know what type of meds I need to be looking at so I can discuss it with my vet, and also if there is anything else I need to be giving her. Right now we've just been leaving the space heater on so she can lay in front of it, and putting her food and water there, which seems to help, but I'm not sure about what kind of supplements, if any, I should be giving her or what kind of good prescription arthritis meds are available for dogs right now. Any advice would be appreciated.

Glucosamine, msm and condroitin helped my old guy a bit.
I did not want to medicate him right out of the start gate as there is side effects to the medications so we went the more holistic way to start but he did end up on meds later on.
Our holistic vet had also recommended pure Apple Cider Vinegar ( not the grocery store stuff, but health food stuff with the "strings" still in it)
This really helped him out, its so good for so many things and all the dogs get it daily in their water here now.
If you do choose to medicate right away, be sure stock up on milk thistle and ACV too. Mostly all medications do damage to the liver and both milk thistle and apple cider vinegar help to repair it.

Shark cartilage too is recommended by many naturalists, however to be honest it didnt seem to help Puppy man out at all. Our best results were from ACV

We use both glucosamine/chondroitin/msm supplements here and salmon/fish oil twice per day. If the salmon/fish oil doesn't have vitamin e added then you need to supplement that a couple of times a week as well.

I would not give the vet presciption meds at all .....if the arthritis gets really bad ask your vet about cartrophen injections.

[url=http://www.nutramaxlabs.com/Vet/Products/Dasuquin-for-dogs.aspx]Dasuquin[/url], which is glucosamine, chondroitin, MSM and ASU, might be something to consider. You can only get it from the vet but I've heard lots of good things about it. I think [B]kandy[/B] uses it for her Newfs.

Poor Shasta! the old gal! just wondering if her records from the previous vet showed anything that helped her? I would agree on the glucosamine as I have heard so many people say they use it and it helps! What about a coat to keep her warm? :D good luck! how is she doing otherwise?

[QUOTE=rainbow;857675]

I would not give the vet presciption meds at all .....if the arthritis gets really bad ask your vet about cartrophen injections.[/QUOTE]

I agree with Rainbow. Long term use (prescription meds) is hard on them. I've been using gluco/chondro pills for years now with the older ones. Bailey is now on the cartrophen injections. Works for some , doesn't for others. It's not that expensive and IMO , worth the try.

as for Bailey , I'm not sure I see any differences with the injections. :shrug:

Hobo has back problems and Ginger is 15 1/2...they both have been on Flex Tabs and Flex Gel from [url]www.painfreepet.com[/url] for the last several years. I swear by them. I have misjudged delivery on three occasions (including right now :sad:) and see a huge difference in both of them.

You live in the States so it will be cheaper for you and definitely worth a try.

There is nothing worse than seeing them suffer needlessly.

Good luck

If you're going to try supplementing with Glucosamine, and you have a choice between Glucosamine Hydrocloride and Glusosamine Sulfate, go for the former for your dog (and the sulfate for human use). Not to be taken if allergic to shellfish and use with caution in diabetics. We also use salmon oil as a natural anti-inflamatory.

Metacam and Deramaxx are hard on the liver and kidneys. I'd recommend a baseline blood test be done prior to starting either of these meds.

I vote Cartrophen injections worth a try as well. We've had a positive experience with it.

I use a glucosamine mixture supplement that is made in Vancouver but prior to that I used Recovery [url]http://www.recoverysa.com/[/url] and it is an excellent product that I would recommend.

Definately salmon oil and I had some good success with green lipped muscle extract although it is hard to find. Lucy has also had cartrophen injections regularly for the past few years and they do definately help her.

Also, non-medicine things like chiropractic and accupuncture (or IMS) can be very helpful if they are available in your area. Homeopathic remedies such as arnica or rhus tox or traumeel [url]http://www.heel.ca/pub/datasheet.jsp?product=28[/url] can be very effective and do not bother the kidney and liver the same way as the NSAIDs do. Lots of people also have success with Zeel (also homeopathic by same co. as traumeel) but I have not been able to try it with Lucy as it might react with one of her liver issues.

We did very well managing the arthritis for a few years but eventually did move to a daily NSAID (previcox). I know that it is contributing to her liver problems (and possible hurting her kidneys) but at this time of her life she is almost fourteen and her comfort is more important to me.

Good luck :goodvibes:.