Worried About Lab

Clonmel1000

Hi All

Have a 12 year old Female Golden Lab. Was always very fit and thankfully no problems with weight. Has got very slow recently and limping a lot. Vet told me it was arthritis and was normally and has given her a course of tablets. Its breaking my heart to see her limping and she seems upset that we cant go for long walks anymore. Is she in pain could anyone tell me. No crying or whingeing from her yet, Thanks

Nody

Have you tried adding some salmon oil to her food?

tk123

Give the medicine time to kick in OP - it takes a while.

Pretzill

When my guy got really bad with the arthritis - the pain killers helped greatly they were pretty strong though - he never let on he was in pain - I also found arthriaid oil on his food helped him too.

tk123

Pretzill wrote: »

When my guy got really bad with the arthritis - the pain killers helped greatly they were pretty strong though - he never let on he was in pain - I also found arthriaid oil on his food helped him too.

That's another thing to watch for too OP - once they DO kick in make sure the dog doesn't over do it and end up back sore!

OP hydro would be great for her joints and would give her some relief too - do you know if there's any near you?

Clonmel1000

very interesting thanks so much for the reply's. What is hysro. Where do I get arthriaid oil? Will she stop limping?

tk123

Hydro = hydrotherapy

Clonmel1000

tk123 wrote: »

Hydro = hydrotherapy

Thank you.

zoe 3619

You could try glucosamine.available in chemists.a friend recommended it,having used it on her dog.she swore by it,and I gave it to an ancient arthritic goat.definitely made a difference.

DBB

Athri-Aid contains glucosamine and chondroitin, I think?
Some other things to consider OP... it's really, seriously important to keep her weight down, so that she's a little underweight. There is nothing like a few extra pounds to really exacerbate arthritic problems.
Secondly, just something your vet might not have considered, I find surprisingly few are tuned into this stuff... It's called Cartrophen, It's given as a weekly injection for 4 weeks, every 6 months (or more, or less, as necessary )
The stuff is super: it helps restore cartilage, it is anti-inflammatory, and it reduces pain. It also has very few side-effects. For me, if I had an ageing and arthritic dog, I would be insisting on my dog getting it, assuming the vet could not come up with a convincing reason why not
So, if you combine the Arthri-Aid or similar, with a weight-loss diet (if she needs it), and Cartrophen therapy, you should get pretty good results.
Be aware that dogs tend only to cry or whimper when they're in serious, acute pain. It is rare, in my experience at least, for a dog with chronic arthritis to whimper despite being in significant ongoing discomfort, unless they give themselves a jag if they move awkwardly.
She does need to keep active, but it needs to be fairly low-impact stuff. So, hydrotherapy, bog standard swimming (she'll need to be kept warm until she dries off), and bringing her for walk s where she can potter about at her own pace, on sand or grass, would be great. You could also keep her occupied more by feeding her from some interactive toys instead of from a bowl, such as Kong Toys and Kong Wobblers, or mineral bottles containing her dry food (others might come along with ways of achieving the same ends )
By feeding her from toys, rather than from a bowl, you're stretching out her mealtimes, thus making the reward last longer. You're keeping her physically active (burning off calories and keeping her joints on the gentle move), and you're keeping her mentally stimulated. Which all reduces her angst when she can't go for long walks

maggiepip

You could also try Ester C, given in high doses it can really help. I give my Lab 1500 mg a day alongside other supplements and Cartrophen injections from the vet.

http://www.yourdoghealth.com/dog_ester-c.htm

Clonmel1000

Once again thank you so much for taking the time to reply to my query

Pretzill

My guy got those injections I think the same ones DBB talks about from about 13 they really helped - however by the time he reached near 15 his hip joints were so bad strong pain killers were the only thing that helped his pain - he took little exercise the last 6 months but I'm convinced the injections and the oils did extend his life. He was a BC but a large one and I always thought he had a bit of lab too -

But he was born with hip problems - and learned to deal with his mobility - the signs of severe pain I saw with him was panting and a reluctance to go on the lead - sometimes a reluctance to get up - so hopefully with your girl the pain killers will help her now -

cocker5

I used to use Arthraid on my cocker, he was limping due to a sore shoulder and found it ok but not excellent. especially given the price.

Now I use salmon oil each day plus some Luposan pellets and he’s doing really well… but some supplements / oil will definitely help your lab assuming its nothing more serious than just old age / arthritis etc.

At 12 im nor surprised long walk are out, 12 is a great age for a lab. My guy is 9 ½ and he has slowed down a bit, he does 6k each night (5 nights a week) but over the last few months we can see him slowing down a bit.

The vet has mentioned the injections and im all on for getting them for my guy but will wait until he def. needs the hopefully not for another few years but sure we will see.

Here what I sue find them great:

http://www.zooplus.ie/shop/dogs/supplements_specialty_food/bones_joints/luposan/129097

http://www.zooplus.ie/shop/dogs/supplements_specialty_food/hair_skin/more_skin_and_coat_supplements/127318

best of luck with your dog X

ihatewinter

Hey does anyone know if there is any side effects with Cartrophen injection as my own dog is starting to struggle in the morning and I was thinking of going to the vets and getting her started.

maggiepip

Cartrophen is really very safe and doesn't have the same risk of side effects which may be caused by NSAIDS for example. My labrador gets a bit sleepy for 24 hours after her shot but my other 2 dont react at all (I have 3 dogs on it now, 2 oldies and my younger collie who has a back issue!) Speak to you vet about it, but according to my vet and everything Ive read about it I would consider it very safe.

aonb

OP, I found too that when my dog was showing signs of the arthritis slowing him down more, bringing him for a few very short walks a day really helped - kept him moving and he didnt mind that the walk was just a pottering amble at his pace (as DBB said) because he was getting x3 walks/day!! Three walks=three serious treats in his eyes! I used to bring him on grass (or just along the road verge) after breakfast, after lunch and again in the evenings - just 10 mins of sniffing and ambling each time - oh and varied the direction each time.

Make sure he is lifted in/out of the car (or you can get a 'ramp') and down off the sofa etc My guy used to give a little 'yip' which signified he wanted to be lifted down off the sofa if I wasnt in the room (i.e. his slave!)