MY DOG HAS PAINFUL ARHTRITIS

goat2

I have a jack russel 7 yrs old and he can no longer get up stairs on couch or bed, he is a fab pet and ii am wondering if there are easy ways to releive his pain,

i dont want to hear that i should put him to sleep, i love him, he is on metacam 1 mg per day, it relieve it a bit

Buona Fortuna

Hi Goat, just joined the thread for any tips (afraid I bring nothing to the party ), as my boy has just been diagnosed with arthritis as well.

odckdo

Something with green lipped mussel might help - Yumove (Amazon) or Yumove Advance (animeddirect.co.uk) - both made by Lintbells. Or Luposan (Zooplus).

belongtojazz

There is loads of things you can try to help your dog, have a look at https://www.facebook.com/groups/415313751866609/, turmeric is supposed to be a fabulous anti inflammatory
Agree with the green lipped muscle suggestion and also devils claw.

I would also suggest having a chat with your vet, I have a boy who suffers with severe pain and he gets regular courses of cartrophen http://www.cartrophen.com/ they make an incredible difference to his life

lodger222

Maybe ask the vet about the possibility of increasing the amount of metacam .
I hope you find something to help him .

I used to give my dog a little extra every now and then, depending on how he was coping with the stiffness.

DBB

Metacam is not ideal to be using regularly in the long term, and this must be particularly significant for a dog as young as 7... the Metacam could potentially do more harm in the long term than the arthritis itself!
I'd strongly second belongtojazz's recommendation to look into using Cartrophen instead... it is administered by injection once a week over 4 weeks, every 6 months (depending on the dog, the vet may dose more or less regularly). It does not have the same long-term risks as Metacam, and it actually helps to restore the joints to some extent, as well as being an effective painkiller.

goat2

DBB wrote: »

Metacam is not ideal to be using regularly in the long term, and this must be particularly significant for a dog as young as 7... the Metacam could potentially do more harm in the long term than the arthritis itself!
I'd strongly second belongtojazz's recommendation to look into using Cartrophen instead... it is administered by injection once a week over 4 weeks, every 6 months (depending on the dog, the vet may dose more or less regularly). It does not have the same long-term risks as Metacam, and it actually helps to restore the joints to some extent, as well as being an effective painkiller.

yes i have been told by the vet to go easy on the metacam as they are like the asprin to us humans and cause trouble to the organs, and yes i willl have to go after this injection that is given once a week for four weeks so that he can enjoy life again, i feel so sorry for my poor boy and hate to see him this way, will go tomorrow and have a chat with vet,
great to get answers that help on here

kylith

Roughly what would be the cost of Cartrophen?

goat2

kylith wrote: »

Roughly what would be the cost of Cartrophen?

i dont know, but once a week for four weeks would spread the cost, whatever that will be

DBB

goat2 wrote: »

i dont know, but once a week for four weeks would spread the cost, whatever that will be

It is also long-acting, minimising the amount of any other painkillers you might have to use in the months between the injections. Some people whose dogs are on Cartrophen will give them the odd dose of Metacam if their dog is having a bad day, but certainly not on a daily basis

kylith

Sorry, I should have said, I have a dog with arthritis myself, so I'm very interested to hear about the Cartrophen. Rani is on Metacam, but at this stage it really only takes the edge off so something a bit stronger would be great to give her a bit of comfort.

goat2

kylith wrote: »

Sorry, I should have said, I have a dog with arthritis myself, so I'm very interested to hear about the Cartrophen. Rani is on Metacam, but at this stage it really only takes the edge off so something a bit stronger would be great to give her a bit of comfort.

you are on the same mission as i am, to get something that will give a normal life, and this seems to be our best bet, i will be looking into it tomorrow, and hopefully have some indication of the price of this for you

Dubl07

belongtojazz wrote: »

There is loads of things you can try to help your dog, have a look at https://www.facebook.com/groups/415313751866609/, turmeric is supposed to be a fabulous anti inflammatory
Agree with the green lipped muscle suggestion and also devils claw.

I would also suggest having a chat with your vet, I have a boy who suffers with severe pain and he gets regular courses of cartrophen http://www.cartrophen.com/ they make an incredible difference to his life

Seconding turmeric prepared as "Golden Paste" with oil and black pepper for bio-availability. I haven't used it on a dog, only on myself and it certainly seems to ease arthritic and other inflammatory conditions.

Uncle Anti

goat2 wrote: »

I have a jack russel 7 yrs old and he can no longer get up stairs on couch or bed, he is a fab pet and ii am wondering if there are easy ways to releive his pain,

i dont want to hear that i should put him to sleep, i love him, he is on metacam 1 mg per day, it relieve it a bit

Hi all. First post here!
Have you considered accupuncture, I know it sounds silly, but our old collie was the same but 4 sessions of it cured her for a long time. Just a thought.

Hope he gets better. Bye.

kylith

goat2 wrote: »

you are on the same mission as i am, to get something that will give a normal life, and this seems to be our best bet, i will be looking into it tomorrow, and hopefully have some indication of the price of this for you

That'd be great, thanks. Ra is twice as old as your dog so as long as she's not in pain I'm not too worried about the long-term effects of the Metacam as she, realistically, probably doesn't have a 'long term' left. Keeping her happy and pain free is my main concern.

L1m1tless

Oily Sardines can help with their joints, plus your dog will probably love them.

RubyK

Our Kerry Blue also has painful arthritis, and like the op, she can no longer get up the stairs/onto her chair/into the car unaided. It began about 18 months ago (she's 11 1/2 yo now). She started on metacalm, which worked for a while, but she has stiffened up a hell of a lot in the last 6 months, and the muscle loss on her back legs is very noticeable. She was put then put on a tablet (1/2 daily) but now has begun a course of Cartrophen. She has had 3 of the 4 injections, she'll have the 4th one later this week, she is still on the 1/2 tablet twice a day (can't remember the name of the tab). It's only since yesterday that we have noticed a marked improvement in her. She got up the stairs alone yesterday and down it too She is also perkier in herself. Hopefully, she'll continue to make progress. Best of luck with your JRT.

belongtojazz

Just a note on the cost of the injections. I was previously quoted €200 for the course but as my little man came from a rescue we use their clinic which they subsidise and pay about €20 per jab. It isn't cheap but my boy really benefits from the course. He is only 2.5 years old but has had 4 courses already.