Arthritis supplements...what really works?

[allthehounds]

Our new girl Lily who is 3 years old has been with us just under 2 months now and is really letting her hair down as you can see below! When we adopted her she had a big calcified bump on her rear right leg near her hock/tibia and it seems that it's an old break. She's tattoed but was never registered to race so maybe the break occurred when she was practicing. She's from Ireland and was rescued from the pound last summer when she'd just turned 3 so she must have broken her leg sometime before that. Our vet has examined her and is happy that there's nothing sinister going on with it but she does already have some arthritis in the joint. She hadn't limped at all since we got her until just recently and I'm not sure if it's the weather as it's quite cold with a lot of snow at the moment or if it's the fact that she's racing around the garden like mad! It's probably the first time since she was rescued that she's had the opportunity to run flat out and she's really taking advantage of it and loves it! It's not a continous limp, mainly in the evenings when she gets up after sleeping for a few hours and she doesn't limp at all when she's running but I'd really like to get her on something for arthritis and wondered what people here have found to work or if anyone's ever had a greyhound with a broken hock. There's so many different things on the market these days that I'd really appreciate some recommendations from anyone in the same boat. Thanks in advance. Sian x

[jodav]

Sorry to hear that Lily has stiffness and a limp at such a young age. Our hound Tracy is 8 and limps in the way you mention ie after a run and then lying down to sleep for a few hours. By the way, her limp seems to have developed after a flat out run on the beach. Initial anti-inflamatory medication from the vet did not good at all and the only thing that helped was PLT tablets (4 per day) She is now down to half a table per day and a liquid supplement I buy online Canine Inflamex I have heard that Dorwest Herbs can help in some cases of arthritis. The limp improves at times but when she runs with other hounds, it shows again Vet can't say for sure where the problem lies just a case of managing. Hope you find supplements or medication to help Lily.

Jo x

[aostra]

Whn my dog started limping(aged 10) my vet suggested Glucosomine and Chondroitin supplements.
She weighed 32 kg and was prescribed (once daily) 1,500mg for the first 4-6 weeks, then reducing to 750mg thereafter. I also give all my dogs organic cider vinegar. They have One tablespoon diluted in half a pint of water poured on their food daily. You can get the glucosomine from Holland and Barrett. The best cider vinegar is organic and unpasteurised possibly from a farm shop or health food store. It is important to dilute it in the water before feeding.
This kept my old dog going for three years. It may help not to let Lily run until she has "warmed up" and got her muscles going by walking for about ten minutes first before letting her off lead.I have three greyhounds and (in the winter especially) I have learned to do this to prevent limping problems. Good luck - I hope you find something to help.

[Mr Roo]

oops, just sent a reply to a pm and by mistake posted it on here quickly deleted ;D

Ben is a bit stiff and limpy sometimes after he has run flat out for too long and is now on glucosamine, it seems better ,if it gets worse we shall try one of the bio flow magnets next.
paulx

[jackie]

If she wasn't limping when you got her and she is now limping she may have just overdone it running around and strained something.

When one of my dogs has had a limp I give them metacam from the vets for a few days to reduce pain and inflammation and rest them for a couple of weeks. That would mean very short walks for the first couple of days, gradually building up to longer walks and no off lead runnng until she seems to be ok again. Don't let her overdo it, it will take time to build up her fitness.

All my dogs have VETVITS. Lucy who is 12 also has a bioflow collar.
LINK
www.healthspan.co.uk/vetvits/flexi-joints-for-dogs/productdetail-p3196941-c3182.aspx

Gorgeous photos, black greyhounds are beautiful I hope Lily is feeling more comfortable and less stiff soon.

[elmuervo]

Lily is beautiful and looks such a happy girl


We are also huge fans here of VetVits Flexi-Joints supplements . Our old boy Biggles gets huge benefit from having them


Jo
x

[brooke1]

She is truly beautiful, my old dog Frankie (crossbreed) had arthritis and I used a bio flow collar on him and also gave him devils claw which seemed to help.

[allthehounds]

Thanks everyone, I knew you'd all come up with some good ideas! That's given me a few options to look into now and to see what works best for Lily. I'll also limit her mad, flat out running during this cold period and make sure she warms up first so thanks again for the top tips.

[Deleted]

I had Cleo on Joint Aid for about five years - she was limpy from quite young, but it helped her considerably up until she was around 9 years old.

www.jointaid.co.uk/joint-aid-for-dogs--500g-p2

[vickyb]

Tried all sorts but the only one that really helped River was Cortaflex - not cheap but it's liquid and so easy to add to his food and he liked it. They have their own web site but you can often find it cheaper other places like vetuk depending on size and strength.
Just be careful if you try green lipped mussel as it can upset some dogs tummies.

At the moment Gracie's having Pro Treats from vet uk as they're a good all rounder and she loves them, they're small, soft and bone shaped. Smell vile but she adores them. Because she has only got 3 legs I decided to use them preventitively and I have to say she's on top physical form right now and loved dashing around in the snow, can't be sure it's them but she's gone from having x rays and possibly an MRI and struggling to walk in oct to being the best she's been since she lost her leg 2 1/2 yrs ago so I'll definately continue with them in case it is them helping her.
www.vetuk.co.uk/joint-supplements-protreat-chews-c-5_4_828/vetuk-protreat-joints-and-mobility-dog-120-chews-p-5647

Once you get over the first 6 wks of loading it - as with any glucosamine, I just give her one a day so a tub lasts 4 mths so not as expensive as they look.

[jodav]

Would just add that we have tried glucosamine supplements - no help, Joint Aid, green lipped mussel and Yumove. Joint Aid upset her stomach, Yumove made no difference, liquid supplements seem to be better digested and helped to some extent. She also wears a Bioflow collar - not sure if this helps or not but not willing to take it off! Haven't tried the cider vinegar yet but it's worth a go. The PLTs are steriod based and a last resort, hence the reason for cutting them down. I think the moral here is that all dogs are different and what works for one doesn't necessarily work for another.

[julies]

I also do a regular check with a McTimoney chiropractor to keep my animals 'straight' so there's no extra stress on joints if they've tweaked their back or whereever .. you can find a local McT by Googling it and they cost around £25 for the first consulattion and £20 thereafter You'll need your vets approval but I just ring my vet and say 'I assume you have no problem with me taking the dog to a chiro for a check up'?

J x

[mtbbuxton]

After seeing it on here and then doing a bit of reading up, I now give Mayo about 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric on his supper and I can't believe the change in him He was getting extremely reluctant to get out of bed for his last walk and had to be literally tipped out! He'd also started to be difficult about his teatime stroll too. After about 3 weeks on the turmeric, he was back to his enthusiastic self and his long term limp had disappeared.  Even the return of the wet weather didn't reduce his enthusiasm.
Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory, so my theory is that he was just a bit sore, but not enough to react when the Vets examined him (I had all three look at him at various times ) I just use the regular stuff from the supermarket.

Moira x

[barbaranixon]

Feb 10, 2013 18:07:21 GMT -5 mtbbuxton said:

After seeing it on here and then doing a bit of reading up, I now give Mayo about 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric on his supper and I can't believe the change in him He was getting extremely reluctant to get out of bed for his last walk and had to be literally tipped out! He'd also started to be difficult about his teatime stroll too. After about 3 weeks on the turmeric, he was back to his enthusiastic self and his long term limp had disappeared.  Even the return of the wet weather didn't reduce his enthusiasm.
Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory, so my theory is that he was just a bit sore, but not enough to react when the Vets examined him (I had all three look at him at various times ) I just use the regular stuff from the supermarket.

Moira x

Joly, who is 10 next month, is getting like Mayo. Sometimes , after an evening snooze by the fire and some mornings , he really hobbles, yet other times he's fine. I'll have to give tumeric a try. Is there a link to dose size, as he's only a little tubby cavalier ?

[mtbbuxton]

I didn't look up a dose just used the small scoop that came with the Plaque Off.

Have done a bit of Googling and come up with the following links, which all seem to agree on around 1/4 tsp per 10lbs/5kgs

books.google

fromharleyskitchen

earthclinic

Seems I can up Mayo's dose quite a bit if needed

Moira x