Large breeds and joint supplements (shepherd, lab, English Mastiff, vet)

[skahar]

We have an English Mastiff that will be 11 this year and she's having such a hard time with her hips. It takes her a good 5 mins to actually stand up after laying down. Our vet suggested we give her baby asprin once a day but that seems to have no effect on it. Has anyone one else used joint supplements that have worked? We have looked but there are so many different kinds and they all say that they will work the best, it seems like a crapshoot. Also we have laxed on walking her for fear it would make it worse, is this a good idea or should we exercise her more, just in shorter more often walks?

[dogpaw]

When my shepherd was having prolems with his hips due to arthritis I started giving him Glyco Flex lll.
It really did help him. You can order it online, or ask your vet. I found it cheaper online.

[FiveHorses]

Originally Posted by skahar

Has anyone one else used joint supplements that have worked? We have looked but there are so many different kinds and they all say that they will work the best, it seems like a crapshoot.

It can be confusing to say the least.

11 is a nice old age for a large breed, so I think you need to be realistic about what can be achieved. You didn't say how long it's been going on for... but I will assume a bit of time anyway.

Some joint supplements might improve matters, but again, it's important to keep her age in mind - i.e. she's not going to turn around and start pinging off the walls regardless of supplement. But it would be nice to make her more comfortable, yes? You can't repair the arthritis damage, you just need to try to lubricate the joints a bit.

Again, keeping realistic expectations and bearing in mind these things can take a good bit of time before you see any noticeable improvement, you could try her on a supplement that has glucosamine, chrondroitin, and MSM (you're looking for one with all three).

It might help to ease her joints a bit - I'd give it a couple of months. The cold up in your part of the world is also going to play it's part... it just does make it harder.

There are propriatary brands out there just for dogs, but (and I did this at the suggestion of my vet) compare the ingredients, dosage, and cost with the human variety. I personally use a human one (generic) for a 85 lbs dog. He gets a human dose once a day. We personally have had excellent results, but he is that much younger (he'll be 9 soon).

The only caveat is that the dog cannot have any fish allergies as chrondroitin is derived from shellfish.

Hope this helps.

Edit: On the exercise... well, swimming is ideal if you know and can get to a hydrotherapy pool. That's in an perfect world of course! I would not advise you to stop walking her entirely - she'll just get stiffer and stiffer from her joints not being used. Gentle exercise in small doses. Let her set the pace and watch for cues she's uncomfortable, if it's a bad day, head home. It's especially important to let her go at the pace she's comfortable at when you first head out - she'll be stiff and sore and she'll need to ease that off first and foremost.

[skahar]

I know she's old for her breed, I would just like to see her more comfortable. I just cringe when it's time to go out in the morning. She's been putting up with it for a year and a half or so, but this winter it's gotten really bad. But we've had a pretty cold winter and she's another year older.

Thanks for the advice, I wonder if, considering it does time for supplements to build up in their system, I should just seek out a stonger pain reliever.

[FiveHorses]

Originally Posted by skahar

Thanks for the advice, I wonder if, considering it does time for supplements to build up in their system, I should just seek out a stonger pain reliever.

For what it is worth: If I were in your shoes, I would. Absolutely. Long-term effects... well, the reality is they're really not an issue, are they? I hope that doesn't sound cruel of me, I'm just being practical.

We had a dog with dreadful, and I mean dreadful, arthritis. He was only young too... but young with no quality of life means nothing in my book. So he got a long-lasting anti-inflammatory injection once ever four to six weeks depending on how bad he was (and the time of year... winter was hard). I figured I'd look after now, Fate can take care of the rest. He died a year or so later of something totally unrelated, so I was always very glad I had made the decision I did. He was, at least, comfortable for the time he was alive.

It's a very personal decision at the end of the day. I wish you luck with whichever path you choose.

[ShelbyGirl1]

Our vet recommended Glucosamine....and it can be bought over the counter anywhere. He said the Target or WalMart brand is just as good as a name brand. It does take about 7-10 days before you may or may not seem improvement. It must build up in the system. I agree...whatever you can do to make her more comfortable in her senior yrs.

[HighlandLady]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGirl1

Our vet recommended Glucosamine....and it can be bought over the counter anywhere. He said the Target or WalMart brand is just as good as a name brand. It does take about 7-10 days before you may or may not seem improvement. It must build up in the system. I agree...whatever you can do to make her more comfortable in her senior yrs.

Yes, here as well. Works wonders on my 9 year-old Lab in the Winter.

[Sillypups]

We started our Rotty girl, who was 6 months old and who had an awful overbite & one of the worse cases of hips our vet had seen all those years ago (1996-1997).
Our vet then told us Cosequin DS was the purest form of this drug.
It straigtened her teeth, and helped her hips pretty well.

This year... we started our almost 10 year old male Rott 125 # and our almost 8 year old female Rott 90# on Cosequin DS.
Since we rescue our Rotties & have no idea where they come from & what type breedin, we ugure better safe than sorry, so we started our 2 year old male Rott 105# on it also.

Our almost 10 year old male Rotty has turned into a pup again. You can tell he feels so much better. He runs like a crazy man again with the puppy Rott. He's like a different dog.

I have never used the other suppl. out on the market, all I can tell you is Cosequin DS gets our vote to improve our Rotts that much.
We buys ours online, best deal we found 500 count chewable tablets for $147.50 free shipping. That is 2 bottles each of 250 count.
It's worth the money, but more so worth our babies feeling great & happy.
discountpetdrugs.comGREAT & FAST SERVICE, TOO.

od Luck

[SD snowbird]

One other thing I did (along with supplements) with my old guy was when it was a really bad day, I would put the heating pad on low and apply to sore areas for short periods of time. Naturally you need to stay next to your baby while doing this but it seemed to help our guy out considerably on really bad mornings.

[FiveHorses]

Originally Posted by SD snowbird

One other thing I did (along with supplements) with my old guy was when it was a really bad day, I would put the heating pad on low and apply to sore areas for short periods of time. Naturally you need to stay next to your baby while doing this but it seemed to help our guy out considerably on really bad mornings.

Excellent advice SD. Heating pad, hot water bottle, anything to provide warmth and help her loosen things off a bit.

One other alternative in the "pain relief and comfort" area you might want to investigate is that of acupuncture. I have not used it for a dog personally, but I do know people who have and extol the wonders it's worked.