2 year old husky has arthiritis

[juliefurry]

We just adopted a female 2 year old husky from a shelter in Illinois. She was a stray but from what they can tell she was pretty well taken care of. She is 47lbs, so she probably wasn't a stray for TOO long. Anyway, the vet that I took her to today said she seems to have arthritis in her back legs and he gave me a free sample of doggie pain killers. He said that if they work we might have to put her on them long term, and change her diet to a joint care diet. Does long term mean for life, or just a matter of years? Will the change in diet have any affect in the arthritis, or just the pain killers?

[bubbatd]

Did he check for hip displacia ???? I'd check into it before going the pain pill route. How does walk ??? Does she ever get into the "frog" position when lying on her tummy ?? (a good guide to hip problems).You may want a second opinion after you've had her a while. Meantime, go with ascription instead of a heavy dose of pain pills.

[moe]

heard good reports about this product, a friend in america has huskies a couple of which have arthritis, says it has been marvaloussyn-flex (http://www.syn-flex-glucosamine-for-arthritis.co.uk/)

Mo

[Renee750il]

Don't let the vet talk you into Hills'/Science Diet "joint care" food. It's not, and it will cost you as much as feeding something that will actually support good health. Mordy can undoubtedly give you some excellent nutritional guidance for your pup's problem.

Bubbatd's right on the money with the Ascriptin, too! Our vet had us treat my German Shepherd with it when he got old and had arthritis in his neck. It really seemed to do the trick for Purdue. So well, in fact, that the day he died (in his 16th year!) he caught a starling in the back yard.

Let us know how he's doing . . .

[juliefurry]

Does the ascription have to be prescribed by her vet? I've seen some pain killers for dogs at the store. I don't want to put her on the science diet just because I have heard bad things about it.

[bubbatd]

No, this is the regular over the counter coated aspirin with maalox. I really don't know the dosage for a 47# dog.....I give one but Chip is over 90#s and I don't think you can split them. Maybe the druggest could help you. Don't know if there's an equivilant for children. Just don't let them talk you into a baby aspirin ...it has to be coated and preferably with an antacid. Checking with your vet is the best bet when you go in Tuesday.

[candy722]

If you go to the pharmacist they can also tell you the dosage. That's what I did with Toki and he weights 6 lb.

[juliefurry]

The dog (we named Shelby) walks really good. She seems to have trouble getting into sit and lay down though. It takes her some time she puts her back end down really slow. She never gets in the frog position, that I have noticed. Right now the vet gave her rymadel for the pain. She gets half a pill twice a day. She doesn't really run though. Unless she gets out of the house and someone is chasing her, or I'm on a walk with her and I make her.

[juliefurry]

oh yeah...she was never tested for hip dysplasia but when she is spayed the vet is going to get x-rays of her hind legs.

[Kesh]

Both of my dogs have arthritis and one was on rimadyl and the other etogesic. I would be careful of putting a two year old dog on either one of these unless it was absolutely necessary. The drugs can be very harsh on organs with long term use. As far as the Science Diet goes- I have read a couple of articles that stated that specialty foods aren't the way to go, because the supplement usually is not enough. It would be better to do glucosamine supplements, than pay premium dollar for joint care food. Arthritis is really hard. It tears my heart out to watch my golden walk slowly, etc.

[juliefurry]

I know how you feel. My grandma's dog had arthritis really bad and he couldn't get up or down stairs. He had to be lifted into and out of the house when he had to go out. You can just see that it hurts them, and if something hurts them then it hurts you too (sometimes even more than it hurts them).

[NashNRudysmom]

Rudy the lab is 5 yrs old and when he plays rough, that night and the next day he is one hurtin' baby. At first I thought it was hip dysplasia; he was xrayed at 1 year and the vet then said no signs but keep an eye out since some of his litter mates had been diagnosed with HD. (Rudy is a rescue but as a pup and we have contact with litter mates)

So I follow Grammy's advice (always listen to your mother THEY say), and use ascriptin when he shows signs of pain, and within an hour 1/2 he is so much better. Rudy is 105 lbs and I give one pill.

[Barb04]

Have you tried using Glucosamine/Chondroitin? I give CJ 1 tablet of the triple strength daily which helps. Occasionally she gets a baby aspirin.

[moe]

I routinely give my dogs Glocosamine/Chondroitin, from being puppies, its wonderful at building cartledge and helping prevent Arthritus.

Mo

[juliefurry]

thank you for all the suggestions on how to help my Shelby. She seems much better though. Sometimes she will be sore but not all the time. My friend got me some ascriptin for her. I have never heard of that stuff until everybody here has told me about it. So she gets one of those if she gets sore and painful.

[showpug]

I agree with Kesh. I would buy a top quality food and invest in supplements that have a high enough dose to be beneficial. Pain meds. can be harmful on the kidneys if used long term. If your dog is not lame, I would stick to a healthy diet and an arthritis supplement. A good combo is glucosamine, chondroitan, msm, and vitamin C. There are many supplements that are over the counter with this combination in one pill. My older male pug has some joint problems and really started to stiffen up and slow down until I put him on this combo...now he is jumping off the walls and going for his ball again! :D

[juliefurry]

I'll look into the supplements and stuff for her. She's on Innova now. I've noticed that she hasn't been in really bad pain though (She has stopped trying to attack us if we touch her hind legs).

[Renee750il]

Cat's Claw is very useful for arthritis, as is Noni juice. You sometimes have to try different things, as what works for one doesn't necessarily work for another. Keep up with the good food (I know you're going to ;) ) You might even try giving Shelby some raw chicken for a daily treat. Poultry cartilage is a good source of glucosamine, and a natural source is always better than a pill.

[huskydogbeds.com]

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[Renee750il]

Brave dog you've got there! Give Kixs some extra love from all of us at Chazhound. Love to see you tell us his story in the Dog Stories forum!

By the way, have you seen Love4Pits photos of her new Husky litter? In case you're not familiar with her yet, she's a professional musher and is also the kind of breeder that we're all proud to know. Since you're a Husky fan, you'll love the new puppy pics.