need help for dog with arthritis

[waxworm09]

I have a few questions on how to help my dog with arthritis. About 2 weeks ago he started limping a little bit, and over the past 3 days it has gotten worse. He only limps in the morning and after laying down for a while, otherwise he is fine. He is almost 10, could food affect this? The reason I ask, I have been feeding him diamond naturals and nutrisource for the past 3 years. He has never shown any signs of arthritis. A month ago I decided to try some cheap stuff since the food is getting so expensive, so I bought a bag of Tuffys for half the price of nutrisource. 2 weeks after feeding him this stuff is when he started limping, is this a coincidence or could it be the food? I don't think I have ever seen him limp until now. Any recommendations on food that would help or just any good brand? Also what are some remedies to help him? I heard fish oil helps, I found alaskan salmon oil in the pet section but that's it, will that help? I bought hip and joint pills so were gonna try them also. Thanks for any advice..

[LABS4ME]

Good Food is less expensive and better than cheap food with suppliments.

It may be arthritis, it may just be old age and stiff muscles... food may or may not be the cause of it. If I were you, I'd go back to what worked last and find out if it is the cause...

One St. Joseph childrens aspirin is an expensive and safe pain reliever and inflammation reducer.

Good Luck!

Ken

[LatLong]

My first suggestion would be take the dog to the vet. One sign of lyme disease can be coming up lame. I have a 12 yr old lab that has some arthritis. Recently we put him on a steroid(prescription from the vet) to help with it. I've been feeding both my dogs Solid Gold for a few years now and really like how they've been on it. Sun Dancer for the old timer and Barking at the Moon for the pup. They're expensive but I find they eat less and defecate less on this food. With salmon oil you need to add a vitamin E supplement as well(info from a vet tech) to help them metabolize the oil. I had the old dog on glucosamine for a long time and discontinued use as he seemed to scratch less when he wasn't on it. But it did seem to help with his mobility.

[Brittany]

Have you had him checked for Lyme's?

Arthritis-like lameness is a common symptom of the disease, and if you recently switched to a lower-quality food, he might not be getting all the nutrients he needs to keep his immune system at its best... With the number of ticks I've pulled off my dogs this year (even with regular flea/tick prevention) I'd bring him in for the SNAP test.

[waxworm09]

We haven't had him in yet, it just got bad 3 days ago so we were gonna wait til monday and if its not better by then we will get him in next week. The other thing I forgot to mention was on wednesday we took him for a mile walk and it was pretty hot out. Could that affect him? He was fine before the walk and was fine during, it was a few hours after that he was having trouble standing up.

[nofishfisherman]

At this point its all guess work. It could be a lot of things causing the issue.

If I were in your shoes I'd quit quessing and take him in as soon as you are able.

Could be food issue, could be lyme, could be some sort of injury you didn't see happen, could be a lot of other things. Since it showed up rather quickly I'd suspect it to be something more than arthritis due to age. That usually seems to be a slower progression, not necessarily something you just suddenly notice one day to the next. Unless he was getting something that helped him from the food that he isn't getting with the cheap food.

Rarely is cheap food worth the cost. A dog almost never does better on cheap food and it can lead to more issues and more costs in the long run.

[waxworm09]

So far so good on his limping, he got up yesterday morning and was 100 percent better, running around outside with no limp. By last night it was noticable, but pretty minor. Same with this morning, barely noticable and hes moving around very well. Hopefully it was something minor since it only lasted 3 days. It looks like I can hold off on the vet for now?? Thanks for the advice and we are going to get him back to nutrisource and other quality brand food.

[herm]

Has the vet officially said he's got arthritis at a previous visit? If not, I would get to the vet ASAP. Our lab is 4 and displayed similar behavior this spring. We thought it might be arthritis tied to TPLO surgery, plus she had been vaccinated for Lymes, made us discount that. Took her in and she tested positive for anaplasmosis, which explained the limp as well as her peaks/valleys of energy at the time. Personally, I don't think a change in dog food would incur a limp. A change could make a limp better or worse, but I don't think it would be a cause. Good luck!

[waxworm09]

The vet has never said it was arthritis, maybe we should have him checked anyways.. We have been very lucky so far with this dog, had him over 9 years now and he goes to the vet when shots are due. But he has never been to the vet for any health issue. The limp that started last week is the first issue we have had with him since we adopted him at age 1 from the humane society.. Might not hurt to know for sure what the deal is. He was in for shots in June, but I dont remember what he all got. I brought him in for his rabies shot, then she suggested I do another shot and run some sort of blood test, I dont even remember what they were for but I did them all. Ill have to find out Tuesday..

[raymondk]

Have them do the test for heartworm /lyme and the other tick thing both my dogs tested positive one for lyme and the other thing which I forgot the name . very cheap to treat if caught early. One of my dogs did limp when he contacted it but I put it off until his checkup when they did the test. The other dog he had a checkup before he got his nuts cut they asked if I wanted the test I agreed (I got the dog at 5 months old) it costed $11 to treat. And the test was about $30/.

[bottomdweller]

Personally I dont believe in the lymes test, way too many false readings.

I would get my hands on some antibiotics treat for a week to rule out lymes.

put your dog on salmon oil, it really is good for your dog with or without arthritis.

My dog has arthritis from 2 torn acls, she has been on fish oil and really does awesome, used to have her on chondroitin but better results with the salmon oil. I get it at gnc, get the oil without soy in it. Soy is bad, I take the salmon oil myself too.

Depending on your dogs size, mine is around fifty pnds she gets 1200mg twice a day, one with each meal

Just my opinion.

[nofishfisherman]

The lyme test can give some false results but a good vet will also read the symptoms in addition to the test results. They'll give the meds if the symptoms warrant them regardless of the test results.

Really this is still all guess work. A trip to the vet is the only way to find the culprit with any certainty.

[BLACKJACK]

My 9 year old female lab has started limping fairly heavily on her right front shoulder, more so after a long walk or a heavy workout, took her into the vet and he checked out and rotated her shoulder and 'thinks' she has arthritis, but the only way he can tell for sure is to xray the shoulder. Haven't taken her back yet. Was also wondering about lymes, when I had her into the vet, he didn't take any blood or mention Lymes.

Guess I should get her back for the xray, if shes limping like this now, whats going to happen when shes 12??!!

[waxworm09]

Well, we brought him in tuesday. Turns out he has a tear in his acl. However the vet said its a slight tear and probably wont require surgery. She put him on Rimidil I think it is called? Said he should be much better in a few days. Also put him on some soft chews that are loaded with glucosamine 900 mg per chew and said he should take them for the rest of his life, which we will do, but holy s*** are they expensive! Oh well could be worse!

[Ufatz]

Gee! A vet reccomending something that is VERY expensive. Seems to happen every time the sun comes up!

[Cobra]

Give the dog Rimadyl....

Helps with stiff hunting dogs too... Chewable tablets

[nofishfisherman]

At least they didn't suggest ACL surgery, that would have been even more expensive. Check around you may be able to find the glucosamine somewhere for cheaper. Should be readily available online.