Exercising Elderly Dog?

[Aerliss]

Just going to second the painkiller route. A lot of people don't seem to realise that very often arthritis pain can be managed quite effectively for several years with the right pain relief.

Excercise, diet, and supplements will also help but the biggy is the NSAIDS. And once she has some relief she'll excercise more willingly.

 

[chickendreams24]

Absolutely diet and gentle low impact exercise! Swimming would be prefect but otherwise I would suggest gentle walks or talk to your vet for other suggestions. Stretches and such would also be great.

Pain meds as needed.

Glucosamine and chondroitin(check the source of this as some products are derived from sharks which are being killed in alarming numbers) and msm are great things. I have a 13 year old sheltie that blew out both her knees and got Lyme's disease several years back. She gets the highest dose of them that I could find- it's actually in an off brand product sold by Walmart (I'll have to get the name tomorrow). She runs around like a puppy with no pain meds unless her Lyme's flares up. The only thing I don't let her do anymore is the staircase to go upstairs.

My vet also suggested fish oil which acts as a natural anti-inflammatory as well as inproving the coat.

We also love coconut oil for our dogs. I thought it was all hype until we tried it. We use it to season cast iron and I tried it for a skin rash and it cured it within three days, something that I chronically get and have previously needed meds for.

Of course I'm not a veterinarian and you should discuss any plans of yours with your vet to be approved. Also you don't want your dog to gain weight from any supplements you are adding to the diet.

 

[SMorrison7k]

I will do this as well How often should I do this? Or just when I can?

I would try to stretch her 2-3 times a day if you have time!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Do dasuquin and cosequin work or does it have to be 1500? Cause I have and have been using dasuquin

I buy the cosequin DS at Coctco when it goes on coupon for $10 off and stock up. My vet said for dogs to absorb the glucosamine it needs to have manganese in the formulation. He recommended highly against using standard human formulation... and told me they go on sale at Safeway too... so it wasn't IMO just to get me to buy from his business. Doesn't matter IMO if it's 1500 mg if it isn't being absorbed, and I would continue using the dasuquin if you can afford it.

I tried many pain relievers... Other NSIADs, (starting with aspirin before doctor supervision and x-rays that made me cry and understand dogs don't fake pain or limp for no reason) many caused kidney or liver numbers to elevate (this will vary by dog though like with all of our immune systems). plus required regular blood test to check numbers. I am now paying for Galaprant... to the tune of about $100/month, in addition to the tramadol and gabapentin (which are VERY affordable) my 9 year old gal who has bone on bone hips is taking. It is pricey... but she feels Galapran-tastic! HUGE difference in activity level and playfulness. Cost is offset some by not having to pay for regular blood work. Also, I KNOW I can get it cheaper at other locations than my vet, Costco even carries it. AND even though it's my pickiest dog who long tooth's everything... she happily gobbles these up. She will gobble not ANY other alleged tasty pills. So that takes a little more sting out of the cost for me.

I always call other pharmacies... and can always get a better price. I even ask for a 90 day supply (which sometimes is actually 180 days if it's something I can get a higher dose and break in half). My vet's office will TRY to compete with the price I bring them. If they get close I keep my business for that product with them. Otherwise they write the scrip and I fill it elsewhere.

Swimming I agree is the lowest impact. Even a dog who doesn't like the water can be taught to tolerate swimming. With dogs, it's important to remember they do best in short rounds of 15-30 minutes several time verses hours on end of something.

I feel like stretching helps the muscles to stay looser, and passive is good... but it will not change the bone on bone rubbing.

I did also do 6 laser/light therapy sessions. Probably helped some.

I also do fish oil, goes on coupon at Coctco to. I hold the capsule in my hand to warm it and get my dogs excited like a treat. Then they chomp it when I give it to them... and they really enjoy it. We were already doing this, but my vet did suggest it during one of our sessions as well. I have 3 med/large dogs, things add up fast.

Beyond that... I must say, just like our chickens, what you feed is important. My two favorite dog feed are the Kirkland brand and Nutra Nuggets lamb and rice. Kirkland actually has higher quality ingredients ($29/40#) but one of my pups likes the nutra nuggets ($26/40#) so I buy both. The body smell alone compared to those who feed like gravy train or other lower quality feeds is convincing enough. But also they seem to naturally fight off parasites better too. To me both indicators of something...

Wonder how much glucosamine chicken poo contains! And if rolling in it counts as passive physical therapy.

 

[TheGoldenGirlz]

Another thing, try switching the dog’s food to something higher quality like Origen, Acana, or Victor. Within those brands try and buy a formula with fish, it is a “cooling protein” which helps bring down inflammation. It’s also very important to make sure the dog is a healthy weight. Any additional and unnecessary weight will make it even harder on the dog.

 

[Tesumph]

Definitely work on getting her weight down first. I have so far avoided pain medications with my 12 year old golden by carefully monitoring weight and getting him on glucosamine/chondroitin. He gets wellness core reduced fat food (has glucosamine and chondroitin in it) and it works like a charm. He gets stiff in the winter or after rough housing too hard with younger dogs but he is still very active. If he is extra sore I will set him up in bed and give him massages, much to my husband’s contempt hehe.
Keeping them active, giving plenty of squishy beds, and limiting foods are all important. Don’t let her sleep on the hard floor, point a fan at a bed if you have to. If you can ease her into swimming, even better. Many dogs will tolerate being held in the water and slowly walked around while they doggy paddle.

 

[X_and_Z]

One other thing that people forget is to make sure that your dog's nails are properly trimmed. Dog nails affect posture and movement significantly (see link below). Old dog nails seem to grow long so fast, so you really need to stay on top of it.

http://susangarrettdogagility.com/2013/08/cutting-your-dogs-nails-how-important-is-it-really/

 

[PirateGirl]

I have a 13 year old golden. She has had arthritis for years, but everyone she meets thinks she is far younger than she is. Every day she gets glucosomine/chondroitin/msm (the vet says it has to have the msm in it due to the way it's metabolized, they can have human pills, much cheaper than the dog ones), and also gets fish oil (again the human pills, and the vet said up to double the dose it says on the bottle for humans). Swimming is good. Slow walks at their own pace. You can do something like hide treats around the house or the yard for motivation to wander around. I like to take my dog places other than my own yard, I suspect being somewhere new with new smells might be more exciting and more motivation for walking/exploring. She has her choice of beds. I have a ramp to load her in and out of the car because she cannot jump. We have done prednisone (steroid from the vet) in the past, 2 days a week, to help with inflammation, but now we no longer feel it's even needed. Keep the weight down. There is a fine line between enough exercise to stay healthy and overdoing it. The dog knows where this is. We turn around on walks when my dog stops to lay in the shade. We don't go to the dog park or let other dogs around that could jump on and hurt her while trying to play. We have used CBD in the past (may or may not be available depending where you live) and when used as a daily supplement it works well. You need to keep up with it and it takes about a week to notice any results. We don't feel we need that much anymore either. Good luck with your pup.

 

[PirateGirl]

Miss Sunshine turned 13 yesterday!

 

[ShrekDawg]

I buy the cosequin DS at Coctco when it goes on coupon for $10 off and stock up. My vet said for dogs to absorb the glucosamine it needs to have manganese in the formulation. He recommended highly against using standard human formulation... and told me they go on sale at Safeway too... so it wasn't IMO just to get me to buy from his business. Doesn't matter IMO if it's 1500 mg if it isn't being absorbed, and I would continue using the dasuquin if you can afford it.

I tried many pain relievers... Other NSIADs, (starting with aspirin before doctor supervision and x-rays that made me cry and understand dogs don't fake pain or limp for no reason) many caused kidney or liver numbers to elevate (this will vary by dog though like with all of our immune systems). plus required regular blood test to check numbers. I am now paying for Galaprant... to the tune of about $100/month, in addition to the tramadol and gabapentin (which are VERY affordable) my 9 year old gal who has bone on bone hips is taking. It is pricey... but she feels Galapran-tastic! HUGE difference in activity level and playfulness. Cost is offset some by not having to pay for regular blood work. Also, I KNOW I can get it cheaper at other locations than my vet, Costco even carries it. AND even though it's my pickiest dog who long tooth's everything... she happily gobbles these up. She will gobble not ANY other alleged tasty pills. So that takes a little more sting out of the cost for me.

I always call other pharmacies... and can always get a better price. I even ask for a 90 day supply (which sometimes is actually 180 days if it's something I can get a higher dose and break in half). My vet's office will TRY to compete with the price I bring them. If they get close I keep my business for that product with them. Otherwise they write the scrip and I fill it elsewhere.

Swimming I agree is the lowest impact. Even a dog who doesn't like the water can be taught to tolerate swimming. With dogs, it's important to remember they do best in short rounds of 15-30 minutes several time verses hours on end of something.

I feel like stretching helps the muscles to stay looser, and passive is good... but it will not change the bone on bone rubbing.

I did also do 6 laser/light therapy sessions. Probably helped some.

I also do fish oil, goes on coupon at Coctco to. I hold the capsule in my hand to warm it and get my dogs excited like a treat. Then they chomp it when I give it to them... and they really enjoy it. We were already doing this, but my vet did suggest it during one of our sessions as well. I have 3 med/large dogs, things add up fast.

Beyond that... I must say, just like our chickens, what you feed is important. My two favorite dog feed are the Kirkland brand and Nutra Nuggets lamb and rice. Kirkland actually has higher quality ingredients ($29/40#) but one of my pups likes the nutra nuggets ($26/40#) so I buy both. The body smell alone compared to those who feed like gravy train or other lower quality feeds is convincing enough. But also they seem to naturally fight off parasites better too. To me both indicators of something...

Wonder how much glucosamine chicken poo contains! And if rolling in it counts as passive physical therapy.

Thanks for all the info!!!

We don't have a Costco but we do have a BJs. Wonder what they carry.

And I Googled exactly what Penny had typed and apparently they do make a human one with MSM but I do feel better using a dog one. Idk. The dog one is so expensive and my dog is more people sized lol like 147 pounds. Though he should be closer to 130 or 140. Working on that.

Either way though, it hasn't seemed to do much but I also keep forgetting about it so aka I'll start giving it, usually last a few days or maybe a week or two, then I forget it and stop giving it. I need to try again and keep up the dosage this time. But I was also thinking of trying to make Golden Paste. It's tumeric, black pepper, and coconut oil. Supposed to help inflammation.

But with him I'm not sure if the hips are the issue. I think he does have pretty bad hips but I think with him he might have an old ACL/CCL injury and his nails are way too long. Need to work on trimming them.

But he's got a lot of other health problems sadly. :/

And yes good food is important. We rotate and have fed just about every brand haha we do grain free though. Right now he's on Zignature.

Another thing, try switching the dog’s food to something higher quality like Origen, Acana, or Victor. Within those brands try and buy a formula with fish, it is a “cooling protein” which helps bring down inflammation. It’s also very important to make sure the dog is a healthy weight. Any additional and unnecessary weight will make it even harder on the dog.

Good point but that said, from recent reviews I've read, Acana and Orijen have gotten cheaper and added more water so for some it's not worth it anymore or their animals would not eat it. But it is still a good food.

I could never justify the cost though even before they changed the recipe but I have a 140 pound black Lab/Great Pyrenees mix.

There are other great foods though that may be more affordable. Personally I always recommend grain free foods but Victor is great even the grain formulas.

We've done Evolve, Newman's Own Organics, Rachel Ray, Pure Balance only available from Walmart (actually surprisingly good), Horizon Pulsar, NutriSource, Earthborn Holistics Primitive Natural (only formula we've tried), Canidae, Merrick, Zignature, Fromm, Victor, Wellness CORE, Taste of the Wild, Blue Buffalo, etc. All are good but I personally love NutriSource, Zignature, and Earthborn. My dog stopped eating Victor but it is a good food and they have a formula with Glucosamine and Chondroitin in it. Canidae made my dog have lower energy but it is also a good food.

We would still be feeding NutriSource if Chewy didn't stop carrying it. He likes Lamb which isn't available in stores by us, only the chicken or seafood ones or grain ones. We buy Zignature at our local Agway as it's anywhere from $7 up to $10-$12 cheaper than Chewy or Amazon. Chewy used to be the cheapest around but now is the same price as the pet store on a lot of foods unless you do AutoShip which we don't cause we rotate flavors and brands.


We also fed Purina, including ONE SmartBlend, Beneful, ProPlan, etc. Before I learned about good food like 4 years ago and I don't recommend any of those.

But there are lots of great quality foods without spending $100 a bag.