How to ease arthritis?

[xke4]

Quote:
I was going to suggest meloxicam (Metacam) also. We give it safely to all types of birds at the wildlife centre. Would just check with your vet re:long term use. Used safely for long term with dogs but not sure about fowl.

 

[Miss Lydia]

sourland, I don't think that would work very well...

DSMO is really a great linament, it's very messy if you don't use a carrier so I use aloe vera gel, but if you'll start using it and keep with it it can do amazing things with healing, I use it for Fibromyalgia, but also arthritis, and it is really great on muscle cramps and soreness. You can buy it at the natural food store or oneline it's actually cheaper online. I wouldn't be without it. Much better than taking man made chemicals internally if they can be avoided.

 

[Baybrio]

I use joint supplements made by Animed for my older horses and dogs. Aniflex Complete HA is fantastic. It comes in a powder, I bet you could mix it with crushed peas. I asked the company if the supplement would be harmful for ducks and they thought it should be safe. They thought you should ask your vet for dosage. Since I feed only about a tablespoon a day for a 1200 pound horse, I imagine you would not need more than a pinch for a duck. It does take some time to take effect, like the previous poster said, may take a couple of weeks to take effect.

If you choose joint supplements make sure you buy from a trusted manufacturer like Cosequin or Animed. The supplement industry is not well regulated. I've been using Animed products for years with consistent results. And no I don't sell or in any way profit from the sales of Animed products.

 

[Parrotchick]

I was sorry to hear about Sunny. If you have posted lately, I haven't seen. I know this thread is a few months old but I thought I'd see how she was doing as my Pekin Pong was diagnosed yesterday with arthritis. She had been limping for about 2 months. I would check her out for obvious things and when I saw nothing I thought it would get better like it did last year when she sprained her leg. It was noticeably worse in the past week so I bit the bullet and took her to the vet (been unemployed so to say money is tight is an understatement).

Because we don't know the initial cause and it would cost a lot to only possibly find out, I'm just dealing with what is. She has Cipro in case of infection, Meloxicam for inflammation (I knew I'd heard of it-I had it myself last year for arthritis in my thumb), and clindamycin. I am also supposed to give her Glucosamine, they were out at the vet but said to get it from the pet store in a cat dose, or small dog if they don't have that.

Pong will be two years old in a couple weeks and weighs 6 1/2 pounds. With free range of the yard, she's always been able to exercise. Now I have to segregate her from her 2 best friends, drakes who were post Easter abondonments I got to keep her company when her mate died. The 3 of them are inseparable, a clique unto their own from all the other ducks. The drakes look out for her and are relatively gentle, unlike all the other caddish drake behavior I see. I'm going to have to fence off an area for her with another duck from the other clique, that'll go over so well. I don't want all the females together since I won't be able to eat Pongs eggs because of fthe meds but no way I can tell hers from anyone else's.

Lots of swimming exercise where she can paddle her legs without touching bottom is also recommended. I have a stock tank to use but will have to figure a way for her to get in and out easily. Got some engineering this weekend-can't dig a hole around here without a backhoe (too rocky) so I can't put it in the ground plus then it would be hard to drain. Hmmmmm.

So how IS Sunny faring? (I always think of your sad tale last year about the lady dumping the duckling on the lake last year and I especially worry about all the Easter ducklings bought on impulse)

 

[The Duck ABC's]

Quote:
They have just published a study done by 18 universities and they have found little effect in humans. Works wonders in dogs, just not so much for humans. I have bad knees and the pain was so bad, I didn't know what to do. I had injections, until I found out that hyaluronic acid is what you need when you have this problem. I started taking it and within 2 weeks the pain was so much better. Now it is a couple month later and I'm almost pain free. Try 100mg per day. I'm using this product because it also contains MSM:
Natures-Way-Hydraplenish-MSM-Vcaps

 

[The Duck ABC's]

Joints are lubricated with synovial (sp?) fluids, and the main component is hyaluronic acid. It is a joint lubricant and not a pain med or steroid. I would try to treat the source of the arthritic rather then pain management. I would add 50mg of hyaluronic acid into the drinking water. It comes in capsules so you can take it out and mix it up. You should see improvement within 2 weeks.

Forgot to mention that it is available in health food stores in the vitamin isle. Do not try Walmart, they don't have it. Neither does any of the grocery chains. You best bet is Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Natures-Way-H...=sr_1_59?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1302360212&sr=1-59

 

[ducksinarow]

Ground celery seed works wonders on pain. It is a great treatment for gout which is a form of arthritis. I take about 1/8 - 1/4 tsp daily.

 

[The Duck ABC's]

Gout is caused by salt crystal called uric acid. The celery seeds bind the uric acid and flush it out of the body. It does cause arthritis pain and even arthritis damage, but is not the same as arthritic. They call gout pseudo arthritic. The pain is real and the long term damage will eventually turn into arthritis. Gout is not fun and you have to watch what you eat to keep it at ease.

 

[Easy tiger]

So my pekin has been diagnosed with arthritis in her legs. She's not heavy at all, but is poor genetic quality (from a lake, just some leftover ducks) and only weighs 5 pounds. I would like to take her for walks again around the park, but I would like to know how I could ease her occasional pain. Is there any foods I can give to her?

How did you go with your duck?
I have a friends duck Daisey in my care. We have the space to keep separated.
She is unable to walk , I took her to the vet this week ( not a good prognosis). She has septic arthritis.
I've been giving her warm batjs with Epsom salts. i'm going to buy some glucosamine & i'll buy some cream to put on her left leg.
The vet is talking about putting her down. I'm reluctant to do that.
Hopefully in time she'll get better.
Do you think I'm being selfish.

Thanking you all in advance for any help suggestions.