5 pillars of Arthritis Control
1. Weight Control- Dogs who maintain a healthy weight throughout their lives will, on average, live 2 years longer than if they are overweight. Ten extra pounds on a 70 pound dog can mean the difference between needing medicines in order to ascend stairs or not needing them.
2. Exercise- Exercise helps maintain weight, promote joint and muscle mobility, and help maintain muscle mass. Muscle mass is important for joint stability. Of course, the amount of exercise will be limited by the arthritis, but pain control may help you achieve enough exercise to make a difference.
3. Nutraceuticals- Nutraceuticals are any non-pharmaceutical supplements that are used as medications. Products such as glucosamine, chondroitin, omega-3 fatty acids, and CBD would fall into this category. This category of products are widely marketed in a Wild West of products. There is very little oversight, and I would advise you to go with trusted brands. Nutramax, a veterinary company, has an excellent reputation for quality products and being a science driven company. Cosequin was their original product for joints, but now Dasuquin and Dasuquin Advanced are the upgraded versions of joint supplement. Those seem to be the favorites of the vets I know doing sports medicine and rehab work.
The one product that you will have to purchase as a stand-alone product is Omega-3 fatty acid. Make sure you get omega 3 and not fish oil. There is so little O3 in fish oil that you have to give around 8 capsules daily. The O3 will be on the shelf next to the fish oils. Dose at 30-50 mg O3 per lb body weight of your dog daily.
CBD is the rage for everything these days. While it certainly has been shown to be beneficial for a wide variety of disorders, it is still a greatly misunderstood product. We are just now learning about how it interacts with numerous neuro systems in the body, not just the endocannabinoid system. CBD is another one of those wild snake oil worlds now as well. You may not have any or too much in any product you buy. Nutramax has come out with their Hemp oil product. It’s called Chroniquin. I haven’t gotten any in yet, but I am wanting to try it. Again, this is a company I trust.
4. NSAID- The single biggest bang for your buck, as well as quick acting, will be NSAIDs. They all have some degree of risks, but for the most part, you will rarely see trouble. Galliprant is the newest and seemingly safest one on the market. Some dogs experience some transient diarrhea, but it resolves. Hard to overdose with this product. Meloxicam is the only NSAID that we use in dogs that is also used in people. The good news here is that the smallest human tab, 7.5 mg I believe, can be cut in half for a 75 lb dog and given once daily. So 15 tabs for a 30 day supply, and I think that costs less than 10 dollars. This is touchy, so make sure you check the dose with your vet, because I’m typing from memory. NO STEROID (cortisone, etc.) of any kind should be given concurrently with an NSAID!!!
5. Everything else- Steroids like prednisone can help, sometimes a lot. The problem is that you often have intolerable side effects AND you are limited in how long you can safely give them. I have had some patients start to not do as well on NSAIDS, so I will stop them for a week, give a 2 week blast of steroid, wait 5-7 days and re start NSAIDs. That works well.
Gabapentin is commonly used as well. This helps with neuropathic pain, and has some calming effect as well. The calming effect wears off in about a week as they adjust. Usually 300-600mg twice daily for a 70 lb dog.
Tramadol used to be used a lot, but we don’t think it’s very good now. Dogs don’t have a good mechanism to convert the drug to its active components like people and cats do.
Adequan injectable. Been around a long time and can be a GREAT addition to the aforementioned drugs. Talk to your vet about that.
Lastly, cold laser therapy, physical rehab, accupucture can also be helpful, but you need people, equipment and facilities to do this. If they are available to you, it might be worth looking into.