We have a wonderful 9 yr. old Rat Terrier who brings such joy to our lives. This past week, she has had trouble jumping up on my lap while I am sitting in a chair to put her collar on for her 2x/day walk in the park.
A friend of mine has this same problem with her 11 yr. old large dog. The vet gave her pills (I think Demorax) to limber up her legs, which she said helps. However, the pills cost $80 in WV and are for 30 days. Living on a limited income, this is too expensive for us. Does anyone know what to give her that would help her legs? Thank you.
By R from SD
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I have a 16 year old German shepherd/rottie/doberman cross with arthritis. I was told to give her 1 enteric coated low dose aspirin twice a day. It HAS to be coated so it doesn't harm her stomach. It works. I tell you the breed so you can judge the dose based on size; a smaller dog needs less and a larger dog may need more. But NO Tylenol! I would try 1 tablet a day for your sized dog.
The Hartz joint care seems to work, but takes about a week to kick in! So maybe start with 1 aspirin a day for a week and then cut back. My dog only gets it when she needs it now, usually once or twice a week, and when the weather is damp or cold. When she has trouble getting up, or is limping, I give her one. I also wrap it in peanut butter.
Cosequin for sure! I have given it to my 12 year old cat for 4 years and he acts like he's 5 or 6 years old.
You can get both dog and cat product. I buy mine at Amazon. I think the dog's cost less than cats...for my cat it's about 12 bucks for 80 capsules Amazon.com
There is a product sold at Walmart (and other places, too, I'm sure) called Pro-Pet Glucosamine Advanced Joint Care. It costs approximately $17 for a bottle of 60. The dosage is 1 tablet daily for a dog up to 25 pounds. I have a 10 year old dachshund who is also having trouble coming up the steps and jumping up onto the couch where she used to leap up to with no problem. I give her one of these pills a day and she moves a lot easier and quicker. More like her old self. The pills are quite large so I break them up and mix them with some peanut butter and she eats them right up.
But $17 for 2 months vs $80 for one month to me is a no-brainer! LOL. Hope this helps. I get it in the pet supply department at Walmart.
We have our wonderful LuLu who has arthritis and hip dysplasia. She is a 45 lb. lab mix and our vet suggested one or two coated aspirin tablets morning and night to cut costs of the doggie pain pills. We gave her two tablets the first time and she threw up so we just give her one at a time now. This program is helping her a lot. If you can't check with a veterinarian, search online for more advice on this. However, with your smaller dog, I would suggest getting a pill splitter and start with a quarter of one tablet (half at the most) to see how well it goes.
Our 10-year old poodle has really improved since we started him on glucosamine. It takes about 4-6 weeks to build it up in the system, so don't expect immediate results. I went through several forms of glucosamine before I found one he would take without me having to hide it in a piece of cheese. I ended up getting the soft meaty chewables and did a search to find the cheapest price. If you use the aspirin, the small buffered type that's made for human adults taking it once a day for heart attack prevention, it is the perfect size for my small poodle.
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Our dog, Bandit has always been pretty active for an older dog. A couple of months ago he stopped his normal activities (he usually tries to beat me to my side of the bed) and would literally cry out when we'd put a leash on him. I really thought there was no hope.
My daughter picked up a bottle of Hartz Advanced Care Joint Maintenance at Walmart and in days there was a noticeable difference. Now he's back to his old self and we're back to racing to see who gets the bed first. I guess dogs can suffer as much from arthritis as a human.
By Sharon, KY
I use ground glucosamine and msm in my dogs' food daily. I grind them with a mortar and pestle and put them in milk or canned dog food, just enough to hide the pill taste. One pill each for each dog. My 18 year old is still mobile and almost without pain. When the damp hits, I give her aspirin in a hot dog. Corky is a 18 year old Collie Shepherd cross and Casper is a 9 year old Sheltie (04/25/2005)
By Susan from Hamilton
You can order glucosamine capsules for pets from HealthSmart Vitamins.com and they'll probably be cheaper than the Hartz you're now buying. It's worth checking in to. I have been giving them to my 10-year old Shitzu/Pekingese mix for over a year now. When I got him from the local humane society, he could hardly walk. Now, he's bouncing around like a puppy! I'm also giving it to my 7-year old Pomeranian too, hopefully, keep him from getting crippled by arthritis. (04/25/2005)
By Pat Giles
I have two dogs plagued with hip problems. Every morning they each get 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of Knox Nutrajoint in a tablespoon of yogurt, which is dropped on their dry food. One dog was on the verge of very expensive surgery when I opted to try this first. I'm very glad I did; she runs like a puppy again. (04/25/2005)
By Melinda from GA
We have 3 Rat terriers. Two are 10 years old and the other one is 7 years old. I started them on glucosamine chondroitin about a year ago. They each get 1/2 ounce of liquid Joint Care each evening. I just put it on a saucer for them and they lap it up. When I say "medicine time", they line up with wagging tails. I buy a 32 ounce bottle at Sam's Club, and it goes a long way. I believe that it is cheaper than what you find in the pet supplies.
Harlean from AR (04/26/2005)
By Harlean
You can, most definitely, give your dog buffered aspirin. I checked with my vet to make sure. I believe it is 1 aspirin for every 60 lbs. I hope I get this URL right, but I think you can find a lot of useful information on vetinfo.com. I give Lewis an aspirin in the morning and one in the evening. He is 65 lbs.
Our dog is 14 1/2 years old, and he still "demands" his walks, but is not doing as well as he used to. I got him the glucosamine and he spits them out, even when I hide it in food.
The aspirin really helps and there are a lot of human OTC things you can give to dogs. As always, though, you can check with you vet. Good luck with the dog. (05/01/2005)
By Alleen
We buy Hartz Joint Care for our Lab and she hasn't limped since starting! A lot cheaper than the prescription Rimadyl from our vet. Our dog is 6, and still plays like a puppy now! (09/11/2007)
By SK
