Arthritis and Pets
06/09/06

When arthritis is the “limiting” factor in a pet’s life their quality of life deteriorates so gradually that your pet’s golden years can be anything but golden.

The good news is that there are now a variety of therapies that can be used in combination or separately for arthritis in dogs. “Aspirin like” pain relievers are now more effective and convenient to use. When appropriate, more powerful morphine derivative pain relievers can be used in conjunction with the more traditional pain relievers. These drugs, however, have numerous potential side effects.

The most exciting arthritis therapies in our opinion are the “cartilage protectants”. The beauty of these products is the lack of side effects. The injectable cartilage protectant called Adequan® is proving to be very effective in many cases. We have seen remarkable results even with some end stage arthritis cases; however, it works best in early stage degenerative joint disease when there is still some cartilage left to protect. We use an “induction phase” during which 8 injections are given twice weekly for the first month. After induction, once monthly injections are given to maintain elevated joint fluid levels of the compound. Most of us have heard of glucosamine/chondroitin oral supplements which have been shown in some studies to preserve the thickness of the cartilage as well.
We have found Adequan® to be far more effective but it may be a good choice for those unable to bring pets in regularly for injections. We also have a diet rich in Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids as well as oral supplements of same which also have proven helpful.

By far the best arthritis therapy is to keep your pet lean throughout life. Your paradigm for the ideal body weight for your pet should be a long distance runner. The plan can be boiled down to two words: FEED LESS! Good luck.